Webley MARK VI 455

[GunnyUSMC]

I was off today and went by the bank. As I was leaving I noticed a few vehicles parked out side the local Pawn & Gun shop that was just down the street. The shop had taken on a few feet of water back in August when it flooded here. It appeared that they were open so, I went on over. It was nice to see that they were open and had the place pretty much back together. In the gun shop they had new glass counters and had a pretty good stock of guns. I was shooting the bull with a few friends that were in the shop when I spotted a large revolver in one of the cases. I asked to look at it. It was a Webley MARK VI in pretty good shape. The cylinder looked up good and was not shaved for 45 ACP. The sweet thing is that it was priced at $349.99. I asked about the price and the guy behind the counter said that if it were military marked it would have been priced higher.
Some one had cleaned up the barrel a little, but I wanted it for my collection so, I asked if they could work on the price. I know that I am evil for asking but it never hurts to try. I was told that I could have it for $300. I said I would take it if that was the price out the door. Would you believe that they said OK. I know, I'm a bad man and a thief.
Well here are the pics and you can see that it does have the broad arrow stamps. All numbers are matching. It also has the broad arrow to broad arrow stamp on the left side of the frame.













I looked through my old ammo and found three cartridges.

 

[Panzerschwein]

Incredible gun. Very neat revolvers, do you plan to load fot it?

 

[badkarmamib]

Why can't I ever find these deals?!? VERY nice!

 

[Blacksmoke]

Nice find!

 

[GunnyUSMC]

Don't plan to load for it. I may pick up a box of ammo if I can find it at a good price.

 

[tark]

Please, for God's sake, DO NOT have it converted to 45 ACP. That will ruin its collector value and leave it chambered for a round loaded to twice the pressures the gun was designed to operate at. It is so hard to find one of these guns unaltered. You have a fantastic piece of history there, original and untouched. I have one just like it, except mine has been butchered. It has very little value, now.. I shoot it a bit, with very mild handloads.

And, of course, I admire it as the most beautiful revolver ever made.

I'm sure you would agree, Vern....right?

 

[Monac]

I think that Fiocchi and Hornady load .455 revolver ammunition. It is a milder load to shoot than 45 ACP, IMO. In my experience, it is hard to find shootable Webley service revolvers for less than $450, and most people want a premium for guns that have NOT been converted to 45 ACP. It is remarkable to me that we don't hear more about the converted Webleys bursting, because factory 45 ACP is a substantially higher pressure load than .455. It's a testament to the strength of the Webley, I guess.

 

[bannockburn]

Nice find Gunny! For $300 you did just fine! Range report when you get some more ammo for it.

 

[natman]

It is remarkable to me that we don't hear more about the converted Webleys bursting, because factory 45 ACP is a substantially higher pressure load than .455. It's a testament to the strength of the Webley, I guess.

They don't usually burst, although that has been known to happen. They do shoot loose. If you have a Webley that's been converted to 45 ACP, shoot lead bullets with very mild handloads.

 

[Blacksmoke]

Fiocchi still lists this cartridge on their website but is currently "Unavailable". 262 grains with a MV of 650 FPS.

 

[Deanimator]

I think that Fiocchi and Hornady load .455 revolver ammunition.

I know I've seen Fiocchi .455 in the past. I wouldn't be surprised if they still make it.

 

[Malamute]

Is the groove diameter of the 455 larger than 45 auto? I wonder if that mitigates pressure to some degree in the shaved guns?

PE Kelley had a nice vid of one he found and shot an "out of the box to match" with. He used light target loads for 45 auto in his gun, it seemed to shoot very well.

Love the old revolvers. Very classy old gun, hope you can shoot it some and enjoy it. I don't think its tough to load for. Shortened 45 Colt or Schofield brass?

 

[Gordon]

they seem to have it in stock and cheap, better act quickly . I have shot quite a bit of this and it is VERY good .455 Ammo
http://swfa.com/Fiocchi-Specialty-455-Webley-50rd-Ammo-P86360.aspx

 

[Carl N. Brown]

"Is the groove diameter of the 455 larger than 45 auto? I wonder if that mitigates pressure to some degree in the shaved guns?"

