I just acquired an M1898 in great condition.  I would like to use it in CMP Vintage Rifle competition, but I am having an occasional feed problem.  The cartridge rim appears to jam as it comes around under the bolt.  The bolt will not move forward, as though it has been somehow locked to the rear.  If I open the loading gate I can push the offending cartridge down, then close the gate and everything is usually OK.  Any ideas?

First, congratulations on your new Krag! We are one big happy family here of Krag lovers and will do all we can to help you get the most enjoyment out of your fascinating piece of history. We'd love to know more about your rifle and see pictures if you can post some. That can actually help us see directly what might be going on and can give us the ability to see what you have and discuss the history of it.

The first and most frequent problem is years of built up dirt and grime. If you haven't done so, remove the bolt and clean all surfaces well and check the magazine to make sure there isn't old cosmoline caked inside. This is a common feed problem. If you don't know how to remove the bolt, let us know. Check to make sure the action works and the follower is freely moving as you close the magazine door. You might need to carefully remove the left receiver side plate to clean in there and check the action.

But, there may be a part damaged or missing. The ammunition itself may be a problem if it is a spire or pointed bullet. Round nose ammo feeds best, as it was designed to do 130 years ago.

See if these suggestions help and let us know. We'll anxiously await pictures. Also, tell us more about where you got it from and any history you know about it. Is it "sporterized" or original military condition? What is the serial number and barrel length?

Good luck!

Doe it have a magazine cutoff?  Is it the proper length?  Might take a short one, might take a long one.  If a short one is used where a long one is needed, it leaves a little place the rim can catch.  Also take a look at the pin of the follower, rims can catch on them.

Not all Krags feed Spitzer bullets reliably.  If you're shooting Remington or Hornady factory, they may be hanging up at the feed ramp.  Also, as others have said, check for built up crud or a missing/incorrect magazine cutoff. 

My 1898 will not feed the fifth round from the magazine. I have been told, it is the fault of a weak magazine spring. Perhaps this may be an issue.

M1898 S/N 445281 (i think one of the last ones made)
Unmodified.  Has flip up pin hole rear sight.
Round nosed bullets.  I am testing both 180gr and 230gr, but both have the same COL

As mentioned above I too have a problem with 5th round feed.  I and going to completely disassemble the feed ramp and polish all of the surfaces.  I have a new spring as well.

The bigger issue is the occasional jam. The bullet is not jammed against the feed ramp, but the bolt will not move forward and it is not touching the rear of the cartridge.  If I open the door and shake down the round I can clear the jam.

Sorry, but I can't figure out how to post photos.  I don't have access to a web site to which I can upload and reference photos.

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Oops!  I guess I can upload photos.

Check to make sure there is not a problem with your ejector 'hanging-up' and binding your bolt.

A cartridge should not be in the position, shown in your photo, unless the bolt has pushed it forward.
If it moved to that point by inertia, there is likely a follower-spring or side-plate issue.

The locking lug should contact the receiver when the bolt is all the way back.  I have a Norwegian that is giving me a similar problem.  I think the hard to remove ejector pin is broken, and maybe the ejector itself.  The pin is staked in on some Norwegians, no such problem with a US Krag.

Lesson learned - a magazine follower that looks new is NOT the same as new.  I just replaced my follower spring with a brand new original spring and all of my feed problems seem to have cleared up!

Thanks to everyone that commented. 

Congrats and enjoy the fully functioning Krag!

Awesome news GunGrunt!  Now go load up some rounds and bang away!!!

Not so fast everyone.  I just figured out the real issue on my bolt jam and failure to feed.

If the rim of the cartridge in the ready position is behind the rim of the next cartridge in line it will not load and keeps the bolt from going forward.  The reason is that the rim of the ready cartridge is behind the rim of the next cartridge so it is trying to push the next round in the magazine forward with it. The nose of the next cartridge is up against the forward wall of the magazine well so it can't move.

If I carefully load each cartridge so the rim of each succeeding cartridge is behind the previous cartridge all is good.

Is something not working right, or is this normal?

This is not normal. The U.S. Krag is not prone to 'rim jams'.

(As 'parashooter' has illustrated, in a previous thread on the subject, the Krag magazine surfaces direct the 'dumped-in' rimmed cartridges to sort themselves out and feed in 'echelon').

"Usual Prime Suspects" for feed problems are: 1. Dried grease & crud in feed-path. 2. Damaged or incorrect side-plate. 3. Early '92 or '96 follower-mechanism in a model 1898 action.

Again, first and foremost common problem is crud, dirt and lack of lubrication. I took one of my Krags a part and found a rather large dead bug stuck inside of the magazine well where I normally would not have seen it. That definitely would have caused some feed problems!  There may be something bent or not functioning properly.

