I have only seen one 12" slammer with the new hinge style, I was a little skeptical too but the action still looks good. Whenever I see a little exposed wood on any wooden lure I just use some epoxy or liguidglass and brush a little on, just to be sure. I think the dowel piece on the front half of the bait is just a nail, if you get any excess epoxy on it you can just file or peel it off.
You could probably fill that front drill hole with epoxy or something to weigh it down, might change the action? I like the wood baits because you can always do little repairs or mods yourself..
I saw a slammer with the Generic HB style hinge , looked pretty good!