M1903 receiver (pinpointing cause of failure)

[Matt Wheeler]

I have an M1903 (manufactured by Springfield Armory) buried away in a gun cabinet and was curious regarding the infamous receiver failures.

According to Hatcher's Notebook, this rifle was manufactured in 1916. My great-grandfather purchased it shortly after World War I. I am uncomfortable with displaying the precise serial number; however, I will report its near 621,000.

I am somewhat confused regarding pinpointing the receiver's cause of failure. Multiple people state Springfield Armory M1903s (with serial numbers < 800,000) are considered unsafe to discharge - poor heat treatment caused receiver failures. However, I also heard the Army further researched the issue and later discovered poor ammunition (wrong brass in cases, ruptured cases cracked actions) caused failures.

Whose story is correct? Secondly, does there exist a non-destructive method to test receiver hardness? I heard someone mention the Rockwell Hardness Test, but never discovered anything further. I appreciate any assistance anyone can offer - thank you.

 

[HKGuns]

Here's a decent read on the topic. I've read that you're taking your chances with the SA '03's below 800K.....

http://m1903.com/03rcvrfail/

If I were you I would ask over in the CMP forum. You're likely to get a better answer over there.....although there may be some cross traffic on this site too.

http://www.thecmp.org/forums/