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.22 Krag (Read 10165 times)

Danny KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 21 Joined: May 5^th, 2014	.22 Krag Jun 18^th, 2015 at 5:23pm	Print Post
	Hey, so I added this Krag a few months back off of GB. Its a gallery rifle chambered in .22 LR. I know the original production was around 850 and according to the one page on this website there are about 100 observed and recorded examples. I thought I would share it with the crowd here since these seem to be uncommon and as best I can tell it is an authentic example of a .22 Krag. Something I had only seen once before in person.


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butlersrangers KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 6330 Location: Michigan Bi-Peninsular&Proud Joined: Oct 7^th, 2009	Re: .22 Krag Reply #1 - Jun 18^th, 2015 at 8:25pm	Print Post
	Nice photos, thanks for sharing!


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psteinmayer KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 2391 Location: Ypsilanti, Michgan Joined: Aug 30^th, 2011 Gender:	Re: .22 Krag Reply #2 - Jun 18^th, 2015 at 11:35pm	Print Post
	That has the original 1898 rear sight... Awesome! Nice looking Krag!


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1911Ron KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 59 Location: Buckeye,Az Joined: May 16^th, 2015 Gender:	Re: .22 Krag Reply #3 - Jun 19^th, 2015 at 5:25am	Print Post
	That is cool! Question does it feed like Krag or is it different?


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reincarnated KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 562 Joined: Mar 11^th, 2012	Re: .22 Krag Reply #4 - Jun 19^th, 2015 at 7:32am	Print Post
	I have had some experience with Gallery Practice Rifles, so I will share what I have learned. First, they are all single shot rifles. They do not use the magazine. They are loaded by opening the bolt, leaving it back and then inserting a 22 Long Rifle cartridge into the chamber with your fingers. Once the cartridge is started into the chamber, closing the bolt seats it properly. Second, they use an ordinary Krag bolt and extractor. The chamber & bore are drilled at an eccentric angle, set low at the breech but centered at the muzzle. Ejection is a sometimes thing. The ejector is a trip pin, fitted into the left side of the receiver where the little hole is drilled. The Krag's extractor pulls a spring-loaded auxiliary extractor out until the regular extractor hits the trip pin. That lets the auxiliary extractor snap back into place. The auxiliary extractor is a modification of the ordinary .22 rimfire extractor-ejector used in the 1885 Winchester Single Shot. Extracted & ejected cases sometimes hang up with the case mouth barely in the chamber. Snap rolling the rifle to the right usually drops the case clear of the rifle. Other times, the case rolls to the left and may get stuck between the bolt and the sideplate. The common cure was to remove the sideplate and all the magazine feeding innards. Looks strange but works well. The first batch, 50 or 100, IIRC, were chambered for the .22 Extra Long rimfire. They have an 18" twist and a .226" groove diameter. These do not shoot regular Long Rifle cartridges with much accuracy. From the bench, at 100 yards, with a no-drill Pacific rear and an ordinary 1903 front sight, I was able to keep most of my shots in the 9 ring of the standard smallbore target. I had much better results with CCI Stingers. $$. Later GPRs are chambered for Long Rifle and have 16" twist and about .222" groove diameter. These are much more accurate rifles. Stock and some of the hardware are made from rejects.


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psteinmayer KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 2391 Location: Ypsilanti, Michgan Joined: Aug 30^th, 2011 Gender:	Re: .22 Krag Reply #5 - Jun 19^th, 2015 at 11:21am	Print Post
	That's great Info reincarnated... thanks very much for sharing it.


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98src KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 160 Location: sevierville,tn Joined: Jul 3^rd, 2010 Gender:	Re: .22 Krag Reply #6 - Jun 19^th, 2015 at 12:52pm	Print Post
	What is the cartouche date on the stock?


