Most challenging shot I ever made. 120 yds, 20yds inside the brush. Iron (peep) sights, facing almost straight on. All I could see was his chest, the top of his legs & the white spot on his nose. I had to study the sight picture for a few reference point on the tree that was next to him as when I looked through the aperture I had a hard time picking an aim point on the deer's chest. I hit him dead center through the windpipe just above the midpoint between his chin & brisket. 160gr Hornady FTX over 49.5grs of Rl-17. 2500 fps Mv

At the shot there was dead silence & no movement where the deer was standing. After watching the spot for several minutes & got down from my tripod & walked to the edge of the brush before I could see him.

From the way he was bunched up he must have pitched down nose 1st. The bullet never entered the chest cavity. It must have taken out the spine.I hope to find the bullet when we butcher him.

very nice

Not a pretty rack, but a mature buck none the less. From the spread between the antler bases I'm guessing 3 1/2 years old.



In the above picture, if you look closely, about 1/2 way between the muzzle & the left edge of the picture, just to the left of the wrist sized sapling, you can see a tiny speck of light gray. That is the roof of the tri-pod stand 120 yds distant.

Here is a zoomed in shot.

Glad to see the old Krag is still getting it done! Good shooting.
I'm anxious to see the autopsy results, always interested in that sort of thing.
I have a Krag that's nearly a twin to yours that shoots 2" groups with 180 Sierras and peep sights and I really want to shoot something with it.
Thanks for the pictures!

I have one as well, that my father bough in the 1930s for $4.75 from the NRA. Still have it and shoot it. Also have an 1895 in 30-40...great round.

quote:

Originally posted by Biebs:
I have one as well, that my father bough in the 1930s for $4.75 from the NRA. Still have it and shoot it. Also have an 1895 in 30-40...great round.

My Dad bought that Krag in 1958 for $12 from his best friend "fat" Miller.

I was 8 years old in that kitchen & can still remember it like it was yesterday.

I ruined the stock in the mid '70s when I "refinished" it. Last year I took a Bishop Monte Carlo pistol grip semi-inletted stock & was able to cut it down to the same shape as the original stock that was on it when my Dad bought it.

My son also took a fat spike horn with it this year.

I believe it was one of the NRA/CMP "sporterized" Krags sold in the late '20s.

Do you have a picture of your you could post?

I'll get it out and post a photo today.

quote:

Originally posted by Snellstrom:
Glad to see the old Krag is still getting it done! Good shooting.
I'm anxious to see the autopsy results, always interested in that sort of thing.
I have a Krag that's nearly a twin to yours that shoots 2" groups with 180 Sierras and peep sights and I really want to shoot something with it.
Thanks for the pictures!

I worked up some loads with 160gr Hornady FTX 30395 (30/30) bullets.


I use 49.5gr of Alliant RL-17. QL predicts 2700 FPS at 47000 PSI, but the actual MV of 2500 fps suggests about 42000. Recoil/muzzle blast is mild and the primers have a nice radius after firing so I think the QL prediction is a little exuberant.

At 3.089 COAL they are just off the lands in my rifle.

The throat isn't eroded any, but the bore is only fair. I shot some bullets through it with fire lapping compound last year to shine up the bore a bit & had the muzzle done with a recessed flat crown.

My eyes aren't that good, but I can put 5 shots into about 3" at 100yds. At 50yds I can see the aim point much better & hold a pretty good group.


I've thought about bumping it up another 100 FPS but with a 200 yard zero it will shoot + or - 3" out to 250 yards so what would be the point?

Minute of Whitetail!

Great job! Nothing like putting a classic back to work. Congrats on a nice buck and a cool old rifle.

Thanks for sharing.

Wonderfull to see classic guns in classic calibers never retires..

Just because it's an old cartridge in an old rifle doesn't mean it isn't effective. They work as good as anything that's come out in the last 30 years. I honestly don't remember the last game animal I killed with a cartridge introduced in the 20th century. They've all been 19th century cartridges for a lotta years!!

Well done wildcat!! Nice old Krag too.

Very nice all way round!
Could you show a picture of the peepsight?

quote:

Originally posted by theback40:
Very nice all way round!
Could you show a picture of the peepsight?

