Merkel has made some changes in the 140 series double rifle for 2007. The new ones have an articulated front trigger and will now be furnished with ejectors. The quality of the checkering has been greatly improved, the sample rifles they had looked very nice and fit me like a glove. I talked for some time with Danny Spann from GSI and it appears Merkel was willing to listen to them about making changes to increase their market share in the USA. I am in the process of ordering a 140.2 in 470NE, color case frame, pivot scope mount and a S&B 1.24x4 scope, regulated at the factory. Projected delivery is 10/07.

That's good news; although I only currently own Merkel shotguns, and two Chapuis DR's, I'm thinking very strongly of trying one of their .500's before too long. I think they represent GREAT value in a double rifle.

A scope mount on a 470 Double

Did he elaborate on any other changes? Like the God Awful engraving. Have you handled current Merkels and then found this one to have better balance and pointability? Did they make any changes to influence better ergonomics?

GSI and Merkel should be careful here. The new volume dealer price is like $9275 for current guns. If they want to compete/beat Chapuis and the 1 or 2 other makers who offer guns in that price point then they have to either still be cheaper or be better. Right now they make good guns for less. What did he say about pricing??

And all these makers should know that if they keep pushing pricing then they are going to lose sales initially to English guns until the old guns go up in price. I handled a fantastic new DR in Houston, they nailed it, comperable to an English gun. But it's still a new modern gun. You pay mid-to-upper teen$, shoot it, hunt it and you're going to lose money in the short term. These are invesment and they need to make sense. For that kinda money I'll buy Olde English.

The Merkel 140.2 I handled at the SCI convention in Reno on Thursday was very nice. The "Light Arabesque" style engraving on the coin finish frame was very well done. It compared very well to the Kreighoff and Chapuis rifles I handled. The Kreighoff and Chapuis rifles were nice, but the Merkel just fit and handled so much better.

Yes, a scope on a double rifle. Nothing is worse than being 40 yards from a nice bull and not being able to pick a firing lane through the jess because you have tired old eyes. The scope comes off easy if you are in a more open area.YMMV

Thanks to all of you for sharing you experiences and input concerning double rifles.
It really helped me in knowing what to look for and questions to ask.

What will this rifle cost?