About ten years ago.... I bought a 500 S&W H&R single shot............
Ahhhh, now there's a difference there. I can't say my favored Weaver setup would stand up to that, because that's a whole 'nuther ballgame - one I've not played. That your setup survives those conditions is a testament to its durability, but I don't think it's an indictment against anything that wouldn't - which wasn't designed for such extremes either.
I think the stoutest recoil I've subjected this system to is 180 grain, 06 loads in a 6.25# rifle. Even that's way more than I need for anything anyway, so the greatest pounding my rings/bases will see is probably the 30/30 in a 6# rifle. Not that it won't take more, but it's as much as I'm throwing at it and I don't need something I can throw bricks at.
CONTEXT has a lot to do with PERSPECTIVE, and I do see your point.