The velocities quoted at various times for the 404 Jeffery cartridge are a bit of an enigma. One could say there was no 'original' or specific velocity for the 400gr load for the 404J.

The early Kynoch load for the 400gr bullet had a velocity of 2,125fps, this was later increased by Kynoch to 2,225 fps with either a pasted paper warning on the packets of five rounds or an actual printing on the packets to re-sight rifles previously sighted for the old cordite load. For whatever reason when Kynoch resumed manufacture of ammunition in later years to present, their 404J ammunition was loaded back to the 2,125fps level (28" barrel).

The old catalogue entry for the 'New 1905 Model' Jeffery rifle indicated that 400gr ammunition can be had loaded with old cordite to 2,200fps or the new flat strip high velocity cordite to 2,400 fps.

I have seen published ballistics for an early DWM load giving 2,400fps. The old RWS load was 2,330fps with their modern loading for the 400gr Soft Nose being 2,312fps as the conversion from their published figure of 705m/sec.

I still have a few Norma loaded (circa 60’s?) Parker Hale factory rounds for my 404, with a MV of 2,245fps.

So despite the early Kynoch load of 2,125fps being oft quoted as a sort of standardised loading for the 404 Jeffery cartridge, there were always other manufacturers producing ammunition in the early and mid 1900’s that put the 404J up into the same class as the 416 Rigby and 425 WR. Of course the Brits probably didn't want to know about the German loadings back then.