High-end Pump Guns
- Thread starter dak0ta
- Start date
- Status
I think the Remington 870 Wingmaster is a solid, well built, and great looking pump shotgun. Pumping the action, you can hear and feel the tight smooth operation of quality. For an all around pump shotgun, the 870 magnum express is in my opinion hard to beat, and will shoot for years and years.
earlthegoat2
Member
The new Ithaca 37s would probably be considered high end. I think they are around 800 and up.
i guess the replies are going to lean towards what the responder has owned/fired and likes. personally i like the model 12 winch.
the 870, as stated above is a solid lifetime grade option also. i would vote that way, but they only {back when i played with them} come/came in a 3" length action format. same, while only 1/4" longer, it seemed too long for my 2 3/4" reach impediment.
my experience with the model 37 ithaca is that they will dump a full cartridge at my feet if pumped vigorously. a minor problem if used for hunting birds only. it could be that the "new" 37's mentioned by earlthegoat have addressed this problem, no experience on that to go by.
also no experience with the ..."Rem 31, 17, High standard"... to base any opinions on.
if some company would make an aftermarket upgrade kit for the mossberg 500 series shotguns that replaced the sheet metal action bars with high grade milled bar stock, they could easily be the most popular pumps currently available. the one i had got sold after three trips to the hospital to straighten the OEM action bars.
gunnie
the 870, as stated above is a solid lifetime grade option also. i would vote that way, but they only {back when i played with them} come/came in a 3" length action format. same, while only 1/4" longer, it seemed too long for my 2 3/4" reach impediment.
my experience with the model 37 ithaca is that they will dump a full cartridge at my feet if pumped vigorously. a minor problem if used for hunting birds only. it could be that the "new" 37's mentioned by earlthegoat have addressed this problem, no experience on that to go by.
also no experience with the ..."Rem 31, 17, High standard"... to base any opinions on.
if some company would make an aftermarket upgrade kit for the mossberg 500 series shotguns that replaced the sheet metal action bars with high grade milled bar stock, they could easily be the most popular pumps currently available. the one i had got sold after three trips to the hospital to straighten the OEM action bars.
gunnie
Last edited:
Milkmaster
Member
I think you can have a "high end" shotgun in many brands. Most manufacturers sell the "express" or entry level pump guns and also offer a higher end pump gun with nice wood, nice finish, and a few other whistles or bells. Those would include Wingmaster 870's, Model 37 Ithacas, Browning BPS, and others.
Good luck!
Good luck!
huntsman
Member
yes, yes,yes, maybe, no. Receiver milled from a solid block? Yes.
MCgunner
Member
To me, the ultimate pump is the Browning BPS. Being a lefty shooter skews my opinions a bit, though. 
I used to use an Ithaca featherweight 16 for ducks on occasion, belonged to my Uncle. Great gun, but doesn't have the tang safety that the BPS does. I owned a Wingmaster and, frankly, prefer my Mossberg. So, I guess my idea of "high end" pumps is the Browning. Wish I could afford a BPS 10 gauge for goose hunting. One of these days.....
I used to use an Ithaca featherweight 16 for ducks on occasion, belonged to my Uncle. Great gun, but doesn't have the tang safety that the BPS does. I owned a Wingmaster and, frankly, prefer my Mossberg. So, I guess my idea of "high end" pumps is the Browning. Wish I could afford a BPS 10 gauge for goose hunting. One of these days.....oneounceload
member
Ithaca has a high grade 28 gauge model 37 that, IIRC, runs about $3500........Saw it at the SHOT show, was reeeeaaaalllllll ppppuuuurrrrrddddyyyyyy............
"High-end" doesn't just mean the same old 870 with nice walnut and engraving. It's what's inside that counts.
I think the 37 is about the only "high end" pump shotgun anyone currently manufactures.
The pump gun is simply not on the RADAR much, in the high-end market, and it hasn't been for a generation or two. Since 1964, at the latest, but probably since 1950 when the 870 came out and replaced Remington's fine pump guns. The 31 is a beauty, inside and out.
