In my opinion, you answered your own question by telling us what gun got you thinking about it. "The Ruger Kodiak backpacker". BACKPACKER. It's a hiking gun. A "what if I'm attacked by a bear" gun. You can put it virtually anywhere. Think of how much smaller it would be than a 6inch barrel or any rifle. You won't be stalking anything with it, it's a last ditch save your life gun.