Stomperud Krag

[madsenshooter]

A fellow sent me a Norwegian Krag barreled action recently. Turns out it's a Stomperud Krag, made during the nazi occupation. The fellow I got it from just told me his dad paid $10 +$4 shipping for it back in 61. The barrel looks brand new, the boltface shows no sign of ever having a cartridge in it. I noticed that the bolt bears on the guide rib, but also bears on the root of the bolt handle, unlike a 1916 made receiver I have. The receiver is a Steyr, and I can see the remains of a 7, so an 1897 made receiver. The stock I already had, picked it up from ebay to use on a .243 Norwegian project that I have going. Had a little rust in the bore, but I didn't get any dissolved powder residue on the patch. Nice shiny and new looking now! I need a front sight, tried one from an AG42, but the dovetail is too wide and the adjusment screw too big.


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[Hamish]

Nice Score! I think 120 years is long enough, it needs shot,,,,,,,,.:D

[artu44]

I wonder why nazis felt the need to make krags at Steyr factory.

[Multigunner]

Syeyr manufactured Krag actions at one time. Could be the rifle was rebuilt on an older action during NAZI occupation.

The NAZIs built a few Krags in 7.92X57 but apparently these were not particularly successful.

[Multigunner]

The date looks like it may be over stamped.

[swheeler]

The date looks like it may be over stamped.

This is what madsenshooter means by " The receiver is a Steyr, and I can see the remains of a 7, so an 1897 made receiver." I can see it peeking out behind the last four in 1944. $14 shipped in 1961, man I miss the 60's!

[Multigunner]

Looks like they ground off the original serial number leaving a flat area for stamping the new number, they did that to 98K rifles they re-barreled to .30-06.

[madsenshooter]

Now I can get in on those long running 6.5x55 threads! But I'm not going to buy a cruise missile! There was a very ratty old sporter stock, perhaps a Fajen or Bishop, that came along with the action. It'll work better on my .243 project. I was there in the 60s swheeler, but I was too young. I could only dream and sigh.

[madsenshooter]

Wonder how the technical points of the law would go here. On the one hand, the receiver was made pre-1898, so it's an antique. Then on the other hand, most of what's there was assembled in 1944 and given a new number. Would it be a C&R over 50, or an antique over 100?

[tdoyka]

very nice rifle!!!!

[madsenshooter]

Bore/groove = .255/.2645

[Hardcast416taylor]

I see in the latest Boyd`s gunstock ad they have walnut semi finished Krag stocks for $99, I believe.Robert

[Hamish]

Pretty amazing story for a firearm. Just noticed the bayonet lug, I'm not well versed on Krags, I wonder what bayonet fits?

[madsenshooter]

I see in the latest Boyd`s gunstock ad they have walnut semi finished Krag stocks for $99, I believe.Robert

Their US Krag stocks are pretty rough. I don't know if they do the Norwegians. I'd like to put it back near what it would have become, in which case I need a model 1894 stock to start with. There was just a bunch of them on gunbroker, but I got to the last auction just in time to see it went "Buy it now". If I was going to do a sporter, beyond what I could do with the cutdown military stock pictured above, I have this semi-inletted tiger maple stock that came from Flaig's in the 1950s. The opening for the magazine gate is small enough for the Norwegian. They're a little shorter in the magazine area than a US Krag. I think that old stock blank is worth too much for me to mess with. I don't have good woodworking skills, it'd take a lot of bedding compound by the time I was done!

[madsenshooter]

Pretty amazing story for a firearm. Just noticed the bayonet lug, I'm not well versed on Krags, I wonder what bayonet fits?
This one I think Rich. I won't be buying one soon.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/222514641754?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

Well, after I dug around a little, I see these Swedish produced bayonets were done for the Anti-Nazi Norskes. Here's what the Germans made up to work on the Stomperud Krags: http://www.warrelics.eu/forum/bayonets-trench-knives-world/norwegian-german-produced-model-94-bayonet-16008/

It appears the regular 1894 bayonet would work too, it just wouldn't be the Nazi specified length.

[nekshot]

I never saw one of them! Learn something new every day. Very easy for me.......

[Tedly]

I have an 1894 Kongsborg and Steyr 1897 , both cut down and bores are ok , nothing like yours: pristine...both shoot cast or jacketed very well

[Tedly]

Steyr made Norwegian Krags before Norway got under production

[Multigunner]

If the fore end band and other parts can be found splicing a bit of wood to restore the stock to its last known configuration should not be that hard.

I'd rather have one like this in its military configuration than use it for the basis of a sporter.
It would make a great woods rifle as is.
I better candidate for mild cast boolit loads as well.

[madsenshooter]

I agree MG, back to military configuration is the way I'm headed. It's just parked in that stock for now. Really no sense in scabbing the 1912 stock back, too much sanding has been done and I've not seen any Stomperuds in 1912 stocks. I understand they made them from parts, so it's possible they did, I just haven't seen any. I need a 1894 stock. A bunch of them just disappeared off gunbroker. I pointed others to the auctions, then found myself in need. I got to the last auction just in time to see it end with "Buy it now".

Well, I said I hadn't seen one in a 1912 stock, now I have! http://www.kragcollectorsassociation.org/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1495563394

[madsenshooter]

Since I have other iron to play with, I'll leave it unfired and slowly gather the needed parts.

[madsenshooter]

Perhaps not so slowly. I have a front sight coming from Norway, and an 1894 stock set coming from Poland. It would be nice to find a stock already shortened, the long 1894 stocks have to be hard to find, and I hate to cut it.

[Hamish]

(ahem).

I believe this is referred to as being a "self enabler",,,,,,,,

[smilie=l:

[tdoyka]

(ahem).

I believe this is referred to as being a "self enabler",,,,,,,,

[smilie=l:


:lol::lol::lol::lol:

[madsenshooter]

(ahem).

I believe this is referred to as being a "self enabler",,,,,,,,

[smilie=l:

Maybe Rich, I'll have to try using some of that good "insight and effect" to evaluate the situation. After reflecting a bit: Hi, I'm Bob and I'm a Kragaholic!

[madsenshooter]

Parts have arrived from Poland (1894 full length stock) and Norway (front sight with adjustment screw). I have the rest! Still hate to cut down a full length stock.

[4570guy]

Very cool! I will love to hear how it shoots. As for the guide rib and bolt handle bearing on the receiver I suspect by the 1940s the manufacturers were much better at controlling dimensional buildup and could better fit the bolt. I've suspected that the US Krag guide ribs were relieved to facilitate manufacturing and eliminate hand fitting the bolts circa 1890s at the expense of reducing the action strength.

[madsenshooter]

Since it has that black phosphate coating on it, and has been worked back and forth a bit, I can see that it appears to bear on that bolt handle a bit much. The locking lug and guide rib are barely touching. I would think that might make the bolt hard to open with a full pressure load. Nothing a little stoning wouldn't fix. I have one US Krag that has the bolt fitted so that the guide rib bears. It's an oldie, with the full width guiderib and may have been handfitted early in production. Or, as some have pointed out, perhaps they stretch over the years so that the guiderib bears.