I think the 37 is about the only "high end" pump shotgun anyone currently manufactures.
The pump gun is simply not on the RADAR much, in the high-end market, and it hasn't been for a generation or two. Since 1964, at the latest, but probably since 1950 when the 870 came out and replaced Remington's fine pump guns. The 31 is a beauty, inside and out.
MCgunner
Member
Well, yeah, ask yourself if you'd spend 3500 bucks on an Ithaca 37 when you could have some really FINE high end O/Us for that.
Damn, you could get a pretty decent side by side for that, maybe not a Purdy or Holland and Holland, but nice. 3500 for a pump? Christ, gimme a break!
I don't think it'd shoot any better than a run of the mill 870 Express or even a Maverick, to be honest. Might be a little smoother, crap, you can buy a lot of smooth for that 870 from a gunsmith, ya know, or just rack the slide several hundred times a night while watching TV. Keeps the buglers away.Exactly my point. I wouldn't, you wouldn't, and very few people would.
There was a time when the pump gun occupied a different niche. It no longer does.
There's very little market for a truly high-end gun with a tube magazine and a slide action.
The Mossberg pumps offer a LOT of gun for the money. They do everything a "high-end" pump ever did, but without the high price.
I, for one, have never been enamored with the Model 12. Yeah, it's got a nice action. But so what?
Now I do like the Ithaca 37, but that's because its weight and balance are really nice for upland shooting. I don't own one, and I probably won't in the foreseeable future. For that money, the 20 Gauge Urika 2 is also really nice in the hands, and I don't have to reach way out with my forward arm like with a 37, nor do I have to pump the thing when a covey of valley quail pops up and gives me a split second to shoot, and the foreend doesn't rattle around, either.
The semiauto has been perfected. There are still many reasons to get a pump, but "high-end" isn't one of them.
Last edited:
Beagle-zebub
Member
This is not my area of expertise, but other people on this forum who are fans of the Ithaca 37 say that the problem of them throwing unfired shells at your feet is result of a certain spring being worn out.
earlthegoat2
Member
I have never had this problem and tend to believe it is overblown internet hype.
JohnBT
Member
www.gunsinternational.com/Wincheste...09bb10636-76C46122-D90A-50AC-10C8C04D82810B41
"Model 12, 12 gauge, This gun has a 26" barrel with a Winchester 3 pin new style ventilated rib and is choked IMP MOD. This unusual M12 has a checkered field dimension pistol grip stock and beavertail fore end and has 95% finish. SN 1917xxx" $2999.
www.gunsinternational.com/WINCHESTER-MODEL-12-PIGEON-GRADE.cfm?gun_id=100090616
"1954 MFG. WITH FACTORY LETTER NEW UNFIRED IN ORIGINAL BOX. THIS IS A PIGEON GRADE 20 GA WITH ALL FACTORY OPTIONS. IT IS #5 ENGRAVED WITH ENGLISH STOCK,SOLID RIB AND MUCH MORE, A TRUE INVESTMENT GRADE GUN"
Price: 18,500.
"Model 12, 12 gauge, This gun has a 26" barrel with a Winchester 3 pin new style ventilated rib and is choked IMP MOD. This unusual M12 has a checkered field dimension pistol grip stock and beavertail fore end and has 95% finish. SN 1917xxx" $2999.
www.gunsinternational.com/WINCHESTER-MODEL-12-PIGEON-GRADE.cfm?gun_id=100090616
"1954 MFG. WITH FACTORY LETTER NEW UNFIRED IN ORIGINAL BOX. THIS IS A PIGEON GRADE 20 GA WITH ALL FACTORY OPTIONS. IT IS #5 ENGRAVED WITH ENGLISH STOCK,SOLID RIB AND MUCH MORE, A TRUE INVESTMENT GRADE GUN"
Price: 18,500.
