i got one!

[tdoyka]

my grandpa gave me a 30-40 krag with a box of bullets(winchester 180gr silvertips) and 9 empties. its a springfield armory model 1898 that has been "sporterized"
(meaning a "new" piece of wood) and a 22" barrel. the serial # says that it was born in 1903. all i have to do now is get a set of dies and a hundered brass and i'll be good to go. well, almost good. i plan to go with gas check cast bullets. i (meaning my dad, one handed, thats me ) am going to slug the bore. what(have to buy rather than make) gc cast bullets are there that will take a black bear(100-700 pounds)?

i have had a stroke, so the right half of my body doesn't work. maybe in a couple, three years i'll be able to cast my own.

 

[Geno]

I don't believe you...pulling our collective legs. We need photographic proof.

Okay, seriously, sounds like an awesome rifle, and I would like to see photos. Regarding performance, I know so little about the 30-40 that I will defer to others. But I'll check back in to learn something, and see those photos! Congrats. That it came from Grandpa...awesome!

Geno

 

[tahoe2]

for a 30-40 Krag (Congratulations by the way !!) I would suggest 180-200 gr bullets with a good me-plat @ 2000-2400 fps and test them on media. A 700 lb bear is pretty huge in my book, and although a 30-40 is a great round, I would probably limit it to 300-400 pounders (that's a personal choice). I know that Hawk's soft jacketed bullets are very deadly, and they go up to 250 grns, I think 220 is the original weight for the 30-40. I have never killed anything with cast yet, so I can't speak of performance on game, but the experts @ castboolits.com could shed more light on the subject. Oh Yeah, we need pics !!

 

[bannockburn]

tdoyka

I have a Krag-Jorgensen Model 1898 that I restored from its former use as a parade/drill rifle. It had been bright chrome plated and the stock was heavily varnished. Looked pretty bad after all these years but did a great job in preserving the metal and wood underneath. I thought about sporterizing it but decided to return it to as close as I could to its original condition. I deplated all the chrome parts and had it rust blued to try and match the original finish. I also removed all of the old varnish, stained, and applied tung oil on all of the wood pieces. Turned out very nice and I'm still amazed at how smooth and easy to use that bolt action every time I take it out.

 

[dprice3844444]

30/40 krag info
http://www.lasc.us/FryxellCB30-40Krag.htm
http://www.castbulletassoc.org/forum/view_topic.php?id=2485&forum_id=8&page=1
http://www.assra.com/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl?num=1343632553/2
http://www.loaddata.com/members/sea...aliberid=12&header=.30 Caliber Reloading Data

 

[tdoyka]

this is my 30-40, the pic kinda sucks, i only have my computer, no cell phone pics---i can't talk to good either

 

[Vern Humphrey]

I have a Model 1898 with the stock cut down and cross-hatched (not really checkered) and the barrel cut to 24". The original front sight was re-mounted and it has a cocking piece peep sight -- a tiny little thing that is screwed to the cocking knob.

Krags were well made -- I doubt you'll find your bore varies from .308 by more than .0005" either way. I like the Lee C309-190-2R bullet cast from wheel weights and loaded ahead of 7.0 grains of Bullseye. No sizing needed. Lube with liquid Alox.

 

[bannockburn]

tdoyka

Your sporterized Krag looks very nice. I kept mine in its original configuration but I always thought a carbine length Krag would be just the ticket.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

That is one beautiful Krag!!

 

[bobinoregon]

I've got a Lee 30-40 Whacka mole reloading set you're welcome to if you want to send me your address. Never had the gun,don't need it.

 

[tdoyka]

thanks guys!!!

bob, i wish i could have. i already bought the set:banghead:.

 

[bannockburn]

Vern Humphrey

Thanks Vern. It was pretty much a labor of love as I have always had great interest in the Krag-Jorgensen rifle. Getting the chrome plating off was fairly easy, though it did take awhile. Cleaned up and polished all the metal parts then carefully sanded down the stock just enough to remove the old varnish. I refinished it with a mixture of mahogany and walnut stains and like to think the end result is fairly close to the original finish.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

You did a great job. That reddish color was the pride of the Infantry -- a properly maintained stock looked like that.

 

[bannockburn]

Vern Humphrey

I wasn't exactly sure of the right color so I asked an old friend of my Dads about it. This gentleman had been working on old military rifles (Krags, Model 1903s, and M1s), for most of his life and told me that a pretty even mix of mahogany and american walnut (along with a dash of cherry), stain would give it a fairly close coloration like it originally had. I think he had it dialed in perfectly.

 

[highpower]

bannockburn: That was a great save on yours. So many have been chopped into sporters over the years that original rifles have become rather rare.

As an aside, aren't those things bear to take a full length picture of? They are looong rifles and I find that I have to get way back to get the entire rifle in the picture.


Mine was made in 1901:

 

[bannockburn]

high power

Yes they are a bear to try and get them all in for a photo! Your Krag looks to be in fine shape; nice sharp cartouche as well. Thanks for sharing.