doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Top 'o the field grades

I'll match my Ithaca 20 gauge Model 37 against just about anything. But #1 in a SxS has to be the Model 21. Hands down.

The more I've looked at the graded guns, the more I liked field grades. They seem so...ulititarian 'n salt of the earth!
Like these guys - well, that one guy at least!

Ted, I've never seen an automatic shotgun, but your dad probably did shoot an automatic rifle in service: BAR.

Speaking of field grade doubles, all the American classics were pretty good. Judging by the prices of used guns, the Trojan and the Sterlingworth seem to be the most sought-after. Of the classic sxs, I think the NID Field Grade is probably the most underpriced.

For an interesting all-American field grade OU, the Marlin 90 deserves consideration. I just picked one up in 12ga, excellent original condition, for a little over $300. When I gave the barrels the "ring" test, I was surprised at how "ringy" they are.

Sometimes I have to face up the reality that English IS my second language What's the question again, please? "What did Grandpa shoot?" or "What did Grandpa consider to be the best gun for the hunts he did even though he actually shot something else??"

My Grandad shot a Damascus Parker Bros. GH 12 ga. and also had a Trojan 20 ga. My Dad bought a Trojan 12 ga. in 1921. I still hunt with the two Trojans, the GH was "rode hard and put up wet" a lot and has some serious problems which have relegated it to a rack on the wall. Too bad. -- Ed

Lowell,
My dad grew up in the depression. Game went on the table. They don't get much more salt of the earth than that old marine (2 tours in the Pacific in WW2). His gun was a 12 gauge Ithaca M-37. Full choke, solid rib and corn-cob fore-end. I have no idea what kind of gun he used before the war, but I imagine it was a hardware store variety single shot. Whatever got the job done for the least investment was the order of the day for him and his type.


Humpty Dumpty,
It's not you.

I don't think there's any way around the probability that Dad and Gramps used repeaters.

12 ga (typical) or 16 ga (better), 28", mod or full. A5, M-12, M-37. Even now, pre-1950s examples of field models can be had for not alot of money.

Sam

My dad was given a Volunteer Firearms 16 gauge single shot hammer gun when he was 12 years old. Every piece of game netted a shell so pot shots were the order of the day. He graduated to a Winchester Model 97, 12 gauge full choke that belonged to my uncle who was a market hunter. In 1964 he finally moved up to a 12 gauge Remington 870, added a Herters "Poly" choke and hunted happily until he left this earth in 1990. His rifle was one I made for him out of an old Santa Barbara 30-06 barrelled action and Fajen stock. He killed a lot of deer with that rifle. I have the rifle and my brother has the shotgun. Both are heirlooms to us.

Jim

If we're talking pre-WWII prices, the repeaters were not the huge bargains they are today, compared to classic doubles. Models 12, 31, and 37 were all just a bit under $44 back in 1940. That does make them cheaper than the LC Field Grade and Sterlingworth, both at $49, and way cheaper than a Model 21 or Parker VHE (Trojan had been dropped by then). However, you could buy the above-mentioned Marlin 90 for about $40, or the Iver Johnson Hercules, Hunter Special or Fulton, Winchester 24, or Savage 420 OU for between $30-35. So there were quite a few doubles, both sxs and OU--not including even cheaper guns like Stevens and Fox B--that undercut the repeaters more than the repeaters undercut the better quality sxs.

Lefever G and DS would be the company field grades. The rib matting alone makes them way classier than other field grades. They are tops in my book.