'Jim_Bo': Welcome to the KCA Forum. BTW - There is no "i" in Krag. (Sorry, I couldn't help myself)!
I assume your Krag's receiver is marked "Model 1899". The Model 1899 was only made as a cavalry carbine. Your serial number, 230472, is in a 'block' of numbers used for carbines. Your Krag was assembled around October, 1899. Krag receivers were numbered and went into parts bins. Krags were not built, or accepted for service in numerical order, so dating is approximate.
The Krag carbine barrels are 22 inches long, when measured from muzzle to (closed) bolt face. All Krag models had a hand-guard when issued. A common step, when using a Krag for hunting, was to remove the hand-guard and change sights. If you post some pictures of your Krag, you will get a more specific analysis from KCA members.
Your Krag is an early Model 1899, so initially, it probably had the rare and short lived model 1898 carbine rear-sight. These sights were pulled out of service and replaced with model 1896, 1901, and 1902 carbine rear-sights. Each of these sight models has a specific hand-guard(s). You can view photos of these different sights and hand-guards, if you go to the KCA Website main page and click on the tab 'photos'.
The different Krag carbine rear-sights are quite expensive (with a lot of fakery). They are hard to find loose and prices range from $175 to $600, depending on model. Krag rifle sights are much more plentiful ($45 to $75) and can fill in for most applications. Reproduction hand-guards are available and cost around $65. Original hand-guards show up on ebay and GunBroker, but, are expensive and often have issues. Krag rear-sight screws are peculiar to each sight model and have an unusual thread. Reproductions and originals are available.
I would recommend you buy a $20 book, "The American Krag Rifle and Carbine", by Joe Poyer. It has good photos and can guide you through some of this trivia.
If your Krag's receiver was drilled and tapped, spend no $, use it as is.
|