CMP has 800 ‘fair’ Krags

Elkins45

Elkins45

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thecmp.org

Krag-Jorgensen Rifles - Civilian Marksmanship Program

CMP is excited to announce the release of a limited supply of Krag-Jorgensen rifles. These rifles will be available in 3 variants, distinguished by physical characteristics. Condition of all variants is best described as “Fair”, and all have been minimally inspected for completeness and general...
thecmp.org thecmp.org

CMP sent out an email today announcing they have about 800 of them. Prices start at $1200 and go to $1350 for what seem to be barely serviceable rifles. I will pass, but maybe there’s someone who desperately wants one.

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A friend of my Dad gave me a chromed Krag some years ago. It had been used by a local Veteran's Organization and were retired when they got U.S. Model 1917 Enfields and Springfield Model '03-A3s.

First thing I did was take all of the chrome plated parts off and soak them in Hoppe's No. 9 to remove most of the plating. This worked for the most part except for around the barrel and the receiver. So I found a refinishing shop who got rid of the remaining chrome and reblued it. I lightly sanded the high gloss varnish and restained the wood with a mixture of mahoghany, walnut, and cherry Minwax stains. Looks pretty good but I still need to get a sling for it.
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Haha.

There is one that has been sitting in an LGS of mine on consignment for months and months at $800. It is a carbine too and I would say it is a bit better than fair.

Maybe these hilarious prices will cause it to sell real fast now since the CMP seems to dictate the going rate of whatever they have for sale at the time.
 
CapnMac said:
The prices are high, but, "vetted" examples gone over by trained gun plumbers are pretty rare. And milsurps are up in price.

I still wonder what Militia or State Guard Armory finally returned their "ceremonial issue" rifles.
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So best I can tell, CMP seems to promise nothing but they were test fired and passed a field gage test. The bores on all are described as dark and pitted. I'm not sure I wanna drop $1200 on a chromed Krag with a badly pitted bore. I'd almost rather roll the dice on a gunbroker example in decent shape with really good pictures at a 25%-30% discount.

I'm in the market for a Krag. I almost pulled the trigger on a Springfield at CMP for $950 a couple of months ago, but held off waiting for the Krags (hoping the Krags would be ~$900 or so). IMO the pricing on the Springfields were much better...

Of course, all of these prices are phenomenal compared to what I've seen beat up Mosins sell for. $600 for a rifle about as crude as a Carcano (though better ammo availability) is crazy.
 
earlthegoat2 said:
Haha.

There is one that has been sitting in an LGS of mine on consignment for months and months at $800. It is a carbine too and I would say it is a bit better than fair.

Maybe these hilarious prices will cause it to sell real fast now since the CMP seems to dictate the going rate of whatever they have for sale at the time.
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But is it a real carbine or a converted rifle? Is the front sight base integral with the barrel? Does it have a saddle ring? Is there a "C" stamped on the rear sight? If it is a real carbine and in good condition, $800 seems like a low price.
 
Sweet looking rifle design. I would never be able to justify that price to myself or my wife. But I'm glad they have some. I fear the golden age of military surplus rifles is long over.
 
5whiskey said:
I'm not sure I wanna drop $1200 on a chromed Krag with a badly pitted bore.
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I had a 98 Krag with a dark pitted bore It looked like the inside of a sewer pipe. A hyena would have looked at it and puked.

Damn thing shot a three inch group at around 70 yards. Five shots!!! This was with factory 180 gr Winchester ammo. A rough bore can be reasonably accurate...sometimes.
 
I'll buy a sporterized one for $500 elsewhere, thank you very much CMP, but no thanks.
 
Elkins45 said:
I will pass, but maybe there’s someone who desperately wants one.
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That bottom "carbine" in the pic is a cut down rifle. That front sight is off of a 1903 Springfield.. It is not a Philippine Constabulary Carbine either. The rear sight is incorrect as is the upper handguard. But hey, it looks cool anyway.
 
My cousins husband has a Krag he has deer hunted with but I have never seen it in person. Cool old rifle in a neat round. A single shot would be a neat gun to have in that round.

