| The Webley-Fosbery is the only revolver in the world
to be designated as a 'self-cocking' or semi automatic revolver. The revolver was recoil operated in that when a bullet was fired the revolver automatically revolved the cylinder, it did this via zig-zags that were grooved into it that revolved as a stud engaged the grooves for the next shot and also cocked the hammer. Quite a neat idea !  This totally unique idea was invented by Lieutenant Colonel George Vincent Fosbery, (holder of the Victoria Cross) in 1894 and the revolver was manufactured by Webley & Scott of Birmingham, UK from 1901 to 1915. Vincent Fosbery patented his revolver in August 16, 1895 and additional improvements such as removal of the cylinder catch and replacing with a spring loaded stud were patented in October 1896. Vincent Fosbery is recorded as saying " It is the most formidable weapon in existence for close combat or personal protection, and among service revolvers cannot be beaten by any similar weapons in England or America" This may be deemed as ' sales pitch' but it was a sales pitch that resembled remarkable truths. At the end of the production run, 4750 of these automatic revolvers were finally made and many of the surviving ones can be found in collections and museums around the world today.  The revolver was initially manufactured in .455 caliber which was the caliber of the standard British Service revolver, an approx actual size photo of the cartridge is posted below...on the left is the standard issue Webley MkII .455 cartridge next to the popular American .45 ACP that was fired in the 1911 and 1911A1 Colt Automatics.  ...and later the Webley-Fosbery automatic revolver was manufactured in.38 ACP caliber for the civilian market. The .455 version of the revolver held six bullets whilst the .38 ACP held eight bullets, the higher velocity .38 ACP bullets were initially designed to be used in a traditional semi-automatic and thus had to use special 'full or half-moon' bullet clips that seated around the end of the cartridge. These 'moon' clips allowed bullets to be fired in a revolver that was not initially designed to do so. Where firearms are concerned, there appears to be no end of innovation ! 
 The .38 ACP was a shorter cartridge than the .455 and consequently had a shorter cylinder which enabled a shorter recoil stroke to operate.  Some of these shorter frame guns were modified to fire the .455 and consequently led to the production of six different hybrids ( Mark I up to MarkVI ) of the same revolver with barrel lengths of 7.5 ins, 6 in, and 4 in, it was also made to special order. They could also be ordered with Metford rifling with the final version with a shorter cylinder than on earlier models and strengthened trigger spring and recoil lever released in 1914.  The Webley Fosbery became popular at the Bisley target shooting range as shooters discovered that the gun could be fired very rapidly and had a smooth action. Walter Winans, a famous contemporary target shooter at the time, preferred the Webley-Fosbery and in 1902 he fired six shots in a two inch bull's-eye at 12 paces in seven seconds. Using a Prideaux speedloader he was able to fire twelve shots into a three inch bull's-eye in approximately 15 seconds. Recent research using a .455 short frame Model in Switzerland for rapid shooting has achieved a very respectable five-shot 8 inch group at 10 meters in 1.27 seconds.  Everyone who fired the Webley-Fosbery revolver remarked at how efficient, smooth, and comfortable the gun was and along with its fast firing accuracy. Webley envisaged this revolver as the ideal weapon for Cavalry troops but the British government never officially adopted it. This may have been because there was the probability that the guns mechanism of a zig-zag grooved cylinder on a slide could jam in muddy WWI trench conditions or that if the shooters arm was not held out straight and rigid that the gun would not cock properly as the recoils inertia could be effected. Below is one of the few videos available on this unique revolver, just before the video abruptly ends, we can see just how fast this gun can be fired, quite impressively. Below is a good image of the zig-zag grooves in the cylinder, these zigizags engaged a metal stud that turned the cylinder when the revolver was fired, in so doing it lined up the next shot behind the now cocked hammer.  