New to me Springfield Krag found at LGS

[tgoldie00]

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).