Yesterday I decided to drop by my local gunstore after work. Lo and behold there was a sporterized 1898 Kragicon sitting on the "cheap gun" rack with a $195 price tag. I am not an expert on these Rifles, but I do know that CMPicon is currently selling unshootable drill rifle Krags for close to $500. Also, a Krag is the only rifle I am missing in my type collection of common US Army cartridge firing rifles.

A quick look down the barrel showed a clean, but dusty un-pitted bore with no ringing. The receiver was un-drilled. The rifle was sitting in a cheap looking reddish wood stock with what appeared to be pressed checkering and a Pachmayr recoil pad. The barrel and receiver appeared to have ~90% of their bluing with a goodly portion covered in a thick orangish-yellow coating of heavily dried cosmolineicon or rifle grease.




The bolt body (with the exception of the handle), and barrel band appear to have been in the white, but were also covered.







The gun appears to have sat for a long time in a gun case due to the presence of two clear lines of green felt fuzz adhered to the buttstock.



My initial estimation was that of a rifle that had been sporterized no later than probably 1960. Heck, even if it's a Frankenstein it's still a clean bolt action deer rifle for less than $200. I can't lose. I'll buy it...

When I got it home I got curious, took it apart and started looking things up.


The Serial # is 1159XX which the internet says puts it at the very end of 1898.




The barrel appears to have been shortened due to a non-original front sight, It is a slide-over pin on sight. The muzzle appears to be original or has been expertly recrowned. The barrel, which is 23 5/8 long from receiver end to muzzle, has clearly been reblued, due to the presence of pitting along what would have been the parting line between the buttstock and upper handguard that are no longer rusty, but blued.




This front sight seems vaguely familiar for some reason. Is it from another type of rifle?


The rear sight is similar to a 1903 Springfield, having a windage adjustment. It is graduated to 2000 yards. It has a pop-twist up peep aperture on the back of the windage adjustment. My picture is out of focus and sucks. (Also, my wife would have kittens if she saw me working on a gun in her kitchen.)



The impression I have now (at least on the barrel) is of a very long ago gunsmithing and rebluing, perhaps in the 1920s or 1930s.

Looking at the the sporter stock I thought it was pretty neat that it used the stock original triggerguard, rear sling-swivel and split middle barrel band. Then I pulled off the recoil pad. It's not a sporter stock. It appears to be a cut-down full length stock.



As you can see, someone apparently cut an inch off of a USGI buttstock. The hole for the original buttplate screw is still there and someone has plugged the hole for the trap. The small nail holes around the perimeter have me a little confused.

Someone many years ago apparently sanded the sides of the stock, until the finger groves were gone making it very slim.

Then, they cut a piece out of the grip of the stock and grafted in a piece to make a pistol grip. Finally, they rather coarsely checkered it.



Anyway, here is the roundup of markings on the gun.

Barrel (underneath near the receiver ) "P"

Bolt (rear of bolt handle block) "C" and "S"
(90 degrees from previous on bottom side of block) "4"

Barrel Band (on side) "U"

Magazine floor/sideplate "U" "8"

Magazine door (on the bottom) "G"

Side of receiver by Magazine door facing muzzle "K" "H" "B" "U"

Receiver "Model 1898." "U.S." "Springfield Armory." "1159XX"

I had considered looking for a Carbine stock to drop it into and having something that looked 90% like a Krag carbine, but now after looking at the amateur gunsmithing that some poor Schmoe undoubtedly spent many hours on, I'm considering leaving it as is. The action is as smooth as any Krag I've ever felt, and I bet it would be real handy in the woods come this winter...


What would you fellows do?
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