I shot Clark's and jjs's Merkels and Daves 470 Chapuis at the DRSS. I have also shot PWN's 500/416 Krieghoff at a past DRSS hunt. All of these rifles handle well. They each have a little different feel. They all shot very accurately.
I have yet to shoot a Searcy. If you are in the market for a new made double I suggest you handle [and shoot if possible] all of them. Get the one you like the best.
I would not be afraid to hunt with ANY of them. I would prefer one of the new made doubles to ANY Bolt Rifle.
[Bet you thought I was going to say Bolt Rifle Trash... didn't you.

]
In regards to the 500 Nitro Merkel. The rifle is fairly light for a 500, it is lighter than my 450 No2[all the new made doubles are]. It would be a joy to carry. The recoil is a step UP from the 470 class of rifles. It was not the least bit painful to shoot. It does push back harder, and jump up higher. Shooting it at game would not be a problem.
There has been a lot of Merkel bashing on the forums, these were the first two big bore Merkels I have shot. They were put together very nice, they looked good, handled good and shot good.