Webley Mark VI CO2 BB Revolver Test Review.

VALUE FOR MONEY

At a Street Price of just under $180, the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver is at the upper end of pricing for a firearms replica airgun.

For that it offers excellent realism, great accuracy and a good shot count per fill of CO2. It’s also a relatively unusual handgun by US standards and has reached iconic status from it’s long use in the British Army and appearances in many historical movies.

But there are many replica pistols at around $100 which look good and perform well also. The Webley is a great airgun, but the price is definitely on the high side.

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Webley MKVI CO2 BB Revolver

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Webley MkVI BB Revolver

Historical note. It’s possible that some US readers will not be fully familiar with the “British English” terminology used in the description of the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver. So here’s a brief explanation…

“Mark” – often abbreviated to Mk – is the British equivalent of “Version” as commonly used for software products. “VI” is the Latin for six. So, “Mark VI” is  the British Army-speak for “Version 6”. Being in the British armed forces is known as “Service”. So, in this case “Service revolver” means the same as “Army revolver”. Simple, huh???

REALISM – LOOKS AND FEEL

There’s no doubt about it, the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver is a very accurate replica of the firearm original. The manufacturer states that the BB gun is based off the original firearm’s blueprints and the HAM Team can believe that!

Size, shape and overall feel are very accurate to the original. The weight – at around 2 Lbs 8 Oz – is very close, too. This makes the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver look and feel just like the original.

Yes, the grips are plastic and the metal parts have a satin black finish that differs from the blued steel of the original. But these are relatively minor gripes against what is, overall, a very good replica.

A clever design element is that the lanyard loop of the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver doubles as the CO2 cartridge tightening screw. That’s a good dual use for an original design feature…

Overall, the only blemish on the realistic appearance is the inclusion of a manual, slide action safety on the right side of the frame. This is disappointing, but probably a result of “helpful” legal input somewhere along the line.

ACCURACY AND POINT OF IMPACT

The Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver proved to be very accurate in HAM Tester Doug Wall’s hands, as you can see from the test targets below.

The best group Doug achieved was when shooting Umarex Steel BBs. These gave a group size of 3/4-inch C-T-C, which is very creditable from a BB revolver. There’s a fairly good chance that this performance exceeds the accuracy of the original firearm!

Of course, Doug fired the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver single action to achieve his groups, but all types of pellets achieved the HAM “Minute of Soda Can” accuracy level at 6 Yards range.

Moving back to 10 Yards, using the Umarex BBs, all except one hit the “Soda Can”. Doug called the exception as a “flyer”.

The fixed sights of the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver have no modern aids such as fiber optic elements. However this proved no hindrance to the good accuracy.

Fortunately, the point-of-impact was very close to the point-of aim. This was more so than for some BB pistols that HAM has tested in the past. As you can see, BBs tended to impact just a little to the left and low of the bull when Doug used a 6 o’clock hold for his tests.

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Umarex Precision Steel BBs 5.1 grains, Speedloader, 1,500ct, 0.177″

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Umarex Steel BBs, 1,500 Ct

COMPARISON TO MANUFACTURERS CLAIMS

The manufacturer claims a maximum Muzzle velocity of 427 FPS for the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver.

Of course, high FPS is not a significant benefit to any BB pistol. But everyone seems to want more Muzzle Velocity, even if it has no practical value!

The maximum achieved in HAM testing was an average of 383 FPS for 10 shots using Crosman Copperhead BBs at 64 degrees F. Make no mistake, this is a strong performance.

As we know that the Muzzle Velocity of COs guns increases by about 2 FPS per degree F ambient temperature, this means that the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver tested by HAM would meet the manufacturer’s claimed Muzzle velocity at around 86 degrees F.

Other claims for realism and accurate representation of the original are clearly justified.

The manufacturer claims that the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver can be field-stripped like the original. This is true in that the cylinder can be removed from the fame. Although somewhat of a let-down to the HAM Testers, this is actually as much field-stripping as was specified for the original. So again, the claims are realistic.

The claim for a Muzzle Energy of 2.1 Ft/Lbs will also be met using steel BBs with a weight in the region of 7.5 Grains at 86 degrees F.

CONSISTENCY

Consistency was a generally strong suit for the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver tested by HAM.

Both accuracy and Muzzle Velocity were remarkably consistent between different types of BBs. Also, the Standard Deviation (the measure of shot-to-shot variability in a string) was fairly low at between 4 and 11 FPS. The reduction in FPS between shots was reasonably predictable. As with any CO2-powered airgun, the FPS will fall more rapidly if the gun is fired faster.

