Need Opinions please ... !

Hey, Everybody,I'm new here,too, but not new to the clay target games. Liike all the rest of you who have shot for some time I have opinions. In regards to whether or not to buy a new gun or have this one tubed...you really need to decide how serious you plan on getting. The 26" bbl. length is as much of a consideration as anything else. When I first started shooting sporting I had an older Rem 1100 trap that I had already had tubes put in. In order to do that the gun's 30" bbl had to be shortened to 28", and I never shot it well on trap after that as it seemed to upset the balance. I was ready for a new gun anyway and bought a number of different single bbls over the years as well as a combo. Well, when I tried sporting the first time I was well aware of the need for a second shot, and my choices were limited to the old 1100 or an 870. I used the 1100 and quickly saw that it shot too high for most sporting targets thrown, so I had a decision to make. (I was hooked on sporting immediately and have shot trap only once -in a league- since 1998) I opted to modify the stock on the 1100 by taking the comb down gradually until it shot a 50/50 pattern at 25 yards, and I shot it fairly well as I learned the game. It had its share of cycling problems as do all 1100's unless it was cleaned well after every 100 rounds. I was advancing in skill, too, and became interested in over/unders and shot several of different makes,bbl lengths,cost,etc. I knew that no matter what I bought, it would get changed somehow to make it fit me better, and I would most likely be the one to do the modifications. I also knew that it would get scratched up from simple use and handling, so I set a price limit of $1,000 before I started looking. I knew, too, that 28" bbls were the absolute minimum length that I wanted. That gun and I were married for 4 years and about 50,000 rounds. I made the stock changes that I wanted and watched my scores improve. It began to wear, and when the chance came to buy another just like it but with 30" bbls. I jumped all over it. I couldn't shoot that darned thing half as well as the old one! After making all the same changes to the stock as the old gun had and still shooting it poorly I put the stock from the old gun on this one. Still couldn't shoot it. I sold the new one and went back to the old one.So, what's my point in regards to your original question? Well, I think you need to shoot several different types of gunsif you are serious about shooting for score. If you just want to shoot and have fun doing it then keep this gun and consider making minor changes...things like a sporting style recoil pad, using heavier 7 1/2's on longer shots and 9's on closer targets. If you get better as you go along then think about the tubes. In this area you could get both bbls threaded for under $100 with a thread type that accepts Hastings or Colonial chokes. You do not need a complete set of tubes for casual shooting!!! Buy two each of skeet, IC and Mod. If you are only going to shoot at your home club ask the regulars what they use most of the time and buy only those. I know this doesn't address the bbl length problem, but you could add weight to the bbls if you had trouble keeping the gun moving on longer targets. All of this might cost you around $250-a lot cheaper than a new gun. If you see somewhere along this journey that you are definitely wanting to shoot other places and that scores are terribly important then make the change to another gun at that point. The cost of a new gun for a serious shooter is but a small part of the total cost of competing! This is an addictive sport!!!