doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Are the NID field grades under valued?

ithaca guns have always been undervalued when compared to parkers, foxes and smiths...this is one of the reasons to own ithacas. they are quality guns at bargain prices!

and, one can buy a half dozen nice nid's for the price of a clunky ole 21...

Yes Brian, they are no doubt usually undervalued, but I have no explanation. When I first got into doubles, Sterlingworths and NID's in like condition were priced almost equally. Both are well made vintage American doubles that have a rotary bolt. I think the NID was a big improvement in both strength and appearance over the Flues. I have 3 Flues models, a 16 and 2 20's, I bought for parts that have barrels split around the forearm. Coincidence, more time to get mud or snow in a barrel, or thinner weaker tubes? That similar pricing seemed to change dramatically in about the mid-1990's, and I attributed some of the increased demand for Foxes to Michael McIntosh's book and the gunsmiths who began using field grade Foxes as the basis for semi-custom upgrades. But who really knows? A few years ago, I watched a nice 16 ga. NID sit on a table at a fairly large gun show all day with a $300.00 price tag. Sounds like it was in a bit better condition than yours... no rust, 95% blue, 40-50% case colors, unmolested and uncut, cocking indicators, great wood with strong checkering, a little varnish flaking at the buttplate. I went back and looked several times thinking it was very cheap, but I didn't really need it. On my way out, I went back and offered $225.00, and bought it for $235.00. How could you go wrong? How could so many guys who would break their arm reaching for their wallet to pay over a grand for a similar condition 16 ga. Trojan or Sterlingworth walk right by that NID? I do consider the Sterlingworth more attractive, but not that much. Some might disagree, but I like them a whole lot more than the current crop of field grade Turkish made doubles that sell for a lot more. Great values.

Keith, I think you are spot on. For some one who wants to get into the American double game and hunt with one that they would be proud to own, I see nothing wrong with the NID. maybe not as graceful as a Sterlingworth but like the Sterly, same action and components as its higher graded big brothers in the Ithaca stable.

The NID's are even a great value in 16 and 20's. The 28 and .410 tend to be very pricey. I have picked up grade 2 and 3 20's in good to very good condition for a lot less than I could find even a Sterlingworth 20.

My best buy was a 16 field grade in 99% condition that someone had cut the barrels from 28" down to 27 1/2". I guess the end of the barrels got dinged or damaged and the "gunsmith" whacked off half an inch to fix the problem. The bob job was done fairly well and with a little revision is not detectable otherwise than the odd barrel length. The chokes are even perfect. For what I paid you could not even find a Crescent or Lefever Special in beater shape.

Well, I have a LC Smith and an NID hanging side by side. It takes a better eye than mine to tell the profile difference. I don't have a Parker to compare. But I guess the beauty is in the eye of the bee-holder. I wonder if the old major makers had a blind test how many here could ID them??? It is beyond me that's for sure.

The legendary American doubles manufacturers: L.C. Smith, Fox and Parker were firms which only made side-by-side shotguns. They have the cache of grouse moors and quail coveys. Ithaca, Remington, Hopkins & Allen, for that matter, are identified with production of a whole raft of less exalted firearms. Thus the market assigns a premium to the Big Three. Similarly in the world of collector cars Packard, Pierce Arrow & Cord will always command higher prices than fine General Motors autos like Buick, LaSalle and Cadillac... Yes indeed, you get more for your money today when you buy an Ithaca double. I personally am particularly fond of the Ithaca Flues which is light as a feather and sturdy enough, when utilizing appropriate loads.

J.K.B. von Falkenhorst

Your Ithaca reputation precedes you. If anyone knows more about Ithacas or has nicer Ithacas than you it is a state secret. <g> Gil

All kidding aside I think the real point is that NID's offer a lot for a small price. Modern steel, solid design, modern stock dimensions, reliable function and easy to get repaired if a part breaks. All this for less than a grand in high condition. I bought a pair of 12's, from a board member, for about 700 not that long ago and they have been great rainy day guns. You can even find a nice 20 for under a grand and that is almost impossible these days for a Parker, Fox or Smith. Price wise they are stuck in between the low ends like Nitro Specials and Crescents and higher priced Smiths, Foxes and Parkers.

Style is very subjective and opinions of what looks best does enter into prices. I like how a NID looks and the supposed better looking "other" makes were not saved by their good looks. They all went under and most of them long before the NID was ended. Also numbers of gun left does help NID low prices because late production guns are more likely to still exist than guns made 50 years earlier and we are talking about guns that were all made 70 plus years ago for the most part. Rare does increase price when you want something.

I seem to remember the term "bunids" from the old clunkermeister days. As for myself, I think the old Ithaca guns look just fine...Geo

OT with a grin: this talk of "rainy day" guns. What are members saving the other guns for?