Probably time to clear up a couple misconceptions I see posted in this thread...
Here we go:
Isn't the 8x57 limited by fears that someone will shoot it in a 1893 Turk Mauser?
No. U.S. Domestic 8x57JS Mauser ammo is downloaded to maintain safe pressures when fired through 1888 Commission Rifles, which were designed for 0.318" bullets. Squeezing a 0.323" bullet through the '88 Commission Rifles tends to bump pressures up a wee bit, and they are nowhere near as strong as the '98 Mauser in construction. Hence, a domestic 8mm Mauser loading that's relatively close to .30-30 Winchester, running 37,000 CUP on the pressure gauge. That way, even when the 0.323" bullet heads down a vintage '88 Commission Rifle barrel, pressures will never get high enough to cause catastrophic failure. Wunnerful. Thank you, SAAMI. Like the Europeans have much problem distinguishing between 8x57J and 8x57JS.
The '93 Turkish Mausers are a whole different ball of wax. They originally began life as Small-Ring 7x57 Mausers, then were reworked at Ankara in the 1930's to accept 8x57JS ammunition. This meant either a new barrel, or the old 7mm barrel was bored out to 8mm (0.323"). The forward receiver rings were also cut out to accept the longer-seated bullets of the 8x57JS ammunition. These rifles, while originally designed and built for the low-pressure 7x57 rounds, are at least rebored to properly accept the 0.323" diameter 8x57JS bullet. Whether the small-ring receivers are up to the 8x57JS round's pressure is another story. Regardless, I'd feel better shooting U.S. domestic 8x57 ammo through a reworked '93 Turkish Mauser than I would full power European-spec 8x57JS.
Which means that although the reason for anemic U.S. 8x57JS ammo is the earlier '88 Commission Rifles, the '93 Turkish Mausers are probably doing a lot to keep SAAMI specs firmly in place with respect to the domestic ammo supply.
Now, somebody here said that the 1903 Springfield wasn't much of an improvement over the Large Ring '98 Mauser, even with the cocking knob. Well, you're sorta right, the M1903 Springfield wasn't an improvement over the '98 Mauser. The War Department didn't use the '98 Mauser as their pattern for the M1903 Springfield.
The ordnance technicians studied captured M1893 Spanish Mausers in 7x57, which they managed to acquire in goodly amounts after a rather rude awakening at San Juan Hill during the Spanish-American war. They also carried over what they considered to be desirable features as found on that other service rifle built at Springfield Armory between 1894-1902 (the U.S. Krag), such as the cocking knob on the striker, the thumbwheel windage-adjustable rear sight, and the magazine cutoff switch.
Oberndorf kept a tight lid on their prized '98 Mauser, and they weren't even widely available until sometime in 1899. Getting one to study and dissect wasn't really an option with respect to the upcoming M1903 Springfield. In 1899, the Army tried a more powerful loading for the .30 U.S. Krag rifle, but that rifle's single locking lug (and bolt-handle recess) just weren't up to the task. No problem, the Krag's successor rifle was already being prototyped, and was undergoing firing trials as early as 1900. It looked remarkably like a '93 Spanish Mauser, with some extra bits as mentioned above. Further development of the prototype led to it's introduction in 1903, but there were still problems. President Teddy Roosevelt wasn't too keen on the M1903's rod bayonet, and in 1905, Germany introduced their 8x57JS round, with a spitzer bullet moving at an even greater velocity than the previous round-nosed 8x57J loading. So the existing 1903's got sent back to Springfield Armory, and were rechambered for the newer .30-06 round with it's greater velocity, and all was well.
I know, I know, what about the extra, third locking lug found on the M1903 Springfield? If you compare it to the third lug on the '98 Mauser, they both serve the same function, but differ in execution. It probably wasn't too tough to add the lug to the design between 1899 and 1903, based on the emerging reputation of the '98 Mauser being introduced in the other hemisphere. Or maybe Springfield got "lug-happy" after their experiences with the Krag...
Regardless, the M1903 Springfield is a descendant of the Small-Ring '93 Spanish Mauser,
not the Large-Ring '98 Mauser as is often repeated in Internet lore.
