Rare Webley?

[doc540]

My gunsmith showed this to me today, a Webley in .45 Long Colt

school me on this thing

 

[pilgrim6a]

It appears to be a Webley-Green. They were made in various calibers and I have seen two in .45 Colt.
They were often marked for the shops that sold them, 'Wilkinson' or 'Manton' were common.
These companies catered to the military trade.
In the late 1800s British Army Officers purchased their own handguns. There were no restrictions on caliber until about 1905 or so. Winston Churchill carried a Broomhandle Mauser as a young LT.
Really cool revolver by the way!

 

[LVSteve]

I would be surprised if it was originally built in Long Colt. .455 Webley was most likely the original caliber. Actually, I believe that the Webley cylinder is too short to allow it to be taken out to 45LC. What about 45 Schofield or 45 ACP.

 

[doc540]

It appears to be a Webley-Green. They were made in various calibers and I have seen two in .45 Colt.
They were often marked for the shops that sold them, 'Wilkinson' or 'Manton' were common.
These companies catered to the military trade.
In the late 1800s British Army Officers purchased their own handguns. There were no restrictions on caliber until about 1905 or so. Winston Churchill carried a Broomhandle Mauser as a young LT.
Really cool revolver by the way!

Thanks
I remember him saying it was a commercial model, too.

Were they more common in Canada?

 

[mkk41]

More likely it was originally chambered for the .455 Eley , also called the .455 Colt , and had the chambers reamed to accept the Long Colt round.

I have a Colt New Service in .455 Eley that I was considering reaming till I found a few boxes of .455 Eley.

 

[doc540]

More likely it was originally chambered for the .455 Eley , also called the .455 Colt , and had the chambers reamed to accept the Long Colt round.

I have a Colt New Service in .455 Eley that I was considering reaming till I found a few boxes of .455 Eley.

thanks

Do you mean the factory reamed them?

I understood him to say this wasn't an aftermarket modification.

 

[Texas Star]

Model 1896 WG. Prob. reamed out by a surplus dealer. Golden State Arms used to sell these as an option back in the 1960's. Don't know who altered them or how well it worked.

I've handled some and they are VERY nicely made. As well made as a Triple Lock or Registered Magnum! Earlier ones had a sort of "church steeple" cylinder fluting.

I don't think they were proofed for smokeless powder, as they were discontinued about the time it became common, and Webley needed to increase chamber thickness for the Wilkinson-Webley Model of 1911. Or at least, they did it, for a greater margin of safety. In the Official Govt. line, the thicker chambers came in 1913, with the service MK V.

The .455 Colt is just another name for the .455 MK I. Either will work in guns made mainly for the shorter MK II case. But .455 Colt was loaded to throw a 265 grain bullet to about 700 FPS, not the 620 FPS of the MK II.

I don't know the source of the post about British officers not being able to choose calibers after 1905. Churchill wore a .45 Colt auto (ACP, not a .455) in WW I, after going to France after his dismissal from the Admiralty job. He still carried that 1911 sometimes while Prime Minister in WW II. I have read that only officially-issued revolvers were accepted after about 1920. I think it was probably part of the scheme begun then to reduce the supply of firearms in Britain.

 

[mkk41]

thanks

Do you mean the factory reamed them?

I understood him to say this wasn't an aftermarket modification.

To the best of my limited knowledge and research , the Brits only ever chambered the big Webleys in .455 , be it Mk.I or II. Never saw any in the American .45 Colt. Rare is usually a term used by a salesman to extract a high price. I believe none of what I hear , and only half of what I see. If it is undeniably factory marked for the .45 Colt round , well , , I'd have to see it.

OK , a quick bit of searching found one for sale with a bit of interesting info. Seems that they were chambered in .455 , BUT , .45 Colt did indeed fit. It also says only black powder or 'cowboy' level loads should be used.

QUOTE, "Although the famous “W-G” was never actually adopted by the British Army, it was officially approved for service use, and Army officers (who were required to purchase their own sidearms in the 19th Century) often chose it over the issue Webley Mark III or IV of the day as a personal sidearm. The W-G had a reputation for superior accuracy and robust construction, and was considerably more expensive than the Mark III or Mark IV, but for officers, most of whom were men of means, the extra cost was worth it. This one was retailed by the “Army & Navy Cooperative Services League” (the equivalent of our Base Exchange) to an officer who carried it with him to South Africa and fought in the Boer War: I bought it from a shop in South Africa in the condition you see it here.

It has been professionally refinished in a flat matte black, resembling Parkerizing. All markings are sharp and clear: it hasn’t been buffed to death! The cylinder lockup is solid and the timing is perfect, and the action…well, the double action pull is smooth and clean, a feature for which the W-G was famous. Its lockwork puts S&W’s best effort to shame, it is as slick as oiled glass. Nobody, but nobody, ever made a better DA revolver. The single action mode is clean and crisp with a light let-off.

The bore is a bit pitted but this doesn’t interfere with function or accuracy, and this gun will shoot better than I can hold it. The chambers are all clean and smooth, there is no hesitancy or difficulty in extraction. It is chambered for the “.455/.476” (so marked) and will safely chamber and fire .45 Long Colt using either black powder or “Cowboy Action” loads. Rear sight is a groove milled in the top of the stirrup catch: front is a brass blade. The grips are replacements, modern reproductions: I will include the original grips, which have a chip or two in them."

 

[doc540]

Thanks

I've scheduled a stop by there tomorrow for some other work, and I'll try to get better pics and/or more info.

 

[Texas Star]

Buy, "The Handgun", by Geoffrey Boothroyd if you can locate a copy. It wiil help with things like this.

Even Keith's, "Sixguns" includes a photo of a WG in a display of someone's guns, but Keith discussed almost entirely US arms.

There is also a square butt version of this gun.