Shotgun for a woman
- Thread starter Coronach
- Start date
UPDATE:
Well, I snagged that mod 37. It came as advertised...bluing in good shape, the wood is very very nice, the alteration to the buttstock is the perfect length and well done. The scope and scope mount came off right away- the scope was crap, and while the mount may or may not be decent, it had no reason to stay. The receiver under the mount was fine, only 4 holes and a few scuffs. I also snagged a spare 16g shotgun barrel from a local range that just could not sell the thing and was looking to dump it.
Took the whole kit and kaboodle to my smith, looking for him to fit the new barrel, plug the holes in the reciever and hack the new bbl to 18.5". voila!, one week later I have a Ithaca Model 37 Featherlight 16g with a 18.5" riot bbl, a 28" (OEM) full-choke barrel and short buttstock.
Total cost: $275 + 1 case of Budweiser. (Hey, smiths don't work for free!)
Mike
Well, I snagged that mod 37. It came as advertised...bluing in good shape, the wood is very very nice, the alteration to the buttstock is the perfect length and well done. The scope and scope mount came off right away- the scope was crap, and while the mount may or may not be decent, it had no reason to stay. The receiver under the mount was fine, only 4 holes and a few scuffs. I also snagged a spare 16g shotgun barrel from a local range that just could not sell the thing and was looking to dump it.
Took the whole kit and kaboodle to my smith, looking for him to fit the new barrel, plug the holes in the reciever and hack the new bbl to 18.5". voila!, one week later I have a Ithaca Model 37 Featherlight 16g with a 18.5" riot bbl, a 28" (OEM) full-choke barrel and short buttstock.
Total cost: $275 + 1 case of Budweiser. (Hey, smiths don't work for free!)
Mike
Al Thompson
Staff Alumnus
I fired it in long-barrel configuration. It had a bit of a kick with buckshot (featherlight is indeed the word), but it worked reliably.
I have yet to haul it out with it's riot barrel. It sure does handle nicely, though, even for me with short butt. I'll advise when my wife takes it for its shakedown cruise.
And she still thinks its pretty.
Mike
I have yet to haul it out with it's riot barrel. It sure does handle nicely, though, even for me with short butt. I'll advise when my wife takes it for its shakedown cruise.
And she still thinks its pretty.
Mike
RANGE REPORT
OK, the other thread reminded me I have yet to post the range report from my recent trip with The Wife.
We hauled out the gun in riot configuration, and sent 25 rounds of light game loads downrange. This was mostly just a shakedown cruise to see how well Wife and Gun perform together, and the results were decent. Her form (ahem...her SHOOTING form) is a bit rough, but thats to be expected. She also needs work on the manual of arms for the weapon and has difficulty hitting the action release lever properly. Ithaca seems to recess this part just far enough against the trigger guard that she has to pause and deliberately push it when needed. She also is not used to the trigger, which has a much different feel from the positive slap-*CLICK* of the 870. She short stroked it twice (again, minds out of the gutter, please ), but it was easily unbound by flipping the gun over and re-racking. Once she figured out that the gun needed to be racked with a little bit of authority, she had no further problems.
The gun did its part every time. Patterning is uncertain. There was no patterning board, and the range we used has a limit on how close you can put your targets (my PD range is currently closed down for in-service training). We weren't exactly using defensive loads, anyway. The gun handles wonderfully...it takes a bit of adjustment after using the Ninja-ized 870 which now has the ergonomics and aesthetics of a T-55 MBT.
I'll work with her on form, and will probably be tweaking the stock a tad. If anything its just a hair short for her, which is OK. Adding spacers or changing out pads is easy.
Oh, one small bruise on the arm where she failed to shoulder the gun properly. Still keeping the loads light, to avoid magnumitis.
Mike
OK, the other thread reminded me I have yet to post the range report from my recent trip with The Wife.
We hauled out the gun in riot configuration, and sent 25 rounds of light game loads downrange. This was mostly just a shakedown cruise to see how well Wife and Gun perform together, and the results were decent. Her form (ahem...her SHOOTING form) is a bit rough, but thats to be expected. She also needs work on the manual of arms for the weapon and has difficulty hitting the action release lever properly. Ithaca seems to recess this part just far enough against the trigger guard that she has to pause and deliberately push it when needed. She also is not used to the trigger, which has a much different feel from the positive slap-*CLICK* of the 870. She short stroked it twice (again, minds out of the gutter, please
), but it was easily unbound by flipping the gun over and re-racking. Once she figured out that the gun needed to be racked with a little bit of authority, she had no further problems.The gun did its part every time. Patterning is uncertain. There was no patterning board, and the range we used has a limit on how close you can put your targets (my PD range is currently closed down for in-service training). We weren't exactly using defensive loads, anyway. The gun handles wonderfully...it takes a bit of adjustment after using the Ninja-ized 870 which now has the ergonomics and aesthetics of a T-55 MBT.
I'll work with her on form, and will probably be tweaking the stock a tad. If anything its just a hair short for her, which is OK. Adding spacers or changing out pads is easy.
Oh, one small bruise on the arm where she failed to shoulder the gun properly. Still keeping the loads light, to avoid magnumitis.
Mike
Good start,Mike. If I may....
Leave the stock alone. Lots of folks work into their stocks, their form improves so that a stock that was just right ends up a tad short. For a "Serious" shotgun, no disadvantage. If it does go a bit too short add spacers 18" at a time.
Have her learn clearance and loading/unloading drills. And throw some clays, she will get really hyped when she busts her first one.
Gamebore offers some 2 1/2" light recoil/low noise loads in 16 gauge. Mo' costly than K mart, but the advantages will be well worth the few bucks spent.
Finally, be a mature and sensitive individual and congratulate her when she outshoots you(G)....
Leave the stock alone. Lots of folks work into their stocks, their form improves so that a stock that was just right ends up a tad short. For a "Serious" shotgun, no disadvantage. If it does go a bit too short add spacers 18" at a time.
Have her learn clearance and loading/unloading drills. And throw some clays, she will get really hyped when she busts her first one.
Gamebore offers some 2 1/2" light recoil/low noise loads in 16 gauge. Mo' costly than K mart, but the advantages will be well worth the few bucks spent.
Finally, be a mature and sensitive individual and congratulate her when she outshoots you(G)....