Our friend Joe Farmer has returned to the Krag forum at Jouster/Culver. Anyone truly interested  (regardless of personal feelings) in the real nitty-gritty of Krags would do well to attend the lecture series.

butlersrangers,
I stumbled across the above mentioned comments.  As a newbe to the Krag family I was totally over whelmed   I felt like sitting through a lecture on how the world was formed.  Come on guys, give me(us) a break!   I am not a member of that forum, and probably will never join.  I resent being talked down to.
Thanks.

1stazmilitia

1statzmilitia - model 1896, model 1901, or model 1902 rifle sights are all correct on your model 1898 Krag. (I love the U.S. model 1898 Krag- Jorgensen. Pick of the litter in my book).

Always, imbibe after shooting (your groups will improve) and have a Rum for me!

As we use to say in college: "Eschew Obfuscation".

I was always taught it was a virtue to communicate clearly and respectfully. It just takes more effort.

To Dick Hosmer:  Regarding your question on Culver's Krag Forum (and to save you pulling guns out of storage).

The 1898 and 1902 sight bases are readily identified while on a Krag by simply raising the leaf and checking the spring.

(FWIW - I don't think the U.S. Armories made use of the 1898 bases after the sight was removed from service. Loose 1898 bases were once a pretty common surplus item. I think a lot of '98-bottom/1902 or 1903RB-top 'hybrid sights' were created by Bannerman, Stoke Kirk, gunsmiths, hobbyists, and even Joe DeChristopher and S&S Firearms).

Thanks Chuck - that's what I thought, but it doesn't pay to tilt at windmills with your lance hand tied behind you.

I suspect there was a desire to make model 1898 Krag rifles with model 1902 sights 'uniform', as well as, regulated for issue ammo.

IIRC - There are five variations of leafs on 1902 sights. Two or three variations of elevation locking-knobs. I think four different knurling or notching patterns on the side of the leaf. "Sgt. Peep" or no peep, but, only one base for rifle and one base for carbine. The base defines the model 1902 sight.

Also, the 1902 base in addition to being taller used a spring that was simpler, easier to machine and fit, cheaper, and probably less inclined to break than the 1898 base spring.

Per Mallory, Springfield 'remanufactured' or altered 110,000 model 1898 sight leafs. This was pretty labor intensive!

It required rounding-off the blade corners, eliminating the 'outside "V" notches, grooving & knurling the left-side of the sight leaf, and replacing or making major changes to the elevator-slide and its sub-parts. (Also, most of these altered blades have the, so called, "Sgt. Peep" feature).

In my experience, I have seen a fair number of these altered model 1898 leafs on Krags. Invariably they have been on model 1902 bases. However, I have always found regular model 1902 sights to be much more common.

If Mallory's number of 110,000 altered 1898 leafs is correct, one would think the variation of the model 1902 sight with the altered leaf would be the most common. (This has not been my experience though).

Complete original model 1898 carbine and rifle sights are not very common at all, especially, still on Krag rifles or carbines. I think this supports that they were pretty thoroughly withdrawn from service and taken apart.

I can recall when the stripped 1898 bases were quite common. (It must have been quite an expense to warehouse 110,000 obsolete bases. I'm surprised Springfield didn't salvage them, considering all the work that went into the alteration of leafs).

I'm inclined to agree with you Dick.  It seems to me that the elevation of the ramp on the 1898R sight is comparable to the ramp of the 1902C. 

I've only seen one 1898R sight installed on a rifle (at a gun show)... and had a darned hard time walking away from it without going into hock (and divorce) to have it!  I have seen a bunch of the altered 98 leafs on rifles though.

First of the Month. Bills coming in. Maybe I should go to the basement and create an 'oddity' ... ! (Just kidding).