.404 Jeffery

Infobox Firearm Cartridge
name= .404 Jeffery


caption=
origin= England
type= Rifle
service=
used_by=
wars=
designer= Jeffery of England
design_date=1909
manufacturer=
production_date=
number=
variants= .404 Rimless Nitro Express, 10.75 x 73mm
is_SI_specs=
parent=
case_type=Rebated, bottleneck
bullet=.422
neck=.450
shoulder=.520
base=.544
rim_dia=.537
rim_thick=.05
case_length=2.86
length=3.53
rifling=
primer=Large rifle magnum
is_SI_ballistics=
bw1=400
btype1=RN
vel1=2150
en1=4107
bw2=
btype2=
vel2=
en2=
bw3=
btype3=
vel3=
en3=
bw4=
btype4=
vel4=
en4=
bw5=
btype5=
vel5=
en5=
test_barrel_length=
balsrc= Handloader's Manual of Cartridge Conversions cite book
last =Donnelly
first =John J.
title = The Handloader's Manual of Cartridge Conversions
year =1987
publisher =Stoeger Publishing
pages = 532
isbn = 978-0883172698] The .404 Jeffery is a large caliber rebated rim magnum round designed for large dangerous game, such as is found in Africa. Other names for this cartridge include .404 Jeffery Rimless, .404 Rimless Nitro Express, and 10.75 x 73 mm. It was created by Jeffery of England based on their desire to duplicate performance of the .450/404 (3 1/4"). [http://www.chuckhawks.com/404Jeffery.htm The .404 Jeffery by Chuck Hawks] ] There are two basically similar sets of dimensions for this case, depending on the manufacturer. [cite book
last =Howell
first =Ken
title =Designing and Forming Custom Cartridges
year =1995
publisher =Precision Shooting
pages = 330,331
isbn = 0-9643623-0-9] . The .404 Jeffery uses a 400gr bullet,.423 inch diameter bullet with a muzzle velocity of 2150fps and just over 4000 foot pounds of energy. It is very effective on large game and is considered by many to be the standard for dangerous game ammunition. Performance and recoil is similar to the .416 Rigby and .416 Remington.

History

Originally the .404 was very popular for hunters in Africa and saw significant use in both British and German colonies. As the British Empire began to shrink, many of the popular British big-bore cartridges also dwindled in popularity, and the .404 Jeffery was one of them. By the 1960s it had all but disappeared from common firearm usage. [http://www.chuckhawks.com/subscribers/rifle_cartridge_page/404Jeffery.htm The .404 Jeffery by Chuck Hawks (subscription required)] ] . This condition was mostly the result of the closing of the British Ammunition giant Kynoch who was the primary manufacture of the .404 Jeffery and many other British cartridges. Kynoch ammunition became scarce and expensive and the Kynoch Ammunition was commercially replaced by Winchester Ammunition of the United States and the new .458 Win Mag they introduced in 1956. Winchester already was producing the British .375 Holland and Holland cartridge and latter started a marketing campaign called "Winchester in Africa" with much success. Renewed interest in heavy game rifles and political stability in Africa has lead to a resurgence in African hunting and the rifles suited for it. Kynoch Ammunition has reopened as Knyamco Limited [http://www.kynochammunition.co.uk Kynoch Ammunition] and Norma of Sweden is also offering the .404 Jeffery.

Commercial and wildcat children

In recent times, the .404 case has seen a resurgence in use by wildcatters. This case has no belt unlike many other magnum cartridges, which can be desirable for Handloading because of possible problems with case head separation with repeated use of belted-magnums. This case also has a rebated rim, meaning the rim diameter is less than the head or base diameter. This makes it easier to chamber the cartridge in more standard actions and bolt-faces, but is sometimes associated with extraction difficulty. In the case of the .404, the rebate is relatively small and typically not problematic.

Some common commercial children of the .404 Jeffery case are the Remington Ultra Magnum (RUM) cartridge family, as well as the Winchester Short Magnum (WSM) cartridge family, which in turned spawned the Remington Short Action Ultra Magnum (RSAUM) cartridges and the Winchester Super Short Magnum (WSSM) families. Both the Winchester and Remington cartridges have also spawned many current wildcats.

The .375 Dakota by Dakota Arms and the .400 Tembo by Velocity USA, are cartridges based on a .404 Jeffery case.

ee also

* List of rifle cartridges
* 10 mm caliber

References

* Barnes, Frank, "Cartridges of the World 4th Edition", p. 329