Mark, yes those are merkel.that was the only mfg. of merkels at that time.i have seen a number of these guns with all the different names,fortuna,buhag,wolf,simpson,hubertus,sauer.i havent experienced the bad quality .the internal fit and finish is really good from what i have seen.the description that is given sounds more like the spanish gun reputation from a few years ago.sauer was in suhl when the commies took over so the west german plant was the new sauer mfg co.i would look at the gun and make a decision on how well it is made.mc