My first double was a Searcy field grade .470 and it was (and still is) a great gun. Extremely accurate; it has a beefy feel to it, as opposed to the Euro doubles that feel more streamlined to me. I put over 300 rounds through the gun without the slightest problem. I dropped elephant, buffalo, and loads of California wild pigs with the gun (hit one pig running at 172 yards). Not bad for a gun that I paid $7,000 for in 2000. In Africa, I hunted alongside my friend, who carried a $20,000 .470 Francotte. Of course, the Francotte was much prettier, but the Searcy actually shot better (both my friend and I tested both weapons together and we both shot the Searcy more accurately). Incidently, I sold the gun to my PH in Zimbabwe (he'd fallen in love with it) and he used the gun to stop a charging buffalo and a charging cow elephant, all caught on film which is being sold at the hunting conventions. I have nothing but praise for the gun- it is a workhorse, not a showpiece. I miss it. As to comparisons to the Merkel- I can only attest to what I've heard- which is that the Merkel is built on shotgun tubes and is inherently much weaker than the Searcy, which Butch builds himself. Hope this helps.