Ithaca mod. 37 R.L.B. marked

[3hounds]

I recently purchased a ithaca mod. 37 with these markings on the receiver ( R.L.B. with flaming bomb).It has a 28 inch barrel and is in 16 gauge.

Can anybody tell me what these markings stand for ?

Thanks, 3

 

[BADSBSNF81]

Inspector's initials, COL Roy L. Bowlin and US Army ordnance symbol aka martial markings. Does it have a "US" marking on it? Does it have a small "p" on the receiver or bbl? Most likely one of the @12,500 training shoutguns that Ithaca delivered to the gov't during WWII.

 

[3hounds]

It has the "P" on the barrel but i can't see any "us" marking.I thought they only used the trench type shotguns with the short barrels ? They only made 12,500 of these ? What's a ballpark figure of the value of these shotguns ?

I paid $400.00 and it's in good condition i would say.It has a recoil pad that is obviously not original.The buttstock was also cut down too.

Thanks,3

 

[Mike Irwin]

Hounds,

The trench guns are the marquee guns, but the shotgun manufacturers also supplied thousands of shotguns in all calibers.

Most went, believe it or not, to Army, Navy, and Marine Corps flight training schools, where fighter pilots and aerial gunners used them to learn the finer points of how to lead a target.

They'd start off on the ground, standard trap/skeet range, then they'd graduate to being the the bed of a moving truck with the thrower mounted on that truck, or another one.

 

[3hounds]

A trainer shotgun.Never knew they existed.They had trainer rifles so why not shotguns.


I thank you for your time and knowledge.