“Let me ask this: what new stackbarrel would you buy for 5K, if you intended to shoot mostly clay and some game with it if you walked into a well inventoried gun shop this fall?”
My preference is rather mundane. I prefer a new 686 series (a silver pigeon something) in 20 with 30 inch barrels. They are available in a number of levels. I’ve had great success with the 680 series for the last 35 years and a BL4 before that. Good luck with whatever you get. The process of buying a new gun is great fun. Enjoy it.