Originally Posted by
bob seijas
I'm guessing that the decision was made in the early days of the launcher development when they didn't have the venting correct. Add in that some receivers cracked because the bolt recoiled too far as Rick B said -- I think this might have been the result of poor attention to tolerances during heavy pressure to deliver rifles in 1942. When the two were added together, SA made the decision to use a less brittle steel. I'm guessing, of course, but what was the risk in doing so? I'm not aware of any drawbacks to the new steel.