New member with a 1898 question

Thank you for accepting me into the forums. I have come across a 1902 made 1898 and would like input/knowledge about it. Would it be better to post photos here or the appraisals section?
I know enough about Krags to know that I don’t know enough about Krags. This one is sn 414299. I am leaning to it being a cut down rifle as the front end has what looks like a sight assembly that slips over the barrel and is marked Christy on the right side and with Marble and possibly Sufard on the top faces. Let me know where I should post photos and I’ll upload some later.

Your later model Krag rifle, as with all Krag rifles, should have a 30 inch barrel, measured from the closed bolt face to the end of the muzzle. This is easy to do with a cleaning rod. Carbines all have a 22 inch barrel. Many Krags were cut down professionally or by Bubba in his basement to make the rifle easier to carry for hunting. Most of these cut down rifles had replacement sights installed such as a Model 1905 sight for Springfield M1903 rifles. Other type slip on banded sights were used also.

When ever a rifle or carbine has been altered like this, it is a sporterized Krag and has lost essentially all military collector's value. These rifles can still be good shooting rifles used for target practice or hunting and some people like the better done examples but they are worth much less and often hard to sell. If this is a family firearm, it can have great nostalgic value for you.

Pictures are essential to help figure out exactly what you have and what can be done with it. Please know, also, some rifles have been damaged or altered in such a way to be unsafe to shoot. It might need to be examined carefully to see if it is safe for shooting. Most are.

Good luck. Please post pictures.

Thank you for the prompt response. I’ll post photos as soon as I get home.
Jason

Alrighty, let's see if this works...

'jasonafair' - Good job of posting useful photos. (BTW - I responded to your post on KCA Forum).

You now have a convenient 'cut-down' utility Krag. These generally sell for around $275 to $350. With a good bore they are quite fun and accurate.

Your front-sight looks like the work of the Christy Gun Works, a Sacramento, California, gun-shop in the 1950's.
The sight blade is a Marble's 'sheard' style blade (a Gladstone, Michigan, gun-sight, knife and axe maker, back in the day).

Your barrel-band is on backwards; the "U" should be on the right side of the rifle.

The rear sight is the model 1902 sight; a very convenient sight to use.

Too bad as the cartouches are nice and lean too...bet the bore is nice. That's why it ended up as a hunting rifle.

Thank you for the responses. Yes, the bore is nice. He has a couple of others for $1,900 and $2,400. I haven’t even ask to look at them. Way out of my range right now.
Just for my knowledge, with the exception of the cut down, how would this one’s condition rate? Any suggestions for additional references? This site and the Krag Collectors one is all that I’ve been able to come across and both are excellent sources.
Heck, I want to get started collecting but if nothing else is in my (wife’s) budget, I may reference these posts and offer him $300
Thank you again for the help.
Jason

I think $300 USD might be OK. I'd be good with that. In Canada it would be $500 CDN if a dollar...

Gun forums can be a good source of information, but, sometimes they are horrible.

A cheap useful reference is Joe Poyer's book, "The American Krag Rifle and Carbine". It is not perfect, but, contains a lot of useful information, pictures, and illustrations. It sells for around $25 on ebay. (It is a good quick education).

Frank Mallory's book, "The Krag Rifle Story" and William Brophy's book, "The Krag Rifle", are out of print classics. Used copies show up on ebay for $150 to $200.

None of these books are without mistakes, but, they compliment each other and are fun and informative.

Thanks all for the help. I'm going to pass on this one and hope I come across a decent entry level rifle eventually. Take care.

That one's a little rough. Most of the metal finish is gone. That being said, I'd love to find one cheap. I've always liked the Krag and would like one of the cut down sporters. In general, I don't like bubba rifles but this is an exception. I have a full sized original but can't have much fun with that one.