.35 Whelen: What do you think?

Status
Not open for further replies.
David4516

David4516

Member
Joined
May 29, 2003
Messages
1,334
Location
WA State
It seems like an interesting caliber to me. I'm thinking about converting a mauser to .35 Whelen just for kicks (and maybe for elk hunting).

So, does anyone have a rifle in this caliber? What are it's pros and cons? Why isn't is more popular? Other rounds based on the .30-06 case have really taken off (.270 Win and .25-06 come to mind), so why hasn't .35 Whelen?
 
I have 2 made from Czech VZ 24 M98 actions and I love the caliber. It is an easy caliber to reload (just run a 30-06 thru the .35 die and the deed is done). It proves to be quite accurate and quite a viable game caliber. I have taken deer with it and it WORKS.

I understand others use it for much bigger game. It is not a 'magnum' in that it does not kick like a mule but it will make a good impression on game. It can be loaded with heavyweight bullets and make quite a 'thumper' or it can be loaded down with .357 mag pistol bullets till it is a true plinker. Good for introducing a rifle to younger people or to newbies, especially the small of stature.

One of mine likes 225 Nosler BT's and the other one prefers 250 gr RN's. I have shot some 270 gr bullets that do well but have no need for that heavy artillery at this time.

Indeed, it is an interesting round and a lot of fun to play with. Do go ahead and get or make you one. You will not be disappointed. Have fun!

(BTW, there ARE a LOT of .35 Whelen shooters around-they just don't talk much!)
 
.35 WHELEN

I bought a used Remington Model 700 Classic in .35 Whelen, last year. It likes the Sierra 225 gr. bullets and is very accurate. More than adequate for whitetail, elk, etc. You can buy new brass for it, also. It is a good round and you will certainly enjoy it.:cool:
 
After moving to Colorado, I thought seriously about having a dedicated Elk rifle built. The caliber I choose was .35 Whelan. Excellent performance, both on paper and on game.
 
FWIW, the Speer No. 13 Reloading manual kinda damns the .35 Whelen with faint praise, and says the .338/06 is a better choice for hunters. Higher sectional density, and better velocity at the same bullet weight.

Of course, the .338/06 is hardly in the top-10, either.
 
I haven't had a 35 Whelen, but I have had several big bores, mostly 375 and 458 Magnums.

The 35 Whelen is a nice high powered cartridge capable of taking anything short of a Tyrannosaurus.

The only downside to 35 Whelen is the lack of decent selection of 35 caliber bullets that is, those that are capable of being driven at high velocity and have decent weight. For some reason, there has never been a big demand for 35 caliber bullets in the USA other than the 35 Rem with skimpy 200 grain thin jackets. The 358 Win (similar to 35 Whelen in perf) languished without a lot of sales and was discontinued.

Well, actually, the 2nd downside is many people are impressed at the paper energy figures produced by these heroic 35 caliber cartridges but are dismayed to find that the rifles kick more than a 30 caliber, also. :uhoh: :evil:
 
Everybody that shoots the Whelen, loves the Whelen! I don't have one myself, but they are actually quite common around here. I've shot them and they are quite pleasant even with the 250 grain slugs.
A few years ago somebody was making .35 Whelens on FN Mauser actions and they were going for about $375 - a great bargain! A bunch of them showed up at one of the local gun shops and just flew off the shelves. I don't recall the maker, but it would probably be far cheaper to track one of those down than to build your own.

I shoot a .350 Rem Mag which is quite similar, ballistically speaking. There are enough .35 caliber bullets around to find what you need. I like the Nosler Partition in 250 grains.

Keith
 
Having one built should be no problem. Just rebarrel an '06 case head size gun in .35 and chamber ream.

Barnes has the excellent X bullet in 180, 200, and 250 grains. Perfect for deer, elk, caribou, etc.
 
My elk rifle is Bigfoot Wallace, a custom '03 Springfield in .35 Brown-Whelen (the most radical form of the Whelen.)

I drive a 225-grain Nosler Partition Jacket at an honest 2700 fps. I hit one bull in the left shoulder, the bullet broke the leg completely off (it fell off when we skinned him out.) It entered the chest cavity at about .60 caliber, exited at about .70 caliber, and broke the right leg off.

The state of Colorado is still complaining about the radio-active crater it left when it finally came to a stop. :D
 
Dave R and others - I too had been thinking the 35 Whelen good, but the .338-06 a slightly better choice for N. Amer. game, but I have no real world experience on that. As Keith said, the Whelen is pretty common up in the wilds - but how popular is the .338-06 up there, Keith?
 
.338/06 was touted by no less than Elmer Keith, back around, oh 1930-something or so. They used British .333 Bullets for the 330 Jeffery because that was the only ones available. Called it the .333 OKH for O'Neill, Keith, & Hopkins. They also had a magnum version called the .334 OKH based on the belted H&H case. Once the .338 bullets came on line in the 1950s, they moved up to .338/06. The 334 OKH served as the father of the .338 Win Mag. You can look it up.
 
