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Ithaca 37


Whiskey Hicks

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There’s a stock and receiver set on Gunbroker for a Featherlight (pre-72, so slam fire capable) at $356. I was looking at barrel and tube options on Ithaca’s website: a 20” barrel and matching 7+1 tube for $375 total.

 

Has the Featherlight traditionally been any different in weight or build from the home defense/riot/police style configuration? I just want to know if I get a Featherlight, am I going to be feeling more recoil from a lighter gun?

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My favorite repeating shot gun.  I have owned seven of them in 12 gauge and one in 20.  Slickest and fastest pump gun I ever used.

 

I think the "Feather Light" was referring to comparison with other makes, but not by much.  It was a slogan for selling guns.  I've never noticed any difference except the military guns had a heat shield and bayonet lug which added about a half pound and another half pound for a sling and swivels.....but it also had a shorter Barrel so it about evened out.

 

Back in the 50s and 60s you'd see a lot of them in police cars.

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It's neither a feature nor a flaw.

 

Prior to about 1900 they did not put disconnectors in guns. There was no need. You pulled the trigger, released the trigger, and worked the action. But around 1900, when automatics showed up on the scene, they discovered that the guns action worked faster than people's reaction. The gun would eject the empty and load the new one before the shooter could get his finger off the trigger. This meant that the gun would fire again. Open bolt machine gun. So they put this little Dingus in there to disconnect the trigger from the hammer, so that the gun would only fire one time, and then you had to let go of the trigger so it could reset and you could shoot again.

 

And even after they put these in semi-automatic firearms, they didn't put them in other guns.

 

The Winchester Model 12 came out in 1912. No disconnector. The Ithaca 37 came out in 1937. No disconnector. They didn't need one. The action did not overrun the shooter's trigger finger.

 

People get all excited with the 97 Winchester. "If you hold the trigger back and work the pump, every time the pump goes forward it shoots! It SLAM FIRES!!!"

 

The 1890 Winchester works exactly the same way. If you hold the trigger back and work the pump handle, every time you push that pump handle forward the hammer falls. But no one gets all excited about it SLAM FIRES - most likely because it's a 22 not a 12 gauge.

 

If you take your single action, and you hold the trigger back, and you pull the hammer back to full cock and let It go, it will fire. If you continue holding the trigger back and pull the hammer back again, it will fire again. It will fire as long as you can work that hammer back. Nobody calls that slam firing.

 

 

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The police version of the Model 37 was typically called the "Deerstalker/Police Special".  It had a 20" barrel, with a full length magazine that held 8 rounds.  It was also available with rifle sights.  The finish could be blue, nickel or phosphate.

 

A lot of police agencies went for the base police model, though.  It had a standard magazine, bead sight, non checkered wood stock and forearm, and a 18 or 20 inch barrel with a single bead.  The finish was phosphate (parkerize).

 

I currently have two standard hunting style model 37s.

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