Krag Collectors Association Forum

New member here, so please go easy on me, for now.

I recently came into ownership of a model 1898 Krag rifle that I want to take apart, clean, inspect and repair as needed. The furniture is a bit beat up and the butt plate has major rust on one corner. But overall it appears to be a nice rifle. I might need to replace the rear sight?

I'll be digging through these forums to learn from you folks.

After getting a chance to shoot an M1 Garand recently, I really want to try to see if I can shoot my model 1898!

Thanks,
Keith

'KSGarms' - Welcome to the KCA Forum! We like meeting new members and their Krag rifles and carbines. (It stimulates new learning and insights).

FredC advised you well.

I find well focused 'close-ups' of sights and markings to be the most useful pictures.
Photograph features that you have questions about.

Keep photos under 1MB and preferably under 200 KB, to make them easy to look at.
You can attach up to five images with each post. They show in reverse order.

Toward the bottom of your page, when you are making a post, there is a tab for attachments.
Click on this tab and then the 'add files' button, when it turns red.
This will take you to your stored pictures on your hard-drive.
Select a picture, open it, and it will be in line to post.
Repeat this for each image.

Thank you!

Here are two recent pictures

I see you are already taking it apart and cleaning. Good idea. But we are anxious, at least I am, to see the overall gun once cleaned and re-assembled. But don't rush it for our sake. Enjoy.

'KSGarms' - Your Krag has the 1901 rear-sight and hand-guard.

The sight was designed and implemented by Buffington, during his tenure as commanding officer at Springfield Armory.
A similar sight was used on some of the 'trap-door' Springfield rifles.
It also inspired the 1905 sight,used on the 1903 Springfield rife.

The 1901 sight is probably the most popular Krag sight for target shooting. Complete sights and parts show-up often on eBay.

Thanks all.

I'm in no immediate rush and expect to take some time getting her cleaned up a little bit.

The sight is missing parts then? I thought so. Thanks for the info. I'll be searching the web for replacements, soon.

More pictures to follow.....

'KSGarms' - With antique gun clean-up and restoration, it is good not to be in a hurry. (Remember - DO NO HARM)!

You want to preserve originality and patina - Avoid Naval Jelly, wire-wheels, buffing-wheels, Lin-Speed and Dremel Tools!

Good solvents to use on metal are Hoppes' #9, kerosene, denatured alcohol, or mineral spirits.

Surface rust can be turned to patina with solvent saturated #0000 steel wool pads.
Heavier rust-scale can be smoothed with a slurry of linseed oil with a bit of rottenstone, worked with a popsicle-stick or edge of a copper penny.

Bronze 'tooth brushes' or old bore-brushes, with solvent, are great for cleaning off hardened deposits, reducing rust, and cleaning out pits.

Wood is easily cleaned and improved by a rub down with an old towel, wet with mineral spirits.
Wood appearance is 'refreshed' by hand-rubbing with a 50/50 mix of linseed oil & turpentine. A couple of thin coats, allowed to soak in, will usually do.
I like to finish up the wood by hand-rubbing a coat of "Howard's Wax & Feed".
Pledge (spray) furniture polish and a soft cloth can benefit some stocks.

Be careful of rags wet with solvents and oils. They can cause spontaneous combustion.

Krag hand-guards are fragile. To remove from a carbine or rifle, first remove stock and rear-sight. The hand-guard can then be slid toward the barrel-muzzle.
The barrel taper allows easy removal. Store 'loose' Krag hand-guards with a Quarter and a Penny twisted into the 'spring-clips' to counter-act spring tension.

Invest in a good set of 'gun' screwdrivers, that fit gun-screw slots. You will be loved by future generations.
BTW - Krag sight parts can be found at S&S Firearms, Glendale, N.Y. (their catalog is viewable online), and at 'Grampa's Gun Parts', (the link is in KCA 'classifieds').

When taking full-view gun pictures, get a bit of foot in a shot or two, it makes us laugh and gets you in the "club".

Now, the wacky world of Krag serial numbers: Things are never as they first may appear!
When I first saw the photo of your Krag, I read the serial as #438846.
Upon a second look, it actually appears to be #488846. The first '8' is worn.
Krag, serial number 488846, would have been assembled around October, 1903.

With Krag numbers, wear and damage to stamping Dies can cause confusion and misreading of 3's, 6's, and 8's.

(Attached is a number from the same year, showing a '3').

Lots of interesting things noticed with your Krag. Good luck in cleaning and reassembling your Krag. let us know if you have any problems.

I would stick with the serial number 438846 (Made Jan. 1903) as shown clearly in the enhanced picture below. The inner parts of a "3" don't curl inward as much as seen with an "8" when stamped on the Krags. Look at the inner aspect of the "3" and the two "8"s below.

A 488XXX Krag would certainly be a very high numbered Krag! (My highest number is 482709.) Reading these serial numbers can be very confusing sometimes!

Nice Krag and good luck! Hope you have some nice .30-40 Krag ammo to shoot in it.

A trick I like to do when I get a new old rifle is to steam it! Yes I said steam, get yourself a cheap stock pot with lid, a pvc toilet flange, 4 foot peice of 4inch pvc, pvc pipe cap and some hardwood dowel, assemble what I call a steam apparatus by screwing the toilet flange to the stock pot lid, slipping the pvc on the flange, cutting a notch in both the cap and pipe to hold a 1/2 inch dowel and allow steam to escape. This will steam your action and convert any rust into magnitite, which is rust bluing. This will help you not remove any of the original finish on the barreled action when you attempt the scrub rust. This requires stripping the action apart and using a wire to suspend the action in the steam pipe, I then boil all small parts in distilled water. After steaming for 20 minutes or so remove the action and lightly scrub with 0000 steel wool, then oil and reassemble.
This is what I do at least, and it both neutralizes rust and preserves original finish. Long explanation, although I prefer it as many times the effort to remove rust leaves scrubbed spots where bluing once was

Wow! I'm learning more than I thought I ever would from these message boards. Keep 'em coming please.

I thought they were 3s in the serial number because they don't look like the 8s in the model number stamp.

I'll look into making the stream pipe, thanks for the picture, it helps to visualize what you were describing.

I've heard of the penny trick to remove rust. But I've heard to use a penny made before 1985(?).