.35 Whelen- to buy or not to buy, anybody got any input?
- Thread starter weeb
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atblis
Member
DO you mean
a Winchester 94 in 35 Whelen? I kinda doubt they ever chambered a 94 in 35 Whelen.
35 Remington perhaps?
a Winchester 94 in 35 Whelen? I kinda doubt they ever chambered a 94 in 35 Whelen.
35 Remington perhaps?
atblis
Member
That's interesting
I doubt the 94 is strong enough for full tilt Whelen loads.
The Whelen is a very underrated and often overlooked round.
I doubt the 94 is strong enough for full tilt Whelen loads.
The Whelen is a very underrated and often overlooked round.
ETXhiker
Member
Winchester 94 action isn't anywhere near long enough for .35 Whelen, so what rifle are we discussing? Maybe we are all misunderstanding. Is it an 1895?
whelan
is the 1895 enough to handle it, or is it a time bomb?cause the price is about $185 and im looking at it as a gift. this thread has already bored all, i guess. but no kidding, this was a win. lever action 35 rem. rechambered to fit a whelen. i know that much. but i promise im gonna look again, cause i done lost ya!
is the 1895 enough to handle it, or is it a time bomb?cause the price is about $185 and im looking at it as a gift. this thread has already bored all, i guess. but no kidding, this was a win. lever action 35 rem. rechambered to fit a whelen. i know that much. but i promise im gonna look again, cause i done lost ya!
BigFatKen
Member
What do you do? Lower the lever and put in ome cartridge at a time?
i dont know ken, i think every one thinks im stupid now! but i know what i saw. what do ya think?Liberty1776
Member
Weeb,
it will be seriously interesting to find out what this gun actually is. the '94 is too short, the '95 wasn't made in a 35 rem, far as I know. The '95 is long enough, as it's made for 30-06. maybe the gun was in 35 Rem, rechambered for 358 Winchester? At any rate, if the gun is correct and the work was done right, that would be a bargain.
it will be seriously interesting to find out what this gun actually is. the '94 is too short, the '95 wasn't made in a 35 rem, far as I know. The '95 is long enough, as it's made for 30-06. maybe the gun was in 35 Rem, rechambered for 358 Winchester? At any rate, if the gun is correct and the work was done right, that would be a bargain.
An 1895 will take a 35 whelen as it was made in 30/06. It is a big difference in model from an 1894 It was also chambered in .405 Winchester. Be sure what you are looking at. An 1895 at 180 bucks is a steal worth at least 5-600 as a junker.
BigFatKen
Member
I handloaded some 180gr bulllets in 30-30 for a friend to use in heavy cover. He had to use one with 170gr in the mag.
I'll add my .02 on just the caliber itself. 35 Whelen is a fantastic cartridge. I'm building a bolt-action rifle in it as we speak, using a Howa 1500 action. (I know, not my first choice of action either, but it's what the school supplies.) It has a fair amount of recoil but I'm bedding a couple of pillars which should help some. Also thought about a dead mule but still debating that.
Anyway, of the few .35's still out there, I believe it to be the best. It can safely handle anything in North America, except the largest bears in AK. I'd venture to say it's plenty for plains game in Africa as well. It's pretty versatile in terms of handloading, as there is a good selection of bullets available. (The new Double Tap loads are fantastic - I love their 225-gr. Nosler Accu-Bond.) I'm a big supporter of the .358 and .366 (9.3mm) calibers - it's too bad they never seemed to catch on here.
Anyway, of the few .35's still out there, I believe it to be the best. It can safely handle anything in North America, except the largest bears in AK. I'd venture to say it's plenty for plains game in Africa as well. It's pretty versatile in terms of handloading, as there is a good selection of bullets available. (The new Double Tap loads are fantastic - I love their 225-gr. Nosler Accu-Bond.) I'm a big supporter of the .358 and .366 (9.3mm) calibers - it's too bad they never seemed to catch on here.
rangerruck
Member
oddly enough, the 35 whelen has been tested as the most efficient cartridge ever made, that is bore, to caliber, to powder burn, to generated energy, produced by a cartridge. this is a great round, and if im not mistaken, horny makes this in a Leverevolution round now. That would be so sick!
GooseGestapo
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I would be facinated to see this specimen.
My impression is that it's actually a .356wcf. M94 "BigBore", and not a converted rifle. At that price it would be a STEAL !!!!!
