1883 Side hammers needed

[Jeff Bell]

Hello everyone. I just inherited a 1883 10ga top hammer Parker. It is in slightly rougher shape due to rust on the outer barrel area and it is missing the left hammer and screw.
Questions are.. Where can I find a replacement hammer (or set) and what is the best way to recondition the rust on the outer barrels?.
Attached are pics I feel may be relevant but I have others if need for anyone to assist.
I think this is a beautiful gun and really want to improve it more .

[B. Dudley]

The gun is severely off face. You will not want to shoot the gun at all in its current state without getting that addressed.
Hammers can be found. I may have some used ones on hand. And I also have new cast pairs that would need fitting and finishing.

Note that all of the hammers are a little different from gun to gun, so if you fine one, it will not perfectly match your existing one. But it will function.

The barrels are not so much rusted as just turned brown from age and patina. They are what they are.

[Dean Romig]

The barrels, as Brian says, are so far off face and the doll’s head is such a poor fit that one wonders if those barrels are even original to the gun.
The barrels can be refinished to look new but that would be ill-advised until after the barrel wall thickness is measured by someone who is expert in doing this…
Then there is the issue of it being off face that needs to be corrected by a prifessjonal.

If Brian doesn’t have a matching hammer for your gun, contact Joe Breda by sending him a PM, who makes reverse engineered hammers to match. You will need to send him the right side hammer to reverse copy… and he can have it engraved to match as well.





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[Bill Murphy]

Do the serial numbers on the left side of the barrel lug match the serial number on the flats of the action?

[Jeff Bell]

When you guys say the barrels are "off face" what do you mean? This is not a term I am familiar with. Also, "dolls head"? Not familiar with that either. I am starting to learn a lot from these threads.

[B. Dudley]

The barrels do not close down tight on the frame.

[Dean Romig]

Or the breeches of the barrels don’t close against the breech face of the frame as well as the other contact points of the barrels and the frame such as the hook and roll joint, the foreward face of the rear lug against the corresponding face of the frame in the slot.
The doll’s head is just cosmetic but the gaps around it cretainly bring into question if the barrels are even original to the gun… or how much abuse it had suffered at the hands of a ham-handed farm hand.






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[Austin J Hawthorne Jr.]

Odd, isn't it, that the barrel steel type is not engraved on the rib?

[edgarspencer]

The shortcomings Brian and Dean noted do need to be addressed, but the gun appears to be a nice Grade 1 10ga, and the barrel legend that Austin refers to is quite a departure from the normal inscription, and lack of barrel steel (Laminate) and matting. It's definitely worth the effort.