Who has one and shoot it ?
Webley Revolver
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I have shot a .455 Webley. Cool gun and not very much recoil. Have handled a .38/200 smaller version but didn’t shoot it.
deadin
US Veteran
I have 3. (2 Mark VI in .455/.45ACP and a Mark IV in .38/200)
Unfortunately both Mark VI's have been shaved to 45ACP, but I made a couple of full moon spacers that allow me to shoot .455 in them. If I shoot 45AR or ACP in half moons, I load them to .455 pressures.
Unfortunately both Mark VI's have been shaved to 45ACP, but I made a couple of full moon spacers that allow me to shoot .455 in them. If I shoot 45AR or ACP in half moons, I load them to .455 pressures.
RoyS
Member
I've owned many Webley & Scott revolvers and self-loading pistols over the years and shot a few of them. Sadly I no longer own any
Always wonderful guns to both own and shoot.
Here is a photo of me during a range trip with a fabulous historic 1911 Wilkinson-Webley in .455.
Cheerio,
Roy
Always wonderful guns to both own and shoot.
Here is a photo of me during a range trip with a fabulous historic 1911 Wilkinson-Webley in .455.
Cheerio,
Roy
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ROB94045
Member
Same here on the .455 using .45 in half-moon clips. Hand-loaded to .455 pressures.
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I've handled several of them over the years, but never shot one. Passed up a chance many years ago to get a 38/200 version and have kicked myself ever sense!
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.
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OP
ContinentalOp
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Obviously, you've never seen me throw rocks.
My experience is local.
I've seen sheppards, armed with 12 gauge shotguns, kill rabbits with rocks at close to 25 yards just because they think a 12 gauge cartridge is too expensive to waste on a rabbit.
My experience is local.
Seen that as well. A shepherd with a sling and a few rocks can be a real hindrance to a predator, and put a decent meal over the fire. And Goliath isn't around to ask about it anymore, either.
deadin
US Veteran
For the .455's, I sprung for the Mold that casts the hollowbase 265 gr. bullet. (same as the original). The .38 I've been using as close to a 200 gr.. bullet as I can find.
I'm going to have to consult my records for powder type and charge, but I know they will be low pressure....
I used to have a MK IV in .455, but sold it about 40 some odd years ago. I bought a MK V that was converted to .45 ACP/.45 Auto Rim back in the late '80s. I still have that one. IIRC, I loaded a 250 grain SWC over 5.6 grains of Unique, but don't hold me to it. 
Please check a reloading manual.
Please check a reloading manual.
Absalom
SWCA Member, Absent Comrade
The other way round in my case:
I have a .455 Mk. III, unfortunately shaved. Haven't gotten around to finding ammo and/or half-moon clips yet.
An 1899 vintage, Army contract; they put broad arrows on every small part!
Boer War provenance. 6th Ammunition Column, Royal Artillery, deployed to SA by April 1900.
I also have a 1941 British military and a 1951 Canadian police .38 Mk. IV:
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Buick
Member
I have a .38/200 mkiv. Its one of my all time favorites. A great firearm to introduce new shooters to centerfire rounds as well.
Rock185
US Veteran
I have a 1918 MK VI cut for .45 ACP. I experimented with light reloads in ACP and .45 auto-rim cases. I settled on a plated 230 grain .451" bullet and enough Unique or Viht. 3N37 to produce about 700 FPS. I also sprung for one of those spacer rings that allows use of .455 ammunition, and have used some of the current Fiocchi .455 Webley ammo in the gun.
BTW, I'd always heard that the .451" and .452" bullets many of us use for these old Webleys were very undersized. I'm not so sure. I'd seen other owners report their Webley bores seemed closer to .450". I slugged one of the chambers in my gun and it was exactly .450". Due to the 7 groove rifling, I couldn't do an accurate measurement of groove diameter when I slugged the barrel, but the largest dimension I could measure was .450". Neat old guns in any case, IMHO.
BTW, I'd always heard that the .451" and .452" bullets many of us use for these old Webleys were very undersized. I'm not so sure. I'd seen other owners report their Webley bores seemed closer to .450". I slugged one of the chambers in my gun and it was exactly .450". Due to the 7 groove rifling, I couldn't do an accurate measurement of groove diameter when I slugged the barrel, but the largest dimension I could measure was .450". Neat old guns in any case, IMHO.
