comparison shopping

[bob kuczynski]

deciding on a sbt by either parker, lc smith, or Ithaca.
anyone here shot all 3 and have any inputs as to balance and feel? good bad experiences? crack prone wood? costs to repair, repair often etc...?
im aiming at a 30 or 32" vr gun with ejt and btfa. I prefer mc stocks.

[John Dallas]

A friend of mine has consigned a 99.9% Ithaca 5E SBT to Morphy's. It will be in their March auction. There's probably not a finer Ithaca on the planet. I've handled the gun (carefully!) and it's a dandy

[Randy Davis]

I own and have shot all three of the SBT`s that you mention. Most of the vintage SBT`s are 32"... 34" a little harder to find. Of the vintage American single barrels, the one I shoot the most is the 34 inch Ithaca.

Finding one with a M/C stock could take a while, more likely in an Ithaca. My Parker & LC Smiths are both 32" non M/C guns . Both point good and are well balanced shotguns. You can`t go wrong with any that were mentioned...

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[bob kuczynski]

how does a parker feel and operate in (comparison) to the others? is the parker bulky? thinner? heavier? prone to problems? etc...

[Dean Romig]

Of the two I've shot, both being Parker SC's, they balance beautifully and feel lighter than they look.





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[WmRike]

I have all three, and more than a single version of some. I enjoy all of them immensely.

I can't quite put my finger on it, but I put the Smith behind the other two. It might be the aesthetics or that the action is not quite as smooth. Still, it's a great shooting gun.

I am always impressed with the fit and finish of the Parker - unquestionably head and shoulders above the others. Everything about its operation is so smooth. It has generated some nice scores for this not-so-great shooter.

Trap guns are supposed to be rugged and reliable. Put a case through an Ithaca and you will begin to suspect a Knick will never break. Not just my opinion - Ithaca outsold Smith and Parker as long as all three were being made contemporaneously. However, it you handle enough Ithacas, you will see some suspect fitting here and there that impacts one's sensibilities more than the function of the gun. The Knicks are still my favorite, and because of their greater numbers, I think are easier to find in good condition.

There are smiths who are deservedly renowned as experts for each of the makes. Competent service and repairs are easy to come by, it's just the agony of downtime that you have to endure

[Randy Davis]

Collection of Bakers, Fox, LC Smith`s, Parker`s, Three Barrel Gun, and Ithaca`s Single Barrel Trap Guns...

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[charlie cleveland]

great display....charlie

[bob kuczynski]

does anyone have a comparison pic of all 3 ribs on top? parker lc and Ithaca?
im a stickler for rib views when shooting....glare etc...

[bob kuczynski]

trap 3...where in mo are you?

[Wayne Owens]

Here are a Parker (top), Ithaca (center) , and a LC Smith (bottom) shown for comparison purposes. In the last photo the Parker is on the bottom and the Smith is on the top. Click on the photos to enlarge.

[Wayne Owens]

Here is one more photo with the Parker on the left, the Ithaca center, and the Smith on the right.

[bob kuczynski]

excellent. your effort is truly respected.
any of those ribs concaved on top? im lead to believe only solid ribs or matted ribs were.

[Todd Poer]

Those are some impressive looking guns. Looking at them you have to do a double take to realize they are just single barreled guns with super-adequate receivers, especially on the Ithaca and LC Smith. Keep looking for that second barrel underneath.

If Parker could have lasted into the era of O/U's man what an incredible one they would have made.

[Bill Murphy]

Bob, the single trap brands you are considering all have flat ribs with varying widths. The "over 400,000" serial number Ithaca is the most available and the most bulletproof single trap. They are for sale all over the internet at reasonable prices.

[Frank Cronin]

Randy,

Really impressive display of SBT's.

Do you also collect vintage pump traps guns? W97, M12, M31, etc?

Frank

[Randy Davis]

Thanks Frank... Well, I started with a Model 12 Trap added a 1901 Pigeon 97, had a two barrel 31TC but got really excited about collecting the American SBT`s

Regards,
Randy

[bob kuczynski]

that Ithaca rib looks as wide as a browning broadway!
what were the common offerings on widths for sbt's? which are the most common per 3 guns shown?

[bob kuczynski]

what grade is your parker shown?

what is the most common restriction per the 3 guns shown?

id be most likely be using the sbt on the 27yd line or longer. we have a 50yd shoot off at my club semi annually. won it a few times with a SXM1 trap full. it was luck. I truly need an x-full anything!
any suggestions?

[Wayne Owens]

The parker is a SA. It has a .039 restriction. The Ithaca has a .035 and the Smith has a .032 restriction.

