.442 Webley

Last updated
.442 Webley
442 Webley.JPG
.44 Bull Dog (Peters), .442 Webley (UMC) and .442 Revolver (Eley)
Type Revolver
Place of originBritish Empire
Production history
Designed1868
Produced1868–1950s
Specifications
Case typerimmed, straight
Bullet diameter.436 in (11.1 mm)
Neck diameter.47 in (12 mm)
Base diameter.472 in (12.0 mm)
Rim diameter.503 in (12.8 mm)
Rim thickness.033 in (0.84 mm)
Case length.69 in (18 mm)
Overall length1.1 in (28 mm)
Rifling twist1:20
Primer typeLarge
Ballistic performance
Bullet mass/typeVelocityEnergy
200 gr (13 g) (Kynoch ball, factory load)700 ft/s (210 m/s)239 ft⋅lbf (324 J)
200 gr (13 g) (Remington factory load)715 ft/s (218 m/s)230 ft⋅lbf (310 J)
Source(s): Barnes & Amber 1972

The .442 Webley (also known as the ".442 Revolver Centre Fire" in Great Britain, the .442 Rook long (kangaroo) in Australia, the "10.5x17mmR" or ".442 Kurz" in Europe, and ".44 Webley" or ".442 R.I.C." in the United States) [1] is a British centrefire revolver cartridge.

Contents

History

Introduced in 1868, the .442 (11.2mm) Webley round was used in the Webley RIC revolver. This was the standard service weapon of the Royal Irish Constabulary [2] (RIC, hence the revolver's name), which were also chambered in (among others) .450 Adams and 476/.455. [3] Lt. Col. George Custer is believed to have carried a pair of RIC revolvers (presented to him in 1869 by Lord Berkley Paget) [4] at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. [5] [6] [7]

A black powder round, the .442 originally used a 15–19 grain (gr) (0.972–1.23 g) charge behind a 200–220 gr (13–14.3 g) bullet. [8] This loading was later joined by a smokeless variety. [8]

At one time, the .442 Webley was a popular chambering in self-defence or "pocket" guns (so named for being designed to be carried in a pocket, what today might be a known as a snubnose or carry gun), such as the widely copied Webley British Bulldog pocket revolver. [9] [10]

The cartridge was moderately effective, [11] being roughly similar in power to the contemporary .38 S&W, [12] .41 Colt, [13] or .44 S&W American, [14] and somewhat less potent than the later 7.65mm Parabellum, [15] .38 Special [16] or .45 ACP. [17] It was not very suitable at anything but close range. [2]

Smokeless .442 Webley loads continued to be commercially offered in the U.S. until 1940 [8] and in the United Kingdom and Europe until the 1950s.

Remington/UMC .442 Webley box labels 44WEB.jpg
Remington/UMC .442 Webley box labels

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Webley Revolver</span> UK service revolver from 1887 to 1970

The Webley Revolver was, in various designations, a standard issue service pistol for the armed forces of the United Kingdom, and countries of the British Empire and the Commonwealth of Nations, from 1887 to 1970.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.22 Remington Jet</span>

The .22 Remington Jet is a .22 in (5.6mm) American centerfire revolver and rifle cartridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.455 Webley</span> British handgun cartridge

.455 Webley is a British handgun cartridge, most commonly used in the Webley top break revolvers Marks I through VI. It is also known as ".455 Eley" and ".455 Colt".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enfield revolver</span> Service revolver

The Enfield Revolver was a self-extracting British handgun designed and manufactured at the government-owned Royal Small Arms Factory in Enfield, initially in the .476 calibre.

The .32 Long Colt is an American centerfire revolver cartridge.

