Loading Webley 455 Mk. II

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Hi:
I am just getting into reloading for a Webley MkII and would appreciate some advice. I will be using Lee dies in a hand press. Is it possible to use .454 225 grain bullets? This is all that Higginson powders has (I am in Ottawa). Also, has anyone tried Hodgon Universal powder? I am told that is more or less equivalent to Unique, so starting with a load of 4.0 grains would be mild (and safe).

Thanks in advance for any guidance.

John
 
Sound like you are on the right track. IF you can find a hollow base bullet which is cast soft you might get abit better accuracy
 
I have a RCBS mould for the webley it drops a 265 gr.hollow base .455 dia slug out of the blocks backed by 3.5 gr. of bulleye gives me excellent groups.
The .455 dia. 250 gr slugs work well also.
 
Oma bullets makes the proper 265gr bullet for them, I got the dies, bullets and brass but haven't had time to start making them.
 
.455 Mk 11

If you have easy access to Higginson's...try some Trail Boss...bulky....so less chance of a double charge......data is listed on this forum....and take the advice about soft bullets...I use .454 dia speers (a cowboy action bullet) when I don't have time to cast.

I'm looking for a Canadian source for the .454 Remington hollow based 250gr (.45 Colt bullet)....the hollow base really helps...
Steve
 
John Sukey said:
If you want a shock, mike the the chamber mouths and you will see why the revolver uses a hollow base bullet.
Click to expand...


Ya whats up with that i have a few British guns and alot of there chamber mouths are .460
But some of them still shoot under 2 inch groups with .454 Keith style bullets.

Not hollow based! Im gona give some .456 dia bullets a shot thru my WGs as i figger thats only gona make the groups tighter.
 
Webley .455

I know that it shouldn't shoot worth a hoot but I have had excellent accuracy with some 260 grain Keith style .454 bullets that I had on hand for the .45 Colt. I'm shooting a MK 111 Webley in Mk1 cases over Unique. Some firearms are like kids and they like things that we think are not good for them.

Regards,

Outdoors
 
That mkI case is probabley helping big time with accuracy. Bet the kieth bullet is pretty soft?

Always really nice to hear "I have had excellent accuracy " and webley all in the same breath! It is totally possible.
 
Thanks for the Help. What about colt 45 bullets?

Has anyone tried using .451-.452 lead bullets? I presume since Webly's were converted to 45 ACP that it is possible. I'm concerned about using something with a too large calibre (is .454 definitely OK?). what about jacketed bullets?

With the Higginson Trail Boss, what is a good strarting load?

Thanks again for all the help.

John
 
Guarenteed soft .454 bullets at 650 fps will not hurt that gun. I proofed it for you!

Jacketed bullets have no place near your webley!
 
outdoors said:
I know that it shouldn't shoot worth a hoot but I have had excellent accuracy with some 260 grain Keith style .454 bullets that I had on hand for the .45 Colt. I'm shooting a MK 111 Webley in Mk1 cases over Unique. Some firearms are like kids and they like things that we think are not good for them.

Regards,

Outdoors
Click to expand...
Hello all,
Be very, very, careful handloading the .455 Webley (even the Mark VI which is smokeless proofed).All the other Marks, I through V, are blackpowder safe only.Even the Mark VI is proofed to only 8 Tons and should be regarded as a blackpowder revolver.The steel is soft.Mark I brass is safer (more Volume and covers the cylinder stop slots on the inside) but you have to make it from .45 Colt.Mark I Balloon head cases aren't safe either.The F.N.Hollow Base 298 Gr. LEE Minie bullet at .454 inch sized to .452 inch is a good bullet too,as is the 265 Gr. R.N. Hollow Base from R.C.B.S.The reason for the hollow base is to allow deformation out of the chamber but it also keeps pressures down because of the increased volume.Use Lee load data only,and don't guess.In 'cut downs' to .45 A.C.P.don't fire factory ammo.It's way too hot.Handload soft,hollow based bullets.If you want to shoot hot loads buy a different revolver.
 
Hey David !
guess our Webleys that are shaved to shoot 45 colts at with the .454 Keiths 250 bullets seated back to the last band. are unsafe :eek: :p

The 250 gr 1000 FPS loads are a tad hot but i can shoot the 930 FPS loads all day with no problems.

Im getting my next batch of 250 gr Keiths bullets sized to .455 as .452 bullts dont shoot worth crap outa a 455 Barrel.
 
dingus said:
Hey David !
guess our Webleys that are shaved to shoot 45 colts at with the .454 Keiths 250 bullets seated back to the last band. are unsafe :eek: :p

The 250 gr 1000 FPS loads are a tad hot but i can shoot the 930 FPS loads all day with no problems.

Im getting my next batch of 250 gr Keiths bullets sized to .455 as .452 bullts dont shoot worth crap outa a 455 Barrel.
Click to expand...

Hi Dingus,
The quality and function of prosthetic arms and hands has improved greatly,and you can always trade the parts of the revolver that are left.
 
LOL Well i think your underestimateing the MKVI
they made the MKV cylinder with thicker walls than the earlier models and the MKVI has the same thicker cylinder walls.

Elmer keith who i think would know a thing or two about Revolvers ;) has altered the Webley MKVI exactly the same as i have. Shooting his 250 gr bullets seated deeper to the last band (so they fit in the shorter cylinder and it will cycle)
Im confident shooting my MKIV with its MKVI barrel and cylinder with 45 solid head 45 colt cases and 250 gr keith bullets .454 dia and 8 grs of Unique.
My 455 cylinder has been custom reamed and shaved to shoot the 45 scofeilds in normal factory condition Or deeper seated 45 colt cases as Factory 45 colts are to long for the web cylinder.
Im shooting 2 inch or less groups at 25 Yds to!
Still got all me fingers :D
 
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Well I had a mkI proofed np to 6 tons so someone figured the mkvi at 8 tons was at least a bit stronger.

No one is saying that BP webleys should be loaded beyond pressures which have been accepted for a very long time. between the mkI and mkvi we are talking nearly a 40 years diffrence in metalurgy.

All in aggrement that .45acp in a mki, mkII is not a good idea.
 
James:

I'm genuinely curious where you got the idea that all of the Webley service revolvers up to and including Mark V are safe only with black powder?

Don't get me wrong: I certainly don't recommend overloading Webleys - nor, obviously, is that a good practice with any firearm, no matter how new, or strongly built - but the Mark IV had upgraded steel quality specifically for use of cordite loads and, as already mentioned, the Mark V and Mark VI were further improved with thicker chamber walls.

In other words, the last three models were designed for smokeless loads, and were in fact used almost exclusively with smokeless loads ..... and loaded within its proof limits a sound Webley is perfectly safe with smokeless loads.
 
Loading the .455 Webley

Hello Grant,
Just saw your post.Apologies for the delay.You wrote " loaded within its proof limits a sound Webley is perfectly safe with smokeless loads."[/QUOTE] And with that I would take no issue at all.My comments were made simply to inject some caution.My authority on handloading the .455 Webley has been Walter Lyall writing in "Target Gun" around 1994.He cautions that the Marks II through VI although set up to fire cordite still have inherently mild steel by todays standards.He talks of two other weaknesses which are of a concern to me.Where the cylinder stops slots have been ground the steel is paper thin and barely covered by the Mark II case.The Mark I case covers it and presumably so does Dingus's .45 Colt case.Bulging of these stop slots is an indication of high pressure and wrecks the collector value of a fine revolver.Another weakness is the narrow stirrup catch screw in the Marks I through V.It was beefed up in the Mark VI.Your points are otherwise well taken.
 
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