Krag Collectors Association Forum Archive

Krag Collectors Association Forum Archive
Firearms >> Sporterized and unofficial modified Krags >> krag bolt http://www.kragcollectorsassociation.org/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1553917013 Message started by singleshot on Mar 30^th, 2019 at 3:36am

Title: krag bolt
Post by singleshot on Mar 30^th, 2019 at 3:36am

hi, i have a 1902 krag the bolt has a number 4 on it and a strange cartouch on the other side dose anyone know that those mean? thanks

Title: Re: krag bolt
Post by butlersrangers on Mar 30^th, 2019 at 4:08am

'Singleshot' - Welcome to the KCA Forum.

I suspect you mean that you have a U.S. Model 1898 or Model 1899 Krag that was made in 1902?

Most U.S. Krag bolts have a sequence of strange markings, capital letters, and number digits on the bolt handle.

These seem to be steel lot, production lot, or inspector marks.

As far as I know, the exact meaning has been lost in time and not 'decoded' by research of the last 75 years.

Title: Re: krag bolt
Post by Ned Butts on Mar 30^th, 2019 at 9:38pm

Going to need to see pictures to be sure

Title: Re: krag bolt
Post by singleshot on Apr 13^th, 2019 at 7:58pm

i don't know how to send pics

Title: Re: krag bolt
Post by madsenshooter on Apr 13^th, 2019 at 11:05pm

Never seen any sort of cartouche-like thing on a US Krag bolt.

Title: Re: krag bolt
Post by Ned Butts on Apr 14^th, 2019 at 12:21am

He could have a Norwegian or Dane

Title: Re: krag bolt
Post by butlersrangers on Apr 14^th, 2019 at 5:09am

I assume the OP means these kind of markings and number on his bolt.

krag_bolts98-rear_003.jpg ( 96 KB | 0 Downloads )

Krag_bolts98-bottom_001.jpg ( 118 KB | 0 Downloads )

Title: Re: krag bolt
Post by Baltimoreed on Apr 14^th, 2019 at 2:14pm

You guys are looking at these old guns way too hard. They had a guy whose job was to look and measure stuff on these old military guns and to prove that he was doing his job he stamped the hell out of them whether he looked or not.... “What did you do in the war daddy?” “Well Timmy I stamped numbers and letters all over rifles and pistols so that 100 years from now collectors will be scratching their heads trying to figure out what a number two vs a letter c means.”

Title: Re: krag bolt
Post by Ned Butts on Apr 14^th, 2019 at 4:03pm

singleshot, are the markings in the pictures what you are referring to?

Title: Re: krag bolt
Post by butlersrangers on Apr 14^th, 2019 at 6:03pm

'Baltimoreed' - We use to not care about this sort of thing.

It is all the fault of those M1 Carbine Addicts!

Use to be, Parts is Parts! :D

Title: Re: krag bolt
Post by Whig on Apr 15^th, 2019 at 1:19pm

I thought it was part of the DaVinci Code.

Title: Re: krag bolt
Post by butlersrangers on Apr 15^th, 2019 at 3:29pm

Likely, 19th Century 'Bar Codes' - (to identify production details and verify quality control & inspection).