Matching oil container for a 1926 Webley pistol would be glass?

[Abasmajor]

Hi,

You are perfectly correct with your assumption that the first Webley oil was supplied in bottles with the can arriving later. If you go to Danny's gallery you will be able to see some nice pictures of the bottle and subsequent cans.

Unfortunately, only a few original bottles are known to have survived which would be reflected in the price, so in the unlikely event one could be found I would expect the asking price to be around the £400-£500 mark here in the UK.

Regards
Brian

[45flint]

Hi,

You are perfectly correct with your assumption that the first Webley oil was supplied in bottles with the can arriving later. If you go to Danny's gallery you will be able to see some nice pictures of the bottle and subsequent cans.

Unfortunately, only a few original bottles are known to have survived which would be reflected in the price, so in the unlikely event one could be found I would expect the asking price to be around the £400-£500 mark here in the UK.

Regards
Brian

Ironically here it seems the surviving glass corked gun oil bottles are cheaper than the tin ones of the same period? I think that’s cause there are a lot of collectors of tin oil containers and probably a lot of glass ones out there. My quest is a small corked bottle of gun oil.

[Abasmajor]

Ironically here it seems the surviving glass corked gun oil bottles are cheaper than the tin ones of the same period? I think that’s cause there are a lot of collectors of tin oil containers and probably a lot of glass ones out there. My quest is a small corked bottle of gun oil.

Hi,

As you are probably already aware, the pre-war Webley cans were sold containing either No1 or No2 oil depending on the type of piston seal. The No1 oil was a mineral oil (Neatsfoot?) intended for use with leather washers whereas the No 2 oil was basically an SAE 30 engine oil and meant for use with the metallic ring seals.

The cans were marked accordingly so that the purchaser was sure to be using the correct product for the intended application.

Regards
Brian

[Troubledshooter]

The Webley glass oil bottles as shown on Danny's site were introduced around 1946 due to a shortage of steel for the cans, so the 1920's onward oil containers would have been metal cans.

[45flint]

The Webley glass oil bottles as shown on Danny's site were introduced around 1946 due to a shortage of steel for the cans, so the 1920's onward oil containers would have been metal cans.

I think there was a 1920s glass bottle and a 1946 bottle. In US it seems the 1920’s had both glass and metal, metal took over in the 1930s.

[Troubledshooter]

The earliest catalogue I have from the twenties, No.30, showing the Mk.1, Junior Wood grip & Senior Straight grip only shows additional pictures of a Box of Pellets and a Target Holder, but no oil container.
The C35 catalogue from the thirties shows a Valvespout oil tin, as does the C67 from 1938.
The 1923 Mk.1 Air Rifle booklet, where the rifle was advertised @72/6 with spare barrels @25/-, also does not contain any illustration or mention of any oil container.
The Mk.1 Air pistol booklet similarly does not mention or illustrate any oil container, but does mention the availability of pellets and target holder.
The Hoffman flyer from the same period, where it was advertised @$15 with a spare barrel available @$4.65, is similar to the above.
I can find no mention of any Webley oil bottles prior to 1946.
I have contacted a renowned expert on all things Webley for his input, but until he replies JM may be able to shed some more light on this subject.

[pnird]

Just to remind you; Neat's Foot Oil is Calf's Foot oil, so it ain't mineral! It has traditionally been used to waterproof leather items like boots. Hope this Helps

John