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Question on Parker-Hale Rifles

Sako Collectors Club Discussion Forum

stonecreek

SCC Secretary
SCC Board Member
A little off of the subject of Sakos, but I know that we have some members here from the British Isles, as well as others who are familiar with British-made rifles.

I recently won an auction with multiple guns in it, one of which is a Parker-Hale Rifle which I would guess is from the 1960's or 1970's. It appears to be made on a Mauser 98-style action with a fairly nice piece of walnut, roll-over cheekpiece, and skipline checkering.

I'm curious as to whose action Parker-Hale used, or if it was an action that they themselves manufactured.

Any comments on the quality or reputation of this rifle will be appreciated. If the comments are negative, go right ahead. It won't hurt my feelings since I succeeded in my goal to obtain another rifle in the auction lot and the Parker-Hale is, as Steinbeck's characters in Tortilla Flat would say, "pilon", or just something extra thrown in on the deal.
 
I seem to recall that the P-H rifles were built on the Spanish Santa Barbara Mauser action. The ones I've seen have had the modern version of the '98 action, with the side trigger-blocking safety--an action that looks like the FN Supreme action found on the Browning centerfire rifles of the 60s and 70s (but falls a little short of the FN's quality).

I found the following thread from another forum on Santa Barbara actions:

https://www.gunboards.com/threads/santa-barbara-98-mauser-actions.5964/
 
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Thanks for that link, S.P. I suspect that you're correct that the action is the Spanish-made Santa Barbara. The patents having expired long ago on the Mauser 98 action, it was reproduced by numerous companies all over Europe, including France, Germany, Sweden, Belgium, Austria, and other countries. I'm not sure how many different "proprietary" or commercial 98's might have eventually been produced, but there was a slew of them from the 1950's onward.

When I have the actual Parker-Hale rifle in hand I'll report if I find anything different from what we assume.

Our Limey friends are tucked away snugly in their beds as I write this, but maybe when they wake up and have their second cup of tea some of them will see this thread and provide a little more enlightenment.
 
The Parker-Hale was at one time imported by an outfit up in West Virginia that later became The Old Western Scrounger. I can't remember the name of the company back in the day. They used to hold an annual clearance sale for the dealers they did business with. I went to this sale once, back somewhere around 2000, and I remember seeing a lot of Parker-Hale rifles at attractive prices. It seems to me that Parker-Hale used the Santa Barbara actions, but also used others at various times, possibly including Yugoslav actions.
 
The Parker-Hale was at one time imported by an outfit up in West Virginia that later became The Old Western Scrounger. I can't remember the name of the company back in the day. They used to hold an annual clearance sale for the dealers they did business with. I went to this sale once, back somewhere around 2000, and I remember seeing a lot of Parker-Hale rifles at attractive prices. It seems to me that Parker-Hale used the Santa Barbara actions, but also used others at various times, possibly including Yugoslav actions.
That's interesting, icebear. I made some purchases from The Old Western Scrounger when they were still in California (several locations in the state), in the early 2000s. (I think the business moved to WVa around 2004 or 2005.) The business was run by one "Dangerous Dave" Cumberland at that time. He was a character!
 
OK, that jogs my memory a bit. The guy who bought the Old Western Scrounger when Dangerous Dave died (not sure of that, maybe he retired but I think I heard he died) is the same guy who owned the importer of Parker Hale. I can't remember his name but he was a nice guy and well liked. I think he is still in business in WV, maybe as the Old Western Scrounger or maybe something else, I forget. I bought some parts from him a year or two ago.
 
G'day Stone.

Apparently the early PH rifles used captured military actions. I had one at one stage in .243. It had the military style trigger, steel floorplate with no trigger bow button to release, low swing over safety on the bolt c0cking piece and a thumb cutout on the LHS of the action. Mine was very like this one:

https://scgunshop.com.au/product/parker-hale-safari-deluxe-30-06/

Later models 1100, 1200 etc used the Santa Barbara actions with no thumb cutout, trigger with side safety, allow floor plate.

The key forum that holds a wealth on info on Parker Hale rifles is 'The Hunters Life'. There was a fella on there called Brithunter that wrote extensively about them. PH rifles can be dated by the crossed swords stamps on the underside of the barrel or action.

http://www.thehunterslife.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=48

Edit: I went and had a closer look at the link about and it only gives about 5 pages of threads. If you go into the 'Firearms and optics' sub forum and perform a search on Parker Hale there are at least 15 pages of threads.

Marcus
 
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Just by coincidence, I saw a Parker-Hale .25-06 at a gun show yesterday. It was decked out just like an L-series Sako Deluxe - squared-off stock design, light colored wood, contrasting grip cap and forend tip, and skip-line checkering. I didn't pick it up to see what action it was built on. It was in good shape, some handling wear but nothing serious, and the asking price was $700.
 
S
Just by coincidence, I saw a Parker-Hale .25-06 at a gun show yesterday. It was decked out just like an L-series Sako Deluxe - squared-off stock design, light colored wood, contrasting grip cap and forend tip, and skip-line checkering. I didn't pick it up to see what action it was built on. It was in good shape, some handling wear but nothing serious, and the asking price was $700.

Sounds like a 1200 Super, like this:

image.jpeg image.jpeg

My current .243 was originally an 1100 which has a sporter beaver tail type forend like this:

image.jpeg

A brochure that has some more details:

image.jpeg

Marcus
 
IceBear. The name of the man behind the importation wouldn't happen to be Samuel Cummings of Interams/Interarmco fame, would it?

