Turkish Tempests

[Abasmajor]

I must admit my interest in Webley air pistols had been confined to the all steel examples made up until the introduction of the alloy framed pistols in the mid 70s.

Due to the above preference, I have never owned a 'Tempest' until just recently when in a moment of apparent madness I bought a new Turkish Tempest just to see how it compared with my original all steel 'Brummie' Webley pistols.

The pistol (.22 cal) looked to be quite well made but my first attempt at use seemed to confirm my original fears when it appeared woefully underpowered. A chrono check confirmed muzzle energy less than 1ft/lb so straight back to the shop. The pistol was returned to the distributor for repair and disappointedly still registered very low power when tested at the dealers premises following the repair. I was offered a refund or a replacement Tempest pistol in .177 which I decided to try as it appeared to be pushing out much more respectable muzzle velocities.

I have now owned the Tempest for approximately six months and must grudgingly admit that it compares quite favourably for accuracy and reliability if not appearance with my original steel Webleys.

I actually quite enjoy shooting the stupid thing !

Regards

Brian

[PCPShooter]

I bought a Diana 8P -

Bit plasticy look / feel, but by far the best spring piston pistol I've ever shot / owned, for all the prospective pistol owners out there, it 'wee wees' over the Tempest

[Josie & John]

You really need a "proper" Brummie Tempest Brian Apparently the Turkish version was reverse engineered as the tooling didn't leave these shores. The version was a great little pocket pistol, hence its popularity for a quarter of a century. Trouble is if you get one, you may get an itching for other variants.

Kind regards,

John

[Abasmajor]

You really need a "proper" Brummie Tempest Brian Apparently the Turkish version was reverse engineered as the tooling didn't leave these shores. The version was a great little pocket pistol, hence its popularity for a quarter of a century. Trouble is if you get one, you may get an itching for other variants.

Kind regards,

John

Hello John,

I did have a close look at a 'Brummie' Tempest for sale at the Imperial to see if it was that much better made than the current Turkish model. To be honest, the bits that could be seen didn't look to be made that much better to me apart from the area around the breech seal which was a far better arrangement on the original than on the Turkish version.

Still, I must speak as I find and although it will never have the place in my affections that the all steel Webley pistols do, the Turkish Tempest is not all that bad and as I said I can't say I don't enjoy shooting it.

Regards

Brian

[zooma]

I have just bought an almost new .177 Turkish Tempest from an ad. on the BBS and when it arrives I will look forward to comparing it against my older Birmingham built .177 Tempest.

My old Tempest was probably built after 1981 as it has the WEBLEY TEMPEST stamp on the front cover rather than the early types that were only stamped TEMPEST. It is also stamped "Webley & Scott" and "Made in England" and has the the "F" mark repeated twice underneath this front cover.

The pistol also has the later square shaped long link that appeared after 1980 and the red paint filled safety mark that replaced the thin plastic insert type after 1979.

Other than the above clues I have no idea just how old the pistol is but when the "new to me" one arrives it will be interesting to shoot them both in a back to back test against each other as well as inspecting them visually to see how one compares with the other.

[ogilkes]

I dont know if this is true, but a few years ago, I was told that Webley stopped making them because the machinery was broken/fell apart.
Does anybody know?

I agree with John about them being a great little pistol.

I think they stopped making them because the company went bust. Quite possible that the plant and jigs were too old to bother exporting.

[Abasmajor]

I have just bought an almost new .177 Turkish Tempest from an ad. on the BBS and when it arrives I will look forward to comparing it against my older Birmingham built .177 Tempest.

My old Tempest was probably built after 1981 as it has the WEBLEY TEMPEST stamp on the front cover rather than the early types that were only stamped TEMPEST. It is also stamped "Webley & Scott" and "Made in England" and has the the "F" mark repeated twice underneath this front cover.

The pistol also has the later square shaped long link that appeared after 1980 and the red paint filled safety mark that replaced the thin plastic insert type after 1979.

