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KNOWLEDGE CENTER1 8 9 5 G U N N E R.C O M
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KNOWLEDGE CENTER1 8 9 5 G U N N E R.C O M
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Home > Knowledge Center > 405 Winchester405 Winchester HistoryIntroduced in 1904, the 405 Winchester is a straight wall, smokeless cartridge loosely based on the earlier .40-72 Winchester black powder cartridge. Universally agreed by hunters to be suitable for all game in North America, most found it wanting against African dangerous game.Within half a century, the 405 Winchester was effectively obsolete and eclipsed by far more powerful bottlenecked cartridges. Despite this, one man propelled the cartridge to cult-like status that has persisted for more than a century. The 405 Winchester is often referred to as the “Big Medicine” cartridge — a moniker that is erroneously attributed to Theodore Roosevelt. In truth, Roosevelt never called the 405 Winchester “Big Medicine.” Instead, he referred to it as his “medicine gun” in his 1910 book, African Game Trails. The confusion may be a mash-up of terms, the first half being related to his “big stick diplomacy” and the latter half being related to the medicine gun. Put them together, and you get Big Medicine.
PerformanceThe dangerous game hunters of Roosevelt’s day may have regarded it as underpowered, but the 405 Winchester is no slouch. The load could propel a 300-grain, jacketed, solid-point bullet at 2,400 fps at the muzzle. It has a reputation for heavy recoil, but it has plenty of ass for even the largest of North American game, including bison and moose at distances of 100 yards to 150 yards. There’s the rub. Unfortunately, things drop off quickly for the .405 as it travels beyond 150 yards. At 200, the bullet loses a third of its velocity and drops 8 inches from a 100-yard zero. Beyond the 200-yard mark, it can be difficult to get the 300-grain bullet to retain enough energy to penetrate the thick skin of large animals, including that of dangerous game. That said, the muzzle energy at max load is 3,838 ft. lbs. Besides, who shoots dangerous game at 200 yards?
Factory ammunitionAs of this writing, Hornady is the only factory sold .405 Winchester ammunition maker. In fact, this month they just released this year's seasonal offering. It's pricy at around $85.00 U.S dollars per box of twenty cartridges. It's only available in their 300-grain, Interlock SP projectile. In fact, the .405 Winchester is primarily a hand loaders cartridge at this time. There is a couple custom made cartridge manufacturers that offer for sale at even higher prices. Hornady advised me last month that they will no longer sell empty brass, so auction sites are bringing in high dollar bids for any new remaining factory brass. Bertram Brass seems to be the only remaining source for buying just brass and again it is seasonal and big dollars. They are offering 100 cases at $350.00 U.S. this time and I'm expecting my back order to ship soon.
Final thoughtsWhile the .405 Winchester cartridge is new to me, as indicated above it's been around for 120 years. I just picked up a 16-year-old, unfired "150th Anniversary Theodore Roosevelt" Winchester model 1895 rifle and have found it to be an extraodinary rifle and cartridge. I've hand loaded and fired over a hundred rounds so far and every time I load the box magazine and pull the trigger, I'm reminded of the glory days during President Roosevelt's African Safari where he carried and used successfully the same rifle and cartridge. The history, the power and the romance of this cartridge will live on for years to come and I'll do my part in helping it to survive. 
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