Enfield revolver
Enfield Revolvers were British handguns manufactured at the government-owned
Royal Small Arms Factory in
Enfield. First model Enfield revolvers were the official sidearm of the
Northwest Mounted Police, and later models were the standard British sidearm in the
Second World War.
The first models of the revolver, the Mark I and Mark II, were official British military sidearms from
1880 through
1887. However the original cartridge was considered underpowered during the
Afghan Wars and loading the gun was complicated. It was superseded by the
Webley Mark I revolver.
The Mark II Enfield was adopted by Canada's Northwest Mounted Police in
1883 and remained in service as their official sidearm until the
Colt New Service revolver was adopted in
1905. About 1100 Enfield revolvers were delivered to the NWMP.
After the First World War, it was decided that a .38 calibre (9.65 mm) pistol firing a 200 grain (13 g) bullet would be as effective as the .455 calibre (11.6 mm) round. There is some doubt as to how true this actually was, as the .38/200 round gives comparable performance to the modern .38 Special cartridge- which is not nearly as powerful as the .455 Webley round.
Nonetheless, the British firm of
Webley & Scott tendered their Webley Mk IV revolver in .38/200 calibre. Rather than adopting it, the British authorities took the design to the Government-run Royal Small Arms Factory at
Enfield. The Enfield factory came up with a revolver that was very similar to the Webley Mk IV .38, but internally slightly different.
This pistol was designated as the
Enfield No. 2 Mark 1 revolver and adopted for use from
1932.
|
A Webley Mk IV .38 revolver |
Webley sued the British Government for £2250, being "costs involved in the research and design" of the revolver. Their action was contested by Enfield, who stated that the Enfield No 2 Mk I was actually designed by Captain Boys (the Assistant Superintendent of Design, famous for the
Boys Rifle) with assistance from Webley & Scott, and not the other way around- accordingly, their claim was denied. By way of compensation, however, the
Royal Commission on Awards to Inventors awarded Webley & Scott £1250.
During the
Second World War, large numbers were handled to the
Free French Forces and
French Forces of the Interior; the weapon is known as "Enfield Commando" in France.
Mk 1*
*spurless hammer,
*double action only
Mk 1**
*Simplified for wartime production in 1942.
The vast majority of Enfield No 2 Mk I revolvers were modified to Mk I* during WWII. The Enfield (and Webley revolvers) were not completely phased out in favour of the
Browning Hi-Power until 1963.
The "Official" reason for the change to the Mk I* version was that the Tank Corps had complained the spur on the hammer was catching on things inside tanks, but most historians and collectors nowadays agree that the real reason was that the Mk I* version was cheaper and faster to manufacture.
The No 2 Mk I* is at least as accurate, as any other service pistol of it's time in normal short-range combat situations, because of the relatively light double action trigger pull. It is, however, not the best choice for precision shooting - the double action pull will throw even a competent shooter's aim off enough to noticeably affect accuracy.
The Enfield No 2 is very fast to reload, as are all British top-break revolvers, because of its automatic ejector, which removes simultaneously all six cases from the cylinder. A modern
speedloader designed for
Smith & Wesson "K" Frame revolvers will function with any of the British .38/200 top-break revolvers, further speeding up the reloading process.
Some unit Armourers are known to have retro-fitted the Enfield No 2 Mk I* back to the Mk I variant, but this was never an official policy and appears to have been done on an individual basis.
The vast majority of Enfield No 2 revolvers were made by RSAF (Royal Small Arms Factory) Enfield, but wartime necessities meant that numbers were produced elsewhere.
Albion Motors: Albion Motors in Scotland made the Enfield No 2 Mk I* from 1941â€"1943, whereupon the contract for production was passed onto Coventry Gauge & Tool Co. By 1945, over 42,000 Enfield No 2 Mk I* revolvers had been produced by Albion/CG&T.
The quality and workmanship on the Albion and CG&T guns is identical to that of RSAF Enfield, and the revolvers are all sturdy, reliable, and effective.
HAC: The
Howard Auto Cultivator Company in NSW,
Australia tooled up and began manufacturing the Enfield No 2 Mk I* and I** revolvers in 1941, but the production run was very limited (estimated at around 350 or so revolvers in total), and the revolvers produced were criticised for being non-interchangeable, even with other HAC produced revolvers.
It is thought that most of the HAC revolvers have either been crushed in the various Australian Gun Amnesties and "Buy-Backs", or else are still stored in people's attics and basements in Australia.
Cayote Smith, from the game
Killer 7 uses an Enfield revolver.
.380 Enfield Revolver No 2 (1993) Stamps, Mark and Skennerton, Ian, Greenhill Books, London ISBN 1-85367-139-8
Howdah To High Power (2002) Maze, Robert J, Excalibur Publications, Tucson AZ ISBN 1-880677-17-2
*
The Corps of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers Museum of Technology: Pistol Revolver .476 inch Enfield Model 1882*
The Corps of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers Museum of Technology: Pistol Revolver .38 inch No 2 Mk I and
again
