Semi-automatic revolver?

[Quantum Singularity]

Anyone shot one of these? I saw a brief two liner about them in a magazine but never actually seen one or shot one. It sounds like an interesting design. I don't remember the brand name that made it, but if memory serves (it usually doesn't ) it was a foreign make.

 

[Coronach]

I believe the Brits had a semi-auto variant of the venerable Webley. It used recoil to turn the cylinder and cock the hammer....and that has pretty much exhausted my knowledge on the topic.

Mike

 

[Mike Irwin]

There was the Webley Fosberry auto revolver. Not many made in .455 Webley, and even fewer made in .38 ACP.

The .455s ruled the roost at Bisley for a long time, though. Accurate as all hell.

The Spanish also played around with a couple versions.

 

[Doc Hudson]

While Mike and Coronach are correct about the Webley Fosberry Semi-Automatic Revolvers, they neglected the newest member of this odd=ball tribe. The
Mateba Semi-Automatic Revolver.

It is made in Italy and is a most odd looking contraption. The barrel is located in such a way that the chamber at the lowest level is the one that fires. The cylinder's center of rotation is above the bore line. It is available in several calibers, including .357 Mag and .44 RemMag (I think).

I have yet to actually see one, but I've heard that the guns are less ungainly in handling than the are in appearance. They are supposed to shoot pretty good also. But butt ugly does not begin to describe them.

Doc Hudson

 

[Quantum Singularity]

Thank you for the replies gentlemen. Does anyone have a picture of one handy? Or a website?

 

[Quantum Singularity]

Mateba

I found a picture of the Mateba. It is an ugly thing.

A Blueprint of another Mateba model:

BTW, if you want the BEST search engine available, give google a try:

http://www.google.com

 

[Mike Irwin]

Here's an image of the Webley Fosberry. This one is/was on Guns America for sale. Only $5,000.


Note the safety lever on the top of the grip frame.

 

[PB]

At Shot Show they showed a 454 Casull version.

 

[Quantum Singularity]

These auto revolvers sure won't win any beauty awards.

 

[James K]

The Mateba is an attempt to reduce recoil by lowering the barrel to the middle of the hand, something difficult to do with a moving slide.* The Webley-Fosbery was an attempt to make a revolver which would have a single action pull for accuracy without having to cock it for every shot.

Either way, IMHO, these guns are ideas whose "time has went".

* Free of restraint, a firearm recoils about its own center of gravity, so placing the barrel in line with the center of gravity of the gun will keep recoil straight back and help control the gun.

Jim

 

[arnie]

The Webley automatic revolver was used to shoot Sam Spades partner in The Maltese Falcon.

 

[Sample]

If I'm offending anybody here by saying this, I apologize in advance. That is the stupidest idea for a firearm that's ever been conceived.

 

[Mike Irwin]

Sample,

Trust me, there have been MANY MANY ideas that are stupider!

 

[Badger Arms]

How about the pepperbox? Weren't those prone to fire in a fully-automatic fassion? Saw it on TV once... that History Channel thing about guns.

 

[Archie]

The Webley Fosbury was a pretty well made gun. It was accurate and reliable. Being of top break design, it was (at the time) very quick to reload, and had no extraneous parts (magazines).

However, it came out pretty much in competition with the 1911 Colt Autopistol. We know who won that one. Also, it didn't do anything tactically that a good (i.e., Smith and Wesson) revolver didn't do, except cock itself.

Such is life. A fate similar to the Yugo and 8 track.

 

[Blue Heeler]

I have fired a Webley Fosbury and found it a lot of fun.The ammo was made by Fiocchi (.455).The gun is a pretty good example and operated without any malfunctions.
Apart from it's unusual appearance it is a well made gun and is very easy to handle.The big thing about it is the lack of recoil which is because the slide back absorbs the punch---I would really like to try it in a match such as the FBI Combat Match.I think it would be pretty useful.
I don't know if the owner would let me use it but I'll try putting the hard word on him (He's the local Doctor,and I'll tell him if he doesn't come to the party,I'll never get sick again.)

 

[makarov]

Maybe I'm weird, but I think the Mateba's are kind of cool looking. Of course I also liked the CZ-52's. The Mateba looks like it should be in Blade Runner.

 

[LIProgun]

The Fosberry was actually a very well made gun, and did quite well in the 1907 US military handgun trials conducted by Thompson, et al. The gun was also favored for some time in handgun competitions. As Archie said, accurate and reliable.

A "stupid" idea? That's debatable. But the execution was anything but "stupid."

 

[Salt]

It would be fun to see someone win a bullseye match with a Webley-Fosbury automatic revolver.

 

[riverdog]

I've seen and held the Mateba Semi-Automatic Revolver in (IIRC) .44 Mag and would have bought it were I not in CA. The FFL owner was shipping it out of state because it's not on the CA cert list so it can't be sold here. Given the opportunity, I'd buy one.