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Post by Lee Martin on Oct 5, 2022 18:21:12 GMT -5
 For years I’ve wanted a .404 Jeffery bolt action. Rationally speaking, there’s no void to fill in my gun box. I have a .416 Remington Magnum, a .416 Taylor, and a .450 Ackley to name a few. But the mystique of the old Jeffery has never waned from my want list. This past summer, I decided to move forward with building one. I thought it would be useful to document the project. For one, I’m doing it on a standard Mauser 98 action. Just like they did when the cartridge was released in the early 1900’s. And while extending standard length 98’s has been in practice forever, I’ve yet to see it documented step-by-step. I’ll detail the components I’m gathering and overall configuration in later posts. For now, here’s some history on the cartridge. Dimensions:  The .404 Jeffery was created in 1905 by London gunmaker W.J. Jeffery & Co. to duplicate the .450/400 Nitro Express 3-inch in bolt-action rifles. You’ll also see it referred to as the “.404 Rimless Nitro Express”. Not only were bolt actions cheap to convert the magazine afforded the shooter extra capacity over the traditional double. At the time, there were no magnum length actions to work from. The Mauser 98 had all the right attributes for the job, except for the mag box was too short. Jeffery got around this by cutting out the bottom metal, leaving only the back wall of the magazine. Stocks were then relieved in the front and strengthened with a metal plate which was secured to the edge of the magazine valley. Of course, the bolt face was opened and the feed rails were relieved. The conversion also necessitated a different follower.  The .404 has seen both 0.422” and 0.423” bullets since its inception. The latter is now the accepted norm. Originally loaded with 60 grains of cordite, a 400 – 410 gr slug achieved 2,200 fps. Modern smokeless powders can push that to 2.350 fps and still do so with relatively mild pressure. Its 8”-30’ degree shoulder makes feeding a dream. Hunters on the dark continent immediately took to the .404. Even the largest game dropped with ease, assuming correct shot placement. In 1911, John Rigby unveiled his .416 and the .404 lost market share. But it was still widely used by big game hunters up until the 1960’s. By then, components started to become thin and Winchester’s .458 Magnum side-stepped the old Jeffery. There was a resurgence however in the early 1990’s when Ruger chambered a handful of No. 1’s in .404 (65 to be exact). However, they used incorrect chamber specs and the model was quickly shelved. There were plans to put the .404 in their Model 77, but to my knowledge none made it to the public. It was probably too little too late anyways. Remington’s .416 Magnum from 1989 was easy to form from .375 H&H, plus new brass hit the market fast. Today we have a good selection of .404 Jeffery components, though their availability is spotty. Hornady made the brass, as did Norma. RWS does as well. Jacketed bullets have been swaged by Hornady DGX, Swift A-Frames, Woodleigh Weldcores, Cutting Edge, and Peregrines. There are several cast molds to choose from too. Accurate Molds being one of the best with respect to selection. More to come...   -Lee www.singleactions.com"Chasing perfection five shots at a time" |
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Post by Encore64 on Oct 5, 2022 18:28:17 GMT -5
Excellent!!! I'm living proof that there needs not be a logical reason for building guns.
Like you, there have been guns and cartridges I could not get out of my mind.
Glad you're doing this and I look forward to following progress...
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Post by bradshaw on Oct 6, 2022 9:01:40 GMT -5
Lee.... sounds like a great traditional build. A voluminous cordite case allows honest performance without freak pressure, a factor which especially comes into play when the rifle is carried under a blazing hot sun. I shall enjoy another Martin ride through the build. Don’t know that I’ve had more rifle exhilaration than during woods pursuits with Mausers.
David Bradshaw
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rWt
.375 Atomic
Posts: 1,542
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Post by rWt on Oct 6, 2022 9:56:11 GMT -5
This is a rifle I was on my way to building but got sidetracked. I had one of Tom Burgesses' magnum actions, which began life as a Remington 1917.
Kudos to you.
I look forward to reading about your efforts!
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Post by blacktailslayer on Oct 6, 2022 14:13:43 GMT -5
I have a build planned to build a Remington 1917 into a 404 Jeffery offspring; the Remington 300 Ultra Mag. I will be watching this build closely!
Don D.
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woody
.375 Atomic
Posts: 1,116
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Post by woody on Oct 6, 2022 20:28:05 GMT -5
Sounds like a cool gun!!!! You need to take it to Africa to bloody it!!!
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Post by bigbrowndog on Oct 6, 2022 20:35:05 GMT -5
If you build it like the Jeffrey no2, best quality I’ll gladly pay the 25.00 pounds to take it off your hands when you’re done.
