I don't have any specifics for you, but I had a 37 in the 70's when they were pushing the Deerslayer. I'm pretty sure that it was simply a 37 with the slug barrel. I'm also quite sure that it has the interchangeable barrel just like the other 37's, but don't make a decision until you confirm this.

I sure wish I had my 37 back.

 

I don't have any specifics for you, but I had a 37 in the 70's when they were pushing the Deerslayer. I'm pretty sure that it was simply a 37 with the slug barrel. I'm also quite sure that it has the interchangeable barrel just like the other 37's, but don't make a decision until you confirm this.

I sure wish I had my 37 back.

You are right on the money. You could buy the rifled barrel for a plain 37 and make it a deer slayer. That was the big push back then. Had a 37 when I went in to the Army in 72 and some how my brother laid claim to it while I was gone, wish I could find another.

 

All that information has little value. Just makes for conversation. The model 37DS is a solid weapon. I`d go to google and ask that question. That is, if you already haven`t.
The history can be found.

 

Well excuse ME! Your information doesn't seem to be any more specific than mine.

 

From memory, I recall that Ithaca came out with the Deerslayer guns in the mid to late '50s. Barrels were held to a close tolerance on the bore diameter, "special" honed to final size, & with no choke. Most of the first barrels were 26" long. Not sure on release date for the 20 gauge. All barrels were takedown, but won't interchange in guns below serial # 855,000. During the '60s and 70s, Ithaca sold a fair number of combo guns with two barrels, like Remington and Mossberg have done. Riot and police guns were also made with 18" 5 shot and 20" 8 shot barrels both with and without sights many of which were parkerized w/o the game scene (see my other post with the photo of our 3 riot guns, all parkerized, all w/o the game scene and all w/o sights). Solid frame guns (non-removable barrels) started in the '90s and have continued with the Ohio guns (Deerslayer II or III not sure). Same with the rifled barrels.

Ithaca has gone through at least 5 ownership changes since the '50s so it is hard to keep track of all the changes and special options they had. Serial numbers are fairly well known (serial number list atached to the Ultralight weight post), but factory records on what each gun was built as are hard or impossible to come by.

 

Solid frame guns (non-removable barrels) started in the '90s and have continued with the Ohio guns (Deerslayer II or III not sure). Same with the rifled barrels.

I already knew the other info but the above sentence is what I needed to know. Makes sense to me now because I kept hearing about the non-removeable barrels but never encountered one, I was only interested in looking at the Ithaca NY guns. I knew some had the fixed barrels before Sandusky, but didn't know they started as late as the 90's. I forgot about Kings Ferry, and that's when they probably started the non-removeable barrels.

The 37 is a neat gun and a short barreled cylinder bore with rifle sights would be handy for two and four legged critters. I'm going to go get it, will post pics tonight after I get her cleaned up.

thanks,

Dan

 

Here's a couple of links that might help out

Home Ithaca Gun Serial Numbers

 

I had one for about 15 years. Mine had the 20" tube but I also had a Redfield 1-4x scope. I could easily hit a 6" target at 100 yds. Fantastic SG.

Used it mainly to hunt deer in MD since rifles were not permitted. Later took a couple hogs in NC but traded it when we moved to OR for a 700 in 30-06 which I used to take several black tails and an elk.

Wish I still had it but as needs change so do I.

Older ones on GB are under 250.
DD

 

Try Shotgunworld.com, all your questions and more will be answered, Ithaca forum and slug shooters forum, happy shootin'. Cheers:beerglass:

 

Yep, try Shotgunworld.com, good info site but no as friendly as here, folks there tend to get the knickers in a knot.

 

Just got her put back together after taking it completely apart. Bore was pretty clean but the internals had 35 years of 3 in 1 oil, powder residue, and dirt. The metal is really good, so if I stumble upon a vintage stock set in nice condition the furniture will get replaced. Not bad for $250, I'm excited to try some slugs and some home defense buckshot loads.

 

Yep, that's an early 70s deer slayer alright. Probably the finest purpose built shotgun you're ever gonna find for deer out of that era. Well done. It's always good to see another fine M37 go to a good home. I've always contended that Marlin owners are most appreciative of the old 37s for the same reasons we are the old Marlins.

Walt Snyder is the true expert over at Shotgun World and the Ithaca guys over there, of which I am a long time member in the Ithaca forum, are all good guys. All of us old timers anyways.

 

Thanks Gallo,

I'm just a young buck at 39 that appreciates the classics. I wouldn't trade this gun for a NIB 870 wingmaster or any of the new stuff I've seen on the store shelves in the last few years. Although, I did get a chance to hold a new Sandusky Ithaca a year ago in 28 ga. My gun dealer got the 28 ga, a Deerslayer III, and a set of consecutive numbered 1911's. He met the new owners at a dealer show and was really impressed. I agree, they're making some nice stuff now and I hope they make a go of it.

 

The older ones could be fired by holding the trigger back and just working the slide.Fun stuff.The 20 inch barreled riot gun had a 7 round tube made of an aircraft alloy to lighten the weight.Many thought the single action bar was a drawback and most police dept. and military went with the Rem870.Twisting the slide under stress can bind up the action and prevent chambering another round.Also, you can't combat reload due to lack of a side ejection port.Then again, shoot one,load one.Shoot two,load two and it won't run dry.Just like a lever gun.

 

Please tell me of anyone you've ever seen or know personally who has twisted the action bar on an Ithaca or model 12 Winchester for that matter. It's a myth. The Ithaca uses interrupted threads to attach the barrel so there is no twist. The double action bars were added to shotguns after manufacturers started using slip fit barrels that would twist.

The single action bar guns were reliable enough in WWII, and they still are.