It's a Pacific K-2 with micrometer click adjustments.

I bought it on e-bay for $113.50 last summer. It fits into the magazine cutoff & is secured with a set screw.



In this view you can see the set screw under the elevation lock thumbscrew.


Remove the lock down thumbscrew, loosen the setscrew 1/2 turn & the sight slides out to the rear. No disturbance to the zero settings.



K-1 on the left, K-2 on the right.

quote:

Originally posted by 9.3 X 75R:
Just because it's an old cartridge in an old rifle doesn't mean it isn't effective. They work as good as anything that's come out in the last 30 years. I honestly don't remember the last game animal I killed with a cartridge introduced in the 20th century. They've all been 19th century cartridges for a lotta years!!

Well done wildcat!! Nice old Krag too.

When you combine an "old cartridge" with the new bullet & powder technology it can boost performance without increasing pressure.

One of the faults of the 30/40 Krag on deer was the heavily constructed bullets at moderate MV.

They tended to over penetrate & not expand sufficiently in lightly built game like deer.

2500 fps is right near the top end of the 160gr FTX 30/30 bullet's design envelope. It will be interesting to see what the autopsy reveals.

Alliant RL-17 allows this level of performance without exceeding the maximum SAAMI pressure limits.

quote:

Originally posted by Snellstrom:

I have a Krag that's nearly a twin to yours that shoots 2" groups with 180 Sierras and peep sights and I really want to shoot something with it.
Thanks for the pictures!

Some pictures would be great. I sent you a PM.

Congratulations. That was a great shot. I've got a 1899 Krag that I picked up at a gun show here in Alaska. I'd love to shoot a moose with it. It was clearly used well and kept in great shape by its previous owners. It is very accurate.

The Krags are wonders of engineering - or Rube Goldbergian missing links, depending on your point of view.

Someday, when I get a bit older and begin to reduce my rifle collection, I'll keep the Krag.

Here is the picture of mine, I think it looks a lot like yours except mine has a barrel band. I have no history on the rifle I bought it on Gunbroker from a fellow in Washington

These are the first 3 shots I shot with this rifle at 100 yards, I adjusted it over and up and it continues to print groups like this at 100 yards.

quote:

Originally posted by Snellstrom:
Here is the picture of mine, I think it looks a lot like yours except mine has a barrel band. I have no history on the rifle I bought it on Gunbroker from a fellow in Washington



These are the first 3 shots I shot with this rifle at 100 yards, I adjusted it over and up and it continues to print groups like this at 100 yards.

Yes that is very similar. I think someone started with that. They then dovetailed a block into the bottom of the barrel for a fore-end screw. The fore-end was then thinned down to remove the finger grooves. It also had several fake ivory inlays that I had removed & sanded the wood down to remove the inlet. That is when I effectively ruined the original stock. It was getting some back cracks in it anyway so it was time to restock it.

I was rummaging through the back room of a local gun shop several years ago when I came across a 1970s style semi inletted Bishop stick complete with Monte Carlo comb/cheek piece, pistol grip & white line spacers. I was able to get the he original outline out of it & except the grip cap screw hole had to be filled.

Can you tell me more about the sight? Is it a d&t mount like a Lyman or does it mount like mine (Pacific) or use the magazine side plate screw? (Redfield)

Mine is a Lyman I believe, stamped on it is the leaping animal (deer or ram?) drilled and tapped with 2 screws into the left side of the receiver. I like your sight better than mine appears more robust. I doubt I will change mine it is accurate and the patina matches the rest of the rifle.
I hope to use mine on a hunt someday.

I have a nice Krag action and a new bolt. I keep thinking an octagon to round 26" barrel, peep sight and a G&H style sporter stock. This helps get me going on the project all the more!

This thread brings back memories.

I killed my first bull elk back in 1966 with a sporterized .30-40 Krag that I borrowed from my Uncle.

quote:

Originally posted by Snellstrom:

I'm anxious to see the autopsy results, always interested in that sort of thing.

AUTOPSY REPORT:

Cause of death: Extreme violent trauma to the central nervous system. (HOMICIDE)

When we removed the skin of the victim, we could see that there seemed to be some severe tissue damage in the spinal area behind the shoulder.


