1922 GHE Damascus

[john besse]

I recently bought a Parker GHE 12ga with damascus barrels. I've read all the opinions on the hazards of shooting these old timers as they were intended for black powder loads only and can't handle smokeless pressures. I've also read Sherman Bell's series of articles that would seem to cast some doubt on the conventional view. Anyway back to my GHE. The barrels appear to be 4 iron damascus but according to the serial # the gun was manufactured in 1922, long after nitro loads were the norm. Obviously Parker was confident the barrels were safe with smokeless loads.

Is my gun an oddball or did Parker normally make damascus guns this late?

JohnB

[Bruce Day]

Till 1926. Your gun has likely never seen black powder. It was designed for the new smokeless powders that were gaining popularity by 1889. Trap meets were requiring use of smokeless powder starting in the 1890's. Your gun would have been patterned by Parker with 3 dram equivalent of dense smokeless powder and 1 1/8 oz of shot at about 1180 fps.

From a Parker catalog in the approximate year your gun was made. Nitro powder is smokeless powder. I don't know why a person would shoot black powder through a Parker unless they wanted nostalgia or smoke effect for some reason .

[Dean Romig]

But that is pretty late for a Damascus Parker. The very late 1920's saw the last Damascus barreled Parker produce\d.





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[Bill Zachow]

My damascus GH 12 was made in 1927 and carries the Parker Bros overload proof stamp on the barrel flats. Yep, they can easily handle smokeless powder.

[GH-16]

Originally Posted by Bill Zachow

My damascus GH 12 was made in 1927 and carries the Parker Bros overload proof stamp on the barrel flats. Yep, they can easily handle smokeless powder.

I'll add a caveat to this statement.

Yes Damascus barrels can handle smokeless/nitro powders: As long as the barrels are in good shape with good wall thickness and the pressures of the ammunition being used are within the guide lines of the era the barrels were made.

There are many of us here who shoot our Damascus Parkers on a regular basis. I'm sure almost all of us have inspected our barrels to make sure they are safe to shoot. I'm currently working up some non-toxic loads to use in my twist barreled Parker short 10. These will be used this fall in Colorado & Oklahoma on sandhill cranes. Hunting with these old Damascus barreled guns just adds extra flavor to the overall experience.

Have a competent gunsmith who knows Damascus barrels inspect them, then buy some ammo from RST and enjoy shooting your gun.

[OH Osthaus]

Paul

are you going to get your loads tested, and will you be willing share the results?

[GH-16]

Originally Posted by Rick Losey

Paul

are you going to get your loads tested, and will you be willing share the results?

I've had quite the debate with myself over having them tested. I'm closely following a published recipe out of the BPI ITX manual. The load calls for 44gr blue dot, 1 3/8oz ITX original-10 shot in a roll crimped Cheddite hull = 1200fps @ 7300psi

I am going to shoot some of these tomorrow & run them over the crony. Will let you know my thoughts afterwards.

[Bill Murphy]

How many #10 shot are in a 1 3/8 ounce load? Show us a picture of the pattern sheet.

[Craig Larter]

For Sandhills aren't we talk8ng about #1 shot. They are big birds

[GH-16]

I should have been more specific.

The shot size is #2 I counted an average of 147 pellets of ITX #2 in the 1 3/8oz

The manufacturers name of the shot is ITX Original-10

I will pattern these at a later date.