I too would like to see some definitive work done on this. However, empirically I think it's most likely individual pits don't significantly weaken the tubes if they don't cover a large area and are a moderate distance from the breech. (Go ahead and throw rocks at me). I am reminded of muzzleloading barrels that have pits completely penetrating the tube and make little puffs to the side when the gun is fired. On the subject of honing out barrels to remove pits I have come to the opinion that a barrels integrity is much more likely to be compromised when the entire tube is thinned. Of course the bores are much more attractive when they're all shiny and smooth but the strength lost is just too much for me to be comfortable.
Skeettx, I shoot too much with you--the ONLY reason you use Briley tubes is you're too cheap to buy a real subgauge shotgun
