A straighter stock has more of the recoil going straight back with less barrel flip up into your face. IMHO, to shoot a stock with less drop you stand with more of your weight on the front foot and that will naturally bring your head down and out. It's the way most target shooters stand. Most of my SxS's have the 3" DAH and I stand straight up, not leaning forward, and my head is in it's natural position. Two of my shotguns have the " modern " dimensions and I have to remember to lean forward with my head down and out if I want to hit anything. All those shooters listed above were target shooters so the stocks are straighter. If you're going to shoot a couple of hundred shells a day with 1 1/8oz loads you're better off with a straight stock. I do with my old guns, but only shoot 3/4oz reloads so I don't get beat up. A 1oz BP load is also ok, but BP is more of a push than a sharp hit in the face. Maybe back in the day guns were built for hunters who just slapped the gun to their face without having the time to stand just so and get everything alined just right. The English always had higher stocks because they shot driven birds toward them and want a gun that shot high for a built in lead. Same with trap shooters or live bird shooters, they want a gun that shoots a little higher. I don't think will ever know why.
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Paul Harm
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