Webley MK1 Air Rifle value?

[Clarkycat]

Hi guys,
I'm neither new to Airguns or to Forums, I am very active in sportscar fora,
i've just never used airgun forums hence i'm a newbie here and come asking
for your opinion.


I have a scaled down collection of pre war webley air weapons, all are what
i considered to be 'keepers'. I love my 3 mkII service rifles (one of each
pattern) and the pistols. I also like this Mk1 a lot, but it rarely gets used,
in fact when i took the photo's it must have been a year since i last held it,
if i chose to shoot then it's always a MK2 Service.

I've been out of the 'loop' and would like an idea of current value. This is NOT
a for sale thread. I'd just value your opinions, and i can decide to hang it
back up as an investment, continue to enjoy just owning such a rare thing
or decide to put up a for sale ad.

It's a Webley Mk1 Air Rifle .22 cal, i think thats rarer than the .177?

I got it part money/part trade at the birmingham motorcycle museum airms
fair about ten years or so ago. I paid a fair bit at the time but it was needed
to complete my lineup (Mk1, Mk2's, Mk3's etc). With the MK1 rifle at the time
(and i suspect now) there were never any for sale and i bought the first and
only one i saw for sale after a year or so looking, and have only seen a half
dozen since.

I stopped buying mags or going to fairs several years ago as i was happy
with what i had. By chance i discovered today that Brocock revolvers now
carry a fire arm offence, i sold mine years ago, luckily as i had no idea!

Hence i'm asking you guys for an informed view of the current market.

Condition is always subjective. I have no living family as old as this gun! so
i'd expect some trace of age. I highlight what i believe to be the 'worse' items:

Small crack in metal on breech (see pic).

Very old crack in stock at pistol grip (no sign of opening up, looks well old).

Neither has altered in any way during my (light use) ownership.

I'd describe it as a nice, honest, unrestored Webley MK1. Would you?























Should i decide to sell, NO sale will be made until a full for sale
listing is posted. I'm no fan of having the rug pulled from under
me myself, so i won't promise first offers etc to anyone that mails
me beforehand, i'll stick rigid to this forums rules and i believe
everyone should have a chance.

Many thanks in advance for any feedback guys,
Paul

[hwvixen]

Welcome Paul,

IMO.....£400 upwards..

[Mark D]

Nothing like making a 'grand' entrance !

Chris - 'slug-gun' will be your best bet as to value of your Mk1 Webley Rifle I expect. Although sometimes what something may be valued at is not the same as what it could be sold for, you will however get an up to date value.

Enjoy the forum

[Rocket launcher]

interesting no calibration marks on the barrel
does the serial number of the rifle match the one on the barral
if not what is it
ATB
Eric

[olivercromwell]

Its just about the only Webley I do not own...and would buy the right one (to keep) if it came along.

I'd struggle to justify paying more than £300 for this one. Thats a collector's valuation for you.

Hope that helps.

[Clarkycat]

interesting no calibration marks on the barrel
does the serial number of the rifle match the one on the barral
if not what is it
ATB
Eric

Hi,
By calibration marks do you mean Calibre?

This pic shows the .22 stamp:

http://premium1.uploadit.org/clarkyc...z_dsc00404.jpg

Unlike the Service, i can find no barrel serial, the gun is 1338
on the trigger guard, and the number '38' is stamped in the inside
of the barrel pivot (The screw in section at the end of the cylinder,
not the barrel part). There not enough room to stamp 4 numbers so
i assume the 38 is the end numbers of the guns 1338.

As i say, i bought is purely for it's rarity and to fill my 'line up' at
the time. I always shot only the service's, and now i only own the
services and this one, i might let it go, but i only have it in the first
place because i like old webleys so it eats no bread.

Cheers for replies thus far. Hope you like the pics too, it's always
nice to at least see something rare, and this gun has never been
online before.

[Rocket launcher]

.
I'd struggle to justify paying more than £300 for this one. Thats a collector's valuation for you.

a .22 barral is worth more than that on its own
with no cal markings a rare item indeed
some collectors would buy it for the barral alone and scrap the rest
wish i had a .177 to add the barral too

[Troubledshooter]

a .22 barral is worth more than that on its own
with no cal markings a rare item indeed
some collectors would buy it for the barral alone and scrap the rest
wish i had a .177 to add the barral too

Look at picture Number 6.

[Garvin]

Look at picture Number 6.

So it's not just me then. I was beginning to doubt my own eyes.

Lovely rifle Paul. I would have thought it would be worth somewhere between £400 and £500, based on previous valuations given by experts in the past and one or two sales in recent years.

[Troubledshooter]

I would value it at around the £300 figure, due to the repairs needed to the stock and breech block, which needs some skilled attention, plus the pitting to the barrel and the apparent lack of any original finish.
I'm looking for a .22 myself, but I wouldn't consider this one even if it did come up for sale.
It's quite a late model and looks like it's had a hard life.
The last digits of the serial number are sometimes stamped on the lower front of the breech block as well as the places already found.
I posted a survey on the MK.1 rifle early last year, and it ended up containing a lot of useful information about the rifle, but for some unknown reason, it has now been deleted from the BBS
There are some pictures in my sig. site.

This is an extract from an article by John Atkins following the survey I did last year:

Although JA previously thought there were more .22s than .177s, Nos. 1 and 2 Bore sighted barrels appear in equal numbers - at least in this selection of some 85 known surviving Mk. I a/rifles.

[hwvixen]

Hi again Paul,

I must congradulate you on your first post...on this site anyway! It's well put together & great pics too.You could try the search facility to see if any others have posted Mk.1's for sale....

As someone who has bought a few over the years....my "estimate" is based on what i've paid for them...from dealers & private sales.The cheapest was £80....& not unlike yours...but those deals are VERY few & far between.

[Clarkycat]

Thanks for all the input guys.

Have nosed about online and found a few old sales listings, and
i have compared those prices to the ones offered here, considered
what i'd want to part with it, and have submitted an ad.

The price is fixed, if it's too high for anyone looking then i don't
lose as i get to keep the rifle!, but i think it's fair, within the prices
suggested by some in this thread, and at the end of the day:

Find another!


PS, Have had some PM's, the ad is not live yet, it was submitted
about the same time as this post yesterday so should be soon?

Cheers again,
Paul