I consider myself a “revolver
guy” even though I don’t use revolvers exclusively. My love for firearms can be
traced back to several films, one of which being Dirty Harry. Now everyone
knows Dirty Harry carried a .44 magnum Smith and Wesson model 29 and I, like
most Americans, have wanted one for as long as I can remember. But alas, there
is another revolver that has sat on my “Want List” for almost as long and in my
opinion is the second coolest revolver of all time: the Webley and Scott
revolver.
For the uninitiated, W&S
was founded in the late 1700s, began making firearms in the mid-1830s and
produced them all the way up until 1979. In that time frame they produced
pistols, shotguns and of course revolvers. Numerous models in numerous calibers
sat in the holsters of military and police across the world for almost a
century. Today’s focus will be on my personal favorite: the MK VI. The Webley
Mk VI revolver is a six shot, double action/single action, top break,
self-ejecting, large frame revolver. It carries a 6” barrel and six shots of
.455 Webley caliber ammunition (similar in ballistics to our .45 Colt).
Now, I have always wanted one
of these revolvers. They are just so cool! There isn’t really a rhyme or reason
as to why I like these revolvers so much. Perhaps it’s the large frame, or the
hefty feel of that squared off grip, or the sleek but solid look of the flat
sided barrel. Maybe it’s the break action? Break action revolvers such as the
Smith and Wesson Model 3 and its variants have always peaked my interest. It’s
something different! After shooting a dozen swing out cylinders and a dozen
loading gate equipped firearms, one that drops down and pops empty brass out on
its own really is a change of pace.
The problem and leading factor
to why I have yet to acquire a Mk VI is their age. Don’t get me wrong; I love
old guns. Unfortunately I am not an expert on them. Is this one original
caliber or has it been reamed out for .45 ACP or .45 Colt? Original finish?
Original grips? How’s the bore? It can be exhausting. And finding one locally
in good shooting shape is a chore in and of itself. How about buying online? I
don’t know if I would be able to buy a 100 year old revolver off the internet
with a few dimly lit pictures. Woe is me! If only the new and improved Webley
& Scott that has been pumping out some nice shotguns as of late would start
producing them again!!! (I imagine the devil smiling here)
They are! Or at least they
will be! I attended the 2015 SHOT Show and had the pleasure of speaking with
Roger Williams at the Webley & Scott booth. A pair of MK VI’s on the wall
caught my attention and I almost fell over I stopped so hard. As I got closer I
was heartbroken to see the numbers .177 and 6mm on either side of them; they
were airgun and airsoft replicas. After chatting with Roger he informed us that
W&S had indeed been debating about bringing back production on the MK VI,
this being the 100 year anniversary of the Mk VI’s adoption. I said “YES” so
fast I almost bit my tongue off!
They had recently converted
the original schematics for the Mk VI series to digital and are able to start
production. The catch is, they need interest and Roger wasn’t sure if there was
enough interest in the American market. We assured him there was and he asked
for our opinion on a “Founder’s Club” where they would ask for 1000 people to
sign up with $100 down payments to start production. I immediately raised my
hand and proclaimed myself to be “first in line”
Well within a week of the show ending, the Founder’s Club had started. I’ve already signed up
myself and if you are at all interested in owning one of these amazing
firearms, I highly suggest you sign up. They are shooting for an MSRP of under
$1000 and with the price some of the 100 year old models are currently running,
this is an excellent deal. So please, do yourself a favor and sign up for a
Webley. I have, and I can’t wait to get mine and try it out. Heck, I might even
pick up one of the airguns in the meantime to fulfill the Webley shaped gap in
my life.
Check out http://webleymkvi.com/ to join the founders club.
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