New Ithaca 37- convince me not to

R

Rustle in the Bushes

New member
Im liking these. 'mercan, wood and steel. Pretty slick. Only thing I really dont like is the inability to top load a shell in haste but Im hoping I can train myself to "bottom load" a shell quickly.

Ill prolly get an 18" barrel and a longer 26" one as well- short for bears, zombies, terminators, etc and the longer ones for ducks.


Im a lefty and the ejection from a normal shotty doesnt bother me but its a bonus that it ejects from the bottom. what do yall think?
 
So a brand new Ithaca 37 or a new to you Ithaca 37 ?

1. left handed safeties are available for used / or new. they only cost around 11.00 or so...

2. which gauge ?

3. you do know that the barrel lug prevents you from adding a tube extension, without getting a barrel with a corresponding relocated lug, then you can't use the old ones with the new mag tube on....

4. the measurements have changed slightly on the new guns if that is what you are thinking (ie: new). I have 10 Ithacas, 6 16ga and 4 12ga and they all fit fine, the new ones I had to tip the barrel up to be able to rack the slide

so you need to try before you buy.....

5. they are more expensive than say an 870. a 12ga 870 field gun is $300.00 to $330.00 at Dick's or other larger volume retailer, a new Ithaca 37 12ga field gun is $800 to $850 (sometimes a little less depending on the place) but that is a good average based on the ones I have seen for sale around here (I live 80 miles from the Ithaca factory and there are a few gun stores that carry them)

6. a used gun is going to be correspondingly as expensive, 300.00 to 350.00 for a decent used one

7. if you are buying used, be aware that prior to serial nbr 855,000 Ithacas used barrel threads with a "pitch" to them, the newly manufactured barrels will not fit as they have what are essentially parallel grooves.

Ithaca charges 180.00 to machine in and install a bushing to allow the use of new barrels, of course then the old ones are not usable anymore

Ithaca 37's are my favorite shotgun, especially the 16ga variety. They are light, easy to carry, quick to point. There are no fragile pieces inside the mechanism and will easily last your lifetime.

My oldest is a 1948 and it shows hardly any wear on the internal mechanisms
 
I'm a lefty, and normally the ejection doesn't bother me, but there is something to be said about not spitting hot shell hulls out into your buddy's waders with the Model 37.
 
If by "top load" you mean being able to load one into the chamber without going through the magazine, the M37 does that just fine.

Turn the gun upside down with the action open push a shell into the port as you close the slide.
It loads into the chamber fast and easily.
 
oh sure Id be willing to deal with it. With training im sure I could "bottom load" relatively quickly but have to turn the gun upside down I dont think itd be as fast as an 870. A lose for a defense gun.

the open loading port is a win.


The fixed barrel is a huuuge lose for them and I might have to forget this idea altogether unless I can put together a frankengun built off another receiver and trim a barrel down. but for all that effort it makes the 870p look pretty good even if I do hate the feed ramp.
 
Fixed barrel on defense model! They lost me there thats lame
Click to expand...

It is what it is. Here is a review on it:

http://www.chuckhawks.com/ithaca_37_defense_gun.htm

as I said above

3. you do know that the barrel lug prevents you from adding a tube extension, without getting a barrel with a corresponding relocated lug, then you can't use the old ones with the new mag tube on....
Click to expand...

that is part of the reason for a fixed barrel, the other is rigidity. The screwed in, fixed barrrels are a lot more rigid for a home defense type scenerio.

Also, if you
put together a frankengun built off another receiver
Click to expand...
pay attention to what I said about the threads, otherwise you can get into the situation in which I was given, yes given a 16ga barrel (brand new) because it was bought for a receiver that had the old thread style and the barrel had the new one. It was cut down to 20" before that fact was discovered and couldn't be returned. It turned into a 225.00 mistake.

also keep in mind, that the old style barrels are valuable because they aren't made anymore and usually sell for 150.00 US dollars plus, and new ones are 200.00 US dollars plus

also if you buy an old style receiver and do find a barrel, then you need to ship it to a gunsmith who understands Ithacas as the barrels need to be fitted to the receiver, the old style are not interchangeable.

of the 10 Ithacas I have, 2 are fixed barrel Deerslayers, 2 are the newer style threads and 6 are the old style. None of the barrels on the old style will even start in the other gun's receivers
 
Last edited:
GET IT!

I have one up at my family's hunting camp that my dad shot his first deer with using a slug. It is a 20 gauge, and it has a Williams ghost ring sight. I shot a few squirrels with it and it is extremely reliable and fun. GET IT! Don't think twice!!
 
Talk you out of it? OK. :D My old 16 ga. would drop a shell on the ground when working the action for the 2nd shot. It would load the 3th shell. When the shell comes flying out of the magazine, it may be set off as the primer area hits the receiver. Had a 12 ga that would not shoot reloads unless the brass was fully sized. A Mec 600jr was not good enough.
 
