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Of Handguards and Rear Sights (Read 6941 times)

mr.tickle KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 27 Location: Jax Joined: Jun 14^th, 2016 Gender:	Of Handguards and Rear Sights Jun 17^th, 2016 at 6:29pm	Print Post
	Good Afternoon Everyone! I'm beating my brains against the wall on this problem I'm having... I know different sized handguards were made for the different sights these rifles have. I have an 1898 rifle made in 1902. When I got it, it had the 1896 sights/handguard on it. Well I wanted to put the 1902 sights on it, so I got an 1898 handguard under the impression that it would fit. (That is what I had gathered from reading around) Well it doesnt line up! Does the 1898 handguard not fit the 1902 sights? Are the screw hole placements different? Or do I need the 1901 hanguard? Perhaps I have carbine 1902 sights? Thank you all for your help!

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mr.tickle KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 27 Location: Jax Joined: Jun 14^th, 2016 Gender:	Re: Of Handguards and Rear Sights Reply #1 - Jun 17^th, 2016 at 6:37pm	Print Post
	Here is the handguard I bought. (You need to *Login* to view media files and links)

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psteinmayer KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 2391 Location: Ypsilanti, Michgan Joined: Aug 30^th, 2011 Gender:	Re: Of Handguards and Rear Sights Reply #2 - Jun 17^th, 2016 at 6:42pm	Print Post
	Howdy. If you to the KCA home page and click on the photos page, you will find pictures of the rear sights and the associated hand guards. IIRC, the 1898 hand guard should work with the 1902 sight... but I could be mistaken. Now the 1896 and 1901 hand guards are similar in size to the 1898/1902, but the sight locations within the hand guards are different. Perhaps you have the 1901 by mistake. Ahhh, the picture just popped up. That's a 1901 hand guard, and won't work with the 1902 sight.


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mr.tickle KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 27 Location: Jax Joined: Jun 14^th, 2016 Gender:	Re: Of Handguards and Rear Sights Reply #3 - Jun 17^th, 2016 at 7:18pm	Print Post
	Dang it that's what I was afraid of. These guns can be expensive lol Thanks.

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butlersrangers KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 6330 Location: Michigan Bi-Peninsular&Proud Joined: Oct 7^th, 2009	Re: Of Handguards and Rear Sights Reply #4 - Jun 17^th, 2016 at 7:59pm	Print Post
	'psteinmayer' is correct. Your picture shows a model 1901 hand-guard. (Also, the model 1898 & 1902 hand-guards are identical and work with rifle and carbine versions of the 1898 and 1902 rear-sights). Your easiest solution is to get a model 1901 rifle sight and screws. This would be perfectly correct on a 'late' model 1898 Krag rifle being used by the regular U.S. Army, especially after 1905-06. If I understand correctly, the model 1902 sight was briefly the preferred sight. The ram-rod bayonet model 1903 Springfields were fitted with a rear-sight similar to the Krag's model 1902 sight. However, the 1903 Springfield underwent major revisions in 1905-06, (.30-06 cartridge, knife bayonet, and model 1905 rear and front-sights). The Krag model 1901 rear-sight was similar to the new Springfield model 1905 sight. The Krag model 1901 rear-sight became the preferred sight for regular Army troops with Krags. The 1902 and 1896 sights were likely relegated to National Guard rifles. Some shooters prefer the model 1901 rear-sight. (Picture of 1903 rod-bayonet Springfield courtesy of Fred).


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Jeremy T Garner KCA Forum Member KCA Official Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 98 Location: Post Falls, Idaho Joined: Apr 26^th, 2016 Gender:	Re: Of Handguards and Rear Sights Reply #5 - Jun 17^th, 2016 at 11:23pm	Print Post
	I for one happen to be one of those shooters! I truly prefer the 1901 sight. The aperture is so close to that of the one on my 1903 and 1873 Springfield Trapdoor Cadet rifle that it just feels like "home".


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psteinmayer KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 2391 Location: Ypsilanti, Michgan Joined: Aug 30^th, 2011 Gender:	Re: Of Handguards and Rear Sights Reply #6 - Jun 18^th, 2016 at 10:45am	Print Post
	I use the 1902. I replaced the original on my 1898 with a spare one that I opened the Sgt. Peep up to 0.07 to make it a little easier on these ole eyes. According to CMP rules, I could go as large as 0.1, but that would have been big enough to damage the pop-up plate. I did it to a spare to preserve my original sight. Works pretty good for me anyway...


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Fred G. KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 125 Location: Nebraska Joined: Sep 21^st, 2009 Gender:	Re: Of Handguards and Rear Sights Reply #7 - Jun 18^th, 2016 at 5:55pm	Print Post
	I've found that when up, the "Sgt. Peep" sight distorts the image a little for me because unless the sight leaf is just about all the way up, the pitch of the peep plate and sight is at a slant and creates an oval peep hole to the shooters eye. I guess one could become used to it. I prefer the 1901.


