[fabsroman]

How much more does a 3 1/2" gun cost in the same model? Not much. Buy the 3 1/2" and you can still shoot 3" out of it if you decide that is all you need. Honestly, if you are on target, a 3" will be plenty good. A 3 1/2" doesn't provide any more pellets on target. What it does do is provide a longer shot string, so you can be a little bit off target with your shot, but the 3 1/2" isn't any more deadly than a 3". For instance, a 3" shot out of a tight patterning gun will be just as deadly as a 3 1/2" shell out of a tight patterning gun. The 3 1/2" doesn't provide any more lethality at range. Now, this all applies to 12 gauges.

A 3 1/2" 10 gauge is more deadly than a 3 1/2" 12 gauge because the 10 gauge has a shorter shot string and puts more pellets on target compared to the 12 gauge.

When you look at a patterning board, it doesn't do justice to a shot string. Yes, a tight patterning gun will have a shorter shot string at a longer distance than a more open shooting gun. You need to think of shot strings as a bunch of pellets flying through the air and the bird passes through this string, only getting hit by a couple of pellets in that string. This is kind of tough to explain because it is in 3D.