Talk you out of it? OK. My old 16 ga. would drop a shell on the ground when working the action for the 2nd shot. It would load the 3th shell. When the shell comes flying out of the magazine, it may be set off as the primer area hits the receiver. Had a 12 ga that would not shoot reloads unless the brass was fully sized. A Mec 600jr was not good enough.
Click to expand...

most likely that was caused by a couple dollar spring getting soft or the channel that the left hand shell stop rides in being gunked up. That is a common issue with Ithacas that get a bit old or out of adjustment. The fix is to clean the channel and put in a new spring.

on the older guns there is a screw that holds that stop in, on the later guns it was changed to a pin. if the screw is tightened all the way in, that can cause a bind also.

At worse, sometimes the nose of the shell stop needs bent out a bit.

Ithacas do need to be cleaned once in a while. A simple way is to pull the buttstock off, hold the gun with the barrel pointing up and spray it with brake cleaner, work the action through various stages and spray, turn it over and spray it out from the back.

Then give it a very good lubing after that. A good cleaning cures most Ithaca 37 ills.
 
Okay, I will try. For the money, I'd look for a used left handed Wingmaster. I just greatly prefer the ergonomics of the Remington. For a lefty, the regular BPS is another fine pump. A bit more robust than a 37 which is good with stout loads. I had 3 and never a single bobble. But, I could never grow to love the having to load through the bottom and magazine for a FAST additional shot. That turn it over and jiggle crap doesn't get it with geese leaving the decoys, and I wouldn't think it great in a home defense situation, although if you really think you might need additional rounds fast for real honest HOME DEFENSE I think I would look at moving even before buying a shotgun. There is nothing wrong with the Ithacas, but I just never "got it" where the devotees are coming from. I have shot a slew of them. It's a pump gun, not a Purdy.
 
37

The slickest pump gun that I have used.....I bought mine used and have never regretted the purchase. It has never malfunctioned. I have used it for Trap and for grouse.
About not buying because of the fixed barrel thing .......you will, of course, do what you are comfortable with. I suggest that you base your purchase on how you are most likely to use the gun. With any luck at all, you will never use it for HD. You will hunt with it. That being said....ducks or bad guys....the longer barrel will do for both.
Pete
 
if you need parts for a 37 ithaca it may be hard to find them and may need hand fitting and the fact that extra stocks,barrels are expensive,don,t ask me how i know. model 12 winchesters have the same problems. that being said i have two newer 37,s with extra barrels,one a 3 'mag and one a 2 3/4. i,m left handed and still find the 870 easier for me to use effectivly. eastbank.
 
there are 2 barrel sets available, right now there is one out on gunsinternational such as this one

http://www.gunsinternational.com/Ithaca-Model-37-Featherlight-12g-Shotgun-Combo.cfm?gun_id=100210634

which neither I nor the firing line are endorsing, just using it as an example. macon gun stocks makes new sets for 130.00 that need final fitting and ithaca gun sells parts

the new guns are built on CNC machines and don't need hand fitting and the new barrels sometimes need checked for head spacing. as I said, the cutoff point for the barrel thread design change was 855,000, after that the pretty much all interchange without gunsmithing. as with any machined part, you could run into one that does (but that happens with car parts etc),.

http://www.ithacagun.com/ check out their online store. also check out eBay and gunbroker, there are any parts you could possibly need, as long as you lock that 855,000 serial nbr cutoff point into your brain
 
.

BTW - If you get an Ithaca Model 37, be sure you pump it like it owes you money, because it/when it's short-stroked, it'll be sure to mis-feed/jam.

I've owned several, and every one I had would do that, if not operated properly.


.
 
I aint getting it after all.

I need a gun that can do double duty- 3 barrels. One of those duties is bear defense so I should also really have something that can top load quickly from a sidesaddle. (I know you can bottom load the ithaca but it aint as fast)


might have overlooked that if they hadnt fixed the barrel. 'cause you hear about shotgun barrels coming flying off all the time.....



Love the Ithaca style though I like my shotguns KISS wood and steel baby.

So as much as I am loathe to be conventional Im selling the italians....so long Supernova, fabarm martial 14" and its an 870Police for me with walnut furniture- stock. chkt chkt! amerkan steel and a canadian 14" barrel. :)
 
might have overlooked that if they hadnt fixed the barrel. 'cause you hear about shotgun barrels coming flying off all the time.....
Click to expand...

due to their design, the only way Ithaca barrels can come "flying off" is if someone twists the mag tube nut, which is locked in place by a spring loaded ball bearing and indents on the face of the nut and then rotating the barrel 90 degrees AFTER the slide moves the bolt mechanism back out of battery. The barrel cannot rotate with the extractors in the barrel cutouts

Ithacas are not for everyone / every situation. What they are is a precision shotgun, that due to their light weight are a joy to carry. The are a niche firearm.

Your scenerio is a prime example of simply needing a Remington 870. Pick yourself up a combo set, or a used one and get the extra barrels.
 
I'm headed out soon to get an new Ohio Ithaca 37 Featherweight in 20 gauge. You get an Ithaca because you want a classy, high(er) end pump gun. If you want something that you don't want to baby as much just get a Mossy 500 or Rem 870 for less than half the price.
I would personally like a 37 Defense model and could care less that it is fixed barrel. With the wood stock and bead front sight, it is a good looking gun (with the history to match) in this day and age of synthetic everything, rails, and semi-auto.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top