New to me Springfield Krag found at LGS
Hello all!
I’m new to this platform but not to Milsurps or other US rifles. This was a big hole in my US rifle collection (all post Civil War beginning with a trapdoor carbine). While not a comprehensive collection it’s fun and covers the eras well - but I needed this one and have longed for one for quite some time.
So here she is! Looks like ~1900 production. Bore is excellent and crisp. I stripped her down to check under to wood line and found a little bit of rust but nothing scary. I wiped everything down, left a light coat of oil, and de-gunked where necessary but this one appears to - generally speaking - been well cared for over the past 120ish years.
The only questionable thing here to me is whether or not many parts have been refinished as I don’t have a known good copy alongside to compare. Either way it appears it will be functional. All bolt internals look great, follower is functioning as designed, etc. in addition to the metal - the stock is either a replacement (but vintage) or was sanded and refinished, removing all traces of Arsenal markings.
The cover plate for the magazine is broken off (no big mystery to solve there). The screws were in far better shape than I was anticipating.
The rear sight was pretty well frozen in-place for windage adjustment but I resolved that with a couple of light taps of a brass punch. Someone bubba’d the rear notch and affixed a lever style rear sight wing - kind of funky but that can be rectified. The upper wood Handguard is in pretty good shape. It appears some remnant of a finish is on it (a strange texture) but I am not going to mess with that as it’s stable and the clips are in great shape.
Any info experts can lend me in addition or correction to my observations above would be greatly appreciated. Now to find some ammo....
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New to me Springfield Krag found at LGS
The strap is 1-piece and measures to approx 68in in length of leather, not including the brass frog fingers that extend beyond (which are of the “narrow” variety as I understand it.
New to me Springfield Krag found at LGS
Quote:
Originally Posted by
butlersrangers
I believe OP's sling is what Frank Mallory and William Brophy called a model 1887 sling.
It was used with both the 'trap-door' Springfield and U.S. Krag rifle.
At 68 inches, it is a bit long; possibly, it has stretched over the years.
IMHO - It is a clumsy and bulky sling on a Krag, but, historically correct.
Both of the mentioned authors give 66 1/2 inches as the length of the 1887 sling. (In my opinion, a lot of U.S. slings, original and reproduction, seem to break the 'rules of precise length').
Attached pictures show:
1. An overly long (72 inch) reproduction, "model 1887 sling",
properly threaded and attached to Krag swivels.
2. A better 66 inch reproduction sling, attached in the manner
of match shooters, at Seagirt, N.J., circa 1903-1904.
Attachment 114421Attachment 114420
I very much appreciate your time and energy in helping me become a much better and more informed Krag owner. I have several things in the mail as previously mentioned (to include a 3-piece cleaning rod and original oiler) to get this thing as close to 100% original as I can.
I am a little bit dismayed that there are no remnants of original cartouches to be found on the stock at all (I used a high-power LED light and some BLO to try and get a view of the areas where they would have been - the side has a VERY faint line that would be potentially where the right-hand vertical line of the inspection stamp might have been, and the P is gone altogether with no notable remnant) but from my reading across a few boards - outright removal of these via sanding would not have been completely unusual in some units, or even among early buyers of surplus.
It’s a shame to have that little bit of history lost but otherwise I am enormously pleased with this rifle as a total package and think it worth the relative investment in it.
New to me Springfield Krag found at LGS
Quote:
Originally Posted by
butlersrangers
The markings on the bolt likely identify production batches or lots.
Forgings moved from Springfield Armory's Water shops to the Hill Shops in wooden crates and metal boxes. Parts got machined, heat treated, finished, and inspected by the container.
The exact meaning of many Krag markings has likely been lost in time.
The small stock initials, I mentioned earlier, are on the bottom of the wrist, right behind the trigger-guard.
Ahh gotcha. Well there isn’t a remnant there either. A couple of dark spots are there - but sanded or washed out beyond recognition (I’m assuming similar to what one might find on 1903 stocks of slightly later vintage).
As I mentioned in the first post - it appears there is some shellac on the stock. I’ll eventually work on that and strip it down, but even under the light there is no definition that can be seen in any detail. The finish isn’t faded or cloudy.
I did also open up the cleaning door on the butt plate. The spaces for the cleaning rods and kit are there. There is a cavity beyond that (above) that indicates a hollow area in the stock above where the oiler goes - was interesting. It didn’t appear to be machined but rather an open space in the wood. No cracks or otherwise associated- it just wasn’t 100% solid beyond what was intentionally bored out for kit. It might just be unfinished for the oiler (or one was never placed in there).
