I have an older Ithaca 37 pump shotgun that sometimes locks up and will not eject spent shells. I have to bang the butt on the ground while holding the forend to get it to rack and eject. It does this randomly. Any help would be appreciated.
Or, anyone know a good gunsmith in northeast Ohio? Akron vicinity. Thank you.

What kind of shells are you shooting? If they are Winchester Universals that could be the problem. You may want to go to Shotgun Forum and check out their forums. It's a great site with lots of info there.

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Why duck?? It's a 9mm!

I have a model 12 12ga that does this. I’ve disassembled twice to clear it. I’d rather not bang stock on the ground. I keep saying I gotta fix this.

My Dad had a M37 which I inherited, a 1965 16 gauge Deerslayer. As I recall it began locking up intermittently as you describe. If memory serves, the problem was caused by hitting the bolt release out of habit after firing the gun when ejecting a spent shell, instead of just racking the pump smartly and leaving the bolt release alone. I think this occurred due to developing the habit of using the bolt release while administratively loading and unloading the gun, and not doing much actual shooting with it.

Regardless of what's causing the problem, it's fixable. I don't recall it costing much. After having it fixed my old Deerslayer hasn't locked up in over 40 years. I have 3 other 37s that have never misbehaved in this manner.

Good luck.

I have two 37s, both 12 gauge, have never run into this issue.

When I was a kid I had this issue. I brought it to a gunsmith. He took a pair of needle nose pliers and bent the ejectors closer together. Then he put 3 dummies in and ejected them as fast as he could pump it. Took less than 5 minutes. Maybe if you can get some specs on how close they should be or compare to another one. That fixed mine.

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S&WHF 483 , S&WCA 1699

The chamber is getting too much buildup. Ithaca’s have tight chambers and were built when the quality of shells was much better. Current shells, especially the cheap thin brass and even more so the plated steel swell more and form to the buildup in the chamber. I’ve been using M37s my whole life.

The new Ithaca’s are made in Sandusky so you have that option. I never had that issue with my Deerslayer but as it was said it might be the shotshells that you are using.

Excellent advice! I'd phone them and see if you can drop it off. Shipping/insurance can get expensive.

Factory Service | Ithaca Gun Company Factory Service | Contact

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The M37 depends on the Slide Stop (#27) to be pulled down out of contact with the rear of the Slide #14 when the gun is fired so that the action can then be cycled.
The Slide (#14 )is what actually cams the Breech Bolt /Block (#3) into and out of battery by way of the pump action arm.

Ithaca 37 Featherlight Parts List | Gun Parts Corp.

The Slide Stop is powered by a small simple wire spring (#28) to engage the Slide Stop. The hammer being fired pulls the Slide Stop out of contact with the Slide and allows the bolt to be opened w/o the need to depress the Slide Stop.
Once the action is again cycled and the hammer is cocked, the Slide Stop is again engaged to hold the Slide in the closed & locked position. So the Bolt is closed and locked and to open the breech the Slide Stop must be depressed to do so or the hammer dropped(fired or dry fired)

If the Slide Stop is not disengaging from the Slide and requires the gun to be bumped on the butt stock,,that wire spring may be broken.

Or..it could be just an accumulation of old oil, dirt, grease that is not allowing the Side Stop to drop out of engagement inspite of having some spring tension on it.
Old guns will do that.

They are a simple mechanism. Likely a simple fix.


FWIW..The mention of the act of banging the butt of stock on ground...
The M37 has an odd way of disengaging the slide op-rod from the 'Slide' when doing just that.
It doesn't happen all the time, nor does it happen very often. But it does occur. I'd call it rare.
The normal TD disassembly of the op-rod from the slide is done by simply sliding the pin which is visible in the loading port to the side and pulling the op rod forward.

On some 37's,,the simple act of bouncing the butt of the shotgun on the ground will do the same. It will disconnect the op-rod from the 'slide' (part#14).
That will leave you with a closed and locked Breech bolt and a Slide handle that is unattached to the Slide and thus the Breech Bolt itself.
Easy to reconnect by sliding the attachment pin to the side and allowing the op rod to reconnect via the pin.
But it is one of those rare things that can occur .

I'll attach a pdf of typed armorer instructions that I've had for several decades; I don't remember where I got them.....

There are several points that may apply under "rough action," failure to extract and failure to eject. Proper dimensions, fit and adjustment of the carrier arms is covered.

I also like the prior suggestion to check that the action release / slide stop is moving properly. And then -- rearward pressure on the slide handle will not allow the action release to drop ...so if something is causing that ...


Example:

Rough Action

1. Rough action may be caused by inadequate freedom of the hammer
when cocking the action . See sketch on preceeding page.

2. Rough action may also result from interference of the breech
block with the carrier ejection guide tabs. Check as in fail
to extract and redress angles as required.

3. Rough action may also result from an overly tightened trigger
plate screw. The trigger plate screw should be run in
until it seats and then backed off approximately one half turn.

4. Bent slide handle bars may also result in rough action . Check
for interference between the slide bar and the cut in the receiver.
.

Attached Files

Ithaca M 37 disassembly trouble shooting.pdf (1.32 MB, 6 views)

My only Ithaca 37 passed through my boyhood hands in the 60's but I vividly remember its sometimes stubborn disconnector mechanism. If the slide was firmly held rearward, it would not unlock upon firing. Easily demonstrated when dry firing, but not noticed when firing a shell as recoil normally unlocks the slide. The Winchester model 12 was even more pronounced with this effect. John Moses may have been over-compensating for designing M-97's and M-12's without disconnectors to slam fire. Slicker pump guns can't be made to hitch like this. Remington 31's and 870's unlock if you think about it and are far smoother. I have always noted that Browning's inventions, even though magically inspired, have severe hitches in their operating cycles that take getting used to.

One more time: Winchester shotguns and the Ithaca model 37 do not "slam fire" because they do not have disconnectors. Even articles in the American Rifleman get this wrong. (Yes, I have complained. Stern letter to follow...)

What allows firing while the trigger is held and the handle is pumped is a secondary sear and trip lever. Visualize a pump action machinegun.

A model 37 with the "sporting" trigger group that does not have the stud on the hammer [and literally no disconnector] will harmlessly shuck shells without firing.

I hate "slam fire" applied to this action as that term has a separate, specific meaning. Fighting another losing battle.