Hello,

If you are serious about acquiring one of these fine old air rifles, you would be well advised to obtain a copy of Chris Thrale's excellent Webley Air Rifles 1925-2005 book which fully describes all the Webley air rifles made during the period including the Mk2 Service.

Briefly though, there were three series of Mk2 Service rifles with the first having a strong spring to secure the removable barrel and an aperture sight mounted to the side of the breech block. The second series retained the side mounted aperture sight, but replaced the barrel retaining spring with a much neater button release. The third series replaced the side mounted aperture sight with a larger version mounted centrally on the breech block. The first two series were in .177 and .22 calibre only with the third series adding the larger .25 calibre towards the end of manufacture in 1939.

If I didn't intend to shoot the rifle all that much, I would go for the rarer first or second series, but if regular use is on the cards you would be better off opting for a third series example. Both the first and second series attract a higher price due to their relative rarity, but you should be able to pick-up a reasonable third series in .177 or .22 calibre for £400 - £500. You can add another £150 - £200 for a .25 calibre Mk2 due to it's comparative rarity. Rifles with barrels having Ser Nos which match that on the rifle itself are also more sought after by collectors and the Holy Grail for Mk2 Service aficionados is a cased set containing all three calibre barrels together with the correct accessories.

The main attraction for me are it's quirky looks and solid engineering, particularly the ability to interchange barrels and the neat way the bolt pulls the breech washer into battery when the bolt is closed forming a really tight seal. All three versions are accurate at the intended ranges, but not nearly as powerful as early Webley publicity would have us believe.

Hope this helps.

Regards

Brian