Hey all -

I've a 1898 full length rifle that was given to me nearly a decade ago that is all original, and didn't want to mess with.  But I love the cartridge, the action, and the accuracy.

I set out searching for a base for a deer / elk carbine project and found a 100k serial 1898 that has had, lets say, a rough life.  Missing the handguard, replacement butt plate, cut down and refinished stock, broken rear sight ladder, missing front site post, missing side cover screw, and - surprisingly - metal in the white.

My end goal here is a carbine length with no tap scope mount (either side or rear sight replacement).

Opinions are welcome, but at the risk of ruining a piece of history by modifying, I wanted thoughts on if I've truly ruined anything by cutting this rifle down.  At bare minimum the finish/patina has been permanently ruined, the stock is beyond saving, and it needs a handful of metal bits.  All of that, to me, adds up to a rifle that needs a new life.

I believe my first plan of attack is to check out the bore/barrel condition.  Next would be the essential metal bits (it needs a cover plate screw, front sight blade that I'll make for testing, and a rear sling swivel/barrel band solution).  Test firing for accuracy at that point, cutting the barrel down next.  Adding the scope mount next, and then, if after all that I still have a shooter, I'm considering trying my hand at rust blue on the modified rifle.  Finally, refinishing the stock with simple tung or BLO.

Feel free to poke holes, offer insight or direction from experience.

Thanks Whig, I'll have to roll that around.  The serial is 105510.  One of the attractive features, for me, because it's an antique and I won't pay a transfer.  I plan on getting my c&r this year, but haven't yet.


And thanks for the welcome!!

Whig wrote on Jan 19^th, 2020 at 4:11pm:

Here's a closeup of the receiver...




Ned Butts wrote on Jan 19^th, 2020 at 6:58pm:

That appears to be a "hard struck" six, not uncommon. Krag stampings can be deceiveing . An examination of the other side of the receiver and the bolt handle "support" will tell us that it is a model 1896

Here's the shots I have of the bolt side.

This has given me great pause on the direction of this project.

Ned Butts wrote on Jan 19^th, 2020 at 9:01pm:

I’ve cut bbls that have already been cut but I would have to say that if you want a Krag sporter do some horse trading instead of hack sawing. With a Kraghaus scout scope mount and a IER scope you can build a nice slick deer hunting carbine. I built this Krag from my first Krag that was supposed to be a nra sporter but wasn’t. I like the way it came out. Here’s it is for some inspiration. Good luck.

Sounds good. Glad to not have another Krag barrel chopped!

That stock does look great after your Tung oil treatment.

The Krag should look really nice after it is all re-assembled. The bore in the barrel headed your way is almost unused in appearance and should make a good shooting Krag. Hopefully your experience with it will pan out.

Good luck and thanks for the updated pictures.

It's always nice to see a good restoration job after seeing all of the torn down Krags being sold on ebay and Gun Broker.