Home Forums Lever Action Central Lever Actions - General Value of a 1903 90% Win 1895 .30-Gov't (.30-40K) Sporting rifle

5 digit sn-5xxxx, as shown on page 80 of the Ned Schwing pocket Winchester guidebook- Krause Pub. 2004- 90% original blue and shellac-mint bore and unmolested screws- Current Fijestad Blue Bokk shows $4400- is this a realistic asking price for a M1895 in this high condition? Fotos of this rifle available, e-mail me at dsmorinhotmail.com..

First things first, a 30-Gov't isn't a 30/40 Krag. A 30/40 Krag would be stamped 30 US.

So which one do you have?

Mine is not marked- early year production M1895's did not have WRA proof marks or caliber designations. It is a .30-40 Krag because those are the rounds my Granddad used in it-and I have even until now- Different from the .3--03 (hard to find) AND the final US Army Ordanace board adoption of the revised round to .30-Gov't-06- for the 1903 Springfield BA rifle- I also have a .30-40 Krag=Jorgensen officer's carbine which he carried in the Spanish-American war- and it shpoots the same rounds as does this M1895- that it that- I also have a later M1895 in .303 B (british- Enfield adopted rifle round- and when you remove the forearm, you can see clearly the Britisgh proof stampings- Good question, always good to be 100% clear- No way I know of that you could chaber a .30-Gov't-06 round into this M1895 of mine- as the OAL of the case, the neck OD and the rim for the Mauser extractor design of the 1903 Springfield is waaaaayy different that the flat butt base of the .30-40 Krag shells- Stil;l available in Rem 180 Grain Core-Lokt from Cabela's at $37.00 per box of 20--

Ok, then why do you have 30-Gov't in your subject line if it's a 30/40 Krag?


Mine was made in 1904 and is stamped 30 US. I paid $750 for it, albeit there was a recoil pad added.

So unless yours can also lay gold eggs, you ain't getting $4400 for it.

Here's 50xxx in my gunsafe.



Had I not already had this one, Cabela's down the road had a very nice one for $1199 back in August, I would have contemplated purchasing.

I don't know- guess because I am a 22 year Ret'd NCO- and like the .30-Gov't-06 stampings on my 1935 M54 SuperGrade and also my 1941 Std. Grade Model 70's-- The .30-40 Krag was most likely marked .30 Gov. or .30 Gov't. when it was adopted by the US Army Ordance board- and when they "borrowed" from Peter und Paul Mauser their great 98 bolt action design for our 1903 Springfield- first .30 Gov. would have been for the .30-03 round, later phased pout by the std. .30-o6 we still have today. My 1895 Sporter is 90 to 95% mint- wood is "proud of the steel" and the stamping has NOT been blurred by some jackleg "gunsmith" prior to a reblueing- and it is the older slow rust deep blue impossible to duplicate 100% correctly today-- Even Doug Turnbull would tell you that. So, before we drop Fjestad's price range "down the dumper" how about if I sent you the clear fotos I have of this fine older WRA lever rifle, and then you can judge for yourself? Just give me an e-mail address where I can send them-Thanks

The markings on the .30 caliber 1895s are a bit confusing. I've seen .30-40s marked as "30 US", "30 Army" and "30 US Army". The "Govt" marking usually refers to the .30-03/06, however a member here (Boltman), has a .30-03 marked ".30 US MOD 1903.". It wouldn't surprise me if there's a couple more variations out there, every time I think I know something about Winchesters, I don't.

BTW Pugslie, if you're going to post here much looking for opinions/values, set up a Photobucket.com account (free). It makes posting pictures here much easier than emailing them to multiple individuals.

Another mis-statement. Krag carbines were cavalry issue, not officers. An officer in 1898 carried his revolver in combat and (if he was dumb enough) a sword, and undoubtedly infantry rifles were grabbed and carried by discerning officers too. (And in truth, 1/2 of the service weapons used in Cuba were .45-70 Trapdoor Springfields.) The likelihood of an officer walking away with a rifle when he left the service was about as good then as it is now.

I wish I had a dollar for every gun tale I've heard where some old geezer bragged about the rifle he carried when in the service, when in truth he probably bought it at the local hardware store and proceeded to regale his offspring with false stories.

Thank you, that's the kind of encouraging reply, as a "newbie here" I was looking for. The only markings I could find, other that the standard rollstampings on the receiver backside, were the single letters W and H- I had to remove the slender sporter forearm, and the H is found on the recessed receiver boss at 3'oclock, the W on the opposite side at 9'oclock--

Wow- My late grandfather an "old geezer" What an insult. I was raised to have better manners than that-and to obliquely infer that I am a liar to boot- why bother to join the Photobucket group to post fotos here, only to be further insulted. He bought his sword, his sidearm and holster, SA Army Colt 1873 (as Patton carried in both his campaign against Mexican bandito Pancho Villa and later, in WW1- You might be correct about officers in the Calvary back then mainly carrying sidearms and sabers, he was a Lt. Col. I believe, but he told me he bought the Krag carbine from a Sgt. who lost his pay in a poker game and needed the money, apparently. Is a Sgt. going to tell a Lt. Colonel he can't carry a shoulder weapon? I think NOT!

Geez...... Not punking on your Compadre. You asked a question and I was simply showing you an example. Wasnt trying to ruffle feathers.

This one was just south of $4000.00, but it is lettered and in a rare 40-72 chambering...

No harm, no foul. Any man who quotes my second favorite poet (first being Kipling- IF-- is alright with me. I also used two other older WRA reference books in my library re: this 90% M1895- The Catalogue No. 75 March 1909 (New York Store 312 Broadway) issue- pages 39 through 45, and my 1938 Winchester Sales Manual- page 8 FYI

Enjoy!!!!

I keep six honest serving-men
(They taught me all I knew);
Their names are What and Why and When
And How and Where and Who.
I send them over land and sea,
I send them east and west;
But after they have worked for me,
I give them all a rest.

I let them rest from nine till five,
For I am busy then,
As well as breakfast, lunch, and tea,
For they are hungry men.
But different folk have different views;
I know a person small
She keeps ten million serving-men,
Who get no rest at all!
She sends em abroad on her own affairs,
From the second she opens her eyes
One million Hows, Two million Wheres,
And seven million Whys!

If I recall that, I believe Robert was referring to Queen Victoria, correct? Back in the days when the sun never set on Her Majesty's Empire. My favorite of his many poems goes like this: "Oh, there's a race of men who don't fit in, a race that never will. So they break the hearts of Kith and Kin, and roam the world at will"! I have found that many men of our age and experience also like to read Kipling and Jack London, and possibly, Hemingway and Ruark as well.

Another Kipling quote:

You can always tell a Yankee

But you can't tell him much!

Pics will go a long way, though that hint and suggestion has been given already.

I have 8 good clear fotos- how do I get them posted here- if one of you gents were to kindly give me your e-mail, I will gladly sent them to you, as I recently did to dealers: Leroy Mertz and Felix Bedlan- thanks

Pugslies 1895



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