'B1BWSO' - Welcome to the KCA Forum.

IMHO - No major Restoration! You have a beautiful U.S. model 1898 rifle.

Your Krag, # 111746, was assembled in July, 1898. Its serial number is also listed in the Springfield Research Services data.
"SRS" is a list of U.S. arms found documented in official records, researched by Author, Franklin Mallory. Only a very small percentage of Krags are so recorded.

Krag, #111746, model 1898 rifle was received, on 09/26/1903, by the West Virginia National Guard.

(Of course your rifle had a history, before and after this event. The record of it being issued to the W.V.N.G. is just a 'snap-shot' of its use).

I would just recommend a basic cleaning of your Krag, preserving the present metal patina and appearance of the wood. DO NO HARM!

Shoot it, clean the bore, maintain it and enjoy.

I do not know the qualifications of your friend. It is rare to find a gunsmith, nowadays, who has a good understanding of antique arms and finishes. (Even when new, Krags were not finished like more modern guns).

If it were mine and I had someone truly skilled in antique wood repair, I might have the stock damage, in front of the bolt-handle, invisibly repaired and "area finished" to match the surrounding wood.

p.s. Your Krag did not ever have a 'peep' sight. The missing piece of wood is a common break on a lot of Krag stocks.

Attached photo shows normal appearance.

B1BWSO,

Great to have you post pictures of your Krag on KCA's website. Welcome.

I always ask about the bore of rifles since I am a stickler for nice bores and good rifling. Many Krags that are still accurate and good shooting rifles have pitting from old corrosive primer use and poor cleaning but, if the rifling is still intact through the pitting, it can still capture and spin the .30-40 Krag bullet and keep it on target. great accuracy is actually a well-known characteristic of Krags. Many of us can attest to that.

I bought some old walnut flooring torn out of an old house years ago and have pieces of that to make my own repairs on many Krags. If you have some wood working capabilities, you can try it yourself to make that small repair in front of the bolt handle. You can try to have someone else do it if you can find the right person or just leave it and enjoy your Krag the way it is.

If you reload, there are many loads listed in the ammunition section of this website to try. Many of us reload our own ammo and the Krag is very easy to work with. Lots of different types and weight bullets and powders to try.

Good luck and thanks for the pictures. Enjoy and keep us informed!

All excellent suggestions. Many Krags have a problem in that area, so a WELL-DONE repair would not be out of line at all.

Lots of Krag bores look like yours. Early ammo was pretty brutal. It sounds like your barrel still groups well, probably, just harder to clean!

It looks like there is 'air-space' under your front-sight blade. Did someone raise the blade and re-drill the hole for the pin?
If this is the cause of blade looseness you mentioned, you can pack or squeeze a bit of gasket-seal or JB-Weld into the slot. It will harden to eliminate movement (and can always be undone).

That's a nice old Krag. And lovely bayonet too boot! Thanks for sharing and welcome to this terrific forum. You won't be led astray from the folks on here. Super knowledgeable and eager to help out new people with solid advice about these classic rifles.
Not to beat the dead horse, but I whole heartily agree. Just clean it and shoot it how it is. No major restoration needed on a nice complete Infantry Krag. A small wood splice and glue repair or pin and glue around the bolt handled wouldn't hurt any value and might make you happier to look at. If you need a replacement front sight I bought an excellent reproduction blade with pin from S&S firearms. Works great on my M1898.
You're already on track with hand loading and shooting it. That's the best part of owning a Krag!