I've been reacquiring some guns I had when I was younger that I've come to regret selling. My very first firearm of my very own was an Ithaca Model 37 Featherlight my dad bought for me when I was 14 or 15. It had a 26" vent rib barrel with a fixed Improved Cylinder choke. I guess in my mid 20s I sold it to buy something "cooler" which has also been sold off. It didn't take me long to regret parting with my Ithaca.

I've toyed with the idea of buying another Ithaca since them. Ithaca has changed hands a few times since those days. But the newest owners and the newest plant in Upper Sandusky, Ohio, are turning out the best Model 37s yet. I was so impressed with them, I bought two. And Ithaca was kind enough to give me guns with sequential serial numbers. One has a 26" vent rib barrel with with choke tubes, the other has a rifled Deerslayer barrel. They have Pachmayr recoil pads. Everything is steel, including the trigger guard.

Nice! I've got several but all older ones

Wow, those do look nice! I have a few as well, including the very old 16 gauge I carried as a kid. Kicked like a mule without a pad, but I loved every shot!

Been kicking around the idea of buying a full tube magazine riot gun and one of their o/u models.

Here are two of mine...a full 8 shot mag "Home Defender" from the late 70's and a Featherlight from 1952 that Bubba tried to solder a bayo lug to and tapped the receiver for a scope. I cut and faced the barrel after getting a tax stamp for it.

Both slam-fire which makes for a totally new way of shooting for me (tried it for the first time a few weeks ago).

I've always liked the 37's, and after handling one of the new Featherlights I've been looking at the 20 gauge as my next bird gun.

Did you order directly from Ithaca? I was thinking about doing a wood upgrade and assume calling Ithaca directly would be the way to set that up.

I ordered these directly from Ithaca and had them shipped to my FFL. It was very fast shipping.

From talking to Ithaca, apparently they want to sell directly to the end owner. The guy I spoke to told me about some pricing abuses when they sold to distributors so they stopped doing it. I didn't quite understand their issues but they were dissatisfied with what distributors were charging for the guns.

If you go on Ithaca's website, you can order a wood upgrade. Mine has the lowest A grade they offer. You can order them up to AAA grade, but the price goes up substantially.

Those are beautiful looking guns. I'm glad to hear that Ithaca is back in business with what sounds like competent management, and a business plan.

Beautiful 37s. As others, I had two in the '70s-'80s and let go of both for something else (like a Rem. 1100). I still have the 87 Turkey Gun from the early '90s. Would love a 20 gauge one day.

quote:

Originally posted by PGT:
Here are two of mine...a full 8 shot mag "Home Defender" from the late 70's and a Featherlight from 1952 that Bubba tried to solder a bayo lug to and tapped the receiver for a scope. I cut and faced the barrel after getting a tax stamp for it.

Both slam-fire which makes for a totally new way of shooting for me (tried it for the first time a few weeks ago).

Nice. I think I may get one of Ithaca's long magazine security shotguns in 20 gauge with the walnut stock.

Those are beautiful. I’m glad to hear the company survives with a team that wants to produce a quality product at a good value to the customer. I’ve kind of always wanted an Ithaca and don’t currently own any sporting shotguns. Might be time to start taking a look at them.

Very nice.

I remember reading books about SEAL teams in Vietnam, and the Ithaca pump shotgun was always highly regarded. Always wanted one after reading their reviews.

I settled (for now) with a Remington 870.

And I bet slam-firing a 12G is...entertaining.

It's a John Browning design that's survived a century of duty. Several companies have made the M37, Ithaca being the main one.

quote:

Originally posted by chongosuerte:
And I bet slam-firing a 12G is...entertaining.

I’ve done it with a Winchester Model 12. It’s definitely something else.

Those are beautiful shotguns. I'm not sure I dig the gold triggers but otherwise they're VERY nice.

I have my dad's old model 37 FL Deer Slayer (smooth bore with fixed full choke) with an additional bird barrel. The serial number seems to be in the range where you can't change the barrel yet I have a barrel. I never fired the gun or fooled with it so I'm not sure what the story is yet. I'll get to it eventually

Enjoy them!

I've always thought of the Model 37 with the straight English stock to be especially elegant looking. Some were made in the 80s but it would be great if more were manufactured. My feeling is that they would be outstanding sellers.

quote:

Originally posted by kaschi:
I've always thought of the Model 37 with the straight English stock to be especially elegant looking. Some were made in the 80s but it would be great if more were manufactured. My feeling is that they would be outstanding sellers.

They offer them:

https://i0.wp.com/ithacagun.co...end.jpg?w=1875&ssl=1

Wow thanks! Now I can upgrade my stock with pistol grip in 20 gauge with a nice stock set like that. It will be cheaper than a whole new shotgun!