King,
I got into hunting pen-raised pheasants with a 410 (and latter a 36 gauge ML). I found the 3" 410 to be very effective at the 25-30 yard maximum range I was shooting at. In addition, I had a dog to quickly round up any cripples. The thing with 410's is you have to rethink your shooting parameters. Since your shooting within a range of 25-30 yards, use 7.5 shot to fill out your pattern better, at that range the birds can't tell the difference. Use a maximum of a modified choke for your left barrel (modified=full in a 410) and an open or skeet choke for your right barrel. I truly think the 3" 410 is even more effective then most 12's at under 25 yards because the pattern opens up quicker.
So that's my free advice, worth every penny you've paid for it!
Steve
