Webley fail-to-fire in double-action

[braun]

I thought so but wasnt 100% sure.
The gun always fired when i had it but i only shoot my guns SA as i said DA is harder on the old guns.
Id Stop useing them Snap caps to eh.
The guns fireing pin is designed to shoot 455 Cases not 45 Schofields.
45 Schofield is way thicker rim than 455 you should get them rims thined to 455 Thickness.

Them snap caps (im guessing 45 colt) are bending the fireing pin tip because there to thick and are made designed for modern guns with hardened steel fireing pins.
Thats most likely how you cracked the fireing pin. or shooting the primed empty 45 schofield cases.
When you straitened it did you just pound on it or heat it up then straiten it?

You can straiten the pin out again then Silver soder the crack .
but Silver braze would be better.
Maby get someone good and profesional to do that.
then Dont keep shooting modern thick rimed Snap caps and empty thick rimed primed cases eh

I noticed the firing pin 'discolouration' well before the snap caps, which I only started using last week. The snap caps are .455 webley MkII, so the rims are nice and thin. The Schofield actually headspaces better! The primer area on them is some kind of thick rigid rubber, don't know exactly what it is. But if you still think it's a bad idea, I'll refrain....

I bent the firing pin with a pair of tiny brass pliers and very little force. No pounding (or heat) at all. The ease of this operation concerned me a bit...although after 36 additional firings there was no change in the angle, it's reverted to its original shape but no further bending. I guess I'll look into silver brazing, DEZ thanks for the offer I'll let you know.

cheers,
Greg

 

[mooncoon]

You can straiten the pin out again then Silver soder the crack .
but Silver braze would be better.

By silver soldering, it sounds like you are talking about soft solder with around 5% silver --- I think that would be a waste of time. What you are referring to as silver braze I suspect is what I would call high temperature silver solder and runs around 45% silver/55% copper and melts at 1140 F and is a very much stronger material

cheers mooncoon

 

[dingus]

If there 455 Snap caps there most likely ok.
I never even seen 455 Snap caps but if the center is rubber and it still bent the tip i wouldnt use them untill the tips crack is silver brazed.
course getting the tip silver brazed would help before the tip breaks right off if its only slightly cracked.
you should always heat stuff like that before bending it.

There is a few ways a new tip can be put in the hammer but its alot more work than just fixing the one you have now.
You can buy silver brazeing rod (its Blue) from any good welding supply shop. It works with a propane torch.
it works good to repair hammers tips ect but you must get the tip red hot without letting the heat traval down the hammer to far, clamping some alum to each side of the hammer at the neck will act as heat sinks.
Before you go doing all this tho try shooting a few normally loaded cartridges and see. Being as the tip has gone back to its shape and isnt moveing any more it might work for along time.

 

[Goonsquad]

Good to know, thanks. Do they have a source or did they make it themselves?

I'm not quite sure where it came from, but it is brand new with British arrow stampings. Talk about heavy though, recently I tested it to average 9 lbs on single action, double action will peg the scale at over 12lbs. Needs more ammo for break in.

Best of luck with your repairs.

 

[braun]

Update

Well, I had a chance to take it out to the range and try it out using 220gr bullets over 3.5gr Unique. No recoil and a "pop."

Dingus, you were right - with regular cartridges FTF is down to one per cylinder. Based on everyone's advice, it seems like the lighter, off-centre primer strikes in DA aren't reaching the anvil, so the next step will be to get the firing pin brazed. Thanks everybody.

 

[762mm]

Before you start modifying anything on the gun... In the other sections (pistols & revolvers), I've been reading that some target shooters have a lot of trouble with some types of primers in their modern revolvers. CCI large pistol magnums are supposedly so bad that even brand new S&W 686's have problems igniting them! (any type of CCI is deemed to be the hardest of primers, actually)

The general consensus is that Federal-brand primers of all types are the softest in the primers world and will go off in almost anything - even in guns with a weak main spring. If I were you, I'd give Federals a shot before starting to play around with mods on a genuine 130+ year old antique... because that should always be the very last resort. Cheers!




P.S. Also, I can personally confirm Federals' softness when it comes to .22LR (but I haven't tried their centerfire primers yet)... I have an 8-shot modern .22LR revolver that fails to ignite Winchester + other types of .22's for some damn reason... with the exception of Federals. Those ones go off every time! (due to very soft rims). I guess that Federal .22LR ammo is actually the only thing that kept me from getting rid of that POS and upgrading to something better, lol!