The 35 Whelen has two european equivalents, the 9.3x62 and 9.3x74R which have an even longer history as fine hunting cartridges, taking just about everything in africa. The three will do the job very well and would be good choices unless you suffer from the " have to have a magnum" syndrome.
 
Both the 35 Whelen and the 338/06 are yeoman cartridges that get the job done without all the fuss and bother of a magnum. The paper numbers are a bit differnt, but I doubt the elk would know the difference. It really boils down to personal preference.

Both are available from the factory now (Remington for the 35, Weatherby for the 338/06, which they call the 338/06 A-Square).

I prefer the 338/06, but it's not a rational preference. As I said above, either will do very nicely.
 
In my view, the .350 Rem Mag is actually a better choice than either. It's the ballistic twin of the .35 Whelen - actually, you can get just a tad more steam out of the .350, but not enough to make a real difference.
Anyway, I prefer it because it's a short action cartridge. Since you can get "all the above" in a shorter, lighter rifle, why not?

Keith
 
I have a Rem 700 .35 Whelen. I plan on having one of my 1917's rebarrelled to .35 Whelen at some point. Good, reliable, "can-do" cartridge. Big enough for almost anything, but not overkill.

John
 
Hi guys
I did this reasearch earlier this year when I was deployed and came to the conclusion that "on paper" the .338-06 has the egde but not by much. Not enough for the animal being hit with it out to 300 yds.
I'm building a .338-06, with the help of a qualified gunsmith. It's on a 1917 Enfield(Rem) frame. The factory sights will stay on it and a 2.75X Burris scout scope will be forward of the action.Some of the reasons I went with the .338-06 are: I'm making all my rounds out of 68 Match Lake City brass, and didn't want to split them when I sized them up past .338. The bullets are better and for the most part it's still a "wildcat" and I wanted to make all my rounds from scratch. My load will be 225 gr Hornady SST and Varget hopeing to safely reach 2600 FPS. It gives 2000lbs of energy out to 300yds and it should be 9" low when sighted in at 200yds.
The barrel started out as a blank and has been turned down to a medium sporter weight and the stock is a JRS classic from Boyds.
The last thing I did was thread the barrel on to the reciever. After hunting season I'll go back to chamber it then it will be time to beadblast and blue the the metal. and glassbed the stock.

Wish me luck
Cajun
 
Very sweet. Hope my turns out as nicely when I have it done (or do it).

Sorry we didn't get the change to get together while I was at Lewis.
 
One of the reasons I like Whelens (both the standard and Brown-Whelen) is that the supply of brass is unending -- you can ALWAYS find .30-06, and make Whelen cases.

If you have a control feed rifle, you can load a bit of Bullseye and a quarter square of toilet paper, feed it into the chamber and fire it, and out pops a perfect Whelen or Brown-Whelen case.

I virtually never lose a case this way, even when making Brown-Whelen cases. The trick is to start low (about 15 grains of Bullseye) and listen to the report. When you get a soft report, the charge isn't heavy enough. A really loud BANG! and you're making cases.
 
My favorite. I have three. Rem 700, Rem pump and a H&R Ultra. Accurate and great for everything from whitetail up. If you reload it can't be beat, IMHO. :D
 
The great thing about the 35 Whelen is its versatility, something the 338-06 will never equal. You can load 200 grain 35 rem bullets down for use on small southern whitetails in pine thickets or 250 grain partitions maxed out for elk. I guess you could do the same thing with 33 Winchester bulets in the 338-06, but you can load revolver bullets in the 35 whelen and smoke groundhogs in the off season.

David
 
The main thing holding me back right now is my lack of cash. I'm a student, so I don't have much spending money.

What I'd like to do is take a 98 mauser action, a nice new stock (I'm thinking laminate), and a .35 whelen barrel and put it all together. Of couse I'll need a gumsmiths help...
 
Would someone please enlighten me on the Brown-Whelen version of the .35 Whelen. I've seen and know about the Improved, but never heard of the former. Googling does not shed any light either.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

G
  • Locked
338-06 or 35 whelen ?
Replies
18
Views
882
Vern Humphrey
V
N
  • Locked
.338-06 vs .35 Whelen
Replies
15
Views
5K
cratz2
C
S
  • Locked
338-06 vs. 35 Whelen...what's you take??
Replies
11
Views
3K
Palehorseman
P
D
  • Locked
35 Whelen
Replies
16
Views
2K
dakotasouth
D
LRDGCO
  • Locked
338-06 vs 35 Whelen
2 3
Replies
51
Views
12K
ExAgoradzo
ExAgoradzo
Back
Top