.600 Nitro Express

.600 Nitro Express
Type Rifle, Hunting, Revolver*
Place of origin  UK
Production history
Designer W.J. Jeffery & Co
Designed 1899
Produced 1903–
Specifications
Case type Rimmed
Bullet diameter .620 in (15.7 mm)
Case length 3 in (76 mm)
Filling Cordite
Filling weight 120 grains (7.8 g)
Ballistic performance
Bullet weight/type Velocity Energy
900 gr (58 g) SP/FMJ 2,050 ft/s (620 m/s) 8,221 ft·lbf (11,146 J)

The .600 Nitro Express (15.7×76mmR) is a rifle cartridge in the Nitro Express series which was introduced in 1903 by W.J. Jeffery & Co. It is the second largest calibre in the Nitro Express line, exceeded only by Holland & Holland's .700 Nitro Express round.

Performance

All .600 Nitro Express cartridges carried a 900-grain (58 g) projectile. Early versions were loaded with cordite. While the .700 Nitro is of course larger, the .600 Nitro is the largest dangerous game caliber to have been used during the heyday of African ivory hunting.[1] The .700 was a 1980s creation as a result of a well-to-do gentleman being denied a .600 NE calibered rifle from renowned maker Holland & Holland.

Though the .600 was larger than the .577, it was not nearly as popular among professional hunters of the day. It is impossible to say exactly how many .600s have been built, but most estimates are around 200; mainly doubles, but with a few falling block single shots too. In use, a professional hunter would carry this rifle only when expecting a charge, or when the hunter was in the "thick brush", with a gun-bearer carrying it at other times. The rifles chambered for these rounds were most often side-by-side double rifles with boxlock actions made by the Jeffery Company of England. However, Jeffery did introduce their Model 1904 Farquharson-based falling-block, single-shot rifle in 1904 specifically for the .600 NE.[2]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Barnes, Frank C., & Skinner, S. (2006). Cartridges of the world: A complete and illustrated reference for over 1500 cartridges. Iola, WI: Gun Digest Books. p.406, "600 Nitro Express". ISBN 978-0-89689-297-2.
  2. ↑ Kirton, Jonathan: The British Falling Block Breechloading Rifle From 1865 (1997), p. 318

External links

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