Here’s your chance to get a deal on an American classic and a great vintage bird gun. For reasons I’ll explain below, this regular looking 12g VH-grade Parker is really a super hard-to-find shotgun. It’s in Gunauction.com now, and it has No Reserve. The listing ends November 1, 2020, @ 5:07pm.
While 12g VH-quality Parkers are easy to find, most of the ones out here weigh around 8 lbs. Some come in at 7.25 – 7.5 lbs. Very few are as light as the one you see here: 6-pounds, 12-ounces.
Why? Because this 12g Parker was built on a 16-gauge action.
On Parkers, each gauge was built on a range of different sized frames (AKA actions). These frame sizes correlated with the gun’s weight.
On hammerless 12-gauges made in the 20th-century, the standard frame was a #2. Lightweight, hammerless 12s from this period were built on 1-1/2 frames. When someone ordered an ultralight model, it came on a #1 frame — the standard frame for 16-gauge Parkers.
PARKER ~ VH GRADE 12-GAUGE, 26″ VULCAN STEEL BBLS, CYL/MOD, #1 FRAME, SOLID SHAPE & READY TO HUNT!…MFD 1918: NO RESERVE!! Here’s a Parker Brothers VH Grade Hammerless Side-by-Side 12-gauge shotgun. This gun is built on the light #1 frame and has 26-inch Vulcan fluid steel barrels with 2-3/4″ chambers. It features double triggers, extractor, and automatic safety. Overall condition is very good although the metal finish shows wear and the stocks have been repaired/refinished. The barrels have not been cut and the chokes measure Cylinder (Left/.000″ constriction) and Modified (Right/.019″ constriction). The original finish on the barrels shows handling wear with various small nicks & dings but no dents. The finish is thin at the rear part of the barrels but I’d grade the barrel finish at about 65% overall. The finish on the frame has worn mostly to silver but there is some original case colors visible internally and in the most protected areas (inside the trigger guard, under the top lever). The serial numbered parts are matching and the screws are all nicely timed. The wood is quite sound but has been refinished and the checkering recut in the past. There are a couple of small chips along the upper tang and a small tight crack running back from the rear of the upper tang. A small chip is missing from the toe of the original dog’s head hard rubber buttplate. Length of Pull measures 13-7/8″ to the forward trigger; Drop @ Comb is 1-1/2″; Drop @ Heel is 2-7/8″. Weight is just under 6-pounds, 12-ounces. The mechanics are in good working order and the gun locks up tight with no signs of being off face. The triggers, safety, and extractor all work properly. The gun is just a little stiff to open which should improve with some shooting. The bores are bright and free of pitting, dents of bulges. The barrels “ring” when struck indicating the solder joints are solid. The serial number indicates this Parker VH was manufactured back in 1918. This would make someone a pretty decent vintage upland game gun!
