Webley Revolver

old tanker · Apr 30, 2020

jimmyj said:
Who has one and shoot it ?

I do.

RCBS makes a mould for the Webley's 265 grain long nosed, hollow base bullet and it works well in all my .455 revolvers. BTW the Starline brass has the large primer pockets. 3.5 to 4.0 grains of Unique should bring you happiness.

desi2358 · Apr 30, 2020

I have owned and shot a number of Webley revolvers over the years. All have been good, reliable handguns whether in 38, 455 or even the shaved guns in 45 ACP. While I did shoot factory 45 auto years ago in the shaved guns I later started to load the brass to the same specs as the 455... this allowed me to use a more correct diameter bullet and better duplicated the performance of the original loading.

With the 38 revolvers I used available 38 S&W bullets which worked fine but shot a little low in all the ones I owned except a pocket model (which I wish I still had.. oh well). Most seem to have been sighted for the heavier military bullets, either the early 200 grain or the later 178 grain bullet.

I had to reduce my collection a few years ago but have hung onto a MKI that I have a soft spot for. It is shaved but shoots well with 45AR brass and a 250 grain .454 dia. bullet that I cast. I really enjoy shooting this big old gun, it's a lot of fun.

LVSteve · Apr 30, 2020

PALADIN85020 said:
This one's mine. It's a Mark IV Webley, produced during WWII in 1944. Shoots just fine in either double or single action with standard .38 S&W ammo. Accuracy at any "combat" distance suitable for a handgun is acceptable. Sure is an anemic cartridge, though, even with the British 200-grain bullet load.

John

I keep getting outbid on "War Finish" marked Webleys. I want one to partner my WWII Enfield No.2.

Sayoc01 · Apr 30, 2020

Sam Andrews,(Andrews Leather)has a collection of Webleys.Sam did the gun rigs for THE MAGNIFICENT 7 with Denzel Washington.Actor..Chris Pratt uses one of Sam's Webleys in the movie!
Jim

M1A · Apr 30, 2020

My Webley MkIII .38 S&W. 1929

Absalom · Apr 30, 2020

M1A said:
My Webley MkIII .38 S&W. 1939

Nice one! Love those wooden stocks.

Even though Stoeger actually imported and sold them here in the 1930s, the pre-war .38 Mk III's are rare to come across nowadays.

Usually, if one is offered on Gunbroker, it turns out the seller missed the A/B prefix and it's a post-war gun.

From the 1938 Stoeger catalog:

Inusuit · Apr 30, 2020

Kurusu said:
Affirmative. Anything else you want to know.

It is in the original caliber. It is also very accurate at 25 meters. At 7 yards everything is accurate, even thrown rocks.

Well, you've obviously never seen me shoot. Or throw rocks.

Gene L · Apr 30, 2020

Wow, $50 was a lot of money back in 1938! Wonder what a Hand Ejector cost back then for a comparison.

Absalom · Apr 30, 2020

Gene L said:
Wow, $50 was a lot of money back in 1938! Wonder what a Hand Ejector cost back then for a comparison.

The Webley was rather pricey in comparison. There are several pages of S&W revolvers in that same catalog; here's a typical one.

Alpo · May 1, 2020

Is there a forum rule against giving load data?

Two days ago I made a post in this thread, and I gave the load data I use on my gun because Jimmy asked about data.

My post is not here.

That tells me that most probably one of two things happened. Either instead of clicking POST REPLY I clicked the backspace button (which I have done numerous times on numerous boards over the years), or I did it correctly and some moderator made the post go away because I broke a rule.

When I did not find my post yesterday I went to the rules and looked to see if I could find a rule against posting load data. Could not find one.

Logic says that if I broke a rule and my post was deleted I would have gotten any message from a moderator telling me I got dinged. Didn't get one of those either.

It's obviously I screwed up somehow. Just curious as to whether it was a fumble finger mess up or a rule-breaking mess up.