Interesting story. If you remember the old TV Hogan's Hero's Sargent Shultz in real life was Jewish (John Bannerman). The Nazi's killed a large part of his family in WW2 Germany. So when he played the bumbling German Guard he refused to carry a Mauser 98 because he hated the Germans so much. So he was armed with a Krag rifle. If you look close you can see that its a Krag and not a 98 Mauser.
 
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ThomasT said:
My cousins husband has a Krag he has deer hunted with but I have never seen it in person. Cool of rifle in a neat round. A single shot would be a neat gun to have in that round.

Interesting story. If you remember the old TV Hogan's Hero's Sargent Shultz in real life was Jewish (John Bannerman). The Nazi's killed a large part of his family in WW2 Germany. So when he played the bumbling German Guard he refused to carry a Mauser 98 because he hated the Germans so much. So he was armed with a Krag rifle. If you look close you can see that its a Krag and not a 98 Mauser.
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Shultz' use of a Krag was actually historically correct (though inadvertently), as the Nazis issued captured Norwegian Krags to rear-area troops like prison guards. They thought so highly of the Krag, there was even a plan to convert them to 7.92 and eventually restart new production, but nothing ever came of it.
 
NIGHTLORD40K said:
Shultz' use of a Krag was actually historically correct (though inadvertently), as the Nazis issued captured Norwegian Krags to rear-area troops like prison guards. They thought so highly of the Krag, there was even a plan to convert them to 7.92 and eventually restart new production, but nothing ever came of it.
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The Norwegian Krags would have been 6.5x55 Swede?
 
I wish I picked up a Krag years ago but never did. They didn't interest me at the time. Funny thing is one of the dealers I knew had one of the largest Krag collections in the US if not world. He was in on several books written about them. He passed away a couple years ago and often wonder what happened to them. I,m sure they went to his son but he's a big Winchester guy so he probably sold them off. Just guessing. RIP Doug.
 
I've always had a mild interest in the rifle and cartridge but never enough to actually procure and shoot. Several years ago, I wanted a vintage rifle with iron sights for some close range deer hunting (inside 100 yards). The Krag was in the mix as were a few others. I ended up settling on a Savage model 99 in 300 Sav and that satisfied that particular itch.

Every now and then I see one pop up on GB and I watch it even sometimes bid but haven't followed through. I can probably say about the same for a trapdoor Springfield.
 
ThomasT said:
Interesting story. If you remember the old TV Hogan's Hero's Sargent Shultz in real life was Jewish (John Bannerman). The Nazi's killed a large part of his family in WW2 Germany. So when he played the bumbling German Guard he refused to carry a Mauser 98 because he hated the Germans so much. So he was armed with a Krag rifle. If you look close you can see that its a Krag and not a 98 Mauser.
Click to expand...

I have heard that, but he wore a German uniform which is a lot more obvious than a prop rifle. Hard to reconcile.


My neighbor the gunsmith amassed all the USGI he could without getting into collectors' minutae of year to year model variations and contractors. He had a musket, a rifle musket, a couple of trapdoors, one or two Krags, a 1903, a 1903A3, a Garand, a carbine, and a 1911. Of which I have the pistol as an heirloom.
 
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Elkins45 said:
Prices start at $1200 and go to $1350 for what seem to be barely serviceable rifles.
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$1,200 is about what I paid back in the 1970's for an unaltered M1894 Krag with the full-length cleaning rod (one of the great rarities of U.S. martial collecting).

I have the whole series of Krag infantry rifles -- the M1894, M1896, and M1898. (I don't have an M1894 arsenal converted to M1896, which the vast majority of them were.)

There's a model series of Krag rear sights, independent of the rifles themselves. That's also a collecting area in itself.

"Fair" condition is not generally considered collectible. From the CMP pictures, though, what they're offering seems a little bit better than "fair."
 
I think I'd kick in a few more bucks and get a NIB Winchester Super Grade with Maple stock...that's just me.
 
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