Hi Mike,

Your father is a very lucky man and will enjoy receiving what appears to be a legit and super nice 1896 Krag carbine!!!

Your Krag does not show up in the list of "Serial Numbers of Known U.S. Krags" in the back of Franklin B. Mallory's book "The Krag Rifle Story"

Not to worry...Most Krags don't wind up on the list.  However, your Krag's serial number places it in the company of many listed carbines, produced before and after yours, which is a good indicator that it is a carbine.

According to the serial number...your Krag was produced between May or June of 1896.

The acceptance cartouche stamp has the initials of Springfield Armory sub-inspector J. S. Adams.

1896 carbines were marked 1895, 1896 or Model 1896.

As stated above, your carbine is marked 1896 making it one of the rarest variations...only 5,000 were supposedly produced.

Model 1896 carbines can be found with or without inletting for the swivel bar plate.

The rear sight appears to be correct and by it self would fetch about $500 to $600 dollars in today's market.

The front sight looks kind of funky...I can't tell if it's been damaged or some after market replacement?

IMHO, Your GB purchase is a wonderful example of a Krag 1896 carbine...albeit a very expensive one.

I am sure and hope others will chime in with their opinions.

Regards