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OP
Is there a barrel length differences between the Military and Police Models or is it my eye sight ?
The other way round in my case:
I have a .455 Mk. III, unfortunately shaved. Haven't gotten around to finding ammo and/or half-moon clips yet.
An 1899 vintage, Army contract; they put broad arrows on every small part!
Boer War provenance. 6th Ammunition Column, Royal Artillery, deployed to SA by April 1900.
I also have a 1941 British military and a 1951 Canadian police .38 Mk. IV:
I haven't shot my Mk VI .455 in quite a while. .
1918 mfg. Still in it's orig caliber I have a set of loading dies from LEE that work fine and made brass from 45 Colt mostly.
Thinning the rims slightly and trimming to the older MkI .455 length.
I made a die to swage/crimp the rims instead of needing to turn them in the lathe.
It worked very nicely and you could adj it simply to leave the rim about any thickness you wanted should the headspace be off in the revolver.
Then I misplaced that die,,it's here somewhere!
I've used 45AR brass too. The swage die wasn't usefull for that thicker rim and the lathe was the only way to reduce the thickness.
I had at one time MkIII but it was cut for 45acp. Neat shooter. I shot 45acp loaded with BP Substitute (Cleanshot/AmericanPioneer). Quite accurate. Very fast to load with those 1/2moon clips.
Why did I sell it?/,,I don't know
Seems like there was another .455 Webley of a different Mk in there somewhere too. Also cut to 45acp but I don't remember which one.
I used GreenDot powder and soft cast .452 bullets.
With some experimentation, decent accuracy.
Loads and info ideas I got from an article in a Rifle(?)/Handloader(?) magazine dated in the late 80's IIRC.
What usually destroys the big Webleys accuracy is that the throats are usually cut large in the cylinders, Way over size for the bore/groove dia of the barrel.
Soft lead bullets over a charge of Cordite expanded OK and then swaged back down for decent Combat range accuracy.
Same bullet or hard cast or jacketed and most smokless powders around now won't give you the same effect.
But a few of the Shotgun powders like GreenDot and RedDot seem to work pretty well.
Time to drag the Webley out again. I should check the holster and see if that green stuff has re-grown on the back of it where the cleaning rod fits.
1918 mfg. Still in it's orig caliber I have a set of loading dies from LEE that work fine and made brass from 45 Colt mostly.
Thinning the rims slightly and trimming to the older MkI .455 length.
I made a die to swage/crimp the rims instead of needing to turn them in the lathe.
It worked very nicely and you could adj it simply to leave the rim about any thickness you wanted should the headspace be off in the revolver.
Then I misplaced that die,,it's here somewhere!
I've used 45AR brass too. The swage die wasn't usefull for that thicker rim and the lathe was the only way to reduce the thickness.
I had at one time MkIII but it was cut for 45acp. Neat shooter. I shot 45acp loaded with BP Substitute (Cleanshot/AmericanPioneer). Quite accurate. Very fast to load with those 1/2moon clips.
Why did I sell it?/,,I don't know
Seems like there was another .455 Webley of a different Mk in there somewhere too. Also cut to 45acp but I don't remember which one.
I used GreenDot powder and soft cast .452 bullets.
With some experimentation, decent accuracy.
Loads and info ideas I got from an article in a Rifle(?)/Handloader(?) magazine dated in the late 80's IIRC.
What usually destroys the big Webleys accuracy is that the throats are usually cut large in the cylinders, Way over size for the bore/groove dia of the barrel.
Soft lead bullets over a charge of Cordite expanded OK and then swaged back down for decent Combat range accuracy.
Same bullet or hard cast or jacketed and most smokless powders around now won't give you the same effect.
But a few of the Shotgun powders like GreenDot and RedDot seem to work pretty well.
Time to drag the Webley out again. I should check the holster and see if that green stuff has re-grown on the back of it where the cleaning rod fits.
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
John
Absalom
SWCA Member, Absent Comrade
Your eyes are just fine
The wartime military contracts were all standard 5”, so they’d fit the same accessories as the Enfield primary service revolver.
The majority of post-war police contracts, however, including all Canadians, were for 4” barrels. This one is from the Ontario Provincial Police and factory-stamped OPP; it’s also unusual in that it was specifically ordered without the swivel. I’ve seen others from Toronto and Montreal police.
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