Does rehardening of a Mauser action, say a small ring Mexican, allow you to shoot modern pressure cartridges?

I hashed this out with someone today, he said no you're crazy, I said yes.

What's the consensus here think/ know....

Check out this very informative thread. This question gets asked a lot here on A.R., and this thread seems to be the standard reference. It is also permanently posted in the "Reference Material Links" thread, at the top of the Gunsmithing section.
You will probably find the comments by D'Arcy Echols and Tom Burgess ("system98" in the thread) most germain to your question. I won't summarize it for you. Anyone interested in learning about heat treating needs to read it. Some very experienced gunmakers might disagree with what is said, but I'd place my trust in the words of these two gentleman over anyone regarding this subject.

http://forums.accuratereloadin...=287103131#287103131

Definitely read through that thread. Lots of solid information from the Deans of this art.

You are on the right track, but missing a key point. The 98 pattern Mauser was already designed around a modern high pressure cartridge in the 8mm. Even a small ring variant like a Mex or G33/40 can take high pressure as is.

Re-hardening makes it so that you never have to worry about lug setback. Think about it. A 100 year old Mauser has seen thousands of rounds and the lugs have been worn down little by little. Rehardening restores the lug wear surface (case thickness) and resistance to set back.

It is an insurance policy to bring the action back to 100% original strength so it lasts thousands of more rounds.

96 pattern and prior were not designed for high pressure rounds, so it doesn't matter what you do, they are just not suitable. I'll say that the 96 is a gray area, though.

Jeremy

Jeremy, that's my understanding also, lug set back. Not the issue of cracking or destruction.

Adam