Author Topic: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested  (Read 12479 times)

Offline Baltimore Ed

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Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« on: October 08, 2017, 10:36:01 PM »
Troopers, I picked up a project 1917 bolo knife some years ago which was missing the guard and had junky wood. But in my poking around the internet recently I've discovered that while there was a Krag bayonet (I have a very nice 1899 bayonet which matches my 1899 Constabulary Krag) there also was a krag-bolo bayonet along with a krag-bowie bayonet which can go for the paltry sum of 2-4 grand a pop depending on condition! A very good looking curvy hunk of steel. Anyway, I eventually found a pair of repro grips for the bolo but have never put them on as I'll have to cut the grip to install a homemade guard first (which I haven't made yet) and things got in the way. But now I'm thinking that if I have to cut it up anyway why not do something really neat with it. I'm wondering if anyone in the Barracks has a broken Krag bayonet that they don't mind parting with. I have a blade, anybody got the back half? Not trying to build a fake just a reasonable facsimile.
"Give'em hell, Pike"
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Offline Pitspitr

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« Reply #1 on: October 09, 2017, 04:37:23 AM »
I think Niederlander has a broken krag bayonet. He shot it off the end of his rifle. :o

 ::) I guess that might not do you much good though.  ;)
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Offline Grenadier

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« Reply #2 on: October 09, 2017, 04:54:40 AM »
I have considered this project myself several times. I came up with the scabbard being way more work than the bayonet itself. I have also considered approaching Atlanta Cutlery with having them reproduced in India. I think this may be the best route.

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« Reply #3 on: Today at 07:09:37 AM »

Offline Queasy Dillo

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« Reply #3 on: October 11, 2017, 08:03:20 PM »
I'd settle for a reproduction of the standard U.S. Krag bayonet.  I've been hunting a beater example for a while now with an eye towards a knife conversion. 
"Get it together?  Lady, last time my people got it together we needed most of Robert Lee's backyard to bury the evidence."

Offline Drydock

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« Reply #4 on: October 11, 2017, 08:38:08 PM »
Charles Isaac has an orginal Bolo bayonet, might be able to provide you with dimensions.

Lots of Krag Bayonets on Ebay.  Grab this one with BIN: http://www.ebay.com/itm/ORIGINAL-SPANISH-AMERICAN-WAR-Vintage-US-ARMY-KRAG-BAYONET-SCABBARD-Dated-1899-/401388150905?hash=item5d74992079:g:XGoAAOSwSdFZfkLt
Civilize them with a Krag . . .

Offline Drydock

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Civilize them with a Krag . . .

Offline pony express

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« Reply #6 on: October 11, 2017, 09:22:27 PM »
If someone makes a reproduction, I hope it fits better than the repro 1903 bayonet I have. Took an hour or more with a file to get it on the rifle and sorta lock on, but only sorta. And wobbly. I have shot it with bayo mounted with cast/trailboss loads, but I think it'd not stay mounted if I used ball ammo.

Offline Baltimore Ed

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« Reply #7 on: October 11, 2017, 11:29:49 PM »
I found a nice original 1899 bayonet years ago. It stays on my 1899 constabulary rifle fine. Before I found it I carried a Spanish bayonet around as a Cuban 'war souvenir' in my Mills belt as part of my Span Am outfit.

Update-found a donor fleabay Krag bayonet ( no scabbard) that was ground on and the blade looked rough. Something I read in my research - a scabbard is for a weapon while a sheath is for a tool. Makes sense. Anyway I did some tracing and drawing and there should be plenty of blade in my 1917 bolo if I turn the blade slightly to reshape it into a correct Krag bowie profile. Waiting for it to ship. Anybody need bolo scales send me a pm. I'll probably use the bolo sheath until I can build something more correct.
"Give'em hell, Pike"
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Offline pony express

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« Reply #8 on: October 12, 2017, 07:39:14 AM »
There's usually a fair selection of standard Krag bayonets on E-bay, just takes money to get one. But usually my money gets tied up in outfitting one of my foreign rifles.

Offline Baltimore Ed

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« Reply #9 on: October 12, 2017, 11:36:56 AM »
Here's my drawing. The Krag bayonet is my 1899 model that I used for the drawing and is not to be sacrificed. Way too nice.
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Offline Queasy Dillo

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« Reply #10 on: October 12, 2017, 10:13:15 PM »
Ebay gets me in trouble.  Meantime, I grabbed a cheap beater off Numrich for a test piece.  It's still something of a work in progress. 

"Get it together?  Lady, last time my people got it together we needed most of Robert Lee's backyard to bury the evidence."

Offline Drydock

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Civilize them with a Krag . . .

