Webley Longbow

Webley and Scott continue to offer some very fine airguns from their new factory in Turkey. The well-established British air gun manufacturer has had an enviable record for producing some very fine airguns, and the new line of guns continues this practice. There were a few things that I found needed attention, and I'll mention them in the body of this report.

First off, the Longbow is a handsome gun. Great wood with a wide forearmed stock provides a great platform to balance the gun on your fore hand. The blueing is excellent, though slightly lighter than some earlier versions of the Longbow that were manufactured in the UK. The gun I have today is a .22 caliber version.



I used a firm one-piece mount with a Centerpoint scope for this evaluation. I put a few hundred rounds through the gun, switching pellets back and forth. Not once did the rifle diesel, though there was some expected smoke from a new gun. I tried, Gamo Hunters, Gamo Match, RWS Superdome, RWS Superpoint, Crosman Premier, JSB Exacts, and Beeman Crowmag pellets. The pellet with the best over-all group was the Gamo Match, though I may not choose this particular pellet in a hunting setting. I normally select domed pellets for my hunting needs, but if you are hunting short range, do consider these pellets as they were quite good in this gun. Next came the Gamo Hunters, followed by the JSB Exacts and the RWS Superpoints. Here are some pics of the target groups.

Gamo Match Target - 5 shots with one called flyer


Gamo Hunter - 5 shots


RWS Superpoint - 5 shots


The range that I was shooting at was 18 yards. New guns improve in my experience as they break in, and the more you shoot a gun, the better you get with it as you learn its quirks. I'm pleased with these groups from a new, stock, un-tuned gun. The firing behavior of this gun was a pronounced "snap", with almost no twang. A bit of recoil, but a pleasant firing sensation all around. As on most Webley rifles, the safety is well located and easy to set or unset.



The power of this gun was 12-14 fpe, with the following chrony readings. I found the velocity somewhat lower than advertised, but lighter pellets than the ones I was using will allow one to reach the advertised velocity if one so desires.

Gamo Match chronograph reading


Crosman Premier chronograph reading


JSB Exacts chronograph reading


RWS Superdome chronograph reading


Out of the box, the gun would not cock. So I removed it from the stock and worked the safety mechanism back and forth a few times to loosen it up. Once back in the stock, it cocked fine and gave me no trouble whatsoever. While I had it out of the stock, I took a few pics of the trigger mechanism. There is some side play in the trigger itself, and it wobbles right and left a little too much. A couple of very thin washers would solve this problem as it is annoying when you put your finger on the trigger and it moves sideways.

Trigger group


Put some washers on this pin and the problem is solved.


The finish on the gun is excellent, but for the buttpad. I noticed it appeared like it had bumped into a sander one or two times too many. Now I know that a well-used gun is going to get character marks from use, but I prefer to put those character marks there myself, and not find them on the gun when I take it out of the box for the first time.





Currently priced at $384.00, the Webley Longbow will contend against the Beeman R9 for your air gun money. It shoots accurately, offers a nice level of power, and should complement your collection nicely. Give it a try....I think you'll like it.