Today on Gus’ Gear I have a continuation of the battle of wits (some might say the battle of the half wits) with a situational acquaintance. He takes great joy in helping me spend my allowance and if he can find a very expensive items that I do not know I need, he will always point it out to me. Some weeks ago, I posted a couple of photos of a British Webley & Scott Mark I Navy contract pistol. My situational acquaintance (who will be referred to as James for a lack of a better name and the fact that this is a family oriented group) wanted a weapon that I had. He had a nice Webley MKI pistol that he was very attached to. So being a nice guy, I offered to trade the one he wanted for his Webley. My weapon was of greater value and I knew it would cause him distress to trade his for mine. For a year he waffled and finally he called and asked if I was serious. James was calling my bluff and I could not let him win, so I agreed to the trade. When he returned home he sent me an e-mail with a photo of “my” pistol and his Webley MKI. He had tricked me as he had purchased another Webley. I have to admit, mine is better than his, but the worst part was he sent a link to a holster that was for sale as he knew I would have to have the holster. The price was $580, James had won. I cannot bring myself to pay that much for a holster and for two years the Webley was displayed without one. About two weeks ago, James called me and said that IMA had a Webley MKI Navy holster for sale for considerably less, but it did have some condition issues.
The Navy holsters are unique in construction as it was feared that the salt water would cause deterioration of the cotton stitching so they were assembled with brass rivets. As can be seen in the photo, this holster has seen some use. The condition could have been caused by exposure to seawater. The condition of the leather is better than appears in the photo, although someone has applied a leather conditioner to it sometime in the past that will cause it to further decay in the future.
A view of the back shows the use of brass rivets.
This example was manufactured in London by Hobson & Sons in 1915, two years after the pistol was produced.
This photo of the front also shows the use of brass rivets in the construction, the only stitching used is to attach the end cap to the holster body. I was very happy to find a reasonably price example of this rare holster as they do not show up on the market often.
