Fox Collectors

My Sterlingworth has a 1-3/4 drop at the comb and a 3" drop at the heel. This seems to be quiet a lot of drop for me, since I can't see any rib or the front bead when my head is on the stock.
A skeet shooting friend said the older tradition for hunting was NOT to put the head on the stock, but keep the head upright.
Could that be the case or did someone special order this dimension ?

HC:
That's a good bit of drop for most people nowadays, although not at all unusual for vintage Foxes. i've seen one with 4" at the heel, which was most likely a special order gun, and was basically unshootable with those dimensions. One way to tell is check the factory card, if you're an AHFCA member; that will tell you if the dimensions are original. I'll bet they are.
Zoelib

The Factory card says my Sterlingworth dimensions are correct and I have noticed the other Sterlingworth have similar dimensions.
Wonder why???
Most modern shotgun SxS seem to be more around 1-3/8" DAC and 2-1/4 DAH.