The .50-110 WCF in modern 1886 Winchesters with modern steel barrels is the most powerful lever-action cartridge, with up to 4,000 foot-pounds (5,400 J) of energy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.44 S&W American</span>

The .44 S&W American is an American centerfire revolver cartridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.44 Colt</span>

The .44 Colt is an American centerfire revolver cartridge that was produced commercially from 1871 to 1940.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.476 Enfield</span> Black powder revolver cartridge

The .476 Enfield, also known as the .476 Eley, .476 Revolver, and occasionally .455/476, is a British centrefire black powder revolver cartridge. The Enfield name derives from the location of the Royal Small Arms Factory at Enfield Lock, the armoury where British military small arms were produced, while Eley was a British commercial brand. Used in the Enfield Mk II revolver, the Mk III variant was introduced by the British Army in 1881, supplanting the earlier .476 Enfield Mark I and II cartridges, which in turn had replaced the .450 Adams cartridges, all of which also used black powder propellant.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.22 Remington Automatic</span>

The .22 Remington Automatic is a .22in (5.6mm) American rimfire rifle cartridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.22 Extra Long</span>

The .22 Extra Long is a .22 in (5.6 mm) American rimfire rifle and handgun cartridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.450 Adams</span>

The .450 Adams was a British black powder centrefire revolver cartridge, initially used in converted Beaumont–Adams revolvers, in the late 1860s. Officially designated .450 Boxer Mk I, and also known variously as the .450 Revolver, .450 Colt, .450 Short, .450 Corto, and .450 Mark III, and in America as the .45 Webley, it was the British Army's first centrefire revolver round.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Bull Dog revolver</span> Pocket revolver

The British Bull Dog was a popular type of solid-frame pocket revolver introduced by Philip Webley & Son of Birmingham, England, in 1872, and subsequently copied by gunmakers in continental Europe and the United States. It featured a 2.5-inch (64 mm) barrel and was chambered for .442 Webley or .450 Adams cartridges, with a five-round cylinder. Webley produced smaller scaled .320 Revolver and .380 calibre versions later, but did not mark them with the British Bull Dog name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.44 Bull Dog</span> Revolver cartridge

The .44 Bull Dog was an American centerfire revolver cartridge produced from the 1880s until the 1930s.

The .25 Stevens Short was an American rimfire rifle cartridge, introduced in 1902.

The .25 Stevens was an American rimfire rifle cartridge. To differentiate from the related .25 Stevens Short it is sometimes also referred to as .25 Stevens Long.

The .25-21 Stevens was an American centerfire rifle cartridge.

The .50 Remington Navy is a .50 in (12.7 mm) American rimfire handgun cartridge.

The .25 Short is a .25 in (6.35 mm) American rimfire handgun cartridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.41 Swiss</span>

The .41 Swiss is a .415 in (10.54 mm) Swiss military rimfire bottlenecked intermediate rifle cartridge.

References

  1. Barnes, p. 170, ".44 Webley/.44 R.I.C.".
  2. 1 2 Barnes, p. 170, ".44 Webley/.44 R.I.C."
  3. Dowell, William Chipchase. The Webley Story (Kirkland, WA: Commonwealth Heritage Foundation, 1987), p. 62.
  4. Elman, Robert. Fired in Anger: The Personal Handguns of American Heroes and Villains (Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, 1968), p. 232.
  5. Elman, p. 231.
  6. Doerner, John A. "Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer at the Battle of the Little Bighorn". Martin Pate. Archived from the original on 2009-10-21. Retrieved 2006-08-03.
  7. Gallear, Mark (2001). "Guns at the Little Bighorn". Custer Association of Great Britain. Archived from the original on 2006-09-08. Retrieved 2006-08-03.
  8. 1 2 3 Barnes, p. 170, ".44 Webley/.44 R.I.C."
  9. Dowell, p. 68.
  10. Ficken, Homer R. "Webley's The British Bull Dog Revolver, Serial Numbering and Variations". Archived from the original on 2012-02-23. Retrieved 2011-04-03.
  11. Barnes, p. 170, ".44 Webley".
  12. Barnes, p. 163, ".38 Smith & Wesson".
  13. Barnes, p. 170, ".44 Webley/.44 R.I.C.", and p. 165, ".41 Long Colt".
  14. Barnes, p. 167, ".44 Smith & Wesson American", & p. 170, ".44 Webley/.44 R.I.C."
  15. Barnes, p. 153, ".30 (7.65mm) Parabellum".
  16. Barnes, p. 163, ".38 Smith & Wesson Special".
  17. Barnes, p. 171, ".45 Automatic".

Sources