Trapr
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Post by Lee Martin on Oct 7, 2022 7:57:43 GMT -5
If you build it like the Jeffrey no2, best quality I’ll gladly pay the 25.00 pounds to take it off your hands when you’re done. Trapr It'll be a clean .404 with some nice touches, but not on par with the Jeffery No. 2. Here's a better quality, original ad which shows the difference between the No. 1 and the No. 2. Note the prices:  -Lee www.singleactions.com"Chasing perfection five shots at a time" |
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Post by reflex264 on Oct 7, 2022 10:02:10 GMT -5
I can't wait to see how this turns out. Although 99% of my hunting is with handguns now I still have a soft spot for big bore rifles. The .404 Jeffery is an icon among the classic big bores. This should be neat.
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jpw480
.30 Stingray
Posts: 140
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Post by jpw480 on Oct 9, 2022 23:12:40 GMT -5
This will be interesting, can't wait i have a fn mauser i would like to do the same thing. I have one of those Ruger no.1's in 404 jeffery.
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Post by Lee Martin on Oct 14, 2022 12:45:02 GMT -5
Components As with any project, phase one is to spend a lot of money gathering parts. The first piece happened by chance. I was visiting PT&G’s website and clicked on the “clearance” link. Low and behold, they had .404 Jeffery reamers discounted to $60. That’s rock bottom for any new reamer, let alone an express cartridge. That sale is all it took to begin a build I’ve been putting off for years. Brass was the next item to target. I checked every reloading supply house and auction site to find none. A quick “WTB” post on this forum solved the problem. Two members offered up brass. The first was 50 pieces of new Norma. Not only did the person gift them, but he also included a box of premium bullets. Another member had 40 pieces of new RWS, so I acquired those too. 90 shells are more than enough for a rifle like this. Next came the dies. I’m about a brand loyal as you can get when it comes to Redding. The only time I don’t buy Redding is when they don’t offer the cartridge (and that’s rare). I knew it would be a special-order set, which was confirmed by their distributor. I was told it may take in upwards of a year. At a minimum, “don’t expect to see them in 2022”. But sure enough, they arrived 3 months after the order was placed. Bullets – I liked the look of the 400 gr Hornady DGS sent to me by a forum member. Enough that I found and purchased another 6 boxes. Not cheap, but I figured I should get while the getting is good. These were supplemented by a 330 gr cast mold from Accurate (with gas check – and if you’re wondering about .404 gas-checks, you simply use .44 caliber. They size down beautifully). I'm also eyeing a 410 gr RN mold. Brass and the Redding dies (Norma brass left, RWS brass right):  Hornady bullets and Accurate mold:  PT&G reamer:  The only barrel markers offering 0.423” are Pac-Nor and Lilja. I chose Lilja and went with a #6 contour, 14-twist, 6-groove, in chrome-moly. It should be here by year-end. I’m starting on the action Sunday and will post that work soon. -Lee www.singleactions.com"Chasing perfection five shots at a time" |
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Post by potatojudge on Oct 14, 2022 15:01:57 GMT -5
Lee, your builds are a highlight of this site. Glad to see another happening.
I only ask because you're one of the few that can, but have you considered making your own jacketed or monometal bullet for this build?
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jpw480
.30 Stingray
Posts: 140
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Post by jpw480 on Oct 14, 2022 15:16:55 GMT -5
Lee if your interested there is 4 boxes of barnes 400gr banded solids on gunsinternational under reloading components bullets not cheap 80 for 50 but they are harder to find as you know.jp
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Post by Lee Martin on Oct 16, 2022 18:05:00 GMT -5
Lee, your builds are a highlight of this site. Glad to see another happening. I only ask because you're one of the few that can, but have you considered making your own jacketed or monometal bullet for this build? Swaging bullets for the .404 would be tough. The investment in dies is steep, and that assumes you could find anyone that'll do them in that caliber (maybe Corbin, but I'm not sure). Either way, there's no source for jackets. I swage my own 6mm and .30 caliber bullets for benchrest, so I'm fluent in the process. Now monolithic bullets are something my dad and I do. We lathe them from round bar stock: .585 caliber left for my .585 Nyati. Middle and right are two 0.512" bullets for the .50 Alaskan, .500 Maximum, and .500 Linebaugh (note - the two on the right are rough turned. Before loading, I'll lightly sand out the faint tool marks).  I plan on buying some 7/16" bar to make solids for this .404 Jeffery. I'll document how they're turned later. -Lee www.singleactions.com"Chasing perfection five shots at a time" |
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Post by flyingzebra on Oct 16, 2022 18:19:37 GMT -5
For years I’ve wanted a .404 Jeffery bolt action... This past summer, I decided to move forward with building one. I approve this message |
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