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psteinmayer KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 2391 Location: Ypsilanti, Michgan Joined: Aug 30^th, 2011 Gender:	Re: Of Handguards and Rear Sights Reply #8 - Jun 19^th, 2016 at 12:36am	Print Post
	That is true... but with the hole enlarged from 0.04 to 0.07, its not as noticeable, and also, as I enlarged the hole, I angled it to allow for the slant of the plate too, which ensures that I'm looking through a round hole with my elevation set to 200 yards.


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mr.tickle KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 27 Location: Jax Joined: Jun 14^th, 2016 Gender:	Re: Of Handguards and Rear Sights Reply #9 - Jun 19^th, 2016 at 1:18am	Print Post
	Well I have a 1901 sight on order, hopefully, I'll finally be able to have some decent sights on this rifle! Still going to keep an eye out for an '02 handguard

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mr.tickle KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 27 Location: Jax Joined: Jun 14^th, 2016 Gender:	Re: Of Handguards and Rear Sights Reply #10 - Jul 3^rd, 2016 at 8:58pm	Print Post
	Well I got some 1901 sights, looks good. For some reason everytime I see it I think "Who put '03 sights on my Krag?" lol Can definitely tell the Springfield sights were derived from these. When I purchased the new sight I ordered a no-go gauge just for peace of mind. Unfortunately it closes on the gauge . So Im not sure what to do now.... This was my dream gun and I'd hate to turn it into a wall hanger. The barrel is in great shape, muzzle erosion gauge shows a "1". I heard a new bolt body might help. This rifle is starting to be more expensive than some of the girls I dated haha.

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butlersrangers KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 6330 Location: Michigan Bi-Peninsular&Proud Joined: Oct 7^th, 2009	Re: Of Handguards and Rear Sights Reply #11 - Jul 4^th, 2016 at 4:07am	Print Post
	mr.tickle: You should have gotten the 'Field' gauge (.073 inches). Many Krags will probably close on the 'no-go' gauge, but, they are totally serviceable and 'OK'. It seems way too much has been made of head-space with Krags and .303 Lee-Enfields. With these rimmed cartridges this is not the big issue it may be with rimless cartridges. Have you fired your Krag? Does your brass show any signs of excessive stretching in the head area? This is probably a better signal of problems than the 'no-go' gauges. p.s. Most of us probably just 'Neck-Size' our .30-40 cases when reloading.


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mr.tickle KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 27 Location: Jax Joined: Jun 14^th, 2016 Gender:	Re: Of Handguards and Rear Sights Reply #12 - Jul 4^th, 2016 at 12:25pm	Print Post
	A field gauge is on order. So we shall see how it does with that. I hadn't noticed anything unusual with the brass which was why I was surprised it failed the no-go gauge.

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butlersrangers KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 6330 Location: Michigan Bi-Peninsular&Proud Joined: Oct 7^th, 2009	Re: Of Handguards and Rear Sights Reply #13 - Jul 4^th, 2016 at 4:03pm	Print Post
	mr.tickle - You can always improvise a 'Field' gauge by using thin shims or washers, held on a .30-40 case with a bit of grease, to build up to a rim thickness of .073". Parashooter is very knowledgeable on issues of 'head-space' and 'end-Play' in cartridge, chamber, and bolt fit. He and others have shared considerable discussion of these issues and the Krag . It is time well spent viewing past pages of the KCA Forum. There, you will find considerable discussion, graphics and explanation. (Use the KCA Search Feature - "Head Space"). FWIW - It was once a common 'home gunsmithing' practice to lap the U.S. Krag's locking-lug, so that, the guide-rib/safety-lug on the bolt body would make contact with the rear receiver wall. (It was thought this made the action stronger and it is how Norwegian Krags were built). If this is done to a U.S. Krag, it introduces more 'End-Play' or increases head-space. It is easy to check on a U.S. Krag. There should normally be a gap of a few thousandths of an inch. (If the closed 'bare' bolt can be moved back, so that the rib touches the receiver wall, the lug has probably been lapped. (Test with a thin piece of paper). (BTW - New Old Stock bolts are available from 'Movieman' for $55).


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mr.tickle KCA Forum Member Offline Krag Enthusiast! Posts: 27 Location: Jax Joined: Jun 14^th, 2016 Gender:	Re: Of Handguards and Rear Sights Reply #14 - Jul 4^th, 2016 at 6:27pm	Print Post
	Thanks! I'll get to reading! I did go ahead and order a bolt as well.

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