I have a shaved .455 Webley Mark IV and have fired .45 ACP in it. The cylinder has first and 2nd black powder proof marks, crown over VR Victoria Regina, Queen of England to 1902.

Groove to groove of a .45ACP is .451", of .455" Webley it is actually .455". On my Mark IV, the lands are narrow and not very tall. The.451" jacketed and .452" lead .45 ACP bullets don't give very good accuracy. I have since switched to reloading with .45Colt .454" 255gr lead roundnose bullet to standard .455 Webley velocities for better accuracy. I have shot mine in black powder cartridge and vintage military.

.455 Webley revolvers Marks I, II, III and IV were proofed for BP; Marks V and VI were proofed for nitrocellulose and cordite smokeless powers. I decided long ago to stop betting that gas leakage around a .451 bullet in a .455 bore would reduce the pressure to safe levels in my Mark IV.

 

[Deaf Smith]

Great find for $349.99. Not just a few days ago, rummaging around in my gun stuff, I found a WWII Webely FMJ .455 round unfired!

Yes they are history. Hope you can find it's 'birth date'.

Deaf

 

[GunnyUSMC]

I have no plans to convert it to 45 ACP. One of the reasons I bought it is because it was still chambered in 455 Webley.
Deaf Smith, I paid a total of $300 for it so that came to $271.49 plus $28.51 in taxes. I fell really bad about not paying enough for it. LOL!
Today is my birthday so this was a birthday gift to myself.

 

[JC111]

Excellent find! Love the older British military firearms.

 

[GunnyUSMC]

Well I should have a box of ammo in before Christmas. Have no clue when I will be able to make it to the range, but I will bring it to work and shoot it in the test fire room.

 

[the Black Spot]

Can u shoot 45 auto rim in those?

 

[JC111]

Well I should have a box of ammo in before Christmas. Have no clue when I will be able to make it to the range, but I will bring it to work and shoot it in the test fire room.

The important thing is you have one. Here is mine. It's actually one of the MV VI's made by Enfield in the first part of the 1920's. Mine was made in 1925. I picked it up at going out of business auction (longtime local pawnshop) on 02/02/2008. A longtime grail gun it was a birthday gift to myself. I've only shot it twice but it does work and after many many years of wanting one I now have one. Great revolver.

 

[GunnyUSMC]

Can u shoot 45 auto rim in those?

Nope. The rims are to thick.

JC111 That is a very nice looking one. Looks like it has most of it's original finish.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

Nope. The rims are to thick.

Try Clymer's Reamers -- they may have a reamer for the .45 Auto Rim that will cut a recess, allowing the .45 AR to headspace properly in the Webley.

 

[Merle1]

Try Clymer's Reamers -- they may have a reamer for the .45 Auto Rim that will cut a recess, allowing the .45 AR to headspace properly in the Webley.

And the AR's are also overly powerful for a .455. You still need to use reduced handloads.

 

[straightshooterjake]

Out of curiosity, I clicked on the link in post #13 for the Fiocchi 455 Webley ammo. The specs on that page list the ammo as 262 grains at 850 feet per second. If true, that would make those loads more powerful than standard 45ACP ball ammo.

I thought 455 Webley was significantly slower than that, and a little google research indicates that about 700 feet per second would be expected. I am guessing that the listed specs are incorrect, or maybe the ammo was tested using a long barrel.

Anyone have thoughts on expected ballistics for 455 Webley ammo? And has anyone ever tested or chronographed the Fiocchi loads?

 

[Vern Humphrey]

Out of curiosity, I clicked on the link in post #13 for the Fiocchi 455 Webley ammo. The specs on that page list the ammo as 262 grains at 850 feet per second. If true, that would make those loads more powerful than standard 45ACP ball ammo.

I thought 455 Webley was significantly slower than that, and a little google research indicates that about 700 feet per second would be expected. I am guessing that the listed specs are incorrect, or maybe the ammo was tested using a long barrel.

Anyone have thoughts on expected ballistics for 455 Webley ammo? And has anyone ever tested or chronographed the Fiocchi loads?

Just from memory, the .455 Webley is about 200 fps slower. If that round is driving a bullet that heavy that fast, I would NOT shoot it in a Webley.