Club Obi Wan

Howdy,

Well, she's not as purdy as Antilles GREAT find, but she's mine! She's been reblued, which dropped the price to what I could afford, but she's in really good shape and still in .455:




Long term, I think with a proper reblue and perhaps some less faded grips, she'll clean up fine.

Me so happy!

RaiderZee

Boah that's a beaut! Congratulations!

yea, nice pick up!!!!

Will she fire?

I haven't tried yet, but all signs point to yes: nice lock up, slight cylinder wobble, barrel looks solid, no cracks or bulges. I'm going to a gunsmith next week for the official verdict. I'm leery of shooting modern .455 loads in her, though. There was some vintage ammo on gunbroker that caught my eye; might give that a try.

RZ

Antilles just got a WG as well, and he was having the discussion about that..

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=42064

One thing to be very careful of with vintage ammo is that it might not fire as you expect it to. Case in point, I've fired old ammo through a M-1 carbine (oh, how I wish it were mine!) and the primer on the cartridge had a delay to it due to its age. Usually you pull the trigger and get an instant fire. Imagine pulling the trigger and then having to wait even half a second until it actually fires, if it even fires at all. That can be potentially dangerous itself. Since you're taking your gun to the gunsmith to get checked out, you might want to ask him about ammo, too.

She looks purdy purdy to me!!!

Antilles

"NICCCCCCCE."

I think you should keep the original grips on the gun. If you kept the grips you would have piece of history.

Very, very nice. One of these beauties will definitely be a future purchase.

You should be able to fire the Fiocci (sp) .455 ammunition with no problems as it's rated to the old tolerances and not hot loaded up to "modern" specs.

Congratulations! I envy your unshaved cylinder. Hey look! It's the Graf Zepplin!



Russ

RZ,

Very nice!!! Keep her as she is. Don't reblue or change the grips. I'm sure Indy's was beat up a bit also. Your's looks a lot like mine and I plan to keep mine just as she is!! Also, If you don't mind me asking, how much did you pay for her? Welcome to the club!!!

Thanks IB. Remember, this is already reblued. The finish isn't bad at all, but I'd at least like to return parts that were originally unblued (hammer, etc.) to their original finish. As for price, let's just say I got it for 3-figures, US $ .

RZ

RaiderZee wrote:I haven't tried yet, but all signs point to yes: nice lock up, slight cylinder wobble, barrel looks solid, no cracks or bulges. I'm going to a gunsmith next week for the official verdict. I'm leery of shooting modern .455 loads in her, though. There was some vintage ammo on gunbroker that caught my eye; might give that a try.

RZ

Sounds like you consulted a magic 8 ball!

OH NO! After a visit to my local gunsmith, we've determined that my WG has a timing problem. I didn't notice it at first, but, when cocking the hammer quickly (in either SA or DA), the cylinder will not lock on a certain specific chamber but revolves about one-and-a-half chambers. I didn't notice it because is does not happen consistently but every third or fourth time. I think cylinder wear is the culprit.

In addition, the cylinder can be spun by hand, but only clockwise, while making a clicking sound. Is this normal on a WG?If not, I think the right side of the cylinder lock (?the sliver thingy coming out of the frame above the trigger) is worn.

I have until tomorrow to ship the gun back to the dealer. It's a big outfit, and his gunsmith will take a look at it and call me back. Many questions and possible options?

1) keep the gun and forget it, just don't fire it
2) keep the gun and forget it, just fire by cocking slowly in SA, making sure the cylinder locks properly each time
3) keep the gun and repair it (will a MK VI cylinder work on a WG?)
4) send the gun back and have them attempt a repair
5) send the gun back, say they can't fix the problem, and ask them for the gun back with a partial refund (if so how much from a gun that cost $900)
6) send the gun back and ask for a full refund

Panicking, room spinning, can't breathe,

RZ

Thanks, TR. I'm operating on the principle of "A WG in the hand is worth two in the bush."

I will send it back to the shop, have them evaluate it, then, if they can't repair it satisfactorily, I'll ask them to knock the price down. There is a gunsmith in nearby NC that specializes in antique guns, including work on the WG. I can send it to evaluate if all else fails.

Just curious: what would be the value of a reblued WG with timing problems?

RZ

I don't know the dollar amount of a WG. Hate to tell you, but I would have to say that a re-blued gun with a timing problem drops the value a substantial amount.

It would be worth more with the timing fixed, and the blueing removed from the parts that should be a natural metal finish. At that point, I would want to keep it. Attempting to re-blue it will make things much worse. Many times these old guns are buffed before re-blueing, knocking off all of the orginal square and sharp edges. This also begins to lower the value. From what this site suggests, these guns are not easy to find.

Your gun may also need a new stiffer bolt spring to fix the timing. The bolt may not be landing properly in the cylinder notch because of a weak spring.

Unless someone here has shot one of these, I could only suggest black powder loads for this gun, once the timing is fixed. You might want to invest in some reloading equipment for the making of hand-loaded black powder cartridges. I get quite a thrill out of shooting 45 cal black powder rounds out of a Colt SAA revolver.

Don't panic RZ!!

Remember that piece is over a hundred years old so it is to be expected that it may not be 100%. I do belive that the cylinder should be locked and not be able to free spin. I can't check mine because it's in L.A. and I'm in Hawaii. But I'm pretty sure that it supposed to lock.

