(A little off topic) Need a good Webley Smith

[Led]

I recently purchased a Webley MK IV (.38) for a good price at a local shop. The gun has a timing problem which I knew about before the purchase. I'm looking for a smith that can fix the problem. Any takers??

Thanks,
Stephen

[cutlass1972]

every webley I ever had shaved jackets. That being said, I think you would have to micro tig some extra metal onto the cylendar advancing prawl to get it to time properly. I love the look of the webleys, but decided that if I was going to have an archaic looking .38 S&W I was going to stick to enfields.

A side note, if you shoot them double action and snap the stigger instead of pulling it, they usually "sling" the cylendar into the locking machanisim before it fires and does not shave bullets, I have a suspicion that this type of fring probibly caused the issue to begin with though.

[Led]

It also has an issue with cylinder lockup, it wobbles quite a bit. This could be normal for a Webley, I really don't know. I enjoy shooting the gun and got it for a very good price. The timing issue is obvious when you compare the firing pin marks on the fired cases. I've already started looking for parts. Numrich has some parts but are sold out of hands.

I noticed the same behavior as you explained when firing. If the trigger it pulled swiftly and completely back the cylinder usually lined up fine. I confirmed this by examination of the fired cases. If fired in single action mode or with a slow trigger pull the hammer strikes on the primers were usually off.

Thanks,
Stephen

[cutlass1972]

sounds like the cylendar lock mechanisim is either too thin or the slots that it locks into have widened in your case. if you cannot get a new one or even if you do get a new one and it is too thin because the slots in the cylendar are too wide you might be able to tap on the locking pin thing and displace enough metal to make it widen.

Just a thought.

I really like the webleys, they are areally cool revolvers, just seem to get "worn out"

[Led]

The lock mechanisim tab is noticeably thinner than the slots on the cylinder. This looked to be normal because the cut in the frame that the tab moves through is sized accordingly to the tab itself. The locking cuts on the cylinder don't look like they have grown over time but were machined at there current size. I presume this because the edges on the cylinder cuts have nice shape edges and don't look worn. Again, I could be wrong though.

Later,
Stephen

[cutlass1972]

might be that they all shaved bullets right out of the factory? Like I said EVERY Webly I ever owned shaved bullets, and 2 of those webleys looked pretty darn good (like thay had seen VERY little use). I just gave up on them.

[TheFabulousFink]

I have a Webley Mk IV as well (great little gun). Mine is stamped "War Finish" as it was made durring the WWII and they used a cheaper finish to meet production demands (much of the finish is still there ).

It also has an issue with cylinder lockup, it wobbles quite a bit. This could be normal for a Webley, I really don't know.

The cylinder of a Webley will move quite a bit when the gun is un-cocked, when the gun is cocked it will move a little, when it is fired it shouldn't move at all.

A good way to test is: Make sure the gun is empty, cock the hammer and pull the trigger (letting the hammer fall), continue holding the trigger back and try and move the cylinder with your other hand. It should have little to no side-side movement, and absolutely no front-back movement.

My old Webley locks up tighter than my brand new S&W.

If the trigger it pulled swiftly and completely back the cylinder usually lined up fine. I confirmed this by examination of the fired cases. If fired in single action mode or with a slow trigger pull the hammer strikes on the primers were usually off.

This does sound like a timing issue. Any good revolver gunsmith should be able to check and fix the timing. Make sure the smith knows revolvers, fixing the timing on revolvers is tricky and is not something every gunsmith can do well. Sending it to some bubba smith who just builds deer rifles could end up making things worse.

I hope thing work out, I love my Webley and wish I had a more reliable source of good .38s&w ammo

[richbug]

If you shoot a S&W hard enough, often enough, and fast enough they will hammer out the locking cuts in the cylinder.

Maybe in your case you should look at opening up the forcing cone instead.

[kev]

The cylinder on a Webley isn't fully locked until the trigger is pulled; the locking bolt is actually on the trigger itself. With the hammer back the cylinder is only indexed, but it will feel loose and wobbly to anyone accustomed to 'normal' revolvers. Try the test described by TheFabulousFink above.

[Led]

The locking bolt is not engaging consistantly. When testing the action, (gun open, cocking hammer back to single action) the locking tab will sometimes fail to come up out of the frame. Usually when the hammer is cocked the locking bolt pops up. Sometimes the locking bolt will remain down even when the hammer is cocked in single action. When the trigger is pulled to release the hammer the locking bolt will then release. I think this late locking might be part of the problem. Upon first cleaning it wasn't completely obvious on how to remove the locking bolt. (Any tips would be great) It is possible it's just dirty, and that would be good because it's an easy fix. If it's not dirty then it really needs a good smith. Revolvers are something I have no experence working on and unfortunatly don't have the time to learn.

Later,
Stephen