I have been looking into Parker-Hale rifles because they appear to be great with favorable price points. And then there is this other old, old company called Whitworth that has been a name on an Iterarms Mark X rifles I bought made in Yugoslavia by Zastava. The reason I point this out is because there has been a lot of crossover between Parker-Hale and Whitworth. Is it possible that Interarms with importation via Alexandra, VA might be the company you are thinking of?

Take care,
D
 
IceBear. The name of the man behind the importation wouldn't happen to be Samuel Cummings of Interams/Interarmco fame, would it?

I have been looking into Parker-Hale rifles because they appear to be great with favorable price points. And then there is this other old, old company called Whitworth that has been a name on an Iterarms Mark X rifles I bought made in Yugoslavia by Zastava. The reason I point this out is because there has been a lot of crossover between Parker-Hale and Whitworth. Is it possible that Interarms with importation via Alexandra, VA might be the company you are thinking of?

Take care,
D
No, I just looked it up and the Parker-Hale guy is Val Forgett, the owner of Navy Arms. His business is located in West Virginia. Val bought The Old Western Scrounger when Dangerous Dave retired (my previous post was ambiguous on that point, I wasn't sure if Dangerous Dave had retired or if he had died). Sam Cummings and Interarms had nothing to do with Parker-Hale, as far as I know.

As you mention, Whitworth built rifles in England on Zastava actions for Interarms. Interarms also imported rifles built by Churchill in England as the "1 of 1000" series. The Churchill and Whitworth guns were of excellent quality. The Churchills were made in an African safari rifle configuration. I used to have a pair of them, a .375 and a .270. They were very well made. Some Zastava barreled actions were also stocked in England for Interarms. I have what I believe to be one of these; it bears Yugoslavian proofs but is not stamped Mark X. The receiver is stamped Interarms, Birmingham England, Alexandria, Virginia.

There has always been some confusion between the Interarms imports and Parker-Hale, being that they were quite similar in many ways, including the use of Zastava actions.
 
Hum. The detective work makes this fun. The Whitworth / Interarms / Zastava proofed / Manchester England marked / Alexandria VA marked rifle is what I have. Funny, all those stamps. Its Safari style in .458 Win Mag. Thankfully the seller gave me 18 rounds to go with it. I have not fired it yet. But, I am expecting a very big boom when I do.
 
Hum. The detective work makes this fun. The Whitworth / Interarms / Zastava proofed / Manchester England marked / Alexandria VA marked rifle is what I have. Funny, all those stamps. Its Safari style in .458 Win Mag. Thankfully the seller gave me 18 rounds to go with it. I have not fired it yet. But, I am expecting a very big boom when I do.
Actually, I think you will find the recoil & muzzle blast from the 458 Win to be less than you expect & quite manageable. More of a big push, unlike the painfully sharp slap you get from rounds like the 338 Win Mag or 378 Weatherby. Give us a field report after shooting it along with some pics!!
 
Paulsonconstrution, thank you for you input. I've never fired a rifle that at the muzzle looks like a 410 shotgun. The owner before me used it to kill hogs. He said he would only shoot it from a standing position, not a bench. Here are some pre-range pictures. The gun is in fine condition.
 

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Here are photos of my Interarms 7x57 Zastava-Mauser. It is obviously some kind of deluxe or upgraded version, having lightly figured wood, contrasting forend tip and grip cap, and special checkering. The shape of the stock is also unusual, resembling a style popular in the 1970's but toned down from the most radical examples. The shape is somewhat sculptured and it has a modest rollover cheekpiece. I'm a lover of the classic style, but I find this one pleasing, as it shows some originality without looking like something out of a science-fiction movie. The metal is in excellent shape; the stock finish has a lot of minor dings and scratches. I bought it intending to refinish it; a dozen or two coats of tung oil would bring out the figure in the wood and look much better than the ultra-gloss hard-shell poly that's on it now. However, I never got around to refinishing it, or for that matter shooting it or even mounting a scope. I got it dirt cheap so I'll just hang onto it until I have time to do something with it.

The rifle has three proof marks on the receiver ring and the barrel. Two are definitely Yugoslavian, the oval shield and the BB. I don't know about the N; I can't make out the embellishment above the letter. It's obviously somebody's Nitro proof, but it doesn't match up to anything in any of my reference books. The gun is not stamped Mark X. The serial number occupies the spot on the left side of the front ring where the Mark X stamping would be. The seller told me it was one of the guns Interarms had built in Birmingham and I have no evidence as to whether that is true or not. If anybody recognizes the N proof, or has any other information on the Interarms rifles assembled in England on Zastava actions, please jump in.
7mm-1.JPG Markings 1.JPG
 
Position it high off the bench & sit in an upright manner instead of leaning down into it an you'll be fine. Allow your upper body to "give" with the shot. That straight comb stock will help as well. A 45-70 in a Marlin 1895 lever gun smacks harder than the 458 in a properly built bolt gun. You'll have fun!!
 
Paulsonconstrution, thank you for you input. I've never fired a rifle that at the muzzle looks like a 410 shotgun. The owner before me used it to kill hogs. He said he would only shoot it from a standing position, not a bench. Here are some pre-range pictures. The gun is in fine condition.
Nice looking rifle. It certainly would be effective in taking down feral hogs! Is that a folding-leaf express sight? Looks like one standing and one or two folding. How about posting a couple more photos, showing the wood in the buttstock and the express sight. That wood looks good, but I can't tell much from the photo.

Paulson is probably right about the recoil, but you will definitely feel it. I'd advise a PAST shoulder pad or something similar if you're going to sight it in off the bench. Standing lets you roll with the punch, but on the bench you don't have as much flexibility. I've never fired a .458, but I've found both .375 and .45-70 to be manageable. The .45-70 is even kind of fun, in an odd sort of way.
 
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