The .500 Jeffery (12.7×70mmRB) is a big-game rifle cartridge that first appeared around 1920, and was originally introduced by the
August Schuler
August is the eighth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days.
In the Southern Hemisphere, August is the seasonal equivalent of February in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Northern Hemisphere, August ...
Company, a German firm, under the European designation "12.7×70mm Schuler" or ".500 Schuler". When offered by the famed British outfitter
W. J. Jeffery & Co., it was renamed the .500 Jeffery so as to be more palatable to British hunters and sportsmen following World War One.
History
The .500 Jeffery was introduced to bring firepower comparable to the
.505 Gibbs into a standard-sized
1898 Mauser action as used with the
8x57mm and
7x57mm cartridges. The Gibbs and
.416 Rigby cartridges required oversized magnum Mauser actions. To shoehorn a large round into the 98 action required a rebated rim. When introduced, the .500 Jeffery was technically rated as the most powerful rifle cartridge although in reality not quite up to .505 Gibbs' performance. The .505 Gibbs, with greater capacity, can be loaded far in excess of the .500 Jeffery today.
Ammunition availability
Like the .505 Gibbs, the .500 Jeffery is enjoying somewhat of a renaissance among American shooters and African big game hunters in the early 21st century, almost 100 years after its introduction.
As of 2009,
Norma Norma may refer to:
* Norma (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name)
** Norma Lizbeth Ramos, a Mexican bullying victim
Astronomy
*Norma (constellation)
* 555 Norma, a minor asteroid
* Cygnus Arm or Norma Arm, a spiral ...
,
Kynoch
Kynoch was a manufacturer of ammunition that was later incorporated into ICI, but remained as a brand name for sporting cartridges.
History
The firm of Pursall and Phillips operated a 'percussion cap manufactory' at Whittall Street, in Birmin ...
,
Mauser
Mauser, originally the Königlich Württembergische Gewehrfabrik, was a German arms manufacturer. Their line of bolt-action rifles and semi-automatic pistols was produced beginning in the 1870s for the German armed forces. In the late 19th and ...
,
Corbon, and Westley Richards were offering loaded ammunition in .500 Jeffery with ammunition costing $150 for a box of 20 or more.
Rifles
There have been a few rifles chambered in the .500 Jeffery including Jeffery,
Heym Heym is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Georg Heym (1887–1912), German author
* Stefan Heym (1913–2001), German author
See also
* Heym (gun manufacturer)
* Chayyim, the basis for this name
* Haim (disambiguation)
* Hei ...
,
CZ-USA, and a few single shots including the
Ruger No. 1, and the
Butch Searcy & Co.
Mauser offers its Model 98 magnum in the caliber. Its "elephant" model is offered in .500 Jeffery exclusively. In 2011, Sako began offering the caliber in its
Model 85 "safari" rifle using a new XL size action, and since 2014 the XL action has been available in the more affordable Model 85 brown bear rifle. Blaser also offers rifles chambered in the caliber. Many of the modern rifles have feeding issues due to the rebated rim. The original Jeffery uses a single-column two-shot magazine to get around the potential reliability problems resulting from a rebated rim.
Criticism
The .500 Jeffery has had a few issues since its introduction. It has a rather short neck length that can make it difficult to seat
bullets
A bullet is a Kinetic energy weapon, kinetic projectile, a component of firearm ammunition that is Shooting, shot from a gun barrel. They are made of a variety of materials, such as copper, lead, steel, polymer, rubber and even wax; and are made ...
with a relatively high
sectional density
Sectional density (often abbreviated SD) is the ratio of an object's mass to its cross sectional area with respect to a given axis. It conveys how well an object's mass is distributed (by its shape) to overcome resistance along that axis.
Secti ...
. Also it has a small shoulder. This is not usually an issue but as the .500 Jeffery also has a rebated rim it makes it rather difficult to extract in extreme conditions.
Ballistics
When the .500 Jeffery was first introduced it was loaded to a velocity of topped off with a 535-grain bullet generating of muzzle energy, which made it a pretty good hunting caliber for thick-skinned dangerous game. Since then, reloading capabilities have advanced to be able to launch heavier bullets at higher velocities. Now, with modern reloads, the .500 Jeffery can launch a 600-grain bullet at a muzzle velocity ranging from , generating to Newer reloads made the .500 Jeffery the most powerful production cartridge in the world until the introduction of the
.460 Weatherby Magnum. With reloads the .460 Weatherby can reach levels of power of about of muzzle energy. Also, the
.600 Nitro Express
The .600 Nitro Express (15.7×76mmR) is a large bore Nitro Express rifle Cartridge (firearms), cartridge developed by W. J. Jeffery & Co. for the purpose of hunting large game.
Design
The .600 Nitro Express is a slightly tapered walled, Rim (fir ...
exceeds the .500 Jeffery in
muzzle energy
Muzzle energy is the kinetic energy of a bullet as it is expelled from the muzzle (firearm), muzzle of a firearm. Without consideration of factors such as aerodynamics and gravity for the sake of comparison, muzzle energy is used as a rough indi ...
, with 120 grains of
cordite
Cordite is a family of smokeless propellants developed and produced in Britain since 1889 to replace black powder as a military firearm propellant. Like modern gunpowder, cordite is classified as a low explosive because of its slow burni ...
.
See also
*
.50 BMG
*
.500 A-Square
*
.500 Nitro Express
*
.577 Nitro Express
*
.577 Tyrannosaur
*
.600 Nitro Express
The .600 Nitro Express (15.7×76mmR) is a large bore Nitro Express rifle Cartridge (firearms), cartridge developed by W. J. Jeffery & Co. for the purpose of hunting large game.
Design
The .600 Nitro Express is a slightly tapered walled, Rim (fir ...
*
.700 Nitro Express
*
List of rebated rim cartridges
Below is a list of rebated rim cartridges. Rebated-rim cartridges have a rim that is significantly smaller in diameter than the base of the case, serving only for extraction. Functionally the same as a rimless case, the rebated rim allows a gun t ...
References
External links
African Conservation Foundation on .505 Gibbs and .500 Jeffrey
Norma Ammunition .500 Jeffery page
{{DEFAULTSORT:500
Pistol and rifle cartridges
Rebated rim cartridges
British firearm cartridges
W. J. Jeffery & Co. cartridges