https://i.imgur.com/qdo8yXA.png
Hopefully the link to my screen shot works. I asked for a SRS check on the CMP forum for my rifle 473698. There were no hits but another forum member posted the info in the screen shot. If my rifle falls between the listed serial numbers would that mean it was issued along with the listed numbers?
Thoughts on my Krag
Re: Thoughts on my Krag
Hi, Griff.
This is a great question and has been brought up many times before. I believe the best answer is actually printed in Joe Farmer's great book he wrote about Krags. You should get one. It is not expensive and it's extremely well researched.
You can contact him through his website:
http://www.5madfarmers.com
The answer is, briefly, that if your number is NOT listed, that is most likely excellent proof that it was not on the lists of documented Krag firearms. You cannot extrapolate based on close proximity of your Krag's serial number to others that are documented in the Springfield Research Service records that are close in any way to yours.
Keep looking. The documented ones are out there. I have seen it written that only about 5% of all Krags are documented.
That's what makes them so valuable.
This is a great question and has been brought up many times before. I believe the best answer is actually printed in Joe Farmer's great book he wrote about Krags. You should get one. It is not expensive and it's extremely well researched.
You can contact him through his website:
http://www.5madfarmers.com
The answer is, briefly, that if your number is NOT listed, that is most likely excellent proof that it was not on the lists of documented Krag firearms. You cannot extrapolate based on close proximity of your Krag's serial number to others that are documented in the Springfield Research Service records that are close in any way to yours.
Keep looking. The documented ones are out there. I have seen it written that only about 5% of all Krags are documented.
That's what makes them so valuable.
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butlersrangers
- Posts: 9880
- Joined: Wed Oct 07, 2009 11:35 pm
- Location: Below the Bridge, Michigan
Re: Thoughts on my Krag
IMHO - I think there is way too much emphasis placed on Krag serial numbers appearing in SRS data.
Very few Krags were found in government reports, returns, and paperwork. Most mentioned 'incidents' and issuance of arms are of little significance.
The Data only gives a brief glimpse of a given Krag's likely long service.
Some entries are easily misunderstood:
Krags were not issued to the "New Cumberland Guard". (The Guards, at the New Cumberland, Pa. Army Depot, were recording the serial numbers of obsolete arms they were instructed to destroy)!
Most Krags, used in historic events, are not represented in SRS Data.
Very few Krags were found in government reports, returns, and paperwork. Most mentioned 'incidents' and issuance of arms are of little significance.
The Data only gives a brief glimpse of a given Krag's likely long service.
Some entries are easily misunderstood:
Krags were not issued to the "New Cumberland Guard". (The Guards, at the New Cumberland, Pa. Army Depot, were recording the serial numbers of obsolete arms they were instructed to destroy)!
Most Krags, used in historic events, are not represented in SRS Data.
Re: Thoughts on my Krag
Nicely said "Butlers rangers". At best an srs hit is only part of the history of a Krag rifle or carbine. I enjoy my small group of Krags for what they are now. I am sure each one would have quite the story to tell. It's nice to know part of the history of a Krag but just as nice to imagine where a non srs hit Krag has been.
Re: Thoughts on my Krag
There is certainly lots of history that almost every one of our Krag rifles and carbines carries with it be it from a national perspective or a personal, family history. Just the changes and upgrades or alterations carry historical information of different types that may or may not change value.
But, the historical research that Frank Mallory put into his Springfield Research Service documentation gives us a unique glimpse into the official military documentation for those Krags that had a specific kind of historical record that we can use to better understand where a specific Krag was at one moment in history. Especially if that moment demonstrates an important battle such as The Spanish American War.
"Buy the rifle, not the story" is a mantra that we all should live by. But any historic documentation, especially one referring to an important military event, adds provenance to the firearm, which frequently adds value.
It definitely adds another dimension to collecting firearms, including Krags. Heck, they're fun no matter what whether they have an SRS "hit" or not!
But, the historical research that Frank Mallory put into his Springfield Research Service documentation gives us a unique glimpse into the official military documentation for those Krags that had a specific kind of historical record that we can use to better understand where a specific Krag was at one moment in history. Especially if that moment demonstrates an important battle such as The Spanish American War.
"Buy the rifle, not the story" is a mantra that we all should live by. But any historic documentation, especially one referring to an important military event, adds provenance to the firearm, which frequently adds value.
It definitely adds another dimension to collecting firearms, including Krags. Heck, they're fun no matter what whether they have an SRS "hit" or not!
Re: Thoughts on my Krag
Well said Whig
Re: Thoughts on my Krag
Thanks, Ned. You guys have sure taught me a lot about Krags and collecting mil surps in general here at KCA.
I love every bit of it!
I love every bit of it!
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Dick Hosmer
- Posts: 2286
- Joined: Sun Nov 20, 2005 4:11 pm
Re: Thoughts on my Krag
You need to have a look at 70210 (and about 75 others, IIRC, with the identical note).
The reference is to refinishing at St. Louis Arsenal. Further research revealed them to be one troop of the 6th on their way to (ultimately) the Boxer rebellion!!
You never know. I got lucky.
The reference is to refinishing at St. Louis Arsenal. Further research revealed them to be one troop of the 6th on their way to (ultimately) the Boxer rebellion!!
You never know. I got lucky.
Re: Thoughts on my Krag
Wow. Sometimes you really have to dig. What other research did you do, Dick, that gave you that information on 70210?
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butlersrangers
- Posts: 9880
- Joined: Wed Oct 07, 2009 11:35 pm
- Location: Below the Bridge, Michigan
Re: Thoughts on my Krag
Not all SRS hits are equal.
(I recall a number of years back, a KCA member had a Krag that matched one of the "New Cumberland Guard - destroyed" serial numbers! ..... Larceny, Recycling, or Clerical Error? ..... Interesting mystery anyhow)!
(I recall a number of years back, a KCA member had a Krag that matched one of the "New Cumberland Guard - destroyed" serial numbers! ..... Larceny, Recycling, or Clerical Error? ..... Interesting mystery anyhow)!