After removal of the left shoulder we found yet more evidence of trauma.



It wasn't until we opened up the front of the throat and removed the trachea that we realized the extreme nature & violence of the trauma.



We them moved to the operating table with better lighting conditions to explore the wound cavity for ballistic evidence.



After more extensive dissection & probing of the wound cavity we found bullet fragments distributed throughout the wound cavity which was several inches deep. There were several vertebrae destroyed. The destruction was so compete we could only estimate that perhaps as many as 4 vertebrae were completely pulverized.

Nice work by the old Krag and nice shooting!

Yes, very nice work and great shooting!

Cool old gun. You might try some good old 220 grain RN's in that Krag. Midway has the Sierra's on sale. They are nice accurate bullets in most guns and sure would have made it through the chest cavity. They will look very cool in that magazine on the old Krag too!
Best regards,

quote:

Originally posted by Fury01:
Cool old gun. You might try some good old 220 grain RN's in that Krag. Midway has the Sierra's on sale. They are nice accurate bullets in most guns and sure would have made it through the chest cavity. They will look very cool in that magazine on the old Krag too!
Best regards,

IMO one of the shortcomings of the Krag as a deer rifle was/is the heavily constructed bullets loaded in the factory offerings. They tend to not open up quickly enough at the moderate velocities in lightly built animals like deer & over-penetrate. My Dad had 2 deer run far enough to be claimed by other hunters when he was using the 180gr RN Corelocks. In PA during the '50s & '60, any deer that ran over 75 yards would very likely run into another hunter. The 1st deer was shot on the ground by another hunter (my father witnessed it) and we suspect the 2nd was too. I was with him on the 2nd deer.

I specifically tried the Hornady FTX bullets for fast expansion & rapid energy transfer with maximum shock. In this case I think I had a worst case scenario as far as bone impact & what would be the point of having the bullet penetrate the chest/abdominal cavity after such skeletal destruction? I am glad that the paunch wasn't penetrated like what would have probably happened with a 220 gr bullet.

I do believe that I am pushing the envelope with the 30395 STX (30/30) and I will try the 30396 (308 Marlin Express) bullets that are designed for up to 2700 fps Mv. With my loads, the impact velocity at 120 yards was about 2200 fps which is what the Hornady Leverevolution factory 30/30 loads make at the muzzle.

For those that might view the terminal results on this deer as "bullet failure" the question is: At what point in the animals (instantaneous in this case) demise did the bullet fail?

I am a bit leary of what a close in impact at > 2400 fps on the heavy bone of the shoulder might do with a shot that isn't a perfect broadside. If the bullet was able to smash (longitudinally) through 4 vertebrae in this case, it would certainly penetrate the shoulder & shred the lungs with shrapnel with a straight in angle. I would not want to take a quartering on shot through the shoulder though.

Understood. I lived in Upstate NY and watched other people claim deer shot by others. Not much way to upgrade a 12 gauge Foster slug on rapid killing of deer in those days. Good luck with your reloading and glad to see you using the Krag!

So, I was contemplating going to the 30396 FTX bullet anyway. A call to Hornady confirmed that I am pushing the 30395 FTX 30/30 bullet beyond its design envelope of 2300 fps maximum impact velocity.. Anything closer than 100 yards will be beyond that with my load's Mv of 2500 fps. At 120 yards the bullet was still traveling a bit over 2200 fps.

The 30396 FTX for the .308 Marlin Express has a design limit of 2700 fps impact velocity. Loading that bullet at 3.150" COAL will raise pressure slightly with the same charge but still well within the limits. Mv should be around 2525 fps.

3.150" will still function in the Krag magazine & should still get me close to the lands with the slightly pointier ogive compared to the 30395.

Growing up in an elk camp I saw a lot of elk and deer shot with the Krag carbines like you have and the Win. mod. 95 in 30-40. It worked then and still would today..I would not hesitate to hunt elk or deer with the Krag..I killed one of the biggest deer I have shot with and old beat up Krag carbine..and it put the big ole boy down right there at about 250 yards.