about 2 years ago I managed to snag this rifle for 325 dollars at a local gun show, I really wanted a Krag so I couldn't say no. but the serial number does not match anything from the official lists, if anyone can help me that would be great I provided pictures to the rifle. I have a suspicion that it was not originally a carbine but a full rifle that was cut down after it was out of service. I'm also new here and hope to get to the bottom of this mystery.  :)

---

'Wilson' - Welcome to the KCA Forum.

I took the liberty of making your photo smaller, for a better view.

U.S. model 1898 Krag, #201498, would have been built around May, 1899, as a rifle.
By that date, U.S. Krag carbines were being marked 'model 1899'.

If you post more pictures of your Krag including sights, muzzle-area, and stock details, more information will be forthcoming.

Try to keep pictures smaller.

It appears your Krag is missing its magazine cut-off lever.

Lots of Krag rifles, like yours, were cut-down to carbine size to make them more useful for 'Hunting'. These are very fun Krags to use!

---

ill post more pics and try to keep them as small as possible, sorry if this next picture is as big as the other one.  :)

---

'Wilson' - Your stock is a 'cut-down' rifle stock, barrel is shortened, rear-sight is a modern William's open sight, and front-sight is a 1903 Springfield sight.

These are all civilian adaptions for Hunting.

How is the condition of your bore?

---

Wilson, welcome to KCA! We love Krags and am glad you have stopped by to share yours with us.

Your pictures need to be sized in the "inches" way- not pixelation size. Find the inch height or width and make them somewhere like 6 or 8 or whatever works for your set up.

Sporterized, cut down, Krags are quite popular. Krags were sold so cheap by the govt back in the 1920s, 30s and 40s that many people bought them and cut down the 30 inch barrels of the rifle and made great hunting rifles out of them.

The .30 caliber bullet was, and still is, a great hunting round. A cut down "carbine" length barrel of 20 inches was a great size to carry through the fields and woods for hunting.

Today, sporterized Krags are still popular and collected and people still use them for target shooting and even hunting. They can be great shooting firearms with great accuracy. Ammo is a little harder to find than years ago but there is still a lot out there. Most of us reload, so, save your brass.

Sporterized Krags are generally less valuable than a military configuration Krag. Unaltered Krags, rifles or carbines, are hard to find and much more valuable. Many of the parts, including stocks and sights, have been changed on most Krags over the years either through armory fixing, upgrades or non-armory gun smithing or basement "bubba" jobs.

Good luck and keep the pictures coming.