To back up a little, a query for the perfect barrel length for ring-necked pheasant shares the same answer as a similar question, “What is the best shotgun for (insert upland bird here)?” The answer to both is simple – whatever shotgun you shoot the most and shoot best, which in an ideal world would be one and the same. Nearly any shotgun will do the job, but none will do it as well as the gun you know and shoot well.