Webley MKI Sticky Ejector

[cz858lover]

I have an antique status Webley MKI that has been shaved to accept .45ACP on moon clips.

The ejector has recently been sticking in the extended position when I open the revolver. I can usually get it to retract if I open and close it a few times, however it almost always stays extended the first time I try to open it.

I am kind of skeptical to start taking the gun apart for fear that I may break something and parts for this gun would probably less then easy to find.

I can still use the gun but I would like to fix it more from the aspect retaining the value of this gun as I have a substantial amount of money invested into it.

Can anyone tell me if this is an easy fix? and if so what I can do to remedy this problem? And failing a quick fix at home, does anyone know a good gunsmith that knows antique webley's very well and might be able to take a look at her?

 

[H Wally]

It's not complex, but that depends on your level of mechanical skill. If you need to avoid disassembly soak the barrel, cylinder and ejector can in pure alcohol or thinner overnight and work everything so the solvents penetrate, then wipe everything down and heavily re-oil with a thin penetrating oil to get deep into the crevices, followed by more working the action and heavier gun oil. You'll need the oil because you will have removed any protected oil on it and it'll want to rust on you.

 

[cz858lover]

It's not complex, but that depends on your level of mechanical skill. If you need to avoid disassembly soak the barrel, cylinder and ejector can in pure alcohol or thinner overnight and work everything so the solvents penetrate, then wipe everything down and heavily re-oil with a thin penetrating oil to get deep into the crevices, followed by more working the action and heavier gun oil. You'll need the oil because you will have removed any protected oil on it and it'll want to rust on you.

Thanks for the response. You're probably right that it just needs a good cleaning. I will have to search for a good detailed diagram of how it goes together and go from there.

 

[H Wally]

If its been gradually starting to stick over time I would guess it's dirt... most antiques have 50-100 years of dirt and old oil in them. Elsewhere in the gun I would suspect wear, but the ejector is pretty simple and unless somehow dropped/struck/damaged with the ejector extended it's pretty hard to damage that part.

It could be a number of points that're causing the ejector to stick, starting with the ejector cam that's housed at the pivot point between the frame and barrel. From there it projects into the recess in the barrel and presses against the base of the ejector. To remove the ejector you have to pull the barrel from the frame (clean the ejector cam simultaneously), then remove the cross screw from the barrel, which will allow you to pull the whole barrel assembly out of the barrel. It's usually tight, but putting oil in the cross screw hole and through the gap for the ejector cam will help. If it really doesn't want to work, use more penetrating oil and gently heat the area with a torch just enough to pull the oil in - not even enough to get the oil burning, just penetrating.

Pull on the cylinder evenly, as I've seen the cylinder pin (it's actually just a tube with a lengthwise notch in it) bent/collapsed from the cylinder being hammered on from one side to remove it... so don't do that. Once the cylinder assembly is out, you can probably just stop disassembly there and let solvents and oil do the work. Working the part while immersed in solvent will really speed the process along, and as always use a good quality oil that's not going to polymerize/gum up in the future and create the same problem again. If you've never had the gun apart it might be worth it to go further, but without one in front of me I can't say exactly how to do so.