Restore or not?

[B1BWSO]

Hi, I'm new to the forum. I'm sure a lot of folks have asked this question but, I thought I'd ask some real owners out there. A few years ago I picked up the rifle you see below at an antique gun shop in MT. I couldn't resist since I've rarely come upon a Krag that hasn't been sporterized. It's got some age, but it's still a decent shooter. The only real issues are a loose front blade sight (easily fixed) and some wood missing from in front of the bolt handle (possibly due to a previous peep sight?). The action is still as smooth as butter. A good friend who happens to be a gunsmith says he'd love to do a faithful restoration to this rifle. Others have said it's heresy and would devalue the rifle. I don't intend on selling it and will probably pass it on to my son. Should I have it restored? Thanks in advance for your thoughts and advice.

[butlersrangers]

'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.

[Culpeper]

I second BR's advise and I am unanimous in that. Do no harm. Clean it, oil it and have fun shooting it.

Oh and see you on the firing line at Camp Perry next summer. Wink Wink, nudge nudge.

[Whig]

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!

[butlersrangers]

An old junk U.S. military stock can be a good source for a wood 'patch'. (I have a wrecked 1903 Springfield stock for such purposes).

I would avoid applying linseed oil or waxes & polishes to the small area of missing wood. This 'margin' should be kept dry for a good bond with a future wood patch and 'glue'.

[Dick Hosmer]

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

[B1BWSO]

Many thanks to all for your thoughts. My gunsmith friend's specialty is restoration but, after reading your words, I won't do a restoration and I'll hopefully do a good job fixing the stock. As far as the bore, I've put some not so good pictures below to give an idea what it looks like. I've done a thorough cleaning, to include using the JB Paste technique. Although it's not the prettiest bore, (and I'm not the best shot either) I've been able to get my groupings to around 2MOA at 100 yds. I do reload and am making sure to use standard load data. Luckily I also have data from my wife's grandfather who was a gunsmith and reloaded for the Krag. He also competed in the Camp Perry National Competitions with the Illinois National Guard throughout the 20s and 30s, and won a championship or two :). Thanks again to all and I look forward to chatting more about Krags and other classics in the future!

[butlersrangers]

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).

[FredC]

A question here, in another thread there was a way too tall front site. My thought was that besides correction, maybe it was made to file to size for the perfect aim? Seems like setting your original front sight aside and getting one of those would be a good solution to correct the aim.

http://www.kragcollectorsassociation.org/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1592012305

[148Infantry]

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!