used in lieu of gauge when describing a smooth bore shotgun makes me wonder what century the folks that use those terms are living in? Are they still going to work on horse back? Dumping the night's waste in the street gutters? Is George still our King? For these are all things of the 18th century. The bore gauges to standardize the diameter of a smooth bored firearm would came along in the latter part of that century. Indoor plumbing still a century away. I doubt if anyone here owns a functioning shotgun whose bore size was not standardized by a bore gauge.
Then maybe it's just me wonking laugh