U.S. Military 22 caliber rifles

[Marlin 1888]

Hi, I am new here. I am wondering if anybody besides myself is interested in U.S. Military 22 caliber rifles.
I have a few and am interested in any information regarding these weapons.
My current project is finding a Krag 22 cal. barrel.
Lets talk if you find these weapons interesting.

[waterman]

Is this Val?

In discussing US Military 22 caliber Krags, differentiate between ordinary rifles fitted with Stevens-Pope barrels (high demand collectors items if in excellent condition) and the less desirable Gallery Practice Rifle (GPR).

GPRs come with two types of barrels. Early production (?) has .226" groove diameter, 18" twist and were chambered for the .22 Extra Long rimfire. Why that was done only the military mind can explain. They function with ordinary .22 Long Rifle cartridges but are not very accurate. They are surprisingly accurate with CCI Stingers and similar hyper-velocity rimfires, but that defeats their purpose.

Later GPRs are reported to have been made to conventional .22 Long Rifle groove and chamber dimensions. I have not seen one of those.

The challenge with a replacement barrel would be fitting an extractor. The extractor on the Krag bolt grabbed an auxiliary extractor. The aux. extractor is what pulled the cartridge case out of the chamber and deposited it inside the Krag action.

[butlersrangers]

I wish someone made a reproduction 'Steven's - Pope' type barrel or a heavy walled liner with an off-set bore.

I have a model 1898 with a bad looking bore, that I would love to turn in to a .22 cal. practice rifle.

[Cat Man]

Has anyone ever looked at the Lee Enfield .22 cal tube insert device? Could that be made to fit a Krag with the rimmed 30-40 chamber, similar to the .303 rim.

Just spit ball'in.

And Yes, I have several .22 training rifles. US and Foreign models.

[FredC]

Never seen the 303 conversion device, sounds practical. A 303 cartridge does fit into a 30/40 chamber. Even if the extended barrel is tight, opening up a worn out 30/40 barrel could not be too hard. Try it out, if it works make permanent with epoxy or Loctite.

[butlersrangers]

The British Device was called a 'Morris Tube'. I have seen them in pictures on SMLE rifles and Webley revolvers.

IIRC - The Webley cylinder was replaced with a chambered block and became a single-shot.

The one for Lee-Enfield rifles likely angled down the bore and was 'off-set' at the chamber to take advantage of the issue center-fire pin and .303 extractor.

[Knute1]

I have been trying to find the publication titled "Description and Instructions for Management of .22 Caliber U. S. Magazine Rifle, Model of 1898", but have not been able to find it. It did/does exist as the link shows:

https://www.google.com/books/edition/United_States_Government_Publications_Mo/BdMbAWNHCSEC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=u.s.+model+of+1898+22+caliber+manual&pg=PA493&printsec=frontcover

However, I did find this from the 1903/1904 Report of the Adjutant General of Texas (see page 90):

https://www.google.com/books/edition/Annual_Report_Adjutant_General_s_Departm/HtRKAQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=management+of+.22+caliber+u.s.+magazine+rifle+model+of+1898&pg=RA2-PA90&printsec=frontcover

Here is the pamphlet for the Model 1903 Gallery Rifle:

https://www.google.com/books/edition/Description_and_Instructions_for_the_Man/sWSwIuuLNXIC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=u.s.+model+1903+.22+caliber+instructions+management&pg=PP7&printsec=frontcover

[donki1967]

Has anyone ever looked at the Lee Enfield .22 cal tube insert device? Could that be made to fit a Krag with the rimmed 30-40 chamber, similar to the .303 rim.

Just spit ball'in.

And Yes, I have several .22 training rifles. US and Foreign models.

sorry to ask, what is this target?

[butlersrangers]

My guess:

The target looks like a miniature or scaled-down version of the (800, 900, and 1,000 yard) Palma Target, at which 15 shots were fired in a match.
A perfect score would be 75 points, (A Possible).

A scaled down version would be fun for firing .22 caliber rifles at 100 yards. (Ten shots were taken at the target in the photo for a Possible score of 50).

"Cat Man" - Tell us about the target and where to get them? What is the course of fire?

[Cat Man]

The target is an obsolete military short range target. I got a full GI box a long time ago at a garage sale.
Found the nomenclature in a WWII 1944 range equipment manual the lists it as the "Target, Rifle, SB-A, 50 yard". I think SB is Small Bore.
The overall size is 13" X 13" the black is 2.83 inches in Diam.
I suspect this is a reduced scale target that would simulate the same sight picture as a 200 Yard 30 Cal target with the old 5V bullseye when using one of the .22 training rifles in WWII.