If you encounter a pre-1913 mfg. LC Smith, it may well have bushed firing pins- a lot of extra machining to allow removed/replacement of a broken or worn short firing pin, but at that time and era, one of the many features of the fine doubles produced by the Hunter brothers- You need a properly fitted spanner turnscrew to remove the bushing, threaded and machined with a beveled surface to insure a flush fit into the breech face- some even had an extra threaded hole for a copper retaining machine screw.
Later Smiths eliminated that extra cost and had a slightly different design firing pin- to remove them for replacement, you just removed the lock plate and then pushed the pin back from the breech with a pin punch- simple-
But the British guns have featured bushed firing pins, or strikers as our Limey pals often call them. As far as the Bonehill and the fine fotos you have taken of it- I am way out of my "comfort zone" on that make and model- but do recall in reading Nash Buckingham that he at one time in his youth had a Bonehill double 12 bore. As he shot a great deal in his long gunning career, any shotgun he owned may well have seen a lot of usage, so perhaps they were a good sturdy field gun.
But as I way prefer both Parkers and Smiths, I concur with the advice given by another PGCA member- I'd look for a Parker to fit your gunning needs. If for no other reason than we have very competent Parker gunsmiths available, not every good gunsmith has experience with British guns. And their guns are usually proofed for specific loads, our guns, as we don't have a Royal Proof House system, are designed and built for hard usage- that doesn't mean abuse however, or using a 3" shell in a 2 & 5/8" chambered gun. Just common sense care.
If it were my $, which is isn't- I'd check the For Sale section on our PGCA Forum, or post a WTB ad there, and by-pass the dealer. Unless he has a gun he really wants to move, he'll have his profit and overhead factored into his asking price. As far as gun shows, that's a "whole 'nother ball game, IMO" In our area the gun shows are usually the same folks at the same tables with the same over-priced guns- very few "pearls" to be found in those oysters--
