doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Parker Records

Perhaps when my legs are gone and I have more time on my hands, I'll join the Parker needle in a haystack hobby - but until then, I'll concern myself with real gameguns.
You know, ones for the field and not for their serial numbers.

By the way, Mr. Old Shooter, do you consider it a negative situation that I and other Parker researchers post on the PGCA and other forums to contribute information about Parker shotguns and their history and provenance? You fail to understand that Mr. Hallquist, who started this discussion, has a bad taste about those who have missing records and do not share them. I share his feeling, but, obviously, you misunderstand the whole concept of the "black hole of curatorship" and disagree with those of us who choose to share our research material. Oh, well.

Dean - Your comment means nothing to me given you are the chief brown noser of the PGCA BB.

Bill - I have repeatedly seen you make reference to your copy of the order books. Don't tell me now you don't have anything other than the avenue of ordering a letter.

Ed - The point I made is simple but I'll restate it. The PGCA has a lot of good guys in it and provides a great resource for research. But the idea that it's where the buck stops is flawed. Further, the fact (yes, fact) that some PGCA members have access to, and ownership of, more information (e.g. copies of records) than others is kinda sucky. Is it the spoils of war? Perhaps.

GregSY, you are absolutely wrong in your statement about my statements about "my copies of the order books". The powers that be at the PGCA know that I don't have any copies of the order books and the researcher at the PGCA knows that I send him checks to verify the provenance of my guns. Dean is a regular member of PGCA, a friend of mine, and not much of a brown noser, in my experience. I will make the same offer to you that I made to Mr. Old Shooter. Please introduce yourself to me so we can communicate on a level playing field. I think you are seriously mistaken in your opinion of the PGCA and its members. Yes, the PGCA researcher who processes the letter requests has full access to the records. How else would you have it? I'm sure now that Daryl Hallquist is sorry he ever started this thread because he is a serious researcher and understands what is going on here. Again, Mr. GregSY, please introduce yourself by your proper name and residence.

Well GregSY, everybody is certainly entitled to their opinion and yours, as you allude, is based on your having read my posts on the PGCA BBS. In my own defense, I suck up to nobody, never have, never will. I have no reason to. I am no expert on Parkers and have stated so on numerous occasions. I am a student and likely always will be. I am a friendly, outgoing sort and if you mistake this for "brown-nosing" I am sorry that this is your perception. But you know eightbore's true identity and you know mine but we don't know yours so, like Bill, I ask you to whip off that mask of anonymity and lets know your true identity. I like to know my accusors.

Regards, Dean

I would like to thank Ed Muderlak for giving a factual explanation of how the present wealth of information about Parker history was accumulated. I have given this chronology several times on more than one web forum but found it refreshing that Ed gave his time to repeat this old information while I defended myself against accusations of favored treatment. Ed has available in his quiver a full chronology of PGCA achievements and transgressions and has shared them on this and other forums. He has been on both sides of the creek and chooses, as I do, to take the high road when describing the PGCA. We both agree to some extent with some of the naysayers on this thread that research material should be more available. However, there is some cost entwined with research, and the "letter at a price" has been the agreed upon solution by more than a few holders of research material. Some examples are Colt, Winchester, Boss, L.C.Smith, Marlin, Purdey, Greener, Cogswell and Harrison, Fox, Savage, Holland and Holland, Parker, I could go on and on. If I knew some other way to do it, I would suggest it here. I'm not known as someone who would keep my ideas to myself. In addition, I don't see any way that the researchers at Boss, Cody, PGCA, Holland and Holland, you name it, could possibly process the letters without having some access to the records like GregSY seems to object to. Sorry I got off the subject of thanking Ed Muderlak for his comments, but my comments are related to Ed's posts which mirror my own. Bill Murphy

Classic example of Lowell not having a dog in this fight and sticking his fat nose in where it doesn't belong! You bring nothing to this thread, but yet you find it necesary to throw mud on gentleman that research and collect an American classic!
I sense a bit of Jealousy!!!!!

My hat's off to Ed, Bill & DAM16 for laying this topic bare. For me, I think it's great that I can send a small check & get the research info that is available on a particular gun. Sometime, I wish that there was more info available but when I get the letter I've got to assume that's all there is. I order letters from Fox & L.C. Smith as well and include them when I decide to sell or trade a gun. The guys who did the research did so with their valuable time with little or no remuneration. The checks that I make out for Parker letters are made out to PGCA and not to Mark Conrad or any other person. So I've got to assume that the money goes into the PGCA coffers for the support of the organization and all the good things that it provides. I have met most of the researchers at the PGCA annual event and the Vintagers and they all seem like great guys with a shared interest. I have never known a single one to brag about his knowledge or holdings.

Just My Humble Opinion.......George

Thanks George for the kind words. You humble me by including me with those two. I ride on their tails to be sure. Everything I know is the result of their hard work along with the work of other Parker experts.

Thanks, George. For a guy that got a bit of a rough start, you seem to have turned out OK. Maybe we'll see you at the Southern this year. Yup, I'm in pretty good company with Ed and Dean. I notice that fellow didn't accuse Ed and me of being brown nosers at PGCA. Wonder why?