I have a 1898 30 40 Krag carbine with the serial number of 426426.  I checked oldguns.net, they indicated the year of mfg as 1902.  I have read other places that my Krag has too high of a serial number to be a Carbine.  I would like to know which mine is.  I bought mine in 1957 and two boxes of shells for $25.  Thanks Spud

spud:  Your Model 1898 Krag (#426,426) was manufactured as a rifle.  Later carbines were marked "Model 1899".  The Model 1899 Carbines started around serial number 226,701, in September, 1899.  If you post some pictures, you will get a lot more information on what you have.  (Hmmm, $25, boy did you get ripped-off!  Want to quadruple your investment?).

Here are some pictures of my ??1898?? Krag Carbine.
What do I have?

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You have what appears to be a genuine original 30" M98 Carbine stock, which, if it retains a cartouche it would read "JSA/1898", along with a late 1898 rifle receiver and possibly a genuine carbine barrel of some vintage.

The barrel band is correct for the stock. I cannot tell if the sight (which is of the correct type for that stock/band combo) is for a rifle or carbine.

IMHO, it is doubtful to the point of near-impossibility that SA assembled the arm as shown, unless it was repaired in 1902/03, or later, due to a failed receiver. IF SA repaired the gun, I am nearly positive that they would have replaced the stock with 32" M99 type at the same time.

That said, you have a valuable ($500+) stock, and, possibly a very valuable ($600+) rear sight. Probably the best $25 you ever spent!

You have a number of options at this point.

I would be interested in seeing a picture of the front sight if you could.

spud:  What are the markings on your rear sight?  How high do the range graduations go?

Here are some more pictures. The cartouche is JSA1898.  What else clears up the birth of my carbine?
Thanks Spud

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Front sight base appears to be genuine, but the blade has been replaced (easily restorable). Rear sight news is not so good - that is the rifle version (carbine ladders go to 20 (2000 yds.) of the M1896 sight.

Best guess, where and when would my piece have been modified?  Like I said, I bought it in 1957.  I needed a deer gun.  I just happened into the local Western Auto Store.  $25 was quite a bit of money to a young kid.
Thanks Spud

Sorry, but that is an absolutely impossible question.

Facts:

(1) Some 5000+ 1898C stocks were put on the surplus market (available to Bannerman, and Bubba) around 1900, when the arms were recalled and restocked en masse. No one knows their path through life, but they are scarce today. It is impossible to tell, even within the known range, which receiver was on a carbine and which was on a rifle, once reduced to the "parts" level. Later carbines were marked "Model 1899" so there is no mystery with them.

(2) The arm has a rifle sight (never applied to a carbine officially)

(3) Am giving you the benefit of the doubt on the barrel and front sight - it may be genuine carbine, it may not.

(4) Absolutely no one was faking Krag carbines in 1957, so, you got a "fair shake". It is only recently that original 98Cs (112000-135000) have become valuable, but they are also shunned by many collectors for the very reason this question came up - they can easily be faked, though such arms are normally found in M99 (32") stocks.

In short, am afraid my best guess would be Bubba, though, as I stated earlier, not with malice aforethought. He wanted a deer rifle too!

You do not have a proper M1898 Carbine, but, you are still way ahead of the game - 56 years of pleasure, and parts worth 50 times what you paid for them. Enjoy!!

I found an old ad on E-Bay from 1924.  It read "U S Army Krag Carbines.  Fitted with new Model 1898 stocks.  The barrels, actions and other parts are either new or have been refinished by the government and equal to new".  They sold for $15.  Sporting rifles were $14. The is a possibiltiy for mine.  I guess no one will ever know.

I need to find a new home for my 1898 Krag.  My best guess is that it may be a 1924 W. Stokes.  What I got from a 1924 ad on E-Bay.  Stokes built lots of them with a 1898 Carbine stock.  The ad indicated "The barrels, actions and other parts are either new or have been refinished by the government and equal to new. Carbines $15 and Rifles $12.50.  Sporting Rifles were $14.
I would like to know the general conscious as to the value of mine. 

Spud,
If you want to e-mail me some photos of your gun, I can probably give you some idea about it.

Best regards,
Tom

Spud:  You do not have a correct Carbine, but, the parts value and utility of your Krag, to someone who wants a correct looking shooter, would probably be around $800 to $1,000.