Home Forums Birds & Dogs Shotguns A gun of my youth: Ithaca Model 37 Featherlight Deluxe

The first gun I ever owned for my very own was a Ithaca Model 37 Featherlight Deluxe 12 ga with a 26" ventilated rib barrel and fixed improve cylinder choke. I must have gotten it sometime between 1978 and 1980. Like a fool, I sold in the early 90s to buy something "cooler" and shortly regretted it. I've since picked up a few newer Ithaca Model 37s, including guns made in Upper Sandusky, Ohio. As great as those guns are, they just didn't make up for the loss of my first Ithaca. I'll never get that exact gun back. But I recently found one, a 1975 production gun that is exaclty the same as the one I gave up back in the 90s. In fact, it's in better shape that the one I sold. It looks like it was scarcely used. Even the recopil pad shows no signs of dry rot and is still rubbery and after all these year. I couldn't pass it up.



















I shot a few quail with my original Model 37. It was perfect for that. Killed a lot of squirrels with it until I was told I wasn't supposed to be able to do that with an open choke. And as a teen, it was my deer gun. It would shoot Federal 1oz rifled slugs like someone's business. I could break bottles at the dump with it at 75 paces. So now that I have it, I'm feeling a bit more nostaligic. I'm going to load it up with Federal fosters and take it out before deer season is over. I still have my made-in-USA Columbia waterfowlers jacket in vintage brown camo that I bought in the late 80s that still fits well. I would wear that deer hunting when it got cold enough here for it. And I still have some original RealTree and Advantage camo from the late 80s that still in good shape. So, looking forward to my old-school deer hunt.

Great guns

Beauty

Great reliable gun. Shot my first deer with one in 20 ga. Enjoy it

Way back in the 70's I had a to choose between the Ithaca 37 and a Remington 870. I chose the 870 and loved it. My buddy bought the 37 and he loved it as well. I always thought it was cool how the 37 threw the hull out the bottom.
I don't regret buying the 870 but have always wanted a 37 as I just think they are cool and the 20 ga is just icing on the cake.

That is a gorgeous gun, so glad you found one from your youth. I can guess how pumped you are now! I've always admired the build quality, design and look of those guns; sadly I just don't like how they fit me.

Oh and I dig the old school camo as well. I have a few pieces in that type pattern

Nice gun, relive the memories! I still have, and use, camo patterns that are older than most hunters out in the field today! Lol! I just "passed on" a jacket just like yours to a new duck hunter, he's worn it every time out so far.

That's actually a pretty effective camo pattern. In thick stuff it break you up nicely. It blends in with fall leaves well, too.

I see Browning is putting that retro camo pattern on some of their Silver shotguns.

I enjoyed your story. My first shotgun of my very own is a model 37 deluxe in 20 ga. It was a gift from my parents for Christmas in 1971. Mine is a 28" Modified choke version. I have probably killed a dump truck or more full of rabbits, squirrels, quail, dove, and other game or non-game that was unfortunate enough to be in front of me. I don't bird or rabbit hunt any longer as I can't walk well enough to. I do shoot 5,000 or more rounds a year at Sporting Clays but not with the Ithaca. These days a Perazzi SC3 has taken it's place as my main shotgun. I probably need to pull the old 37 out and shoot a few targets with it. Although not your original gun that seems to be a very nice example you replaced it with. I hope you enjoy it for quite some time to come.
Take care,
Rick

Congrats on finding such a fine example ,that is a real beauty . My first shotgun was brand new 20 gauge model 37 back about 1972, many great memories and thousands of rounds .

That is a beautiful model 37! Enjoy your hunt and good luck 👍...if you kill post a pic with your 37 and old school camo on....Hb

The epitome of pump guns.

10Glocks, that's a beauty. I know you're going to enjoy it. The best to you.

The model 37 Ithaca is the best pump design ever. My first shotgun was a hand-me-down from my father, 16 gauge Ithaca with a modified choke barrel. This was early '60's and he'd bought it new the year I was born: 1948. My father never owned a gun case. His rural NY culture/society/family had no tradition of gun care, other than oiling it and cleaning the bore occasionally, so the gun looked like you'd expect it too from years of travelling in the bottom of a duck boat with the decoys and such, or just tossed in the trunk of the car with all the other guns. I killed my first deer with it and a lot of other stuff as well. As a kid I took it apart and put it back together a lot. I was fascinated by the genius of the mechanism. Any other pump shotgun I saw always seemed either clumsy/archaic or just a cheap clunker.