I'm not a shotgun guy, either. I don't know the answers to those questions...maybe someone will come along who does.

Two things come to mind off the top of my head. With the shorter barrel comes less magazine capacity and its slight reduction in weight. I had a Mossberg 930SPX that held eight or nine shells and had an 18.5-inch barrel. It felt like I was carrying a 2x4 around. Sold it after about a month or so.

The other thing is, with a 4-inch shorter barrel, it might be faster to get into play than an 18- or 20-inch gun. Plus no shoulder stock. I can say with certainty that the Shockwave feels "handier" (for lack of a better term) than my 20-inch barrel Model 12s. It feels comfortable being carried with one hand as opposed to the larger gun seeming to require finding a balance point to carry it comfortably with just one hand.