If the issue here is acquiring a ribless Martin simply to own one, that's one thing. However, if one is after a lightweight Brit 12, it seems to me that one might end up paying a premium in this case, simply because it's a ribless Martin, when there are other lightweight Brit 12's out there, of more conventional design, for which you'd likely pay less--simply because they're NOT ribless Martins. I have a pair of Scott-made Army & Navy 2 1/2" 12's, 28" barrels, both just a bit under 6 1/4. That's with ribs and plenty of barrel wall thickness. That's definitely on the light end of the scale for Brit 12's, but they're out there if you do a little looking, and you can get there without paying whatever premium you might fork over for a ribless Martin.
I have a 12 bore Lindner Daly Featherweight that's almost half a pound lighter (but with 26" barrels).
