I use a full length Parsons scope on my sixty pound slug gun. Have to be very careful when handling it. One little bump could damage the scope severely. 

       Joe.

marlinguy wrote on Nov 18^th, 2013 at 11:43pm:


I can only say that your definition of "factory installed situation" is far more restrictive than mine.  I think it's reasonable to regard any gun returned to the factory for modification as equally as "original" as another gun that left the factory in that particular configuration. (Such as a Stevens barrel with a slot returned for D&T.)  Not only is such a factory-modified gun 100% original, in my estimation, it is to me far more interesting because, compared to an unmodified piece, it has a "history"--the original owner used the gun, thought of ways to improve it, had the work done.  Mint guns, suggesting little or no use, are certainly worth more than those with a "history," but personally I find them boring.

One of my own favorites is a Low Wall that left the factory in 22 Short & was returned a few years later to be rebarreled in Long Rifle. I like it better knowing some previous owner took the trouble to have this work done.  This barrel is D&T, with markings at 1 o'clock, & a rear sight slot--which Win. actually charged EXTRA to omit--so I have no idea whether the blocks are original; factory records don't say so, but they are often incomplete.  (This gun is shown on p. 58 & 108 of Campbell, Vol. 1; how I got it, a long story.)

Good points Val.
The Westinghouse fire near the end of WWI that destroyed most of the Stevens records makes a determination of factory work performed on a specific firearm a difficult task at best.
The WRA records that exist have their gaps and often omit a number of details.
I don't think it is all that easy to get letters detailing the work performed on specific firearms by Schoyen and the other old masters either.
We all hear plenty of stories, many that are quite amusing, about the supposed history of a firearm that a seller wants to move off of their table at a show and elsewhere, but verifable provenance is hard to come by.
Just because the factory could have done it, and the work appears to conform to factory standards, don't make it true.
Buyer beware.

slumlord44 wrote on Nov 20^th, 2013 at 9:47pm:


You ain't alone.  

Before I'd learned enough to trust my own judgment, going "by the book" caused me to turn away from some rare guns (like, possibly, that checkered Favorite) which turned up at shows because they didn't conform to what was supposed to be "right."  (A M1922 Springfield stocked as a service rifle, a Low Wall with an experimental take-down mechanism, & others I'd like to forget.)  Because someone knew the right people in a factory, or worked there themselves, or merely because money talks, there are plenty of "undocumented" guns in circulation.

I guess it depends on the specifics , am not a dealer and don't expect to make profit on any gun. Buy and use what I like that’s all, don't use it get rid of it. They all sell sometime might as well be when I am through with the gun.

In a trade paired with something else I acquired an altered Ballard,  CC Johnson, everybody told me it was collectable and we know the Johnson barreled guns will shoot. Sat unsold for several years until it passed on to a friend of mine at a good price. He's very happy with it & how it shoots, but had it been unaltered it would have sold in weeks not years.

Just bought a Parker VH 12 gauge shotgun, large dealer 75 Parkers for sale, at least a dozen VH's with the configuration I wanted.  Ended up passing on all the altered and restored guns for all original untouched.  At least 500 dollars more than the same gun with non factory recoil pads even more that 500 spread than Parkers with cut barrels or altered chokes.  Restored worse than altered they were priced half original finish guns. Dealer told me untouched goes fast altered sits and waits for the bargain shopper.

Same dealer last year had a fairly nice High Wall in 32/40, recently drilled for scope blocks, he was anxious to move the gun been on his racks for a long time. Friend of mine who is not a collector bought it to shoot for what I think is a very good price. No blocks would have been a lot more and sold quick.

That's  my limited experence, take it for what it cost.

Boats

I have to agree with Marlin guy. Guns with period correct modifications sometimes interest me as much as an original depending on condition, price, and rarity. My Stevens Bisley Model has a Parker Hale liner and British Martini sights and I would not part with it because it is an extremely rare model and the modifications were done in England back in the day and the gun was made specifically for the British market.

westerner wrote Quote:

Joe,
I can see where a sixty pound slug gun falling on top of a long scope would do some damage.      

Go with lighter weight rifles and the Parsons long scopes hold up just fine.
Here's two long scopes on two different Stevens rifles, all dovetail mounted, and they handle just fine when stretching my legs out in the woods...

Joe,

Know what you mean, 60 pounds has too much mass to move when you bump the scope. 
The optics of the Parsons long scopes are nice and brite compared to others.
Don't know what Stevens long scope you have but here are the instructions from my old Stevens Scope catalogue:

       INSTRUCTIONS
       All telescopes are furnished with cross-hairs. If, after the telescope is mounted, the cross-hairs do not stand perfectly level, unscrew the eye-cup and draw out the eye piece far enough to grasp with thumb and finger, then turn to proper place and push back, screwing down cap firmly. The letters UP marked on the brass tube, indicate which way the tube should be placed. The eye piece can easily be drawn out with a knife blade inserted in the groove in extreme end of brass tube. The eye piece should never be taken apart, as there is little or no chance of dirt getting inside. The eye-lens can be cleaned without removing it.
       No. 368 telescope has external adjustment of cross-hairs, forward of rear mount. Loosen the screw and move forward or back to focus and to right or left to level the cross-hairs.
       The object lens (in forward end of tube) should be taken out and cleaned occasionally. This can be done by removing the front cap and stop pin; remove focusing screw (if it is a focusing telescope), insert finger and draw out brass tube. Clean with a piece of worn cotton cloth, or linen handkerchief. If the forward end of tube is fitted with a cork, it will keep the telescope comparatively free from dirt.

Don't know if they will help, but they do give a fun glimpse into times past.