British Officers would purchase these revolvers privately out of their own pockets as they knew that they were excellent guns to carry and truth be known, this gun did not have a tendency to jam and was quite reliable for all those who carried it and subsequently it saw some action in the Boer war and in France during WWI. The gun may also have been used in WWII by officers who may have had them handed down through the family.  The Webley-Fosbery is a single action revolver in that the hammer must be cocked before it can be fired as the trigger does not cock the gun when squeezed, instead the gun has to be cocked manually by pulling back the entire action before the trigger can be pulled to fire the fist shot. Below I sourced a picture off the internet showing the revolver being pulled back via the sides of the knurled hammer.  The revolver was emptied by releasing a catch and 'breaking it open ' by bending the barrel down, and this automatically ejected the spent cases out of the cylinder as the gun opened. The firer then loaded new cartridges in and simply closed the gun back up.  The Webley-Fosbery was intended to be carried with the hammer cocked and ready to fire and therefore had an unusual feature for a revolver in the shape of a safety catch, which is found on the left side of the frame at the top of the grip. This is turned off by pressing it downwards, disconnecting the hammer from the sear. The safety catch can only be set when the pistol is cocked.  The Webley-Fosbery was the sidearm of Sean Connery's character 'Zed' in John Boormans zany 1973 movie "Zandoz" and also featured in John Huston's 1941 classic version of The Maltese Falcon, when Sam Spade is asked about an odd looking handgun that has murdered his partner: "..Yeah...its a Webley-Fosbery...automatic" says Bogart in a casual manner. "45...they don't make them anymore..." I wonder how many people watching the movie at the time thought that Sam Spade was wrong when he said that an obvious looking revolver was an automatic ? Below, 2 scenes from the Maltese falcon, that featured the Webley-Fosbery. On the left is depicted Brigid O' Shaughnessy shooting Miles Archer ( its a bit of a low shot there, aiming at his legs ?? or bad director camera angle !) On the right, a photo from the scene where Detective Tom Polhaus is holding the gun and showing it to Sam Spade. 
 Just to recap... SPECIFICATIONS Type: Automatic Revolver Recoil operated Caliber: .455 Webley and .38 ACP Capacity: .455: 6 rounds, .38: 8 rounds Sights front: Blade Sights, rear: U-notch Length: 11inches. Weight (unloaded): 2.73 lbs Barrel: 6" (.455 Service Pattern)  Overall quite a good gun that was of solid construction and actually proved itself to be quite accurate and dependable in warfare, this was illustrated in WWI by the officers that preferred this gun over the standard issue Webley's. There has always been scepticism over the operating mechanism, but having many years ago spoke to people who have fired this gun and other research, the Webley-Fosbery hardly ever jammed as its design was so good and robust. A good specimen, with good original finish can attract around $7000 from an antique firearms dealer and if you are a collector of these type of guns then have a look around the internet as I have seen quite a few of these for sale, some going for $2000 for a decent example. Future Directions In 1997, the Italian company of Mateba developed a type of recoil operated automatic revolver, commercially named the 'Mateba Autorevolver' of which uses the recoil energy to automatically rotate a normal revolver cylinder holding six or seven cartridges, depending on the model version. It looks like Frankenstein has been at work in his laboratory and crossed a revolver with a semi-Auto pistol.  The company has actually made several versions of this "autorevolver", including a longer barrelled version and even rifle like variations, usually chambered for the .357 Magnum cartridge, but also available in larger calibers like .44 Magnum and .454 Casull Magnum. At first I thought it to be a photo-shopped joke, but sadly, its real ! Personally think that the gun looks too big and bulky, its ugly and impractical, as I cannot envisage why something like this cross-breed is needed with today's high tech high capacity magazine pistols like the superb Austrian made Glock with their 18 round magazines. In 1896 though, there were not many automatic pistols around and the Webley-Fosbery had its rightful place and filled a slot in the market for higher capacity, higher rate of fire revolvers and indeed holds a respectable forté in the history and development of firearms. |
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