JohnBT
Member
www.gunsinternational.com/Winchester-Model-12-Pigeon.cfm?gun_id=100090841
"WINCHESTER, Model 12 Pigeon Grade with #5 Engraving – 16ga., 26” WS1, AAA fancy straight grip stock, B-Carve checkering, Winchester butt plate, solid rib, factory #5 engraving pattern with gold game scenes, jeweled carrier, mid 1950’s manufacture, new in the box and unfired, the rarest configuration collector grade Model 12."
$15,999
"WINCHESTER, Model 12 Pigeon Grade with #5 Engraving – 16ga., 26” WS1, AAA fancy straight grip stock, B-Carve checkering, Winchester butt plate, solid rib, factory #5 engraving pattern with gold game scenes, jeweled carrier, mid 1950’s manufacture, new in the box and unfired, the rarest configuration collector grade Model 12."
$15,999
JohnBT
Member
www.amoskeag-auction.com/64/69.html
"Winchester Model 1897 Black Diamond Trap Slide Action Shotgun"
SOLD for $4025
"Winchester Model 1897 Black Diamond Trap Slide Action Shotgun"
SOLD for $4025
JohnBT
Member
But I'd settle on a lowly Model 12 28 ga.
And it's a skeet gun.
"WINCHESTER MODEL 12 28 GAUGE SKEET LIKE NEW. Here we have one of the few 28 gauge skeet that you will ever see in this condition.
This gun is drop dead GORGEOUS.
With a serial number of 14104XX about 55 years old.
Fitted with a 26″ skeet choke barrel, the 2 7/8″ chamber (RAIR) and a solid rib. There is not much more you could ask for with out going engraved.
THIS MAY BE AA OR AAA WOOD. THE GRAIN MATCHES ON BOTH PIECES."
http://rockriveroutfitter.com/?p=357
$11,500
____________
My father bought a new 20 ga. Model 12 in the '50s, when I was 4. It was the first gun to knock me on my seat in the dirt. I didn't ask again until I got a little bigger. John
And it's a skeet gun.
"WINCHESTER MODEL 12 28 GAUGE SKEET LIKE NEW. Here we have one of the few 28 gauge skeet that you will ever see in this condition.
This gun is drop dead GORGEOUS.
With a serial number of 14104XX about 55 years old.
Fitted with a 26″ skeet choke barrel, the 2 7/8″ chamber (RAIR) and a solid rib. There is not much more you could ask for with out going engraved.
THIS MAY BE AA OR AAA WOOD. THE GRAIN MATCHES ON BOTH PIECES."
http://rockriveroutfitter.com/?p=357
$11,500
____________
My father bought a new 20 ga. Model 12 in the '50s, when I was 4. It was the first gun to knock me on my seat in the dirt. I didn't ask again until I got a little bigger. John
Last edited:
tactikel
Member
If you can, pump each of your listed models, you will instantly know which one is high grade. Shuck a model 12, a rem 17, Ithaca 37, or a BPS, then try a 870 (even one from the last decade), the 870 is a very good gun (I have one), but not great like the above.
My Rem 17, if cocked and pointed up will slide completely back out of battery if the side release button is pushed, that is a great pump action shotgun.
My Rem 17, if cocked and pointed up will slide completely back out of battery if the side release button is pushed, that is a great pump action shotgun.
MCgunner
Member
Well, my Winchester 1400 pumps itself....
LOL
Exactly.
The high-end pump market pretty much dried up as soon as semiautos reached a certain level of refinement.
The pump lived on mostly as a reliable, relatively inexpensive gun that would tolerate extreme abuse -- not a piece of art to be pampered.
Exactly.
The high-end pump market pretty much dried up as soon as semiautos reached a certain level of refinement.
The pump lived on mostly as a reliable, relatively inexpensive gun that would tolerate extreme abuse -- not a piece of art to be pampered.
JPP
Member
I vote Browning BPS!
JP
JP
oneounceload
member
AB - check out the Ithaca custom 37 in 28 gauge:
- Status
