I originally posted this back in Jan, '06.
Webley Senior Pictorial Chronology
1st Series Senior - This is a very rare variant of the Senior. It has the four pin trigger system and sear engagement adjusting screw of it's predessors, the Webley Mark I and Mark II Target. It has the newly designed cocking foot that allows the connecting link to cam over near the end of the cocking stroke. The sequential serial numbers are prefixed with an "S".
2nd Series Senior - This is the more commonly seen of the pre-war straight grip Seniors. The trigger system has been redesigned, eliminating one of the pins - thus it is usually referred to as the three pin frame.
3rd Series Senior - The frame was redesigned to increase the grip angle, thus these are usually referred to as the pre-war slant grip. The fore and aft grip straps were smooth on the first batches, but toward the transition to the 4th series, some pre-war Seniors had grooved grip straps. The three pin trigger assembly is retained. The barrel is now flush with the front of the main tube, and the cocking shoe has been improved upon.
4th Series Senior - The frame design is basically the same as the 3rd series, but the trigger guard has been modified to accomodate the redesigned trigger. The grooved grip straps are retained. The grip panels now sport the Webley name at the top. The cocking foot has been redesigned yet again. The barrel is slightly heavier, with a knurled section near the breech for a better grip while cocking. As with the post-war Juniors, sequential serial numbers have been replaced by a production batch number.
5th Series Senior - This final iteration of the Senior is nearly identical to the 4th series, with the exception that the grip straps are no longer grooved. Another unusual feature of this variant is that it is the only Senior to have a factory blued trigger.
![[linked image]](http://www.picturehosting.com/images/Leonardj/sen2.jpg) |