Slamfire on Ithaca M37
<Will it have the slamfire feature the other Ithaca shotguns had?>
With that high a serial number it may not...the slamfire feature was an early thing that was phased out in the seventies I think. Here's a rundown on the different Ithaca trigger setups.
BTW, slamfire is very cool and worth adding to your shotgun. If you pmail me I can tell you where you can get the needed parts. I was shown the different setups involved- a slamfire gun has a little pin sticking out of the right side of the hammer, it catches on something and trips when the gun goes into battery. There are some guns that had the hammer follow the bolt but it would not fire, if you have one of those I'd be adding slamfire. Remember slamfire can be dangerous, you can have a very easy AD with it...which is why they eliminated it.
Ithaca triggers.
SAFETY WARNING - Ensure all firearms are unloaded before attempting any of
these function tests.
Over the years, I have encountered FOUR different types of Ithaca triggers
on model 37's and 87's. I have also seen "hybrid" guns where parts for an
M-37 were used on an M-87 and vice versa. Since these are wildcards, I will
only discuss the factory production triggers I have seen and their
characteristics.
1. Slam Fire - Most common type of trigger and part of what the Ithaca
M-37's is famous for.
Function - Pull the trigger and hold it to the rear. Gun will fire each time
the pump is cycled forward and ammo supply holds out. On guns made from 1937
thru 1975-ish.
2. Hammer "ride-up" - Starting somewhere in the 1975 production year, Ithaca
started making trigger groups that functioned very much like the "slam fire"
trigger in that the hammer will "ride up" the back of the bolt as the slide
is pushed forward while keeping the trigger to the rear. However, rounds
will not fire while holding the trigger.
Function - pull the trigger and hold rearward. Working the slide, the rounds
will cycle through the action but only the first round will be fired. Hammer
will ride up behind the bolt each time it comes forward. There is not a
trigger disconnector.
Problem - If assuming a "slam fire" capability, the shooter will only cycle
UNFIRED (except for the first round) rounds through the shotgun. If the
shooter realizes this and releases the trigger, the action will need to be
cycled again to recock the hammer. The shotgun will then be ready to fire.
On most (if not all) M-37's made from 1975-ish thru 1987. NOTE - It is very
difficult to tell if a shotgun has this trigger or the older "slam fire"
trigger without actually firing rounds through it as they perform
identically in dry fire drills.
3. LAPD Trigger - On some Deer Slayer Police Special (DSPS) Ithaca's made in
the late 60's and early 70's. The LAPD decided they wanted a trigger
disconnector on their M-37 DSPS's.
Function - Pull trigger and hold, action will still cycle but the hammer
remains in rearward postition (cocked) until trigger pressure is slightly
released. There IS a disconnector present in this trigger group.
Problem - Very similar to post 1975 production triggers. If assuming a slam
fire capability, the shooter will only cycle UNFIRED (again, except for the
first round) rounds through the shotgun. However, if the shooter realizes
this and releases the trigger (will hear a metalic "click"), the shotgun
will be ready to fire without recycling the slide. Only on LAPD pattern
DSPS, M-37's from about the mid-60's thru 1974-ish.
4. M-87 Trigger - The Model 87 trigger uses a similar disconnect system to
the LAPD trigger except the slide cannot be manipulated until the trigger is
released.
Function - Pull the trigger and hold to the rear. Action will not cycle
until pressure is taken off the trigger.
Problem - If familiar with or assuming the same function of earlier M-37
triggers, can cause confusion to the shooter. This trigger function is more
like those found on the Remington 870 or Mossberg 500.
* Wild Card - I have seen late production M-37's (and one M-87) that have
actual "slam fire" capability. I can only assume that these guns had been
altered by their owner to use pre-1975 trigger groups. Ithaca did not
make the M-87 with "slam fire" capability but M-37 trigger groups can be made to work in the M-87 as well as all variations of the M-37.
)