Trigger pull weight in single action mode varied between 3 Lb 10 Oz and 4 Lb 8 Oz. However it has to be said that this variation was not easily detected by the shooter and does not seem to have affected HAM Tester Doug Wall’s shooting accuracy!

REALISM – TRIGGER AND ACTION

The Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver replicates the iconic style of the original firearm.

It is loaded using individual shells, with a BB inserted into each. But it should be noted that the shells themselves are more like .357 caliber, rather than genuine .455 whoppers. This is one of the few areas where the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver differs in appearance from the original.

The other difference is that – like many CO2-powered replica pistols – the hammer does not fit flush against the frame when the gun is un-cocked.

However, these are minor issues in the minds of the HAM Team.

The Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver fires – like the original – in both single and double action. Again like the original, double action requires a very heavy pull. Single action is much lighter.

With a double action trigger pull weight of around 8 Lbs and a single action weight of around 4 Lbs, the trigger of the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver is much lighter than the original firearm. However, we doubt that many owners will complain about that! As HAM Tester Doug Wall commented in his testing notes- “The trigger is very smooth.”

The cylinder revolves clockwise – as does the original – and pushing down on the barrel catch allows the barrel to swing forward and down. At the same time the extractor rises from the cylinder and presents the “empties” for easy removal.

SHOT COUNT

The shot count of the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver tested by HAM was creditable at 75 shots at greater than 200 FPS Muzzle Velocity.

In particular, this is a satisfactory number given the high Muzzle Velocity of the revolver. (Higher FPS with CO2 guns usually equates to a lower number of shots, but that doesn’t seem to be the case here). Although, of course, there’s no energy-sapping blowback action to power in this gun.

MUZZLE VELOCITY

The maximum Muzzle Velocity attained during HAM testing was an average of 383 PFS with the string of Crosman Copperhead BBs at 64 degrees F. Other types of BBs gave very similar FPS numbers also.

APPEARANCE AND FINISH

As described above, overall appearance and finish of the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver is very good.

There are several original-style manufacturing marks on the gun, including the “Webley Mark VI Patents 1915” as shown below. This is combined with a minimum of white-printed additional text which mars the appearance of many other replicas.

Although there’s a couple of fake screw heads molded on the left side of the frame, as you can see from the photograph above, these are not immediately obvious as fakes and do not distract from the overall appearance of realism.

Unfortunately from the perspective of appearance, there is a safety on the right side of the frame. This is a slide-to-operate safety and – like most other similar mechanisms on replica air pistols – is almost certainly added entirely for legal reasons. The safety itself is very hard to operate…

BUYING AND OWNING

The Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver is readily available from the expected online retailers such as Pyramyd Air and Airgun Depot. It carries a 12-month warranty, which is significantly longer than that provided with many replica air pistols. The warranty is provided in the USA by Air Venturi, although this is not indicated anywhere in the documentation that ships with the Webley.

Power is supplied, as expected, from one 12 Gram CO2 cartridge located in the pistol grip. As can immediately be seen below, the lanyard ring is used as the external key to pierce the cartridge and lock it in position. Very good!

The Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver is also supplied with a good user manual (well almost, except for the silly errors…). It’s simple and well-illustrated. However it’s in English only. In addition, there’s a fascinating reproduction of a British Army training manual from 1937 which describes how the military expected the pistol to be used.

At present, it seems that there is no quick-loader available for the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver. However, the Pyramyd Air website shows that additional shells are available in packs of six. These also fit the Bear River Schofield No. 3 BB revolver.

One potentially serious safety issue concerns the packaging and front cover of the user manual. In both locations the Webley Mark VI CO2 BB revolver is described as an “Airsoft gun”, multiple times. This is, of course, completely incorrect and this Webley must NEVER be fired at another person. It IS NOT AN AIRSOFT GUN!

SAFETY FIRST. As with all BB-firing airguns, it’s necessary to wear shooting glasses when firing this airgun. Also do not shoot at hard surfaces or water. BBs tend to bounce off these surfaces and may hit you, or something other than what you intended. If in doubt, don’t pull the trigger! Due to the realistic appearance of this product, handle it as you would a firearm. Do not display it in public or in any place where it could be mistaken for a cartridge firearm.

6 YARD TEST TARGETS

10 YARD TEST TARGET

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Webley MKVI CO2 BB Revolver

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Webley MkVI BB Revolver

This entire article including scoring, test targets etc is Copyright Hard Air Magazine and may NOT in part or in whole be reproduced in any electronic or printed medium without prior permission from the publisher.

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