I think Germans dont look for the name, they look for the gun they have in the hand, if it was well made or not.
Anyone can made a fine gun if you are willing to pay for this.
Of course nobody wait to find a bad gun from a well respected name.
Merkel is a special problem because Merkel became a synonyme for Bockwaffen, or over/under guns, like Colt for revolver. Anyone with sence for history thinking about o/u guns when the name Merkel come on the table.
I agree that every german action was build with the possiblity in mind that it was strong enough for a cape gun or a double.