Webley MarkIII revolver

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bearhunter

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I recently purchased a Webley MarkIII revolver. I have been looking in every nook and cranny for manufacturing dates. Of course, I'm toying with getting the revolver reclassified to "antique" status.

This pistol is in about 85% outside condition and 98% inside condition. It would be a crime to dewat it or alter it by attaching a longer barrel.

I have been trying to contact a former member of this board GrantR.

I had an email address for him from his website "Rattlesnake Jack's." The email address given there is no longer valid although the site is still up. No contact number that I can find.

The name of the website owner is Grant Rombough of Medicine Hat. There is a law office in MH that has him listed as the owner. I don't want to bother the fellow if it isn't the same person.

The CFC says they don't have the manufacturing dates for the pistol, so they go by the date of first sale. That was in early 1899. It is an Army&Navy Comemerative Society Ltd. sale.

That leads me to assume the revolver was built pre 1899 and maybe as early as 1897. It is a commercial model as there are no martial stamps on it at all. It is also nickel plated.

I would appreciate any help finding the manufacture dates I can. I tried a couple of pay for search archive sites in the UK. The one fellow feels that there are people out there with viable records but anything before 1905 is very difficult to find.
 
bearhunter said:
I recently purchased a Webley MarkIII revolver. I have been looking in every nook and cranny for manufacturing dates. Of course, I'm toying with getting the revolver reclassified to "antique" status.

This pistol is in about 85% outside condition and 98% inside condition. It would be a crime to dewat it or alter it by attaching a longer barrel.

I have been trying to contact a former member of this board GrantR.

I had an email address for him from his website "Rattlesnake Jack's." The email address given there is no longer valid although the site is still up. No contact number that I can find.

The name of the website owner is Grant Rombough of Medicine Hat. There is a law office in MH that has him listed as the owner. I don't want to bother the fellow if it isn't the same person.

The CFC says they don't have the manufacturing dates for the pistol, so they go by the date of first sale. That was in early 1899. It is an Army&Navy Comemerative Society Ltd. sale.

That leads me to assume the revolver was built pre 1899 and maybe as early as 1897. It is a commercial model as there are no martial stamps on it at all. It is also nickel plated.

I would appreciate any help finding the manufacture dates I can. I tried a couple of pay for search archive sites in the UK. The one fellow feels that there are people out there with viable records but anything before 1905 is very difficult to find.
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What is the Serialnumber? There is a cut off number.

If it is a commercial model without serial number, I am afraid you are out of luck.
 
There you have it,... ummm under 1500.... contact GUNBOARDS , British Gun Pub and ask Joel Black, find out #'s list, get list of proof and number stamps, antique!
 
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Thanks for the information.

I was told that Webley MarkIII pistols in .455/.476 chambering were on a different list than the .380 versions. Another bit of information I can't confirm is that any of them listed in the 5000 serial number range were special orders and dated differently.

Supposedly, Webley didn't number their pistols consecutively but by batch lots.

This is all hearsay, I haven't been able to confirm or denounce any of it.

I have sent an email to Joel Black, with pics. I will wait for his reply as well.

Thanks again.
 
My information is that MKIII commercial are antique and MKIII military are not. A quick check is that the commercial guns will have the serial # on RHS of frame and military will have serial # by hinge, also military will have the British WD arrow head stamps. For what it is worth, last time I checked I could not find an FRT for MKIII commercial in .455/.476.
 
burnt_servo said:
didn't webley change their name around 1897 ?

and if so did they change the name or mark on their guns around the same time?
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I think you might be thinking about Webley and Sons changing to Webley and Scott which I think was around 1890. Both had W & S on the frame but the antique ones have a winged mini ball logo (hollow base) while the Webley & Scott has a winged solid base bullet

cheers mooncoon
 
mooncoon said:
I think you might be thinking about Webley and Sons changing to Webley and Scott which I think was around 1890. Both had W & S on the frame but the antique ones have a winged mini ball logo (hollow base) while the Webley & Scott has a winged solid base bullet

cheers mooncoon
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I believe the company name changed from Webley & Sons to Webley & Scott in 1897. The CFC did for a while accept the flying mini bullet logo as proof of antique manufacture in some Webley models but that is not the case in the MKIII .455 service pistols, where there is a definite cutoff number for antique status.

WebleyTrademarks.jpg


Apparently there are several documented cases of the winged mini bullet being used well past 1897, or so the CFC told me when i enquired about a WG with the flying mini bullet logo. They told me that it was not antique and according to their records that particular WG was built in 1899.

To the OP: you should just contact the CFC directly to find out if you webley is an antique. Joel can probably tell you what you need to know but you will still need to go through the CFC to deregister. The CFC will have different guidelines and tend to need more definitive proof of manufacturing dates. This is especially true of webleys because the manufacturing records are not complete and there is sometimes room for doubt. If you need assistance contacting the CFC firearms techs. Send me a PM and I will get you started on it. It's not hard to do.
 
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Thanks for all of the help. Because of the information I received from members on this thead and PMs. The situation is under control.

According to Joel Black's A&NCSL original ledgers, the pistol is a commercial and came to them in Aug of 1897 from Webley.

By the way, mine is marked on the LHS Webley Patents and beneath the winged hollow based bullet is stamped W&S.

John Hipwell at Wolverine Supplies has graciously consented to get the pistol reclassified for me.

Thanks John, I really do appreciate it. So will my heirs.

bearhunter
 
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This is so nice to see. Another nice gun saved from gun thieveing registry to be passion on to the future generatiOns of antique collectors. Our children and grand children.
I wish they changed the law to have any antiques before 1901 in all calibres.
Anyway congratulations bearhunter.
 
drslav said:
This is so nice to see. Another nice gun saved from gun thieveing registry to be passion on to the future generatiOns of antique collectors. Our children and grand children.
I wish they changed the law to have any antiques before 1901 in all calibres.
Anyway congratulations bearhunter.
Click to expand...

I forget where exactly but I remember a couple countries in Europe where pre 1946 were antique.
 
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