Ithaca 87 vs 37???? and a price drop

[usp_fan]

Went back to the shop over lunch today to look at the used Ithaca I asked about earlier this week. I discovered two things, 1. They had lost the second barrel (bird barrel with screw in chokes) and 2. the shotgun was an Ithaca 87 not 37.

What is the difference? The finish is parkerized not blued. The gun is marked Ithaca 87 light weight deerslayer.

They have knocked the price to $199 from $259 b/c the second barrel is missing. Is this a good price, or should I keep looking at used SGs to find a better deal?

Thanks,

--usp_fan

 

[Wags]

When Ithaca was re-organizing in the 80's they changed the Mod 37 to Mod 87 in 1987. Sometime in the 90's they went back to the Mod 37. Same shotugn, only different model number designation. $199 with a deerslayer barrel? Not a bad deal from what you described in your ealier thread. If the barrel is rifled that would be even better. You can always purchase another used screw in choked barrel in the future. Prices vary, and ebay always has a decent selection at times.

 

[Dave McCracken]

$200 for an Ithaca pump is good. Buy it.

Some folks think the 87s were made in a period of cost cutting when the cosmetics suffered and actions weren't quite as smooth. I see little difference myself.One friend's 87DS is slick as oil on ice.

Ithaca, like Winchester and Remington, has gone through several incarnations where the company would go into Chapter Something and get reorganized. 1987 was when one such occurred.

87s do take newer 37 barrels, but a few other parts may not interchange.

Very old 37s need to be fitted at the factory with new barrels.

HTH....