Page 1 of 1
Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Fri Dec 18, 2015 8:19 pm
by KnightsFan
Found this over on Reddit.
It's an image gallery of a Webley-Fosbery Automatic Revolver. That's right, an automatic revolver. When a round is fired the recoil is used to actuate the cylinder and hammer.
Here's a gif of it in action. The imgur gallery includes some great information on it.
Because he was an independent inventor he did not have the resources to complete this project. So he took it to the firm of Webley. Webley was interested because they were starting to see new "automatics" come out of Germany (Borchardt, Broomhandle) as well as America (Colt 1900). Webley thought this design might help them compete against the automatics while leveraging their strength in revolver production.
…SNIP…
How the Zig Zag works. There is a stud on the bottom half of the frame which rides in the grooves cut into the cylinder. As the top half is moving backwards because of recoil, the stud causes the cylinder to rotate. In addition, the hammer is cocked back.
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2015 3:04 am
by workinstiff
Nice contraption. Actual use by the Army that kept the Webely...and did not pursue this permutation says a lot.
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2015 9:54 am
by comedian
Reminds me of another complicated revolver that had a neat solution in search of a problem- the M1895 Nagant gas seal revolver.
Unlike the Nagant, the Zig Zag Webley was unreliable in combat.
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2015 10:21 am
by Ronin
Wasn't that the gun used by the killer in the Maltese Falcon?
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2015 10:23 am
by TheViking
Ronin wrote:Wasn't that the gun used by the killer in the Maltese Falcon?
It was definitely the one used by Sean Connery in Zardoz...
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2015 10:24 am
by TheViking
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2015 11:28 am
by Merkwuerdigliebe
The Penis Shoots Seeds
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2015 5:04 pm
by CDFingers
That is so steam punk to mine eyes.
Want.
CDFingers
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2015 5:48 pm
by JoelB
This is my friend shooting my Fosbery.
http://vidmg.photobucket.com/albums/v24 ... osbery.mp4
This is what it looks like.
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2015 9:48 pm
by KnightsFan
Thanks for adding the video. It's cool to see it in action. Such an odd movement.
Things like this are why I love firearms, the engineering and creativity that goes into them.
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2015 3:50 pm
by JoelB
I just got it that day. I couldn't find any loaded .455, so we shot it with some .450's loaded to black powder spec with Hodgdons 777, which accounts for the smoke. What amazed me it that it functioned fine with that light load and it is as accurate as my WG Target.
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2015 8:55 am
by beto
That revolver has fscinatd me since I read about them. I believe an I Italian company came up with a .357 automatic revolver in the 1960s or 70s. In any case Webleys and their cones have fascinated me.
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2015 1:07 pm
by TheViking
beto wrote:That revolver has fscinatd me since I read about them. I believe an I Italian company came up with a .357 automatic revolver in the 1960s or 70s. In any case Webleys and their cones have fascinated me.
Mateba Unica - same designer as the Chiappa Rhino:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mateba_Autorevolver
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2015 3:53 pm
by JoelB
One of my co-authors has a Mateba. I was surprised it actually worked.
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Tue Dec 22, 2015 7:38 am
by beto
TheViking wrote:beto wrote:That revolver has fscinatd me since I read about them. I believe an I Italian company came up with a .357 automatic revolver in the 1960s or 70s. In any case Webleys and their cones have fascinated me.
Mateba Unica - same designer as the Chiappa Rhino:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mateba_Autorevolver
If I were a hedge fund operator, I'd have both. Who said revolvers were all 19th century design?
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Tue Dec 22, 2015 7:41 am
by beto
CDFingers wrote:That is so steam punk to mine eyes.
Want.
CDFingers
And what is wrong with steam punk?
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Tue Dec 22, 2015 7:47 am
by Simmer down
That looks like it would require a lot of recoil energy to work the whole thing.
