Many things we take as gospel are no more than old wives tales and are often repeated by so many "knowledgeable" writers that we tend to believe them. Their conclusion was that, in most cases, the Remington was the better extractor. The reason wasn't necessarily because it was stronger but because the way a Remington extractor works when it's functioning properly is much like a Chinese finger puzzle, the harder you pull the tighter it grips. In fact, their conclusion was that the Mauser extractor would fail to extract more often than the Remington extractor. When the extractors were done correctly the force it took to break the extractors or make it fail to extract far exceeded what the rim on a regular brass case could ever endure. They made some sort of contraption that could hold a bolt that could be pulled on until something gave. If I remember correctly they machined a rod so that it had an "extractor groove" on the end. I remember reading years ago about a test someone did using both the Remington and the Mauser extractors. Which is really the best design? This debate may go on forever. Sometimes it's the factories fault, sometimes the owner's, and sometimes it's just plain wear. Most honest gunsmiths will readily admit that all types of extractors will occasionally fail. And there are others who have also commented on the "weaknesses" of the Remington extractor when compared to the Mauser extractors. Versifier I would never argue with you as all I've seen you write about here has been right on. Has anyone had similar trouble? Maybe I'm missing something obvious here. When it happens, I have to stand and work the bolt with authority, which usually does the trick. Forcefully working the bolt, as I would in a hunting situation, significantly minimizes the problem, but it is difficult to do when sitting at the bench. I never have problems with my Mausers or K31, just the Remingtons with their "snap-on" extractors. There are never problems with jacketed loads or cast loads that use heavy boolits and charges. Nor is it an issue of dirty or oily brass or chambers. I stripped the bolts and cleaned them inside and out. My private theory is that recoil causes extractor engagement, and when it is insufficient, the little spring doesn't snap over the case rim. Shooting light cast loads from my Remingtons, I get regular failures to extract. The Mauser style extractor is not subject to the problems I experience. Controlled feed is not a big point for me, but controlled extraction is. Arms manufacturers need all the help they can get to stay out of red ink nowadays. Everyone could be kept happy and it'd be a good move on the part of Remington. They are supplying us with two good options, the traditional Remington and the controlled round one. So Remington is taking advantage of that and marketing their imported Mauser with the Remington mark on it. And the Model 70 is currently not an option. In my opinion this is way over-emphasized but some folks just have to have them.
And that brings us to the second thing, a controlled feed action. The Czech's make and market a good barreled Mauser action that is well known and of good quality. Their 710 is a piece of junk and a huge flop. First, they no longer have a good economy rifle like what the 788 and Sportsman 78 were. It seems to me that Remington is trying to do two things. They are a little stiff and have a few rough spots, as mentioned in a previous post but are good, solid guns. All I've read and heard about the "Mauser Remingtons" had been good.