need help and info on my ithaca deerslayer

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Copper BB
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PostPosted: Sat Dec 21, 2013 9:13 pm
Hello I need some help on this my wild goose chase I'm in for infor on my gun. I recently purchased what I thought to be an Ithaca model 87 deerslayer. The barrel says m-87 deerslayer featherlight chambered in 2 3/4" and 3" king ferry new York roto forged. So that being said I emailed the Ithaca company with the serial number and they got back to me saying the gun was not in fact what I thought it was because the serial number would have began with 87. The serial number on my gun is 1043830 on the right side of the receiver. It has the engraving on both sides of the receiver of birds flying and the stock has engraving on the handle. Looks like crosses kind of. The forearm is plain wood. This is my first Ithaca and I love the gun but want to know more about it. So any info would be GREATLY appreciated.
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.270 WIN
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 22, 2013 1:23 am
http://ithacagun.com/pdfs/serialnumbers.pdf

That shows it was built in 1969. :)



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Copper BB
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 22, 2013 1:40 am
Thanks a lot for the link. So I should be able to get a field barrel for my 37 also. But what years will fit my gun?
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.270 WIN
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 22, 2013 1:54 am
it sounds like a normal 69 m37 with a later deer slayer barrel.
1 note
the m87 barrel might be chambered in 3" but the gun is built for 2-3/4
do not put 3" shells in it.

guns after sn# 855000 have interchangeable barrels ,somebody put a deerslayer barrel on it.
no big deal ,any newer barrel will fit on the gun.

if you want a field barrel just make sure its a post #855000 barrel.
they have no serial numbers on the barrels

Copper BB
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 22, 2013 2:35 am
So just to make sure I'm understanding this correct, guns with serial number 855000 would be made before my gun in 1969? And any barrel after 1969 would fit my gun? And good bit of Info about shell size to I was also wondering about that. Another question is would that make my gun less valuable it having that different barrel and not the original? I appreciate the knowledge as my username says I'm new to Ithaca's but have recently developed a passion for them. Being 21 years of age I find these guns of old to be better and more reliable already. Thanks again
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.270 WIN
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 22, 2013 8:44 am
you gun is as valuable to you as you want it to be. having extra barrels just makes it more so.

now you didn't say, but I am going to assume 12ga. so if it is one of the others, just substitute the correct gauge into what I am saying.

HOWEVER, if it is a 16ga or a 20ga, barrels are a little harder to come by. If it is a 20ga though, say so, I have a gunsmith acquaintance that has a mod choked barrel for a really decent price.

at serial nbr 855,000 Ithaca changed the way that the barrels attached. prior to 855,000 the barrels had a true thread, it had a helical pitch. after 855.000 they were just parallel grooves. this change happened around 1963/1964.

any barrel made after 855,000 (gauge specific of course) will fit your gun, but there may need to be a little tweaking (may) due to manufacturing tolerances. (I had one that was a bit tight, but a little work got it to go)

your gun was made while Ithaca was still in Ithaca NY so any field barrel that say Ithaca NY would period correct and put it back to what it was before its original barrel got separated away. Guns built in 1969 were still of the higher quality than some a little later when quality slipped due to mismanagement, not the fault of the employees.

You didn't say what your intended purpose for getting other barrels for it was. I am going to assume hunting ? If home defense, ignore all the barrels below, they are a bit long for navigating in the home. for hunting purposes, 26 to 30 inch barrels are the most common, I like 26/28 myself.

For choke purposes, I mostly use Improved Cylinder or Modified for my type of hunting.

NOTICE AT LEAST ONE IS A FULL CHOKE. If you get a full choke barrel at a good price, you can always have it opened up to the choke you need. Screw in choke barrels came later in the time frame and are available but cost a little more. You can also have screw in chokes put into a barrel if you get one at a good price

now assuming that it is 12ga, here are some barrels you could bid on, assuming you see this in time. I put them in the order that I would consider the most desireable

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ithaca-Model-37 ... 4617b5e1fb

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ITHACA-MODEL-37 ... 2eccdad4d3

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ITHACA-37-FEATH ... 43c375ce2a

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewIt ... =383057453

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewIt ... =382470413
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.270 WIN
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 22, 2013 8:51 am
close but not exactly.

the cut off date for 855000 barrels was in 63.
so any barrel made after 63 will fit the gun.
the big difference in identifying a post 855 barrels is a SN
before 63 barrels were matched to the gun , they had the guns SN on the barrel.
after 63 there was no need to match guns and barrels ,,hence no SN on the barrel.

as far as value ...
well a "collector" would devalue it because of the barrel.
but in every other case it as no effect,many people get a DS barrel for their gun
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.270 WIN
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 22, 2013 9:21 am
you are also close but not exactly

that is why I said 63/64 as I was not 100 % sure

I have a King Ferry barrel that was is fitted to a 1949 receiver. Yes a late model barrel, made well after 1963.

The only clue to the barrel is the helical threads and a hand engraved serial nbr otherwise it looks like every other vent rib, choke tube King Ferry 16ga barrel that I own. this serial nbr was put on by hand and does not look "factory" at all. it is on the bottom, hidden by the mag tube and just looks like a "stock nbr" or other number that someone puts on their guns such as a SSN , birth date, etc.

I bought the gun with 2 barrels. The original solid rib barrel, and the King Ferry choke tube barrel which originally was fitted to an entirely different gun. So seeing as the numbers mean nothing to the gun it is fitted to can mislead someone who doesn't know the entire story

so if a person doesn't understand to look at the threads a barrel such as this could cause a problem

Copper BB
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 22, 2013 6:39 pm
This is the infor I was looking to get. It completely slipped my mind but yes it is a 12 gauge. I'm going to use it for deer and rabbit hunting once I get the field barrel. It is already priceless to me and I plan on having it for a long while. I know where to come now if I need any more info thanks again for all your knowledge and sharing it. Have a good day and happy hunting!

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