It's an 1898 Springfield Krag, manufactured in 1901.
Now before anyone says "DON'T TOUCH IT", the thing is not even close to original. It's a rifle model that has been hacked down to a carbine, the stock has been cut, there is a tape wrap around the cracked butt and many other things. I happened to like the character and history it showed, so I picked it up. It's no collector's treasure, it's a hard-used family gun.
However, I want to shoot this thing. So before doing so, I wouldn't mind cleaning it up a bit.
Currently it is in sound order, with a nice smooth action, crisp magazine and good trigger pull.
BUT. There is a pretty heavy patina covering the entire gun. There are some rust spots on the inside of the receiver. Oh, and the barrel is pretty badly pitted. Oh well, I still want to try her out
What should I do to clean this sucker up?
I'm not looking for a bright and shiny restoration here (I like the character the gun displays as is), but I just want to make her a little more presentable and not so...shoddy looking.
So far I've tried some dry steel wool on the buttplate and didn't notice much change. I also wiped the whole gun down with a damp rag and promptly dried it off.
Any tricks? Any tips?
Wish me luck
Now before anyone says "DON'T TOUCH IT", the thing is not even close to original. It's a rifle model that has been hacked down to a carbine, the stock has been cut, there is a tape wrap around the cracked butt and many other things. I happened to like the character and history it showed, so I picked it up. It's no collector's treasure, it's a hard-used family gun.
However, I want to shoot this thing. So before doing so, I wouldn't mind cleaning it up a bit.
Currently it is in sound order, with a nice smooth action, crisp magazine and good trigger pull.
BUT. There is a pretty heavy patina covering the entire gun. There are some rust spots on the inside of the receiver. Oh, and the barrel is pretty badly pitted. Oh well, I still want to try her out
What should I do to clean this sucker up?
I'm not looking for a bright and shiny restoration here (I like the character the gun displays as is), but I just want to make her a little more presentable and not so...shoddy looking.
So far I've tried some dry steel wool on the buttplate and didn't notice much change. I also wiped the whole gun down with a damp rag and promptly dried it off.
Any tricks? Any tips?
Wish me luck