The bigbores in .356 are going for $500 and up.
A Marlin M336 in .356 are going for $1,000 and up.
OR........... Is it a Marlin M336 in .35Rem converted to .356wcf. That is a "doable" conversion, ballistics come "close" to .35whelen performance. Only caveat is that I've heard of some "feeding" problems with some of the conversions. I have thought about "converting" a M336 in .35Rem to the .358 chamber, but only use "handloads" of .356 level loads w/ round/flat nose bullets.
I don't see how you could chamber, feed, or extract an '06 length round from the M94 action.
I think you need to look a little closer at the action, barrel stampings, and see if you can get a .30/06 cart. to chamber if you don't have access to a .35 Whelen. And most importantly, extract and eject!
Having a .338/06 chambered rifle, and it being capable of better ballistics all the way around than the .35Whelen, I seriously doubt that the .35 is any more efficient.
The .338/06 uses the same powder charges (within normal variances between individual barrels/chambers) with identical bullet weights to get ~100fps higer velocities, and energies out to ground impact distance favor the slimmer .338 bullet all the way.
No "slam" against the .35whelen, I'm still considering rebarreling another M98 action to build one.
However, every time I use it, I decide the .35Remington is actually adequate to any purpose I have for a .35 and it is VERY Efficient. Especially at putting game on the ground.
My impression is that it's actually a .356wcf. M94 "BigBore", and not a converted rifle. At that price it would be a STEAL !!!!!
The bigbores in .356 are going for $500 and up.
A Marlin M336 in .356 are going for $1,000 and up.
OR........... Is it a Marlin M336 in .35Rem converted to .356wcf. That is a "doable" conversion, ballistics come "close" to .35whelen performance. Only caveat is that I've heard of some "feeding" problems with some of the conversions. I have thought about "converting" a M336 in .35Rem to the .358 chamber, but only use "handloads" of .356 level loads w/ round/flat nose bullets.
I don't see how you could chamber, feed, or extract an '06 length round from the M94 action.
I think you need to look a little closer at the action, barrel stampings, and see if you can get a .30/06 cart. to chamber if you don't have access to a .35 Whelen. And most importantly, extract and eject!
Having a .338/06 chambered rifle, and it being capable of better ballistics all the way around than the .35Whelen, I seriously doubt that the .35 is any more efficient.
The .338/06 uses the same powder charges (within normal variances between individual barrels/chambers) with identical bullet weights to get ~100fps higer velocities, and energies out to ground impact distance favor the slimmer .338 bullet all the way.
No "slam" against the .35whelen, I'm still considering rebarreling another M98 action to build one.
However, every time I use it, I decide the .35Remington is actually adequate to any purpose I have for a .35 and it is VERY Efficient. Especially at putting game on the ground.
atblis
Member
I think
I think the Whelen does slightly better with heavier bullets then the 338-06.
I think the Whelen does slightly better with heavier bullets then the 338-06.
smokemaker
Member
I think comparing the .35 Whelen and .338-06 is like comparing the 30-40 vs the .303 Brit. Nearly ballistic twins. I love the Whelen, but I have a rifle in that chambering, and have never fired a .338-06 or a .338 of any other kind. The .35 Whelen won't fit in a 94, but rebarreling a 95 would be do-able. the .375 Scovill and .411 Hawk have been chambered in 95's, and I don't think there have been many problems.
well, it is an 1895 after all, and a little too high for my deep pockets. but i found another 35 whelen in a remington pump, and in much better shape, for only $225. im putting some money down tomorrow. i think my nephew will be a lot happier with this one. originally i was looking for a 30-30, but found the whelen much more interesting. thanks for the input guys.
Fred Fuller
Moderator Emeritus
Thanks for settling this one with a followup visit. LOTS of differences in a Winchester 1894 and 1895...
Where are you that all these .35 Whelens keep turning up? Gotta be cold country... never seen so much as a single one down here in the sunny south.
lpl/nc
Where are you that all these .35 Whelens keep turning up? Gotta be cold country... never seen so much as a single one down here in the sunny south.
lpl/nc
im in oklahoma, lots of deer, lots of guns. actually ive never even paid any attn. to whelens til now. but if memory serves me i think this is only the third ive ever came across. after researching i got pretty interested in this round and thought id try it out. i drive alot and stop in all the pawns and shows i can. 2 in a week is strange i guess. the first was at a pawn and the second a fellow whos a hobbyist of such
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