Rock Island Springfield, Safe to Fire?

[mike webb]

My cousin has a Springfield sporter which he has used for years and it is serial number 262,xxx. I know little about Springfield rifles and read recently that Rock Island rifles under 285,ooo should never be fired due to overhard actions. Is this a concern even though his gun has been digesting .30/06 factory loads for years?

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[browningautorifle]

We've been over this countless times here. I still think any that were going to break for that reason have already. Then it was pointed out that they work fine until they do break. And they don't break, they shatter like glass. However, with all of them I've seen and shot I've never seen one that broke, was broken from this, nor do I know of anyone that has.

[Wineman]

In Hatcher's notebook, his feeling was that between the brittle steel and the bad brass, the bad brass that allowed gas into the action was the straw that broke the camel's back so to speak. Life has risk, we just try to minimize it. I had a chance to buy a low number RIA with a shot out barrel but passed. The gunsmith rebarreled it for someone else and sold it. The safest ammo is always going to be factory made, if you continue to fire it, that would be the best bet.

Wineman