I had a similar problem with my S&W 1917 and I didn't realize it for quite some time. Its cylinder would also free spin in one direction. I was able to do a simple fix by replacing the spring that tensions that little finger that pops up into the cylinder grove to lock it up. Also I think there may have been some grime stuck in that area also that kept the finger from fully engaging the groove. So I'm sure if you bring it in to a good gunsmith he should get her at 100% without too much difficulty. Probably just needs a good cleaning and a few tweeks here and there.

You got your WG at a great price even if it has a few issues. Don't give her up! All she needs is some tender loving care and I'm sure she will love you back!!

RZ, good on you for taking it to a gunsmith to get checked out. Folks, this is EXACTLY why you should never fire an old firearm without getting it looked over by a competent gunsmith first! Imagine what could've happened if you did fire it and something went horribly wrong.

I think the others have also given you some good feedback on what to do. I think if you want this gun only as a collectible and display piece, never to be fired, then keeping it as is wouldn't be a problem. But if you want a gun to fire, even just on occasion, then it behooves you to get it repaired or replaced. Keep us posted!

Just my 2cents, but I'd keep it as a curio. They are very RARE guns as it is and the chances of getting parts for repair are slim to none and parts are NOT interchangeable with the other Webley's except I believe the MK I . The gun is over 100 years old as it is. Keep it and enjoy it as an Indy gun for display. If you want to have a pistol for firing , buy something a little more MODERN just for the safety aspect of it.

While I would really love to fire my WG it is too valuable as a collectors piece to do so. I also have a S+W 1917 and a Webley Mk VI which I have fired on occasion, but have realized they are getting up there in age and it would be probably best to keep them as Curio's as well. The century mark for them is not too far away.

RaiderZee wrote:OH NO! After a visit to my local gunsmith, we've determined that my WG has a timing problem. I didn't notice it at first, but, when cocking the hammer quickly (in either SA or DA), the cylinder will not lock on a certain specific chamber but revolves about one-and-a-half chambers. I didn't notice it because is does not happen consistently but every third or fourth time. I think cylinder wear is the culprit.

In addition, the cylinder can be spun by hand, but only clockwise, while making a clicking sound. Is this normal on a WG?If not, I think the right side of the cylinder lock (?the sliver thingy coming out of the frame above the trigger) is worn.

It's possible. The indexing problem is common on Webleys of all makes.

I have until tomorrow to ship the gun back to the dealer. It's a big outfit, and his gunsmith will take a look at it and call me back. Many questions and possible options?

1) keep the gun and forget it, just don't fire it
2) keep the gun and forget it, just fire by cocking slowly in SA, making sure the cylinder locks properly each time

If it was MY gun, I'd probably follow this route.

3) keep the gun and repair it (will a MK VI cylinder work on a WG?)

Sorry, there are no parts from other Webley series pistols that will swap into a WG.
I'm not certain about the MK1 as I haven't handled/taken apart one, so I can't offer any information. The cylinder will certainly NOT fit. Sorry again.

4) send the gun back and have them attempt a repair
5) send the gun back, say they can't fix the problem, and ask them for the gun back with a partial refund (if so how much from a gun that cost $900)
6) send the gun back and ask for a full refund

Panicking, room spinning, can't breathe,

RZ

I'd likely try contacting someone who specializes in vintage revolvers, rather than take
a refund. If their own gunsmith attampts a repair and critical fails, then it may become well and truly broken. It's your money of course.

Regarding value of a reblued gun... in my experience a reblued gun is always worth less than one in the original finish. It's odd because a gun with a bad finish looks cruddy to me, but the value of the original finish is what some gun collector's look for. They seem to like either mint condition originals... or weathered warhorses.

Russ

Thanks, Russ. I'm shipping her back tomorrow for their guy to look at. I specified for them to NOT attempt any repairs. Hopefully they can knock the price down and send it back. And I contacted the WG-specialist gunsmith in NC; he feels certain they can fix the problem. So I'll probably attempt that down the road (i.e. when my wallet recovers).

Then again, today I got a line on another WG, matching serials, no refinish, shoots great in .45LC, in the same price range as mine. Hmmm . . .

RZ

Where the heck are you finding these?

Russ

I think RaiderZee has a WG Leprechaun in his back pocket.

RaiderZee wrote:Thanks, Russ. I'm shipping her back tomorrow for their guy to look at. I specified for them to NOT attempt any repairs. Hopefully they can knock the price down and send it back. And I contacted the WG-specialist gunsmith in NC; he feels certain they can fix the problem. So I'll probably attempt that down the road (i.e. when my wallet recovers).
RZ

Definitely the way to go - good call. Now, if you decide to sell that one, if and when you get another, I'm all in!

Reblued, it would maybe be worth $500. The timing issue shouldn't be all that difficult to fix.

Thanks everyone. I'm definately going to keep it. I'll get the timing fixed later this fall. If I find a better one down the road, I'll trade up.

jts1031 wrote:Reblued, it would maybe be worth $500.

That may be so, but I haven't seen a WG of any kind selling for $500 lately. If you do, get it. Or let me know .

RaiderZee wrote:Thanks everyone. I'm definately going to keep it. I'll get the timing fixed later this fall. If I find a better one down the road, I'll trade up.

jts1031 wrote:Reblued, it would maybe be worth $500.

That may be so, but I haven't seen a WG of any kind selling for $500 lately. If you do, get it. Or let me know .

Have an Indy weekend brother!
DLJ