Other than the above clues I have no idea just how old the pistol is but when the "new to me" one arrives it will be interesting to shoot them both in a back to back test against each other as well as inspecting them visually to see how one compares with the other.

Having never shot an original Tempest I would be very interested in the results of your head to head with it's Turkish cousin. One thing I would be especially interested in is the so called trigger adjustment mechanism which seems to have no affect at all on the Turkish pistols but may do something on the Brummie version. Having said that, the trigger weight is not excessive and breaks at about the same weight as my Premiers and Seniors. The Turkish Tempest also retains the wider trigger shoe which I believe was only present on the later Brummie pistols and helps with the impression of a lighter pull.

Regards

Brian

[ogilkes]

One thing about the Turkish Tempests. They were fitted with a stronger spring hence the difficulty in cocking, which imo rather defeats the purpose of a Webley pistol, it is not meant to have power but be a decent 10m pistol.

[zooma]

One thing about the Turkish Tempests. They were fitted with a stronger spring hence the difficulty in cocking, which imo rather defeats the purpose of a Webley pistol, it is not meant to have power but be a decent 10m pistol.

Sounds like a weaker spring could be my first modification as I really hate over-sprung air weapons - I am told the Typhoon spring fits and is a little kinder on the mechanics and should help the 10 meter accuracy.

When the pistol arrives I should have some fun with the back to back testing.

[Abasmajor]

Sounds like a weaker spring could be my first modification as I really hate over-sprung air weapons - I am told the Typhoon spring fits and is a little kinder on the mechanics and should help the 10 meter accuracy.

When the pistol arrives I should have some fun with the back to back testing.

Hi,

I would estimate the effort to cock my Turkish Tempest as about the same as my Mk1s but quite a bit more than a Senior or a Premier. I shot it again last night (single hand unsupported) and can fairly consistently hold the black aiming mark on the NSRA 10 metre precision target (60mm) which is about what I can usually achieve with my Premier or more significantly with my FAS 604. I must admit that it's much easier with the FAS but maybe not as enjoyable.

Regards

Brian

[Amac]

I stripped and lubed my own "proper" Tempest last Friday. It wasn't bad before, but it now shoots much more smoothly. Still not in the same league as my Premier/Mk 1 that I also lubed up at the same time though. I shot a fellow club members Turkish offering a couple of months back. The gun was very "tight" and needed a good running in, it also kicked like the proverbial. Sure it will improve as it loosens off a bit though. I am just waiting for a cryptic comment from Mr Jones who has yet to fully appreciate the joys of Webley pistol ownership.

As John explained earlier in this post, they are great fun to use and own and are highly addictive. Something that represents all that was best about our own great gun making traditions, in my own opinion of course. If you are reading this and wondering about tracking down an example of these very collectable pistols, search one out. You will not be disappointed.

Andy

[hwtyger]

Tempests will never shoot anywhere néar the legal limit, either turk or uk.
They're not made for it. They're shortrange plinkers. Wouldnt expect more than 3-4Ftp at best.

[Abasmajor]

Tempests will never shoot anywhere néar the legal limit, either turk or uk.
They're not made for it. They're shortrange plinkers. Wouldnt expect more than 3-4Ftp at best.

In my experience Consistent muzzle velocities of 3-4 ft lbs are perfectly adequate to permit satisfactory groups at 10 metres or a bit further which would be much harder to achieve if energies of 5-6 ft lbs were generated. I have shot some of my best 10 metre groups using Webley pistols with fairly tired main springs which can't have been producing more than 2-3 ft lbs.

It's obviously a different matter If you are trying to knock over steel plates instead of punching holes in paper.



Regards

Brian

[jackal1]

why would anyone buy anything from Turkey apart from a fez.

[zooma]

why would anyone buy anything from Turkey apart from a fez.

Because you can usually haggle over the price !