Well I guess I have to sell my early nineties Merkels now that they are crap.Seriously though,I compared my 1992 201e to a few 1950`s guns,and except for the Boehler barrel,its the same gun.
Maybe there is a markup for that sense of hand fit dirty apron romance under the Weimar republic.I never seen a machining mark on a Merkel.
The scrollwork is the same,more if it on the older guns .
They all are tight,seem shot very little.
IIRC,Colt and Winchester passed hands a few times also,I cant say the older guns were any better without the use of cnc technologies.
In fact the Browning Japan copies are far superior.
Off the top of my head I can't remember when exactly Merkel brought out the current O/U model but if you have one it certainly is not the same gun as the earlier model. The receiver is longer and the firing mechanism is different. Whether better or worse is a matter of opinion.
