44 webly?

[LomondK]

I've noticed that the .455 Webly is far and away a big favorite on here. I am just thinking about getting ingot antique pistols and have an opportunity to pickup a "British Bulldog" in .44 Webly and I'm just wondering how hard is it to find casings for this round? Where does a person go to find such stuff? How do I know how to load this thing? I'm guessing that I can only load black powder in this thing but is there one type that is better then another for antiques?

Any info you guys can offer would be greatly appreciated, like I said I'm just a few days into even considering getting into this stuff so you can consider my knowledge level to be near zero and I'm not going to be offended.

Thanks

 

[H Wally]

Heyo - Keep in mind I'm new to antiques, but here are my 2C.

I've never seen 44 webley, hence why I haven't bought the webley in the EE that's chambered in 44 webley.
I suspect if you found dies or a similar cartridge and brass that can be formed, you could jerry rig something up that would allow you to reload. (basically finding brass that has similar measurements, then size it down or blow it out to fit the chamber, trim it, slug the bore to find bullet diameter, reload from there.

Blackpowder is safer in terms of pressure on functional BP guns, but with care you can shoot smokeless, especially if you are more concerned about cleaning them than accidental over pressure charges. Keep things safe with low pressures and do some google searches on 44 webley and you should be able to get an idea of what you're contending with.

 

[rgbai]

I have a bulldog in .44 webley It's a really short bullet. you would need to cut down 44 special brass and thin the rims with a lathe. Then cut down .44 special dies because there too long to use for the .44 bulldog.

 

[SCHNEIDERSAUTO]

use 44 russian dies . and do as fellow above says for brass . get a healed 44 bullet . just building some my self . friend working the brass for me . also doing 44 webley, brass just shorter . will be shooting black powder shockeys gold .

 

[dingus]

Depends on your Bulldog who built the thing.
I have had a few there all seem to be diffrent the last one i bought is a real beauty it almost takes and entire 44 Sp case as is.
all i had to do was shorten the case to 44 Russian Length maby a tad longer.
I just reload with my Lee 44 mag hand loader set. they work good and are cheep.
My gun has .430 chamber throats (yes it has chamber throats not bored thru cylinder like most)
I load the cases with .430 keith type SWCs
Theres so many diffrent British bulldogs just get a 44 Sp case and see how much you need to shorten it as you go.
make sure its a new case or a resized case to start.

 

[john777]

I'm interested in purchasing an antique Webley or a 44 Russian. Instead of looking on EE, anyone know any anitque dealers in Ontario or somewhere online? I would look to handle one before purchasing.

EDIT: I think I'm looking for the 44 Webley (correct me if I am wrong - the one that some people mutilate by shaving the cylinder to accept 45 ACP).

Thanks!

 

[sunray]

The Webley British Bulldog can be Belgian or U.S. made that came in assorted chamberings. .450 Webley, .442 Webley and .44 Rimfire, for example. There's a .44 Webley and a .44 Bulldog cartridge too. Both using a different bullet diameter. Both bigger than .429". It'd take more than just trimming to length. Rim diameter.
Their dimensions are here. Numerical order by calibre.
http://members.shaw.ca/cstein0/revolver.htm
Webley made the first ones in 1878. They and the Belgians went on to make several models until 1914. Some of 'em can be ornately engraved. Some are just junk.
The upside is that they're not expensive. Good place to start a collection. BP cartridges only, of course.
There are a lot of sites about 'em.
"...44 Sp..." Pricey stuff. .44 Mag cases would do though.