Well one of my friends wanted to take his son on his first deer hunt in NJ and asked if he could borrow the Ithaca 66, figuring since it was a single shot, it would be a good learning experience for his son who just turned 16. Other then a slip on recoil pad it is totally stock. IT has a 30' full choked barrel and a 3' chamber. I have an old Model Ithaca 66 Super Single (circa 1976) Its a single shot, where the breech is opened with a lever action. Or am I being a cry baby?Īrrrrrrgh! My very first shotgun, very first firearm is ruined, I think. I mean I know its not a $1000 gun and its not made of gold for sure, but it was my first and the sentimental value is very strong. Does anyone have any idea as to whether or not it can be fixed? Does the groove pose any danger to the strength of the receiver? My friend has offered to pay for the repair, but, I just can't figure out why a normaly intelligent and trustworthy person would do this to someone elses property. I have called a gunsmith to find out whether it can be repaired, but I have to bring it to them to inspect, before they can give an opinion. I didn't know whether to cry or strangle him, but I knew I had to hang up the phone, so I did. He said his son was sighting in foster slugs through the gun and was having difficulty so he took a hack saw and cut a groove on top of the receiver to act as a rear sight. Well last week I pulled it out to give it a thorough greasing as I know it would not be used for a while and I nearly had a canary! There was a groove about 1/32 ' deep cut into the top of the recevier! I called him up and he admitted to doing it and did not think it would be a big deal 'cause it was an old single shot'.

Well he returned the gun and said he cleaned it, so I accepted it in its case and went about my business.

Arrrrrrgh! My very first shotgun, very first firearm is ruined, I think.

Ithaca m66 shotgun