Rocketman's favorite truism is 'Don't judge the whole gun by the barrel length'. Don is absolutely correct on this one.

26" skeet guns abounded at one time. I frequently chuckle at the currently fashionable 32" and even 34" guns folks want to swing at 21 yard 90 degree deflection targets.

My anachronistic 26" M-21 with the long style forend is looked upon as an abonimation by the moderns. I've shot many lines of skeet where the only barrel length on the squad was 26". We do OK...

I'll admit... on a 20ga O/U I prefer 30", but a 12ga heavy frame gun like a Superduper or a Winnie 21 works REAL well with 26" barrels.

Everything depends, nothing is always.

"The price of good shotgunnery is constant practice" - Fred Kimble