The cap is dumb, because apparently the cap is already what's on the armor (if the armor happens to have said stat).
While I agree that there should be a cap, it shouldn't be that small or basically what the original stats are. It makes the whole Materia System weak and in some cases it even defeats the purpose of being able to meld materia onto weapons and gear.

This is kinda what shafts crafted gear a lot. If the caps are that small and limiting, what's the point in buying crafted gear when dungeon gear is going to be far superior?

Maybe I'm missing it and if I'm wrong, I'll be happy to listen while someone explains.