Thanks for the comments. My gun is away for a stock repair and I won't have it back for a while. For a 12 gauge upland gun I like a carry weight between 6 1/2 and 7 lbs.. Lighter is nicer, but I have carried a 7 lb. gun all day. Rocketman, I am very interested in your research and in Miller's math on metal removal. I will have to wait to get the gun back in my hands to think through the balance issues. I have an English game gun, 6 lbs. 10 oz., with sturdy 28" sleeved barrels. According to the maker's records, it was originally 29 1/2" Damascus. All I know is that for me it mounts with a smoothness and balance that I have only rarely had in my hands before. It almost seems to mount by itself, like a gun that led Nash Buckingham to say that he had a gun that was so good that if you took an afternoon nap on the edge of a field, you could wake up to find a dead pheasant next to you that wasn't there when you fell asleep. I have had 2 English guns in my hands that balanced/mounted like that and one Lefever that did the same. On the question of whether to hone my 26" sleeved barrels, I will have to wait until I have it back in my hands and can consider all the good comments made on this board. I have no idea who sleeved my gun, although it is a very nice job. Also, I have no knowledge of the original barrels, Damascus or fluid steel, because there are no factory records. I won't sell it to get another grouse/woodcock gun, because it is a very special Lefever - a unique special order gun with magic game scene engraving and weird, but interesting mechanics. I am just whiling away a little time in the off-season dreaming about making it a little more enjoyable to carry. As is, at 7 lbs., it would work fine for me. At 6 3/4 lbs, it would be an even better carry weight. I would go for that, if the balance issues can be worked out. Anyway, you all have given me a lot to think about and consider when I get it back in my hands. Thanks very much.
