At the time that nice No. 3 Flues was made, our North American ammunition manufacturers offered loaded 12-gauge paper shells in 2 5/8, 2 3/4, 2 7/8 and 3-inch lengths. Generally the 1 and 1 1/8 ounce loads came in the 2 5/8 inch shells, but to get the 1 1/4 ounce loads one had to go to the longer shells. The heaviest loads offered were 3 1/2 drams of bulk smokeless powder or 28-grains of dense smokeless powder such as Infallible or Ballistite pushing that 1 1/4 ounce of shot. These loads could be had in the 2 3/4 inch and longer shells which offered more/better wadding, which many serious shooters believed beneficial.
P.S. Drew's "Double-Thick Nitro Breech" ad is from the Ithaca Lewis Model era.