Offline Pitspitr

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« Reply #12 on: October 13, 2017, 11:42:36 AM »
I should buy 2 of them  ;D
I remain, Your Ob'd Servant,
Jerry M. "Pitspitr" Davenport
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Offline Baltimore Ed

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« Reply #13 on: October 17, 2017, 09:36:06 AM »
Got a question for y'all. How is the guard of a Krag bayonet attached to the blade/grip? The wood grips came right off as the rivets were never peened on one side. There is a step from the blade side of the guard @.225 thick to the grip side of the guard @.142 thick. I can see the solder on the grip where the pommel attaches?. I would need to slide the guard towards the pommel to attach the bowie blade under the grip panels and then slide it back and re attach it.
 Update---  I figured it out!!! The guard is friction fit to the blade, no pins, no solder, just the step and grips. Used a wood mallet and worked it right off.
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Offline Baltimore Ed

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- restarted
« Reply #14 on: July 12, 2018, 09:15:41 PM »
Evening troopers, I know this is old but I’ve finally gotten back to my Krag Bowie build. I discovered a really neat dremel tool accessory that made me decide to restart the project. It’s a quick connect EZ lock cut off blade. It has a bowtie shaped reenforced cutout in the little cutoff wheel. The wheels are actually pretty tough, not brittle like the older cut off blades are. I was able to cut the radius of the bowie blade into the top of my bolo blade with no heat problems as opposed to grinding all that steel off. Today I built a jig to allign the grip rivet holes and guard location. The angle of the bolo grip will change slightly to accommodate the bayonet’s grip wood. I plan on having the bayonet and bolo grips welded between the rivet holes. Don’t plan on using it to hack stuff but it needs to be strong enough to withstand shooting the rifle with it mounted. I’ve got alot of steel to get rid of on the bolo to get the krag guard to fit on it. And with the goofy one sided sharpened blade of the bolo I’m not sure how I will sharpen it. If I try to move the edge to the center of the blade I will unfortunately lose some blade width. The 20 foot rule might have to be sufficient. Photos soon.
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Offline smoke

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« Reply #15 on: July 13, 2018, 07:52:13 AM »
Tagging this cool project!
GAF#379

Offline Baltimore Ed

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- restarted
« Reply #16 on: July 14, 2018, 07:44:24 PM »
Here is a pix of my Krag bowie build grip rivet location, cutting and welding jig. ( I’ve always liked to build jigs for projects as it give me a opportunity to figure out a way to do the build successfully) This jig shows where my grip rivets, grip panels and guard are located so when I’ve removed enough steel from the bolo grip, it fits on my jig pin along with the bayonet grip and the bayonet guard fits the bolo I will soak the oak blocks and tack weld the diagonal cut, remove it from my jig and finish weld the seam. I’m still not exactly sure how long or where my guard will be on the bolo blade, I cut the large pommel off the bolo as it was in the way. The bowie cuts on the bolo turned out nice. Used the dremel new cutoff blades for the cuts, a neat accessory, and a variety of belt sanders for the curve. The original Krag Bowie had an oal of 12.3 in and a blade of a hair over 9 in. And of course I’ll have to try and move the bowie’s edge to the center of the blade instead of the flat side edge of the bolo. I guess the flat sided blade edge was better at chopping trees than a conventional edge as bolos were supposedly issued to medical corpsman to use in making litter poles.
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Offline 38OVI

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« Reply #17 on: July 15, 2018, 09:10:50 AM »
There were two types of bolo knives issued.  The Hospital/ Medical Corps had a large heavy rounded front edge and was supposed to be used for cutting splints, with the flat back/top edge used as a tool to drive in tent stakes, as it was not a combat weapon.  The M 1917 Bolo was a weapon issued to machine gun crews as a defensive weapon and for cutting brush for concealment of their weapon.

Offline Baltimore Ed

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« Reply #18 on: July 15, 2018, 10:38:46 AM »
 Thanks for the clarification 38OVI. Another cut and grind.


Home from visiting my wife in the hospital, got the bolo tang trimmed and thinned enough to go on my jig. Tomorrow I’ll try to get the guard fitted on the bolo. That will take a bit of work as I’ll have to remove metal gently with hand files to get a good tight fit.
"Give'em hell, Pike"
 There is no horse so dead that you cannot continue to beat it.

Offline Major 2

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Re: Krag bolo/bowie bayonet project -- input requested
« Reply #19 on: July 15, 2018, 12:07:04 PM »
Heavy SIGHHHHHHHHHHHHH !

this thread, cool as the project is.... brings back a  ::) memory

about 1954-5 as best I recall, my Dad had a Krag Bayonet probably got it at the Huge surper neat Army Surplus store in Miami.
paid maybe couple of bucks for it...Complete with steel scabbard....  

I remember it vividly .... another , I wish I still had it moment !.... sadly lost in my Barn fire of 2012
when planets align...do the deal !

 

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