European Revolvers?

T

TruthTellers

New member
Coming off my thread of 19th Century revolvers, some had mentioned European revolvers in that thread and I'm thinking about it.

I'm not interested in Korth's or Manhurin's, they're way out of my price range, but stuff like Webley's, Nagant's, or others in that price range would peak my interest.

Also, they can be black powder cartridge only or percussion revolvers, but I'd prefer if they have DA capability.

Also, prefer more vintage/classic revolvers and not stuff made in the past 40-50 years.

I'm not familiar with much in European revolvers besides what I've already mentioned, so what's out there?
 
Those are pretty vintage.

Really, I'd be looking for something that can be a shooter, so anything that is a cap and ball type revolver works, but anything that takes cartridges, cartridges that can be reloaded, I'm into.

That means no pinfire or rimfire revolvers and dies and brass are reasonably available.
 
The Webley Mk.VI is frequently available on Gunbroker. The WWII versions are chambered for the .38/200 which is basically the same as the .38 S&W..
The gun is a good shooter and meets all of your qualifications.
Pete
 
Webley in .38/200 would be fine. I had been thinking about a top break .38 S&W, but most of them are pretty weak in design and lots of manuals and guidelines I've been reading had said something to the effect that US made top breaks in .38 S&W should not shoot bullets weighing over 145 grains.

How about Webley's chambered for .455 Webley?
 
I absolutely love the M1882 Rubin! They are not very expensive around here, but then again neither is the Colt snakes, but if one turns up in your neighbourhood, do yourself a favor and take a look.
 
"...basically the same as the .38 S&W..." Exactly the same with a 200 grain lead bullet the Brits tried to make it more powerful instead of a new handgun. Brits were bankrupt after W.W. I. No money for the Army.
"...Those are pretty vintage..." They also run 3 grand and up. Adams and Tranter revolvers that were both percussion and cartridge are collector pieces. Ammo isn't readily available for 'em either. Neither is .455 Webley ammo.
Find a Webley Mk IV or an Enfield No. 2. .38 S&W with a 145 grain lead bullet is easy to come by. There is 200 grain data around some place on-line too. Forget where, of course.
 
I'm surprised I haven't thought about this. European manufacturers are all over semi autos. I am not aware of any modern euro revolver manufacturers. Why is that market only an American thing?
 
Chiappa is a european manufacturer of modern revolvers, and many makers of classic western style forearms are in fact european as well. Other than that, most european gunmakers produce guns for military and law enforcement agencies exclusively, and such weapons are almost always semi-auto. There is not a lot of civilian gun owners around here to raise the demand for revolvers, or other less tactically relevant firearms such as 1911s. Unfortunately.
 
In the US, the time gap between percussion revolvers and center-fire cartridge revolvers was filled by rimfire revolvers. But in Europe, the same gap was filled by the pinfire revolver, and most revolvers of that general era use the pinfire system. The guns are not practical for use today, since pinfire cartridges are scarce and difficult to make or reload. But no collection of revolvers from the 1850-1900 era would be complete without several examples of pinfires and their ammunition.

Jim
 
Webley .38s are great guns. Here is mine:

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Original holster, cleaning rod, and 38/200 service cartridges. Shoots any factory .38 S&W and is built strong. Some poo-poo the stopping power of the cartridge but with some original 200 grain lead round nose loads they were found to be equal in performance to the vaunted .455 round. Mine has a very smooth and excellent double action pull and ejecting the spend cases never gets old. Highly recommended.
 
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"... with some original 200 grain lead round nose loads they were found to be equal in performance to the vaunted .455 round."

First, the old .455 is not exactly an impressive powerhouse. Second, the .38 was chosen by the British based on the performance (such as it was) of the old "manstopper" load but some spoilsport reminded them that soft lead bullets were a no-no so the actual WWII issue round has a 178 grain jacketed bullet moving at a rather leisurely 620 fps.

Jim
 
James K said:
"... with some original 200 grain lead round nose loads they were found to be equal in performance to the vaunted .455 round."

First, the old .455 is not exactly an impressive powerhouse. Second, the .38 was chosen by the British based on the performance (such as it was) of the old "manstopper" load but some spoilsport reminded them that soft lead bullets were a no-no so the actual WWII issue round has a 178 grain jacketed bullet moving at a rather leisurely 620 fps.

Jim
Click to expand...
Yep. The original one had a 200 grain loooong bullet that some say would tumble on impact. Regardless, the Brits went away from that and came out with a jacketed round later on. But some 200 grain stuff was still around during WW2 due to ammunition shortages. You can reload it yourself these days and there is at least one outfit offering a repro load.

A Webley would serve the OP well. I see a good deal on one on Gun Broker right now...
 
That bullet from Matt is a good shooter. I was able to get them years ago from the now defunct Liberty Shooting Supplies. I believe that it is cast from the NEI 149a mold.
 
All Nagants have terrible triggers, but some are terribler (Is that a word?) than others. Other military revolvers of that era are the Swiss, the Swedish, and the French. There were two major eras, as in this country. The first was from about 1865-1885, mostly large caliber guns of 10-12 mm, in RF, CF and pinfire. The second, from about 1885 to 1910, was smaller caliber, roughly 7.5 - 9 mm, and included the U.S. Colt .38 revolvers. Those guns were mostly replaced by auto pistols prior to WWI, though many of the old revolvers were given a second life in that disastrous war.

Jim
 
I wouldn't get a Nagant... they have a problem where some of them lock up when you shoot original ammo in them and you can't get the emptys out with a mallet. Trust me, had this happen on mine. Sold it for a BIG profit and have never looked back.

I would MUCH rather have a Webley. It is a far better range and defensive revolver than any crappy Nagant.
 
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