I've owned both a Merkel DR and a Chapius DR.

Here are my observations.

Merkel: I liked the classic Anson-Deely action and splintered for-end. Accuracy was excellent as the fit and finish fine. I liked the ambidextrous stock. I found the wrist way to thin and the plastic butt a joke. Triggers were not quite there for 10k rifle. I'll give it a 7.5 out of 10

Chapuis: I liked the lock-up. I found the stock to be be terrible. Too much like a shotgun and not a DR. The for-end was the worst I could imagine, it's huge. Finish was sub-par for a 10K rifle. I'll give it a 7.0 out of 10.

I say this because these rifles are just plain, basic and are killed by quality bolt actions at 1/2 the price.