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Help needed on 1898 KRAG (Read 3260 times)

KRAG30 KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 5 Joined: Nov 25^th, 2014 Gender:	Help needed on 1898 KRAG Mar 23^rd, 2015 at 9:31pm	Print Post
	Hello everyone. This is my first post to the forum and I need a little help. I was told that this forum was the place to go for the best help. Anyway, I bought my first Krag Rifle a few months. It is an 1898 model with a low serial number of 271663 which is putting this gun around 1900?? Its in very nice shape. I bought this rifle because it's completely identical to another 1898 Krag I have which has been in my family since 1920. (I only took pictures of the new one that I bought because my other one is currently put away in the back of my safe.) Both guns have 22 inch barrels but the confusing part to me is the stock. They both look like rifle stocks but the wood only goes 7 inches above the barrel band then stops. The end of the forearm is rounded and is solid without any type of filler plug like other rifles have. After that, there is the last 5 inches of the barrel showing. In my opinion, it looks like a rifle but short enough to be a carbine. Is there an exact name for these particular versions? I have only seen 3 other guns in exactly the same configuration like the ones I have and they were from pictures on the internet. My family Krag was given to my great grandfather by his older brother when came back from WWI. He used it until 1976 when he passed away. After that, it was given to my father. I finally received it in 2006. Its probably one of my most accurate iron sight rifles that I own. Any help on what kind of Krags I have is greatly appreciated. Thank You.


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butlersrangers KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 6330 Location: Michigan Bi-Peninsular&Proud Joined: Oct 7^th, 2009	Re: Help needed on 1898 KRAG Reply #1 - Mar 24^th, 2015 at 12:42am	Print Post
	"KRAG30": Your Model 1898 Krag was completed as a rifle with 30 inch barrel around July, 1900. The serial number, 271663, is too high to be a Model 1898 Carbine. (Model 1899 Carbines started appearing around 2226XX). Your barrel has been shortened to around 22 inches. Your Stock is a Rifle Stock that happens to be cut at the 'partition' or 'bulkhead' between forearm 'lightening cut' channels. Someone did this so they would not have an exposed channel to plug. The banded front-sight on your barrel is for a 1903 Springfield. Your rear-sight is a Model 1892 sight. This sight was obsolete when your Model 1898 Krag was built. It is not unusual to see such a mix of parts on a krag that was 'sporterized'.


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KRAG30 KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 5 Joined: Nov 25^th, 2014 Gender:	Re: Help needed on 1898 KRAG Reply #2 - Mar 24^th, 2015 at 8:33am	Print Post
	butlersrangers: Thank you for your help. I appreciate it. I brought out my other krag that belonged to my great grandfather. His has the same exact from sight. The only difference I can see on his the rear sight is different. His is a model 1901 sight. Also his serial number is 423627, which Im guessing is 1902? according to what his cartouche on the stock says. His stock and barrel was cut exactly like mine. I also measured them. I did find an interesting picture with sights that were used on krags. I can't help but wonder who it was that was cutting down these rifles at the time? Whoever is was, they did a really good job when they crowned the muzzle. Just a wild guess, but I'm thinking that these rifles may have been cut before or during World War I. Reason being is that when my great grandfather received the gun from his older brother after WWI in 1920, the rifle was already in this configuration. His brother was stationed in France during the war which is where he first received the rifle. After the war, he packed it in his duffel bag and brought it back home with him. This is what my great grandfather told my father when he passed it along to him. Just a guess.


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butlersrangers KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 6330 Location: Michigan Bi-Peninsular&Proud Joined: Oct 7^th, 2009	Re: Help needed on 1898 KRAG Reply #3 - Mar 24^th, 2015 at 11:11am	Print Post
	'KRAG30': It is really neat that you have a Krag that was used by your GGF for 'Hunting'. Sometimes, handed down family stories are accurate and sometimes, they get mixed up. It use to be believed that Krags stayed in the U.S.A. for Training during WW1. Now, it is appreciated that some Krags went to Europe and saw some secondary use with Engineers and Railway Guards. Your GGF's Model 1898 Krag, (#423627), was built around November, 1902. Your Stock's '1902 Acceptance Cartouche' is a nice match. Pre-WW1, the 1901 rear-sight was the preferred sight for Krags in the hands of Regular U.S. Troops, due to its similarity to the 1903 Springfield's rear sight. However, your GGF's Krag was unofficially altered. This destroys its collector value, but, the family connection makes it 'priceless' to you. Enjoy, shoot and hunt with it! Most Krags did not get into private hands until the 1920s, when they were sold off by the Director of Civilian Marksmanship. The DCM eventually was selling Krags for as little as $1.50. This was a real boon to American Hunters and Shooters. A whole industry developed of providing aftermarket sights and gunsmith services. A lot of Krags were altered by their owners. Cutting down Stocks & Barrels to Carbine length, 'stepping' and re-crowning the barrel for a surplus 1903 Springfield front-sight were common practices. A 30 inch barrel and bayonet were useless for most sporting uses, so turning Krags into lighter and handier rifles continued on into the 1950s and 60s.


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