keithherrington
Member
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Keith
Keith
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Mystery Solved on Custom 1898 Krag Target Rifle
- Thread starter keithherrington
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Beautiful rifle, very well executed by somebody who obviously knew what they were doing. Of course, I will be most interested in what kind of groups you can print with it. Glad you got it back.
Interesting combination of sights, stock and iron. I fancy it more of a deer killer than target rifle, but it may do well enough at both. Congrats on getting your rifle back. 
WOW ! Beautiful Rifle
Targets Guy
US Veteran
Very nice. I'll stick with mine however.
OP
keithherrington
Member
Well, one does not preclude the other
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Keith
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Keith
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Those sight blocks on the barrel are for a Unertle or a Lyman Super target scope.
tndrfttom
Member
The workmanship on these Krag service rifles is amazing. I've got an as-issued 1898 Krag in about the same condition as cprher's GI Krag but with a SN about 33,000 higher. Mine was built in 1903 near the end of Krag production and at the start of M1903 Springfield production. It looks like a few of these Krags went right from the production line into storage.
Attachments
I've never been a fan of "sporterized" or "targetized" Krags, preferring them in their original military condition for value's sake. However, the one you possess is absolutely beautiful and expertly crafted. Certainly something to be proud of.
Krags were noted for their slick-operating actions, perhaps the best of any bolt action rifle then or now. The bolt camming surfaces as they came from Springfield Armory were absolutely superb - smooth as glass. I can see where that would be an advantage in rapid-fire competition.
Congrats on having a beautiful rifle! Below are some of my as-issued Krags for comparison.
John
This is a model 1892, arsenal-modified to model 1896. It's dated 1894 on the receiver.
Model 1892 rifles had under-the-barrel cleaning rods. When converted to Model 1896s, the channel was filled in with a wood strip.
This is an extremely rare Krag "Bowie" bayonet. Not many made (in 1900 only), most lost in Cuba and the Philippines. Very few surviving specimens.
This is the Bowie bayonet pictured with its original scabbard.
A very sought-after Model 1896 carbine - the type used by Teddy Roosevelt's Rough Riders in the Spanish-American War in Cuba.
A Model 1898.
The Model 1899 carbine was the last issue carbine until the M1 carbine in WWII.
Krags were noted for their slick-operating actions, perhaps the best of any bolt action rifle then or now. The bolt camming surfaces as they came from Springfield Armory were absolutely superb - smooth as glass. I can see where that would be an advantage in rapid-fire competition.
Congrats on having a beautiful rifle! Below are some of my as-issued Krags for comparison.
John
This is a model 1892, arsenal-modified to model 1896. It's dated 1894 on the receiver.
Model 1892 rifles had under-the-barrel cleaning rods. When converted to Model 1896s, the channel was filled in with a wood strip.
This is an extremely rare Krag "Bowie" bayonet. Not many made (in 1900 only), most lost in Cuba and the Philippines. Very few surviving specimens.
This is the Bowie bayonet pictured with its original scabbard.
A very sought-after Model 1896 carbine - the type used by Teddy Roosevelt's Rough Riders in the Spanish-American War in Cuba.
A Model 1898.
The Model 1899 carbine was the last issue carbine until the M1 carbine in WWII.
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bmcgilvray
Member
Love Krags and would love to play with a really keen sporter like the OP's rifle.
A friend once turned a shabby Krag sporter into a rifle that looked similar to that one. He wanted a scope on it though and wanted the traditional "look" of a top-mounted scope. The results looked great, but of course ejection was impossibly awkward.
I've shot a Krag in a local high-power match on a couple of occasions. Was a hoot. The reload during rapid fire wasn't too bad. This match was conducted at 100 yards, using reduction targets to mimic the longer ranges.
Here's the Krag that lives here. I bought it at 18 years old, in 1975.
A friend once turned a shabby Krag sporter into a rifle that looked similar to that one. He wanted a scope on it though and wanted the traditional "look" of a top-mounted scope. The results looked great, but of course ejection was impossibly awkward.
I've shot a Krag in a local high-power match on a couple of occasions. Was a hoot. The reload during rapid fire wasn't too bad. This match was conducted at 100 yards, using reduction targets to mimic the longer ranges.
Here's the Krag that lives here. I bought it at 18 years old, in 1975.
My first bolt gun was a 1898 Krag. The barrel had been slightly shortened, but it shot like a house afire.
I had a sporterized Krag a few years back, but traded it off before I ever got a chance to shoot it.
I had a sporterized Krag a few years back, but traded it off before I ever got a chance to shoot it.
OP
keithherrington
Member
My biggest disappointment
The biggest disappointment I have with my custom Krag is that the gunsmith didn't sign it in any way I could detect. It's a real mystery. The gun has elements from several different eras: the sights could be from the 50s or 60's; the barrel, marked "GR DOUGLAS XX" and "30-40" tell me it was installed by Douglas. According to Douglas, if they did the barrel work, they would have stamped the barrel near the receiver ring (below the wood line) with the last 3 digits of the serial number, the month and the year. When time permits I'll pull the gun from the stock and see what I can find. The gun is set up with Unertl bases, probably for externally adjusted target scope, pretty old school in its own right, and the butt plate is hand forged, hand checkered and VERY closely fit to the stock. Again, pretty old school.
Once I track down Douglas' markings on the barrel, I'll send them a letter to research their records for when the gun was done and for whom.
Keith
The biggest disappointment I have with my custom Krag is that the gunsmith didn't sign it in any way I could detect. It's a real mystery. The gun has elements from several different eras: the sights could be from the 50s or 60's; the barrel, marked "GR DOUGLAS XX" and "30-40" tell me it was installed by Douglas. According to Douglas, if they did the barrel work, they would have stamped the barrel near the receiver ring (below the wood line) with the last 3 digits of the serial number, the month and the year. When time permits I'll pull the gun from the stock and see what I can find. The gun is set up with Unertl bases, probably for externally adjusted target scope, pretty old school in its own right, and the butt plate is hand forged, hand checkered and VERY closely fit to the stock. Again, pretty old school.
Once I track down Douglas' markings on the barrel, I'll send them a letter to research their records for when the gun was done and for whom.
Keith
Frank46
US Veteran
I have a cut down 1898 Krag rifle. Barrel was cut down to about 25" long, forend also shortened. Front sight is a commercial one and the rear sight is the standard military sight that was used around 1903. Nice bore and loves the rem 180 grain round nosed softpoint. Giving serious thought to start shooting cast bullets so the original barrel will last longer. Thanks for sharing your Krags. Frank
That Krag target rifle looks like great fun to shoot. I'd like to be behind it and see what it would do at 600 yards.......... when I was still able to see the target at 600 yards.
OP
keithherrington
Member
Yup, that's what I thought but no joy. Couldn't find his name anywhere on the gun.
Keith
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