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Tue Dec 22, 2015 7:49 am
by sikacz
TheViking wrote:beto wrote:That revolver has fscinatd me since I read about them. I believe an I Italian company came up with a .357 automatic revolver in the 1960s or 70s. In any case Webleys and their cones have fascinated me.
Mateba Unica - same designer as the Chiappa Rhino:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mateba_Autorevolver
I like the Mateba! I'd buy one! The Fosbery is pretty cool almost as beautiful as my Nagant! I could really enjoy collecting revolvers! Y'all are adding to my lust list!
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Tue Dec 22, 2015 7:55 am
by TheViking
sikacz wrote:TheViking wrote:beto wrote:That revolver has fscinatd me since I read about them. I believe an I Italian company came up with a .357 automatic revolver in the 1960s or 70s. In any case Webleys and their cones have fascinated me.
Mateba Unica - same designer as the Chiappa Rhino:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mateba_Autorevolver
I like the Mateba! I'd buy one! The Fosbery is pretty cool almost as beautiful as my Nagant! I could really enjoy collecting revolver! Y'all are adding to my lust list!
I looked up Matebas on Gunbroker, there were only two for sale - the cheapest starting bids at $3000...
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Tue Dec 22, 2015 7:58 am
by beto
I think the Webleys 455 with a 260 grain bullet would have enough recoil energy but I bet the action absorbs most. I have no doubt the 357 would. There was chart posted a few years ago on the forum, I believe, that showed how to calculate recoil given variables such as bullet weight etc..
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Tue Dec 22, 2015 8:02 am
by sikacz
TheViking wrote:sikacz wrote:TheViking wrote:beto wrote:That revolver has fscinatd me since I read about them. I believe an I Italian company came up with a .357 automatic revolver in the 1960s or 70s. In any case Webleys and their cones have fascinated me.
Mateba Unica - same designer as the Chiappa Rhino:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mateba_Autorevolver
I like the Mateba! I'd buy one! The Fosbery is pretty cool almost as beautiful as my Nagant! I could really enjoy collecting revolvers! Y'all are adding to my lust list!
I looked up Matebas on Gunbroker, there were only two for sale - the cheapest starting bids at $3000...
That's what keeps me in reality. My upper limit on affording never seems to reach that high!
Oh, well.
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Tue Dec 22, 2015 8:10 am
by Simmer down
beto wrote:I think the Webleys 455 with a 260 grain bullet would have enough recoil energy but I bet the action absorbs most. I have no doubt the 357 would. There was chart posted a few years ago on the forum, I believe, that showed how to calculate recoil given variables such as bullet weight etc..
http://www.handloads.com/calc/recoil.asp
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Tue Dec 22, 2015 8:37 am
by CDFingers
beto wrote:CDFingers wrote:That is so steam punk to mine eyes.
Want.
CDFingers
And what is wrong with steam punk?
Absolutely nothing is wrong with steam punk. Once I traded for my Enfield, I have become enamored of that look. Now I'm shopping for one of these.
CDFingers
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Tue Dec 22, 2015 9:16 am
by TheViking
CDFingers wrote:beto wrote:CDFingers wrote:That is so steam punk to mine eyes.
Want.
CDFingers
And what is wrong with steam punk?
Absolutely nothing is wrong with steam punk. Once I traded for my Enfield, I have become enamored of that look. Now I'm shopping for one of these.
CDFingers
Good luck, less than 5000 Fosberys made - compared to probably hundreds of thousands of the Enfields and Webleys. I'm sure they go for a pretty penny.
Re: Webly-Fosbery
Posted: Tue Dec 22, 2015 10:19 am
by Simmer down
CDFingers wrote:beto wrote:CDFingers wrote:That is so steam punk to mine eyes.
Want.
CDFingers
And what is wrong with steam punk?
Absolutely nothing is wrong with steam punk. Once I traded for my Enfield, I have become enamored of that look. Now I'm shopping for one of these.
CDFingers
More affordable that I thought
https://www.etsy.com/listing/190920972/ ... :190920972