 

I agree with the colonel, just try and bind up the Ithaca, I don't think it can be done. Not sure about a "combat reload", but I have reloaded an Ithaca in the dark, and it is easier than either a Mossberg or a Remington. And, the only aluminum parts on an Ithaca were/are the Ultralight receiver, everything else has always been steel. Look at the photos I posted under my other post, the only non-steel parts are the stocks and in two of the guns the follower in the mag tube.

 

Well, if I hear a bump in the night, I have full confidence in the model 37. I've had an Ultralight for a long time and I never had it bind up. If a single action bar is a flaw, then the millions of abused and neglected model 12's would surely have had a bad reputation. I would have to agree in it being a myth and the dual action bars is more for marketing than need.

 

Hey basset man, this is OT but I hope you don't mind. I'm one of them snot nosed kids too, a 1976 model, I'm 36 to be precise. I think some of us younger guys are rediscovering the classics like the model 37 and Marlin rifles. That's a good thing in my book.

But I was wondering abut your screen name. Do you hunt with bassets? I'm a beagle man myself for rabbits. But I've always heard how good the hunting lines of bassets were as track dogs. Just curious.

 

Colonel, I wish more guys under 40 appreciated the history, designs, and workmanship for guns of the past. I guess for some people no matter what age, a gun is just a tool. Personally, I need wood and polished blued steel with gloss optics without any China made accessories to get excited. I do have a shotgun and rifle both synthetic with camo patterns for coyote hunting along with a Glock in the nighstand, but they are just tools that have no nostalgic or sentamental value. Ithaca's are my favorite when it comes to pump guns. Guessing that's because it's a John Browning design, along with why I like the 1911 and the HI-Power.

Yes, I have two basset hounds that are my kids. Both are spoiled house dogs and I was too afraid of losing them to turn them into rabbit hunters. My buddy owned the father of my male and that dog was a phenomenal rabbit hunter. Only hound I ever seen that insisted on working upwind when hunting rabbits. He had a great nose and never over ran the rabbit, keeping everything at an even pace. So, I can testify a Basset is a good rabbit dog. Supposedly the long ears stir up the scent better, but beagles do find with short ears, so that might just be folklore. Honestly, the Beagle will get the job done just as good but a little faster. Bassets are famous for joint problems and just about any genetic health issue imagineable. Just be prepared to spend alot at the Vet if you decide to get one.

Dan

 

I have an ithica deer slayer, but i cant find it on any website, its different from every other ones ive seen. Now it has a fluer de lis foregrip which ive see before but it also has a red buck on the stock at the bottom of the grip, instead of the normal black one that says ithica. Is this a special edition or something? My father gave it to me for my 40 th birthday. He won it at our sporting club in 1980

 

That is probably a Sid Bell Grip cap you are referring to. There were a couple designs for various game animals. Google "Sid Bell Ithaca grip caps".

Junk shotty, I'll give you $20 bucks for it sight unseen, hahahaha...

Ithaca's are my favorite pump...

 

I have an Ithaca model 37 in 20 gauge that came from the factory with an 18 inch barrel with rifle sights and was made 10 years before the Deerslayer came out.
The barrel and receiver are stamped with the same serial number.
I contacted Ithaca and they told me it was a special order and was made in 1949 , 10 years before the Deerslayer.

View attachment 924519 View attachment 924520

 

The very first gun in 1968 I was financially able to buy was the Ithaca mdl. 37. I bought a 16ga "Featherweight" with a 28" Modified barrel without a rib. I later added a 26" Deerslayer BBL and a 26" IMCYL with a rib. The Deerslayer BBL was a smooth bore with rifle sights. Ithaca advertised it to be the most accurate "slug" shooting gun of that time because it was they stated, "bored to be the same diameter from just in front of the chamber to the end of the barrel". Whatever is an actual statement of fact, I don't actually know; I never measured it. However, I do know its favorite slug is Winchester. loaded with Winchester slugs, and me on my best day, could put 3 slugs touching at 75 yard. I don't know if it is still capable of such accuracy - I haven't used it on deer for more than a couple decades. I have used the other barrels on all manner of migratory birds to be convinced the mdl 37 is the most reliable shotgun I've own. (I am very partial to the 16ga, and am still rather aggravated that states enacted "steel shot" requirements for hunting water fowl!) I have shot rifled slugs in other shotguns, and know that some can be as accurate as the Ithaca; but only if you find the brand of slug that matches the bore size the closest.

 

BT, it is likely your serial number is below 855,000. That being the case you will not be able to interchange barrels. Take real good care of the one you have. The new Ithaca Gun Co. could modify your receiver to accept the new style barrels but your slug barrel would no longer fit and new barrels can be costly...

 

Yes that is true.
There is no way I would change a thing on the gun.

 

Thanks for resurrecting a decade old thread. A lot has happened to me in the last decade, but I'm still here and healthy. Also, still think the Ithaca 37 is the best pump shotgun ever made. The Remington 870 Wingmaster was good but not the same.

 

Glad that you're still at it!
I started on Wingmasters and have owned a few M37s Pre-war forends that were actually put together After WWII production was resumed in 1946. They are wonderful!

 

I own a 70's era 37 in 12ga. Only thing I can tell you is on the older ones you can keep the trigger pulled and just pump it for fast follow up shots. You can't do that with a Rem 870---you must release the trigger then pull it again.

 

There is a rare late model Ithaca 37/38 3 inch mag 12 gauge smoothbore (cylinder bore) variant of the Deer Slayer fitted with rifle sights, that is the perfect buck shot/turkey gun when fitted with aftermarket screw in choke tubes. Long my favorite buck gun, very light and fast. Look for a serial number beginning with a M for 3 inch mag, usually the smoothbore is not stated, and have to confirm, 95% + are rifled non 3 inch guns.