Fantastic Krag Revelation by Joe Farmer...

U.S. Military Krags
Whig
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Re: Fantastic Krag Revelation by Joe Farmer...

Post by Whig »

How many times have we seen a "story" of a rare gem of a rifle being found in the rafters of an old barn or wrapped in plastic behind a wall of a house being torn down?

I have a friend who was renovating a bedroom for a friend and found an old 1911 from WWI wrapped in plastic being a piece of baseboard. Unfortunately it was in bad shape but really? Great stories abound!

I'm sure there are a few Krags waiting patiently to be rescued from their hiding places.

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Dick Hosmer
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Re: Fantastic Krag Revelation by Joe Farmer...

Post by Dick Hosmer »

I have been watching and waiting for someone here to come up with a nice and ultra rare Krag worth a gazillion dollars. So you have got the closest thing so far! Congrats!


This will be old news to some here, but I have pulled two (2) of the 100 26" barreled 1902 Board of Ordnace & Fortifications rifles off Gunbroker. One (389182) needs the forearm restored but has the special sights - the other (388786) is presently configured as a carbine (1902C sight) and MAY even be legit, since SA has an identical specimen in their attic. One of my 1896 carbines (70210) is documented to the China Relief Expedition. I've been very lucky.

FredC
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Re: Fantastic Krag Revelation by Joe Farmer...

Post by FredC »

Dick,
Please get an ultra fire safe!

Whig
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Re: Fantastic Krag Revelation by Joe Farmer...

Post by Whig »

Thanks, Dick. We've shown others that it's not too late to find treasures if we keep our eyes open. I couldn't do it without help from all of you experienced Krag collectors who have come before me. This site been a God-send!

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Dick Hosmer
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Re: Fantastic Krag Revelation by Joe Farmer...

Post by Dick Hosmer »

Great story, and good for YOU!! - but it would be nice, instead of Joes's usual circular jargon, for him to advise just WHY he feels what he feels about THAT gun. Perhaps that is part of the "copyrighted" info? I LIKE Joe, more than some might suspect, I've been a guest in his home, he has a fantastic collection and has done incredible research - far surpassing Mallory and Brophy combined, but I just cannot get past his obtuse writing style - buses, bookends, and the like.

He also claims he can tell a "real" BoOF rifle by something in the trigger mortise area, but apparently (since he's refused to respond to my query) wants me to guess what it (might) be. Funny - I go by the stock, the barrel length/crown, BOTH sights, serial number range, and 1902 cartouche. He owns a VERY nice one, 389185, whereas my 389182 had the stock chopped (which I still have not restored). So, the rear part of my wood is almost certainly the same as his, yet I can find NO anomalies whatsoever from any other Krag.

Sorry for the rant - I hope he is right and that you do have a one-of-a-kind! They're kind of special.

Whig
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Re: Fantastic Krag Revelation by Joe Farmer...

Post by Whig »

Thanks, Dick. Appreciate the comments.

I have a ton of trouble understanding a lot of what Joe writes, also. I cannot get many important points he apparently tries to make in his personal e-mails as well as his book he's written. But, I have still learned a lot from him, as well as from you and others, about Krags. I continue to learn as well as try to help others who are starting on the path to learning about Krags.

I don't have any experience about the BoOF rifles. There are so few, it is an "owner's only" kind of collectible. Maybe some new e-mails to Joe would prove beneficial to learning his details for identifying them better. I always believe he is truthful, just difficult to extract info from, sometimes. He has added a lot to the Krag collector's field with his research, no doubt.

Thanks again and hope you continue to do well in this difficult political environment we are in.

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Dick Hosmer
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Re: Fantastic Krag Revelation by Joe Farmer...

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Whig, I am extremely happy for you, truly, but I sure wish Joe would cut the meandering around in the bushes, and note exactly what feature exists, or does not exist, that makes him think it is a real PCR. That type of presentation is precisely what drives me WILD about his otherwise exemplary (neither Mallory nor Brophy could hold a candle to him) work. Hopefully has has shared it with you. I'm assuming that his silence probably means that it has something which other examples lack, and so could be added to a school gun by a nefarious person. That would be one good reason for keeping mum. Or, since he views the world a bit differently, it could simply be that he does not wish to cast pearls before swine. That does NOT include you!!! He frustrates me.

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Dick Hosmer
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Re: Fantastic Krag Revelation by Joe Farmer...

Post by Dick Hosmer »

Well, Whig, it is just over a year now, and we are no closer to knowing what it is that caused Joe to make his "bombshell" announcement that you have a real PCR. I said at the time that I hoped he had divulged the information to you. Has he? If he has, can you advise what it is, or if that would be too dangerous to expose to fakers, can you at least clarify that (a) it HAS something that all other specimens he has viewed lack, or (b) it does NOT have something which all other specimens which he has viewed do? As I've said, I admire Joe GREATLY, but have grown tired of his obtuse little 'word games'. Thanks in advance.

Doubly Reincarnated
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Re: Fantastic Krag Revelation by Joe Farmer...

Post by Doubly Reincarnated »

I bought Joe Farmer's book. Photos are horrid, but that's a function of being reproduced on a copy machine. Read it 3 times. There is a lot of information, and after 3 times around, I understand Joe's explanation of the armory production processes that evolved along with the Krag. But the whole business with the bus to Berlin and the other circular arguments really detract from a superlative job of research.

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