[Darin115]

My buddy has a Springfield 1898 that he is selling. I just looked at it today. The stock has been sanded down and refinished. You can still see the stamp in the stock. I have no clue if the barrel has been cut but it looks around 22 inches to the receiver and looks like it is the original front sight. The metal is in decent shape and has not been reblued.
The rifling is is in great shape.

He is asking $150.00 for it. Is it worth the money?

Darin

 

[MikeG]

A Krag? Probably a good buy, if the barrel isn't totally wasted. I know you said the rifling was in great shape, but run a brush through it to be sure as cast bullets can fill pits with lead and appear to be shiny. Check the bolt for cracks around the lug.

That's all I can think of.

 

[Darin115]

Yes it is a 30/40 Krag. He has never shot it. He bought it off his uncle many years ago and it has been in his gun cabinet ever since. He has 8-9 bullets for it and they are loaded with a very large 180+ grain soft point. I supposed someone else could have shot cast bullets in it. We did run a wire brush down the barrel and it still looks in great shape.

Are you talking about cracks on the bolt lugs itself or where the lug turns down into the barrel?

Darin

 

[wildhobbybobby]

Check the bolt itself for cracks. Sometimes those Krag bolts can have small hairline cracks on or near the forward lug. This is fairly rare, but it does happen. I have heard that a crack can be easier to see if you dip the bolt head in gasoline and watch as it evaporates. The gas that soaks into the crack will be the last to evaporate.

If your barrel is 22 inches long and is original, it is a cavalry carbine and could be worth some moolah. Original rifles had 30 inch barrels and there were some "Constabulary Krags" that were used in the Phillipines that had, I believe, 24 inch tubes. However there are a lot of fake carbines and sporterized cut down Krags out there. If you can post a picture, you can get some guidance. One easy way to tell is that carbines never had sling swivels on the buttstock or barrel band. They did have saddle rings on most model carbines.

 

[Darin115]

It is also missing the wood on top of the barrel. It does not have sling swivels on the barrel. On the side of the stock is a cut out and a metal piece. Looks as if a sling or something went there but there is no stud.

I do have the serial number wrote down at work. Would that help??

Darin