I agree why destroke an 80 when a 35 would do the same job. Perhaps it was fashion or people did not like manual barrel lock on the 35, or perhaps the 35 was seen as old hat!. Couldn't have been a power issue Venom were advertising 35's in various tunes up to 14.5ftlbs. They also listed a FT special 35 with reduced recoil and improved accuracy.

The other trend from the 1980's I don't like was the chopping of barrels down to 14", OK on a std 80 or 35 but criminal on an Export.