Springfield Model 1892-99

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Springfield Model 1892-99
Closeup of the receiver and magazine door on a Springfield M1896 Krag-Jørgensen rifle
Type	bolt action repeating rifle
Place of origin	United States
Service history
In service	1892-1903
Production history
Designer	O H J Krag and E Jørgensen
Designed	1886
Number built	Around 500,000
Variants	M1892 Rifle M1892 Carbine M1896 Rifle M1896 Cadet Rifle M1896 Carbine M1898 Rifle M1898 Carbine M1899 Carbine M1899 Constable Carbine
Specifications
Weight	8 pounds 7 ounces (M1896 Rifle)
Length	48.875 in / 1241.425 mm (M1896 Rifle)
Barrel length	30 in / 762 mm (M1896 Rifle)
Cartridge	.30-40 Krag
Action	Bolt action
Rate of fire	N/A
Muzzle velocity	2400 fps (180 grain bullet)
Effective range	900 m (3,000 ft)
Feed system	5 round magazine
Sights	V-notch and front post

The Krag-Jørgensen rifle, a Norwegian-design bolt action rifle, was adopted in 1892 as the standard United States military longarm, chambered in U.S. caliber .30-40 Krag . All versions and variants were manufactured under license by the Springfield Armory between 1892 and 1902. Replaced in 1903 with the M1903 .

Contents 1 History 1.1 Variants 2 See also 3 References

[edit] History

Like many other armed forces, the United States military was searching for a new rifle in the early 1890s to replace their old trapdoor springfields. A competition was held in 1892, comparing rifle designs from Lee, Krag, Mannlicher, Mauser, Schmidt-Rubin, and about 40 other military and civilian designs. The trials were held at Governors Island, New York. Despite protests from domestic inventors and arms manufacturers — two designers, Russell and Livermore, even sued the US government over the choice — Krag-Jørgensen won the contract.

The United States formally adopted the rifle in 1892 to replace the single shot Springfield. Around 500,000 'Krags' were produced at the Springfield Armory in Massachusetts from 1894-1904. It was the U.S. military's main rifle from 1894 to 1903 (when it was replaced by the M1903 Springfield rifle with its ballistically similar .30-03 cartridge), and found use in the Spanish-American War and the Philippine-American War. In this later war the rifle was referred to in a song popular with U.S. troops with a verse running:

Damn, damn, damn the Filipinos!

Cut throat khaki ladrones!

Underneath the starry flag,

Civilize them with a Krag,

And return us to our beloved home.

The US 'Krags' were chambered for the rimmed .30-40 Krag round, also known as .30 Army. The .30-40 Krag was the first smokeless powder round adopted by the U.S. military, but it retained the "caliber-charge" designation of earlier black powder cartridges. Thus the .30-40 Krag employs a .30 caliber (7.62 mm) bullet propelled by 40 grains (3 g) of smokeless powder. As with the .30-30 Winchester, it is the use of black powder nomenclature that leads to the incorrect assumption that the .30-40 Krag was once a black powder cartridge.

[edit] Variants

There were at least nine different models of the American Krag-Jørgensen:

• M1892 Rifle, with a 30 in (762 mm) barrel and a magazine cut off that operates in the up position. It can be identified by the cleaning rod under the barrel.
• M1892 Carbine, presumably a prototype, as just one is known today. Looks like the M1892 Rifle, but with a 22" barrel.
• M1896 Rifle, where the magazine cut-off operates in down position and the cleaning rod is moved to butt trap. An improved rear sight and tighter production tolerances gave better accuracy. Stock altered slightly (made thicker).
• M1896 Cadet Rifle, which was fitted with cleaning rod like M1892 rifle. Only about 400 were made before it was discontinued.
• M1896 Carbine, with the same modifications as the M1896 Rifle.
• M1898 Rifle, generally much like M1896, but with a wide range of minor changes.
• M1898 Carbine, same minor modifications as the M1898 Rifle.
• M1899 Carbine, generally the same as the M1898 Carbine, but with a slightly longer forearm and hand guard, and without the swivel ring.
• M1899 Constabulary carbine, built for use in the Philippines. Basically a M1899 Carbine fitted with a full length stock and a bayonet lug, and the muzzle stepped down to accept bayonet

[edit] See also

• Springfield rifle

[edit] References

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