35 Whelen vs. 350 Mag

[Stony]

It seems to me that I see quite a bit of interest in the 30 Whelen, but very seldom see anyone making reference to hunting with the 350 mag.
Just curious why the difference....as I understand it, they have almost identical performance and the 350 Mag runs through a short action.
I have a 350 Ruger that I am very pleased with and have used for taking numerous hogs and deer. It shoots a 225 Gr Sierra into 1" at 100 yds.
Why would the Whelen have a bigger following?

 

[TRX]

The .35 Whelen has been around since 1922 and has been chambered OEM in many brands of rifles; it has a sizeable installed base after most of a century...

If you want a short action .35 cartridge, the .358 Winchester has been around since 1955.

 

[eldon519]

They are pretty much equals. The .350 is almost dead today though. I don't think Remington even makes ammo for it anymore. I'm not aware of any rifles being made chambered for it either. Once the .35 took the lead in popularity, I think that tends to keep it in the lead.

Why did it go this way? Well I think some of what keeps the .35 going is the legacy of Col. Whelen himself. Also the .30-06 parent brass is about as common as dirt, so its availability will never be questioned. You can make .350 brass but it takes a little more work than just running it through the sizing die. I think the .350 also had a brutal reputation regarding recoil because it came in the compact/light 600. I think some people have gone full circle on "magnums" as well; whereas they once were the rage, it seems like people have moved away from them to a degree.

 

[Sunray]

.350 Rem Mag is virtually non-existent except for one Nosler load at $62.99 per 20 at Midway. $47.49 per 50 for Nosler brass. No Remington at all.
.35 Whelen is far more available. Federal, Hornady, Barnes and Nosler load ammo. And Hornady and Nosler make brass. Mind you, the chances of finding any in small places are slim.

 

[stiab]

The Gander Mtn. in Greensboro, NC carries .35W in two brands. Two great calibers, just a matter of availability.

 

[Stony]

I guess the ammo availability must be the deal breaker for the 350 mag. I reload all mine, so it's never been a consideration for me. I bought about 10 boxes or so of factory Remington for the rifle when I got it, mostly just for the brass......the factory shot like doo doo, and that's being kind.
Seems strange that Ruger would bring out one without a supply of ammo being available to the non reloader, but I have been happy with mine so far.

 

[rule303]

The .350 Remington suffered from being introduced in the wrong gun at the wrong time. The Remington 600 was light, so the recoil was brutal, and the short barrel didn't make the velocity the .350 was capable of with the powders available in the 60's. The .338 Win Mag was introduced a few years earlier, and was already well established as a heavy hitter available in more conventional rifles. It is a great cartridge if you need and ultra light short action rifle, but ballistically it really doesn't offer anything over a .338 Win Mag, or the .35 Whelen.

 

[Chuck R.]

I've got a .350 in a MOD7 "Mannlicher" from the custom shop. It is a neat little rifle and with handloads launches a Nosler 225 just under 2700 FPS out of it's 20" barrel.

It does kick "a bit", especially with 250 grainers and the scope off. I mounted a Swarovski 1.25-4X in QD mounts, sighted the scope for the 225s and the irons for 250s. Great stalking carbine for heavy cover, but not much fun off the bench. Killed 1 5x4 elk with it and a couple deer, all died "well".

Chuck

 

[Vern Humphrey]

The .35 Whelen has been around since 1922 and has been chambered OEM in many brands of rifles; it has a sizeable installed base after most of a century...

Actually the .35 Whelen which came out as you say in 1922 was not officially adopted by any ammunition company, nor offered in any factory rifle for 60 years -- not until Remington offered it in one of their retro-specials in the mid 1980s.

For most of the .35 Whelen's history, if you wanted one, you had to re-barrel a rifle originally chambered for the .30-06, or else re-bore and re-rifle one. My own .35 Brown-Whelen is a custom M1903 Springfield that was re-bored and re-rifled. It still has the Ordnance bomb stamped near the muzzle.

 

[DM~]

I've owned a few 350 Rem. Mag's, the problem with that cartridge in the short actions is, you have to seat heavier bullets too deep. If you don't, then you have a single shot or some mighty beat up bullets in the magazine...

DM

 

[Cocked & Locked]

7 lbs. 10 oz. (as pictured without ammo & sling) of Remington Classic .35 Whelen would do you well.

But not with the Nosler Ballistic Tip bullets pictured...Barnes TSX works.

 

[Japle]

Some years ago, I decided that what I needed was a powerful medium-caliber rifle. I designed this one and had it built.

Action - 1917 Enfield.
Barrel - Douglas Premium medium heavy 20".
Stock - Not sure what brand. I bought the blank from a guy who'd had it in a dry attic for 20+ years.
Trigger - Timney.
Scope - Nikko Sterling Nighteater. I know, it's a cheap scope. Got good reviews, it's clear and distortion free and hasn't changed zero. Ever.
Caliber - .358 Norma Mag.

I chose the .358 because I can load it down to .35 Winchester ballistics with a 180 gr bullet for hogs or use the 250 gr Nosler at 2660 fps (chronographed) for the big stuff. I neck up .338 Win Mag brass.

The rifle is super accurate with light and heavy loads. I'll admit that after 8 to 10 rounds from the bench, the heavy load gets a tad wearing on my nerves.

 

[Elkins45]

35 Whelen can be formed from easily available 30-06 brass. That's a lot of the appeal.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

35 Whelen can be formed from easily available 30-06 brass. That's a lot of the appeal.

That was the whole idea behind the Whelen -- a cartridge that would fit any rifle designed for the .30-06, could be made from '06 brass.