Oddball calibers 455 38-40 25-20
- Thread starter pc9
- Start date
Did a little searching out of curiosity and it looks like many US manufacturers (and the Canadian Dominion from the headstamps) called the .455 Webly the ".455 Colt" up until the 1930's. Colt and S&W made some revolvers meant for the Canadian market in that and stamped them ".455 Colt". It appears they based them all off of the Mk.I case dimensions even after converting to smokeless (where as the British shortened the case a bit after the conversion).
I hear about ammo collectors but often see boxes just like those sitting at gun shows unsold quite commonly; I guess there aren't that many around. Most of the time they are being sold for the equivalent of around $1/round. Some people will buy it to shoot it if they have an older firearm in that calibre. You can still get brass for all those so those with firearms in those calibres likely handload. The .25ACP may have a more limited customer base as most firearms chambered for it will be prohibited.
I hear about ammo collectors but often see boxes just like those sitting at gun shows unsold quite commonly; I guess there aren't that many around. Most of the time they are being sold for the equivalent of around $1/round. Some people will buy it to shoot it if they have an older firearm in that calibre. You can still get brass for all those so those with firearms in those calibres likely handload. The .25ACP may have a more limited customer base as most firearms chambered for it will be prohibited.
Mixed headstamps with all the same primers and the one on the right has marker across the head but not on the primer. Good eye; I didn't even think of that.
"I hear about ammo collectors but often see boxes just like those sitting at gun shows unsold quite commonly; I guess there aren't that many around."
Unfortunately some of your laws over the past few years have significantly cut into the Canadian ammo collecting community. And as the field gets smaller, there's more interest in top condition boxes and rounds, the ones in the OP's pics not being in that class.
Unfortunately some of your laws over the past few years have significantly cut into the Canadian ammo collecting community. And as the field gets smaller, there's more interest in top condition boxes and rounds, the ones in the OP's pics not being in that class.
Have ammunition laws changed in the past few years? I don't know much about export or collecting so I don't know if something specific to those changed but for regular buying of ammo for shooting nothing has changed in a while.
I meant over a period of years, 10-15 or so. There used to be lots of Canadians involved in the hobby, but laws about special loads, shipping, transporting over borders, etc., pushed a lot of them out of the hobby. One American collector I know retired to Canada and had to dispose of most of his guns and ammo since they would not have been legal north of the border.
455 colt is often priced stupidly high, I've seen boxes of 50 go for $80 or $120, most of the time unsold. I can, and have, bought fiocchi 455 webley from Canada ammo for $1 per round shipped. I personally wouldn't pay more than that, as I intend to shoot it not collect it.