Keep us informed with the detective work. It's a labor of love. Keep at it!

butlersrangers wrote on Jun 6^th, 2019 at 1:09am:

. . . (As 'parashooter' has illustrated, in a previous thread on the subject, the Krag magazine surfaces direct the 'dumped-in' rimmed cartridges to sort themselves out and feed in 'echelon'). . .

I would add that the described effect occurs only with cartridges of regulation length. Shorter cartridges are not automatically aligned by magazine geometry.

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FWIW - I've never encountered a 'rim jam' with a U.S. Krag, even with reloaded cartridges that are shorter than U.S. military ammo length.

I have had bullet tips hang-up on the barrel breech-face of some Krags, with certain 'spitzer' bullet profiles.

I have had rim-jams with Lee-Enfield rifles, in .303 caliber.

What brass are you using, the original round had a beveled rim that would allow the round above it in the magazine to slide past.  A flat rim can get caught and the round pushed forward before the round being stripped from the magazine goes over it.  Experimented with using 303 Brit as a back-up for brass and this sometimes would happen.

I found the thread with Parashooter's diagram:    (You need to Login
To find it I went to yahoo and typed this into the search line:
  krag collectors association rim lock echelon
Google is actually more powerful but yahoo allows opens another window for you to look at, close it if it is wrong and type another search phrase.
You have eliminated something wonky happening with the ejector, correct?
In my short experiment trying to get a rim lock the speed which the loading gate and which way the gun was aimed while closing the gate made a difference. Maybe some experimenting is in order to find the solution.

My apologies I was at the end of page one and did not realize Parashooter had copied his diagram in to this thread when I posted yesterday. Instead of deleting this post I will leave it as some other useful info is in the other thread.

FredC wrote on Jun 6^th, 2019 at 2:29pm:

. . . In my short experiment trying to get a rim lock the speed which the loading gate and which way the gun was aimed while closing the gate made a difference. . .

If we think about Krag magazine geometry, it's apparent that short cartridges can align by gravity if the rifle is oriented significantly off horizontal during loading.

Believe me. I have thoroughly cleaned every part of this rifle  with an emphasis on the magazine area.  I installed a new follower spring that solved the problem of the last couple of rounds not being pushed up far enough to be caught by the bolt.  I polished all the surfaces of the magazine well to include the backside of the side plate.  The side plate is perfectly fitted to the side of the receiver.

The problem remains that if the rim of the cartridge in the ready position is behind the rim of the next round the rifle will jam solid every time. Opening a closing the loading gate does not fix the problem.

This is a beautiful rifle with most of the finish intact and almost no dings in the stock.  Perfect bore with no apparent wear.  It groups extremely well at 200yds.  I bought this rifle to go along with my M1917 and M1903A3 for use in CMP Vintage Rifle competition.  Looks like I will have to sell it.  Jams are not an option.

If your loaded cartridges are less than 3.08" long, magazine geometry will not compel appropriate alignment and rim jams are possible. If you have rim jams with regulation-length cartridges, something else is at play and it will probably require hands-on diagnosis by someone experienced with the US Krag feed mechanism to identify and correct the problem.

If using short cartridges, rim jams may be avoided by elevating the muzzle during loading, far enough to allow gravity to move the cartridges back against the rear wall of the magazine with sufficient energy to align the rims. If the short cartridges are of uniform length, the same effect may occur if the muzzle is depressed enough to allow the rounds to slide forward against the front magazine wall.

Does it jam with factory ammo?

'GunGrunt' - I do not know why your model 1898 Krag is having difficulty feeding cartridges.

Maybe it is because it is 'California Compliant'?

(It is very difficult and not very gratifying to try and solve a problem over the internet).

From my own experience, feed problems are unusual in U.S. Krags.

Rim-Jams are very unusual in the U.S. Krag.

(BTW - You have not answered the inquiry about whether you have 'beveled' case rims. More information about your ammo might be helpful).

FWIW - Model 1892 and 1896 Krag parts, (like the side-plate, magazine-gate, and follower-arm assembly), may fit on a model 1898 Krag. They may appear "to fit", but, the parts are different and may cause function problems.

Photos: 1. Top view of 1896 & 1899 actions. 2. Front view of 1896 & 1898 side-plates (right plate is '98 - front 'tendon' is thicker).

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GunGrunt wrote on Jun 7^th, 2019 at 5:04pm:

I bought this rifle to go along with my M1917 and M1903A3 for use in CMP Vintage Rifle competition.  Looks like I will have to sell it.  Jams are not an option.

GunGrunt, please don't give up the ship just yet...  The answer may be just under our fingertips, and I suspect the "Ah Hah" moment is going to appear when no one is looking!

BTW, Para and Butlers advice is right on the money.  Check your OAL, make sure your cartridge rims have the proper bevel... and roll the rifle slightly left and barrel up when loading. 

