The CMP Krags Are Here (Don’t Get too Excited)
The Span Am Monument in New Orleans on Poydras, complete with Krag. (Photo: Chris Eger)
So, as promised, CMP has announced they have a small supply of Springfield Krag-Jorgensen rifles up for sale through their normal channels and in their three retail locations.
They will be in three grades and generally do not include cleaning rods, accessories, and/or bayonets:
CMP image
The problem is, as almost all of these came from veterans group returns (VFW, American Legion, etc) many of these rifles have spent the past 80 years in ceremonial service and, by their own admission, have “little or no original finish remaining,” or, worse, “finished in chrome or nontraditional finish,” with some that have “had barrels cut to a shorter length but are not CARBINES.” Overall condition is fair, with pitting and uneven finishes expected but on the bright side “have been checked with a FIELD gauge and function fired,” so at least they work.
The announcement:
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 serviceability. Inventory on these rifles is expected to cap at approximately 800 units across all variants and orders will be processed on a first come-first served basis. We will provide timely notice via email, social media channels, website and forums when we have received more order requests than we have available rifles.
The CMP’s price ($1,200 to $1,350) is truly kind of meh, as sporterized Krags can be had for $300-$500, stripped receivers and barreled actions for less than that for folks looking to do a rebuild, and even complete and correct-ish U.S. martial Krags (with cartouche) for around $800-$1,000 for anything that isn’t a saddle ring carbine or rare production date.
Lots of complete milsurp Krags were sold on the commercial market for a song starting just after the Great War, a trend that would continue into the 1950s. That means a lot of these old guns are already floating around and regularly come up for sale
Yes, I know these are CMP guns and have spent their entire lives in government service or on loan to government-approved entities, rather than in the back of great-grandpa’s closet since Ike was in office, but still, for me at least, the juice isn’t worth the squeeze.