New project: Ithaca crass model

[Mike Poindexter]

Angel: Just stumbled across this old thread while looking up Crass model Ithacas on Google. I have Walt Snyder's book and it appears they made both hammer and hammerless guns on the Crass designed frame. The higher serial number hammer guns had 3 screw pins on the side of the frame, as yours does. The older Baker frames had none. From looking at an old Ithaca catalogue from 1888 (reprint) I don't think yours is a Grade D. That was their $100 gun, the next to highest hammer grade at the time, and advertised with "Rolled Gold Triggers, Extra fine Checkering, Extra Fine Finish and Engraving". Based on other Ithacas I have seen, I would bet your gun is a Quality B, which was a $50 dollar gun and comparable in description to a Quality 2 hammerless. The floorplate scroll is very similar to other Quality 2's I have seen. The star engraved on the hinge pin is common on 1 1/2's and Quality 2's as well. Both had Damascus barrels (as opposed to Stub Twist or Condensed Steel on the lower grades) but the 1 1/2 had a black walnut stock, while the 2 was listed with English. That's about all I know, fwiw.