Krogen · May 1, 2020

I have a MKIV that my brother gave me. Dad gave it to him some years ago. I remember when Dad brought it home. He bought it from a City bus driver for $30 or so back around 1970. Eventually he gave it to my brother because I was "too young." I've shot handloads in it, even with 200 gr slugs. It's no target gun, that's for sure! I can't hit the broad side of a barn with it; not even from inside I suppose. It is what it is.

To LVSteve: Mine is marked "Wartime Finish" like those you missed out on. What's the appeal? How high was too high?

LVSteve · May 1, 2020

Krogen said:
To LVSteve: Mine is marked "Wartime Finish" like those you missed out on. What's the appeal? How high was too high?

The appeal is that I collect guns from WWI and WWII. It also amuses me that Webley went to the trouble of stamping "Wartime finish" to try and distance themselves from the necessities of wartime production. It's just so damned British, and I should know having been born and raised in the UK.

How high was too high? Well, I'm a cheapskate, so when they go above $275-300 in a 20% buyer's premium auction, I'm gone.

Absalom · May 1, 2020

LVSteve said:
How high was too high? Well, I'm a cheapskate, so when they go above $275-300 in a 20% buyer's premium auction, I'm gone.

Hmm .... I don’t know how tuned in to the collectors market you are, but I paid about 500 (plus expenses) for mine and it took me quite a while of looking to find one in the condition and vintage I wanted. Now I was after the early-war variant with two-line address, pre-war proofs, and winged logo, so that narrowed choices a bit.

But for 300 you might (if you’re lucky) find a mismatched FTR-Franken-Enfield, but decent-condition Mk IV’s are quite desirable nowadays.

LVSteve · May 1, 2020

Absalom said:
Hmm .... I don’t know how tuned in to the collectors market you are, but I paid about 500 (plus expenses) for mine and it took me quite a while of looking to find one in the condition and vintage I wanted. Now I was after the early-war variant with two-line address, pre-war proofs, and winged logo, so that narrowed choices a bit.

But for 300 you might (if you’re lucky) find a mismatched FTR-Franken-Enfield, but decent-condition Mk IV’s are quite desirable nowadays.

Yeah, the collector market has changed yet again. Finn Mosins have come down, but Enfields have gone insane. Garands are still stupid money, but several Mauser breeds are suddenly more reasonable. I got my Enfield No.2 at a great price about three years back.

M1A · May 1, 2020

Absalom
Thought you might like to see this:

Bill Raby · May 2, 2020

Anderson Wheeler is currently producing a very high quality reproduction. 7 shot 357 magnum. You might want to have a talk with your banker before you buy one.

KarmannGhia · May 2, 2020

I have one of the shaved versions converted to 45acp. I have several other 45s, therefore, I buy 45 auto rim brass and load it to 455 pressures and it prevents me from shooting over pressure (standard 45acp) loads in my Webley. The auto rim for Webley, and moonclip acp for my Mod 25.

Kurusu · Jun 4, 2020

And since my last post.

I finally found a Webley Mk IV that I liked.

Early war finish. It will still take some time to wad through the red tape before I bring it home though.

But I got pictures.

Absalom · Jun 4, 2020

Kurusu said:
I finally found a Webley Mk IV that I liked.

Early war finish .....
But I got pictures.

Looks like a nice one. Certainly didn’t get dragged through the sands of the Western Desert or the jungles of Burma

And the nice thing about the early variant is that they could be sold commercially without additional proofing, since until about the end of 1941 W&S had them properly proofed before shipping them off to Weedon.

Kurusu · Jun 4, 2020

Absalom said:
Looks like a nice one. Certainly didn’t get dragged through the sands of the Western Desert or the jungles of Burma

And the nice thing about the early variant is that they could be sold commercially without additional proofing, since until about the end of 1941 W&S had them properly proofed before shipping them off to Weedon.

Yep. I wonder where it spent the war.

And since it was found in the LGS I got to inspect it personally.

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