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Hi there
I'm planning to get me a bigger rifle than my 375H&H.
Since I like the older calibers with a history I have fallen for the the name "404 Jeffery".
Any one with experience that can say YES or NO ?
I know you can throw 400 gr bullets with a reasonable recoil.
But what else ?
I don't have a 404 but the people that I have talked to that do just love theirs. Like a lot of other big bores, rifles and cartridges are more available now than ever before. If you really want a 404 Jeffery just do it. You can never have too many rifles:)
Since I live in Sweden we are only allowed to have four guns, or in certain cases six.
I have to replace my 444 Marlin to get the Jeffery. :-(
I am sorry to hear that. One thing to consider is that the 404 will do everything the 444 can do and more. Not to mention the romance of such a classic caliber. Jim
Calle,
.404 Jeffery is a remarkable caliber & has been a tried & tested bore since a long time for African & Indian big game hunting . I have used this caliber & the results have been astounding , but the shoulder does take callous beating. Little write up on it should be of help....
The .404 Jeffery is a large caliber, rimless cartridge[designed for large, dangerous game, such as the big five (elephant, rhino, cape buffalo, lion and leopard) of 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 .450/400 (3 1/4") cartridge. There are two basically similar sets of dimensions for this case, depending on the manufacturer.
The .404 Jeffery as originally loaded fired a .423" diameter bullet of either 300 gr (19 g) with a muzzle velocity of 2,600 ft/s (790 m/s) and muzzle energy of 4,500 foot-pounds force (6,100 N•m) or 400 gr (26 g) with a muzzle velocity of 2,125 ft/s (648 m/s) and 4,020 foot-pounds force (5,450 N•m) of energy. It is very effective on large game and is favored by many hunters of dangerous game. Performance and recoil are similar to other African dangerous game cartridges.The .404 Jeffery was popular with hunters and game wardens in Africa because it gave good performance with a manageable level of recoil. By way of comparison, the .416 Rigby and .416 Remington Magnum both fire a 400 grain .416 " bullet at 2,400 feet per second (730 m/s) with a muzzle energy of approximately 5,000 foot-pounds force (6,800 N•m), which handily exceeds the ballistic performance of the .404 Jeffery but at the price of greater recoil and in the case of the .416 Rigby, rifles that are significantly more expensive...
Monish
Monish I know where you got the pic of the 404 cartridge and the Kynoch box as I took it myself a month or two back. You are spot on with the ORIGINAL balistics of the 404 Jeffery although when RWS loaded the cartridge they upped the performance to 2300fps for the 400gn load and Kynoch lifted their game as well. There is no difficulty in getting this 2300fps with the 400gn soft or a solid as 84gn H4350 took it there with ease and great accuracy. There is nothing I wouldn't feel able to take with this rifle and feel the 404 is one of the best balances of all the important considerations. A 400gn (and there is now a 450gn ) bullet at 2300fps has all the performance needed in a rifle weighted to 9 - 9 1/2 lbs for very good recoil control. Can easily get 3+1 without drop box so rifles are trim and lively. GS Custom also make a 320gn HV bullet that will run at 2600 -2700fps and makes the 404 a real all rounder for the one gun hunter although a nice 7x57 is the perfect companion.
Von Gruff.
Von,
A very dead straight caliber, it was largely used for tiger & other dangerous game hunting in India, due to the availability of the ammo. , velocity and a heavy projectile with thunderous impact . Now we do not have any access to import of this cartridge. At times we use the old Kynoch 400 grainers with nitro cellulose , but its a immaculate caliber & has seen lots of credible hunting days in this country , after the complete ban on hunting in India the usage of such big bores is just left to blasting away of few rounds on the target shoots. 7x57 is a perfect combination with any big bore rifle, WDM Bell knew damn very well about its versatility.....
Monish
With the cost of jacketed projectiles being what it is I shoot mostly cast in mine and had a mould made to my own spec that has proved very rewarding. It is a 350gn GC that I cast in a couple of alloys for 1900fps plinking right through to 2500fps HT that will do this with 5 shots at 55yds and aperture sight.
http://i667.photobucket.com/albums/v...Jeffery073.jpg
The bullet is the one that is GC and lubed 6th from left
http://i667.photobucket.com/albums/v...Jeffery076.jpg
Not a lot of call for the 404 in NZ but have taken a few goats with it although mostly it is just on my steel plate for fun.
Von Gruff.
Von,
Thats great to know you cast bullets , I believe the accuracy & the trejectory must be brilliant with the GC 350 grainer, its a well shaped round nose, have you put it to practical use on goats ?? do let us know the intensity of damage .You have the luxury to experiment , here the law does not permit to put in ones ballistic articulations in practice.
The jist is .404 is a big bore classic caliber which has been a allrounder since a long time and is peer to the Emperor of all calibers the famed .375 H&H Magnum. I hope you agree .
Thanks for all the input on .404 .
Monish
Thank you both for superb information.
I will get a rifle in that caliber, if not for everything you told me, but for the name.
Calle,
Do let us know when you procure this classic caliber "THE .404 JEFFERY" . Congrats .. in advance.
Monish
Good for you Calle, I have quite a bit of interesting stuff about the 404 Jeffery for when you start to get really involved. Are you intenting to buy or build this rifle.
Von Gruff.
This cast bullet has a .2 meplat so is a flat point.This size of flatpoint is enough to keep the flawless feeding into the chamber but is enough of a flatpoint to initiate expansion in the apropriate alloys.Quote:
Originally Posted by monish
As mentioned I have only decked a few goats with it and we could eat right up to the bullet holes. The alloy I used was my plinking alloy of 90/10 ww/lino and it is too hard to expand on such a light animal but would be great on elk /wapiti or big reds up to moose. If I was doing a lot with it on the light bodied animals I would cast a pure lead soft nose although a 40 cal hole through an animal is usually enough without expansion. I am more inclined to use my 7x57, again with a cast bullet weighing 160gn at 2415fps with a 65gn softnose cast in. Get better than Nosler Partition performance with expansion to .5 and 100 % weight retention.
Von Gruff.
Von Gruff,
The alloy that you use in casting these 350 GCs sure must be of a fine composition , goats being light bodied game surely would drop instantaneously , with lots of edible meat on it, as the impact must be tremendous . Lucky you ! to have the luxury of experimenting with your ballistic acumen. 7x57 is a fine combination rifle along with a big bore & has fantastic trejectory & thump . Thanks for all the valuable info. on the .404 & the 350 GC.
Monish
I have a gunsmith in a town not to far from me that will build it.
I like my Winchester 70 pre-64 and the way it handles.
I was thinking of a classic Mauser 98 system.
But thats about how far our discussions has come yet.
If I canīt find a fine used rifle.
But there seems to very few around up here in the north of Scandinavia.
Big bore in Sweden is 9,3x62. Anyone using anything bigger than that is a little nuts.
I built mine on a 1952 FN Colombian 98 that I had bought in 1982 as an origional 30-06.
This is how it finished up. I was able to do some of the minor metal work and did the stock from a nice blank and kept the costs in the "reasonable" area.
http://www.africahunting.com/hunting...le=6391&size=1
Von Gruff.
Von,
Thats a classic rifle you own . Exquisite !!!! You have installed peep sights ??? must be perfect accurate rifle.
Monish
I will take this picture to my gunsmith :-)
Calle, you have PM.
Von Gruff.
I have one in a Mauser M03-- Great gun and cailiber, does not smack ya like a 416 rem mag, but has plenty of thump!