How many times have you
picked up an old Parker shotgun and looked at distorted or
mangled screws after someone tried to dismantle the gun?
Anyone who has looked at even a few Parkers has seen them, it
may be the biggest problem of all for Parkers.
There is one simple thing to
know to avoid adding your Parker to the list of Parkers with
"buggered" screws - use the proper screwdriver
and take some time getting the best fit to completely fill the
slot before trying to turn the screw.
The question of what
screwdriver to use was asked on the PGCA forum and the recommendation
was to hollow grind them to fit or to purchase a good hollow
ground set. The sets sold by Brownell's received favorable
comments.
The Brownell sets will have a tip that fits, with the exception
for the unhooking pin screw. That screw slot is so small that a
set of jeweler's screw drivers is required. The Brownell's
tips don't need to be ground but you definitely need both the
"thin
set" as well as the "super
set" screwdrivers.
The goal when selecting a screwdriver is to completely
fill the screw slot; side to side, depth and width.
The very first thing to do is to clean the slot of any
debris, rust, dried hard oil or whatever else might be in there.
Toothpicks are a good start but if you need something more
aggressive, a dental pick can be used. Once the slot is clear of
foreign matter, find the tip that best fits the slot. The width
of the slot may not be completely filled but it is best if it
is, the closer the better. It is critical that the fit of
the depth and side to side spaces of the slot be completely
filled by the tip, otherwise there is a good chance of burring
the screw head. This is why the common wood shop or mechanic's
screw drivers, with wedge tips, should never be used on your
Parker screws.
One screw that is often seen damaged is the "joint pin
screw". Unless there is a very good reason to remove this
screw, like a severely damaged "joint roll", it is
probably best to leave it alone.
If a screw head was "buggered", it may be possible
to repair it rather than replace it. Don't file off the
burrs but rather just peen it
back into place. Filing removes the metal but a
"buggered" screw head has all its metal intact, its
just not where it should be. With a little care, the metal
can be persuaded back into its proper position. Turn the
screw back into place and very lightly strike it with a small
peen hammer using various size brass punches. Tap it lightly and at an angle to work the medal in
the direction you want it to move and the vast majority of the
burr should be returned into its proper place, leaving a fairly
decent slot - not perfect, but decent.
A link to Galazan's
might be useful for those times when screws are so badly damaged
they need to be replaced. They do sell a set of Parker action
screws. They will need to be final fitted because the heads are
extra long.
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