Ted,
You're absolutely right. My 25.5" barreled Bernie Gamecock rings my ears and (this is the topic of a thread I've been thinking of writing for some time), I need to find some hunting ear protection for this season.
That said, I absolutely LOVE long barrel guns in the fields and the waterfowl marshes. I know short barreled guns are not en vogue these days, but as you said, they can be extremely handy in the tight quartered alder and aspen thickets or when walking through walls of greenbriar, grape or multiflora rose. Sometimes, function is just more important than fashion to me. I'm hoping this gun will give me a small advantage in these specific situations. Then again, I could be terribly wrong. I'm still learning...
I should add that the seller didn't list it, but I called and asked if there was a "65" on the flats and he said yes. With all the 12 gauge 2.5" chambered guns I've been acquiring lately, it appears a case or two of RSTs will be on the purchase list before this fall.
