I use 2-3/4" shells for nearly all my waterfowl shooting, mostly Kent Faststeel. I prefer to use them vs 3" shells for most shooting, the only exception would be pass shooting which I seldom do. For jump shooting or decoying birds, 2-3/4" shells with 1-1/16 oz - 1-1/8 oz of 2's for ducks, BB's for geese, or 1's for mixed bag shooting are my choice. It is important that steel pellets have some speed, I prefer shells with 1500 fps or more. On average I kill about 50 birds with them most seasons. Don;t see any advantage to paying more and getting kicked harder with 3" shells.