These are the last bottom of the barrel rifles that still function.ĭid you see the receiver cut away pic in the link showing the locking lugs? That's called "setback", where the bolt lugs are hammered into the receiver lugs.
#M1916 spanish mauser 308 plus#
To double down on that, these are not the select grade imports that were for sale 30 plus years ago. On top of that, it's a hundred years old now. Standard milsurp 175grn FMJ 7x57 was loaded to about 42,000. Now take into account, that 1916, which is a revamped 1893, has a maximum of 44,000 working pressure. "US Army 7.62x51 chamber pressures: Maximum: 50,000 psi" Working pressures are the upper limit of what it can take day to day, without a failure. Max Operating, is the very upper limit of exceeding working pressures, meaning a steady diet of that, and you're going to have a bad day. Proof is the average pressure it fails at, as in comes apart, broke. Rifles have three pressure specs, Proof test pressure, Maximum operating pressure, and working pressure. I had a scanned hardcopy, but here's the info online:
I'll hunt for that article on the Chilean '95 Mauser, but it was a definite eye-opener and the same situation applies to these Spanish M1916 rifles. Close the bolt the rest of the way, and now you have however-many thousandsths on an inch of setback added to your headspace.Ī headspace test makes certain assumptions (like flat mating surfaces and bolt lugs not peened to raise them up a little) that, if those assumptions are violated, the test doesn't tell you a darn thing! Why? Because you don't close the bolt all the way on a NO-GO or FIELD gage test. Here's the SCARY PART: A rifle in that condition CAN pass a headspace test. The receiver was sawed open and they discovered significant setback of the bolt locking lugs into the receiver's mating surfaces. A Chilean 7 mm small-ring Mauser, converted to 7.62 NATO, was fired with 308. YES!!! I'll have to hunt for it, but I DO have an article somewhere. I do believe that they were converted to 7.62, not 308 Winchester.īut, can anyone document any problem with 308 in these rifles? Thousands have been sold and I wouldn't doubt that alot of them were fired with 308. Samco evidently thinks 7.62 and 308 are compatable with this rifle-look at the ad. If the above diatribe is beyond your knowledge of reloading, pass on the "cheap 308" and buy something else. Reloading data for 300 Savage would provide lower pressure load data more suitable for the weaker small-ring action your rifle has. If you handload, it's better to use reloadable 7.62 NATO brass, because the base web is thicker (it can tolerate more stretch). You are asking for a case head separation, and with the inferior gas venting of the small ring Mauser compared to the large ring, you don't want to go there. So test the headspace with a 308 field gage, and DO NOT shoot 308 in it if it fails, even with lower pressure handloads.
013 inch greater max headspace than 308 Win. You need to be aware that 7.62 NATO allows for. The same is true for military surplus ammo - no warranty, no liability, YOU bear the risk for whether this stuff is safe or not. Samco can say whatever they want, without product liability when they are wrong. I don't care what these gun dealers say and how many so-called lab tests they performed, IT'S NOT A 308! (I'm a mechanical engineer with 27 years of experience and a Mauser nut, if you're curious about my creds.) It's marginal in strength for 7.62 NATO.ĭoes this (or any other) old military rifle come with ANY kind of warranty that it is a safe product? Any warranty comparable to a new 308? No it does not. Those rifles were originally chambered for 7 mm Mauser, a lower-pressured cartridge.
Save your commercial 308 ammo for a rifle that can handle the pressure. It's NOT a 308! It can't handle the pressure of a 308. This question comes up once every couple of months.
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