Reasons for longer barrel - single shot / doubles vs. repeaters

[Arizona Fusilier]

I personally appreciate the great insight revealed by many on this thread. As someone who came into bird-hunting in the latter half of life, I respect all the good discussion on this topic.

That being said, with respect to the OPs specific question on single-barrel shotguns.....I have to concur with the few that have opined that it is a likely carryover from days of old. To be fair, the single-barrel is an out-dated (though admittedly useful ) design. Unless it is an obviously sawed-off "gangster" gun, a single barrel would just look strange with something llke a 22" to 26" barrel.

 

[Dreaming100Straight]

A wild guess that good swing characteristics are more dependent on where weight is located with the resultant effect being a balance point preferred by an individual.