Saga is a trademark, but produces several products. The Selmer-alike Gitane guitar is just one of the 10 names they produce (and that is only the guitarsection, they also produce mandolines, cello's, violins, ukulele's, banjo's, Andean panpipes, Bodhrans)
Treir Blueridge western guitars is very popular in the bluegrass-world
Check this Blueridge-forum out
Another remark from gypsyguitar.de on the Kirkland
Die Gitarre wid von uns modifiiziert.
mit Nickel-Tailpiece, Savarez Saiten und
einer Selmerlike-Bridge im Wert von 90 Euro.
It is also so that in the regular guitar world you get more guitar for less money. In 2003 was a solid top not available beneath the £343 - $500 - ?500-zone, these day's you can buy a solid guitar for ?600.
(I'm talking about the new 'Masterbilt'serie from Epiphone, or a DW15 made by Yamaha I don't consider none of these brands B-brand as Tanglewood or Walden. Below that price there is always the solid ceder-top and good craftmanship by Art&Lutherie or Seagull and even Washburn)
But it true that these 'beginners'-guitar discussions that they s**k. I'm sure I never will buy a Taylor or Martin because the boring conversations of their owners. It is not so much a beginners guitar question, but more a question about the tendence I discribed above is also happening in the gypsy guitar world.
In fact, when I have the cash to buy a guitar, I most probably would buy the Gitane or a Patenotte.