If you're planning on shooting at Perry, I'll be there on Thursday afternoon (the day before the Roosevelt Match) and I'd be happy to meet up with you and take a look at it.

First, many thanks for all of the replies.

Brass is new Hornady with no bevel on leading edge.  Here is photo of inside of side plate.



Here is my interim solution, a custom made Krag "stripper" clip.  I fill the clip with the rims aigned so that each succeeding cartridge rim is in front of the preceding cartridge.  So far no problems at all quickly loading the next five rounds.

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Bevel is on 'rear' of Krag rim.

U.S. made .30-40 brass, usually, retains this feature.

Neat 'charger' you made. Kind of looks like Italian Vetterli 'charger'.

I can't 'ID' your side-plate from inside. I have to see front edge.

If you have access to another model 1898 Krag, (that is free of feed problems), switch out parts and test function.

FWIW - I'm suspicious of your side-plate.

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FWIW - I just tried the 'feed' on two model 1898 Krags with some W-W factory rounds, (180 grain - RNSP). These rifles have been trouble free, in the past.

The OAL of the factory rounds was approximately 3.062".

My intention was to purposely cause 'Rim-Jams'. It was difficult!

Actually, I could only get the first round to remain in the 'Jammed' position. I could only do this with one of the Krags.

The other potentially interfering 'Rims' corrected themselves, when the magazine-gate was even gently closed.

With the first cartridge in the 'Rim Jam' position, even that could be corrected by a sharp slap on the bolt-handle.

The bevel on the rear of the case rim apparently serves its purpose!

IMHO - The brass rub marks and finish wear, on the inside of the side-plate, offer valuable clues on how a Krag is feeding cartridges.

SOLVED!!  I think . . .

Thanks to the photo from butlersrangers.  I noticed the rear edge of the rim of the original brass had a very pronounced bevel.  The Hornady brass is almost squared off.  I chucked up five of my dummy rounds in my lathe and filed a bevel that looks like the original ammo.  Voila!!  All loaded as smooth as butter, even when I purposely loaded a cartridge with its rim behind the next cartridge.

THANKS again for eveeryone's help.  Now off to the range to zero it at 200yds.

BTW - I also machined a new front sight similar to the "Marine Corps" from sight authorized on the 03/03A3 Springfields.  That is, a VERY thin based that still fits the slot in sight base, but with a much wider top portion of the blade.  MUCH easier to see.

Awesome!  Glad you've got that all sorted out.  Hopefully, we'll see you at the Roosevelt Match!

Just goes to show... although all Krags are made to be the same (i.e. all 98s, etc), not all are.  Some feed spitzers fine while some don't.  Some (like yours) don't dig the squared off rims... while others have no problems.  And don't get me started on how some Krags fire this round or that round more accurately than others!  Krags, like the shooters that wield them are practically human in nature, and just need a little love to be happy!

'RichWIS' deserves credit for offering the insight into the 'bevel' on .30-40 brass, earlier in this thread.

(We get so close to it, we take the 'bevel' for granted. It never entered my mind that Hornady Brass might be different).


'GunGrunt' - You could easily sell some of your 'stepped' (USMC style) Krag blades, on the KCA Forum.


Paul - You are starting to sound like Rudyard Kipling:

"When 'arf of your bullets fly wide of the ditch,
        Don't call your Martini (Krag-Jorgensen) a Cross-Eyed Old Bitch.
She's as human as you are ... just treat her as such,
         and she'll fight for the young British Soldier (Yankee Soldier)".

butlersrangers wrote on Jun 9^th, 2019 at 2:19am:

Paul - You are starting to sound like Rudyard Kipling: "When 'arf of your bullets fly wide of the ditch,         Don't call your Martini (Krag-Jorgensen) a Cross-Eyed Old Bitch. She's as human as you are ... just treat her as such,          and she'll fight for the young British Soldier (Yankee Soldier)".

Ours is not to reason why... Ours is but to shoot and cry!  And into the Ranges of Camp Perry... rode the Krag Roosevelt shooters!



butlersrangers wrote on Jun 9^th, 2019 at 2:19am:

We get so close to it, we take the 'bevel' for granted. It never entered my mind that Hornady Brass might be different

When I see the Hornady reps at Perry this year, I may make mention of this (I've discussed a few things with them over the last few years, and they're always receptive to what I've had to say).  It might just be that they didn't know of the importance of the bevel.  As you said, it's something we've just taken for granted!

Did you get a chance to talk to the Hornady reps at Camp Perry?  I saw this too late or I would have asked you to add 303 British to the inquiry.  :)

Howdy Newt!

No, unfortunately, the Hornady reps had left after the first week. They still had all of their stuff there for sale, but the shop was being tended by a sales person.  When I get a moment to breath this winter (LOL)… I'll try to contact them.

Thanks.  I will try to contact them as well.