New Krag owner, need some advice.

[Smokechaser]

Ok, thanks sdkrag. What is the difference in length between a short stock and a long stock?

[Dick Hosmer]

The short stock is 30" long, and nearly all of them had the bar and ring. The long stock is 32" and never (despite one phony example now up on Gunbroker) had the ring and bar. The 2" difference is in the grasping groove area, meaning that the long stock cannot be shortened to mimic the scarcer short one. The short stock ALWAYS used the humped band (as opposed to a humped handguard) and the only correct rear sight for use with it is the M1896C, which is rare on the loose (and has been faked). Krags are fairly "complicated" as regards sights and handguards - it is easy for the novice to be confused and get into trouble.

[Smokechaser]

Thanks Dick, you are a wealth of information.

[Smokechaser]

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Experimenting with trying to attach a few pictures of my Krag sporter project. I have been letting the rear sight soak in penetrant oil for over a week, was finally able to get the slide bar to move this evening. You can clearly see where it has been stuck for a long time! The action fits very poorly in the stock. I was able to improve it a little, but it will definitely need to be bedded.

[madsenshooter]

I was just wondering if you all saw the 98 carbine sold as parts on ebay. Brought the seller a total of $510.36

[Smokechaser]

It's amazing what things will sell for on eBay sometimes!

[Dick Hosmer]

I was just wondering if you all saw the 98 carbine sold as parts on ebay. Brought the seller a total of $510.36

I've been away from eBay for awhile, so far as gun parts are concerned. Did he sell the receiver too? If so, eBay dropped the ball. I'm assuming this was a restocked one with a common rear sight? Still, the guy would have been much better off on GB. Sometimes you can get a lot more for the parts, or so I've always been told.

[madsenshooter]

Yes, receiver and barrel went together, unlawful and against ebay rules, but I see it often anymore. It had a 99 stock, a 1902 carbine rear sight.

[Dick Hosmer]

Was that the one that appeared (from another poster) to have been through a flood?

[Smokechaser]

There is another barrel with receiver on eBay right now. It looks like crap, & someone drilled holes in it probably to mount a scope.

[butlersrangers]

The Krag carbine, Madsenshooter mentioned, that recently was broken-down and sold for parts on ebay, belonged to someone in Virginia. He described it as an "1899 or possibly 1898 carbine". I am guessing that the receiver was so corroded that maybe the date and serial number could not be read. The badly cracked and water damaged stock was an 1899 'long fore-arm' type. I posted a picture of the broken, corroded and badly worn or filed 1902 carbine sight on the KCA forum ('flood sight').

[madsenshooter]

Actually, it was readable, 1898, serial was 126???, IRC. I already took it out of my watch list or I'd look again, but I looked it up in Poyer once and it was in 98 carbine range. I really hated seeing 1 of 5000 reduced to parts, especially so since I don't have one!

[butlersrangers]

Thanks, Madsenshooter. That carbine certainly encountered catastrophe!

[psteinmayer]

It's a shame!