The factors I found useful in explaining why the market values makers' names differently are: social standing (who was this maker's client base), total number of guns produced, % of high original quality production, years in business, and enduring creativity (what that is still in common use is attributed to this shop). Note that these are explainations as to why the market has different brand values, not reasons it should.
Note also that the market's brand values have not remained constant over time and may well shift in the future.
As you can see, the foregoing has nothing to do with generally using a maker's name to asses an individual gun's quality.