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Dick Hosmer KCA Official Member Offline Collector of Springfield Arms, 1865-1915 Posts: 1862 Location: Northern California Joined: Nov 20^th, 2005 Gender:	Re: .22 Krag Reply #7 - Jun 19^th, 2015 at 1:18pm	Print Post
	Do you have the missing extractor parts? That's going to be a tough find, if not. Mine is complete, but has a broken spring on one side, so it does not work smoothly at all. S&S supposedly had a few springs but now cannot find them. Barrel needs to be removed to fix the mechanism, which is why I've not yet repaired mine. Is your serial number (clearly Photoshopped) on the list? Sorry to see you feel the need to conceal it - always nice to get full data, especially on rare models.


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Danny KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 21 Joined: May 5^th, 2014	Re: .22 Krag Reply #8 - Jun 19^th, 2015 at 1:57pm	Print Post
	It is not on the list, its 476142, 1903 dated stock. sorry its just a dumb habit I guess. Are the two holes about the bore for the auxiliary extractor? Will the gun not extract at all without it? Thanks for the info reincarnated.


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Danny KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 21 Joined: May 5^th, 2014	Re: .22 Krag Reply #9 - Jun 19^th, 2015 at 2:01pm	Print Post
	Some more pictures, with a regular 1898 thrown in for comparison.


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Danny KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 21 Joined: May 5^th, 2014	Re: .22 Krag Reply #10 - Jun 19^th, 2015 at 2:08pm	Print Post
	Last batch of photos, that's about all the detail shots I have at the moment.


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Dick Hosmer KCA Official Member Offline Collector of Springfield Arms, 1865-1915 Posts: 1862 Location: Northern California Joined: Nov 20^th, 2005 Gender:	Re: .22 Krag Reply #11 - Jun 19^th, 2015 at 2:43pm	Print Post
	Thanks for the number, and the extra pics. Perhaps Ned could add it to the list? From your original photo #4 it is a little hard to tell what is there and what isn't, aside from the fact that both rods and springs are gone, but looking closer, I guess the plate IS still there. Does the bolt (extractor, actually) withdraw a small ring of metal - which then has to be reseated by hand? If so, then it should remove a case, though the operation would become tedious after awhile. When new, clean, polished, in perfect order, the extractor was supposed to withdraw the metal plate/ring against spring (located in the two holes above the bore) pressure, then, upon being tripped by the pin, release the plate which was supposed to SNAP smartly forward, leaving the loose case behind, due to inertia. The case would frequently fall where it was not wanted - the whole process was kind of Mickey Mouse, but still an interesting (and quite rare) variant. Nice find! When I find the time to work on mine, I will post some disassembled pictures, but it won't be anytime soon - likely 2017.


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Danny KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 21 Joined: May 5^th, 2014	Re: .22 Krag Reply #12 - Jun 19^th, 2015 at 3:33pm	Print Post
	The few times that I cycled it dry the plate stayed in place. I have not tried it with a cartridge yet. Would it be possible to track down an 1885 Winchester extractor and make that work since that is what this one is based on? I am wondering if the damaged bolt face wasn't some crude attempt to get it working without the auxiliary extractor.


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reincarnated KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 562 Joined: Mar 11^th, 2012	Re: .22 Krag Reply #13 - Jun 19^th, 2015 at 4:08pm	Print Post
	The last photo posted shows the trip pin. On the GPRs I have messed with, the trip pins were quite sharp & dug into my finger when I went to remove the bolt. I found it easier to remove the bolt with a toothbrush handle. If you have the plate for the auxiliary extractor, the missing parts are just specially made screws, rods and springs. Putting the whole thing together might be a challenge. I don't think the Winchester extractor would help, but it is easiest to see if you find one of the late (& most common) military .22 muskets. They hid the ejector parts behind the plate and operated everything with the lever that operates the breech block.


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reincarnated KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 562 Joined: Mar 11^th, 2012	Re: .22 Krag Reply #14 - Jun 19^th, 2015 at 4:19pm	Print Post
	Before you go to the considerable trouble to repair the auxiliary extractor, slug the barrel and measure the twist. If the barrel turns out to be one of the early ones, it may not be worth the hassle. If it were mine, that would be my decision. Would it be possible to put a liner in a GPR barrel?


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