Wever talked about the Whitworths, what about the British built Parker-Hale rifles?

They had a reputation for building decent working guns but the rifles I 've seen in .375H&H had stocks which were quite ugly..

Any ideas what actions were used and if these are worth re stocking/working on?

Regards,

Pete

I had one about 25 years ago.The stock literally split right in two from the magazine to the grip. To answer your question,to the best my memory can serve I can recall a mauser system much like my manchester whit. But then again,while were on the subject,how many bolt action designs have ever FULLY walked away from the orig mauser?

Parker hale used an FN Mauser action with a shorter (less useful) bolt handle, and an ugly piece of wood. It's a good place to start building a custom rifle.

500grains,

As I understand it, Parker Hale built rifle using a few different types of action.

The cheaper P-H 1000's were built on Santa Barbra actions, but I am not sure about the 1100, and 1200 series though.

P-H also "converted" American Enfield and British Lee Enfield surplus rifles for the civilian market..I've not actually seen any of these, nor do I know what calibers they were produced in..

P-H 1000, 1100 and 1200 series of rifles can be had reasonably cheap over here, but other than 1000, I don't know exactly which actions were used for which..

Regards,

Pete

Most of the Parker -Hales you run across in the USA are built on the spanish Santa Barbara actions and have a weatherby styled stock . Usually , they are pretty good shooters.

Parker Hale started sporterizing military 98 actions that were called the model 1000 or 1000C with a detachable clip magazine. As the supply of good 98 actions started to dry up they had Brno supply flat topped mauser actions for a very short period of time. I have one of these Brno action Parker Hale rifles in 308 Norma. I have also seen them chambered for the 7x57. 270 and 30-06. They then started to purchase actions from Santa Barbra. These actions were used to make the model 1100,model 1200 super and 1200 C with clip. They also made a Parker Hale "African " rifle in 375 H&H and 458. These were made on military actions with the charger slot on the left side of action and the military flag type safety.There was also a target rifle that came with peep sites and was chambered in 308. Many of the early stocks on the model 1000 were pretty poor as someone has already pointed out. PH also converted Lee Enfield rifles (#1 mk3 & #4 mk1) into sporters.They remained 303 British cal. Birmingham Small Arms (BSA) also sporterized p-14 & P-17 enfield actions They were made in 303 br and in 30-06. All of these rifles were quite plentifull in Canada.

Snowman,

Thanks for the info..So are you saying that any P-H African in .375H&H or .458Win will definately not be a Santa Barbara action?

Also I did not think the standard military mauser action was long enough for a .375H&H...Were these P-H therefore opened up?

Regards,

Pete

Parker-Hale also turned out rifles on American 03 actions.

1200 Thanks for jogging my mind.Thats the one I'm thinking of with the mauser action

I have an 1100 African in .458 (they actually came in .375, .458 and .404 Jeffrey) - mine is not ex-military. I don't know who made it, but it has the wing safety, and no charger slot. The bottom metal is very nice, being one piece steel and long enough for a .375. It has a rubber bumper installed for a filler to shorten the box.

The floor plate release is also one of the nicest designs I've seen, and is stiff enough to never release under recoil. The stock is big time ugly, but the metal work is well above average.

They seem to have been made in every flavor and configuration - and yes, we were knee deep in them in Canada. They were seen as 'economy' rifles, not too bad looking but low priced and available in every hardware store. Some (maybe most) were fine but I've come across a lot of flaws in them, from lousy crowns to oversized chambers. There were even some 'presentation' models that had engraved receivers that looked like they were done with a hammer and cold chisel.

Pete Any of the PH actions that have the thumb slot on the left side of the action are military actions. The Santa Barbra actions do not have that slot. All of the African rifles that I have seen had the thumb slot. They must have started using the Santa Barbra action towards the end as Tumbleweed has indicated his does not have the thumb slot. The Brno actions all had the flat topped receiver and were stamped " Hussar" on the left side of the action. I had heard they had made some in 404 as well but I have never seen one in that calibre. PH would have opened up the military 98 actions for the 375's. Most of the room would have been obtained by opening up the rear of the magazine but they likely took a little off the bottom locking lug as well. The 03 actions that were made into sporters were sold as the "Midland" rifle. Now that is one ugly weapon.

Thanks again guys..It seems P-H did a pretty good job of mix and matching what ever was available!


With regards the Midland, to further add confusion I believe the name was eventually sold off to some concern in the States where the rifles continued to be assembled and sold..

regards,

Pete

quote:

With regards the Midland, to further add confusion I believe the name was eventually sold off to some concern in the States where the rifles continued to be assembled and sold..

As jack handles and johnson bars to which they are properly suited