The O/U is now fashionable in Europe, the SxS is not; shooting schools there favour/push the O/U for reasons real and imagined, so demand is high. It wouldn't be my first choice, but I wouldn't say no to a new H&H O/U, or a Boss & Co. for that matter. Make it a pair, please. As to cost, the people that buy these guns are in a different world, and cost is a different calculation for these folks. If you can afford Bentleys and Range Rovers, shooting estates and private jets, then six figures for a 'best' gun is not heart-stopping, it might just take a bite out of your annual bonus, is all.
I used to live in the UK. Don't for a minute think that shooting sports there and here are the same. Or maybe they are, and you're dropping $2,000-3,000 a day when you're going out to shoot, and regularly budget $20,000-30,000 a year for your hobby, not counting firearm purchases? Not being a landowner, I couldn't get a shotgun licence. Through my later work I also used to spend time with the big game hunting community. Yes, an African safari sounds great, but how many (normal) people you know drop $150,000 and more on a 'holiday'? Then do it every year? The luxury market is a whole different world.
In the 1860s, a well-made entry-level gun might cost £10, a quality gun for £25, and a best-quality gun from a top maker, £50-65. That doesn't sound so bad, but an engineer might make £110 a year, an army officer £200 a year. Few could put aside more than £5-10 a year in savings. Fine guns have always been difficult to afford, with the top-quality guns reserved for the very rich—like a bespoke H&H O/U.