[WmRike]

The Ithaca ribs are about 0.45" at the rear and 0.30" at the front. The center of the rib is matted, and on either side of the mat is a border about 1/32" of polished blue, so the rib does not appear Broadway-like.

Most all of these guns, like all of the period guns with full chokes, have 40 +/- points of constriction. It's hard to get tighter than that. If I had to guess, I would say that less than 10% of the trap guns are under 37 points.

[Bill Murphy]

If you need a gun with a lot of choke, buy a gun with a lot of choke.

[Mark Ray]

Don’t leave Baker out of the mix! They were incredible shotguns. The receiver, barrel and rib were all machined from the same block of steel! Here is my “second generation, improved version”, 32”, ejector, straight grip, 30lpi checkering, engraved by Rudolph Kornbrath. The gun is in 95% original condition, with the only issues being some “melting” of the stock varnish, and I had to replace the original “grieb” sponge pad. It was beyond help, and there is no repop available. So went with Silvers, which was available as an option on this gun. Choked “tighter than Dick’s hatband”.

It is a clay busting beauty!

[Todd Poer]

“tighter than Dick’s hatband”.

Ha! I like it. Have not heard or used that expression in years.

Up there with "ease up before your gander strings pop"

[Mark Ray]

Rib view

[Wes Stueber]

Gentlemen,
I recently looked at a pair of Parker SBT trap guns. Both had 32" bbls. and one for $3,995. had a pigeon on the bottom of the receiver, while the other for $4,100., did not. I did not check their serial #'s, but should have! Is that a normal selling rate for them now?
Thank you!
Wes

[Tom Flanigan]

The Parker is my favorite SBT but the Ithaca comes in a close second in my opinion. I owned a Specialty grade Smith. It was a nice gun but the fit and finish did not equal the Parker or Ithaca. The gun didn't feel as good as the othert two and it didn't snap closed with a reassuring click like the others did. I rarely snap close a gun because I belive returning the top lever by hand causes less wear. The Smith didn't have a bolt through the foreend and it had developed cracks. My opinion is that they are less SBT guns than the Parker or Ithaca.

[John Davis]

I've got a Parker SC, Ithaca 5E (Flues) and L. C. Smith Specialty. I really like all three. None of them are collectors. I acquired them all considering only how they fit me and if I could shoot them. And I shoot them. On any given day any one of them can beat the other. So I'd say you can't go wrong with any of them. My recommendation is to buy one of each.

[Tom Flanigan]

I like your recommendation. All three are great guns. I like the feel of the Ithaca and Parker best. I owned L. C. Smith Specialty but sold it. Nice gun but I like the feel of the others better. And I like the looks of the Parker best of all. So for me Parker is the best choice but the others have the fans also. Especially the Ithaca which greatly outsold the Parker. The Ithaca single trap is truly a classic gun.

[Steve Cambria]

:nono::nono::nono:What's this???? Philly's Finest not worthy of at least an honorable mention?? I do believe someone is getting the cold shoulder here.

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[Tom Flanigan]

No offense. They are not often seen so I forgot to include Fox's. I've never shot one.

[Steve Cambria]

None taken, Tom. It's a shame the gene pool is so shallow. And for us lucky ones who have shouldered a Fox, we know what precious gems they truly are.

[John Davis]

Not long ago, I could have cared less about a Single Barrel Trap Gun. Now I've got a Parker, a Smith and an Ithaca. I'd like to add a Fox, a Lefever, a Baker and an Iver Johnson. I want them all. But as my grandmomma use to say, "wanting and having are two different things."

[Bill Murphy]

I would like to find a Kornbrath engraved Baker single. I once owned the Iver Johnson single that was pictured in Frank Conley's book on single barrels, but foolishly sold it.

[bob kuczynski]

I sold my iver Johnson super trap back in the late 90's. wish I kept it. SST, BTFA, EJT, VR. only issue I had with it was...it felt like I was swinging a 2x4. it was very bulky.

[bob kuczynski]

got time to sit, so im going thru my research library and im in the Ithaca section. thumbing thru the catalogs from 69 to 90.
I appears they stopped offering the 7e and stuck with the 5e and only the dollar grade.
I assume the 'dollar grade' was the old (5000 dollar) grade? retail price list shows a dollar grade going for 10 grand in 1990.

[Randy Davis]

I would like to find a Kornbrath engraved Baker single. I once owned the Iver Johnson single that was pictured in Frank Conley's book on single barrels, but foolishly sold it.

Here`s one, Baker SBT from the collection... A beautiful Elite grade. Once owned by Frank Conley.

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