Tell me a little about .35Whelen.

[tdbmd]

The .35 Whelen is a spectacular choice for African plains game. I have taken 15 animals with it in Africa, from as small as steenbok to eland.

 

[Ugly Sauce]

I would probably smash some deer and pigs with it for fun, but it’s obviously overkill for that.

Only over-kill in it's maximum loadings. I'll say again, the 35 Whelen is a .350RM, 35 Remington, 350L, 358 Winchester and a .357 Magnum all in one gun. (and some other .35's I've overlooked)!!!!(one could load it to .38Spl velocity...so it's a .38special too...not sure why, but they could)

 

[adcoch1]

Only over-kill in it's maximum loadings. I'll say again, the 35 Whelen is a .350RM, 35 Remington, 350L, 358 Winchester and a .357 Magnum all in one gun. (and some other .35's I've overlooked)!!!!(one could load it to .38Spl velocity...so it's a .38special too...not sure why, but they could)

I wonder how much powder, and what type would get a 158 grn at 800 fps from a whelen case? Trail boss?

 

[Ugly Sauce]

I wonder how much powder, and what type would get a 158 grn at 800 fps from a whelen case? Trail boss?

Yeah, that might take some experimentation. A lot of case capacity. But, I can get really slow velocity with very small charges of Unique in the .303 British, and although a smaller case than the .30-06, it's not quite an apple and oranges difference. I've never played with Trail Boss, but I don't see why not. It would certainly be a "tip the muzzle up before firing" deal, to get consistent velocity and accuracy, I would assume.

A heavier, bullet, like a 200 grain cast bullet might/maybe/possibly be easier to slow down, maybe get into .38S&W territory. !! ?

 

[adcoch1]

Yeah, that might take some experimentation. A lot of case capacity. But, I can get really slow velocity with very small charges of Unique in the .303 British, and although a smaller case than the .30-06, it's not quite an apple and oranges difference. I've never played with Trail Boss, but I don't see why not. It would certainly be a "tip the muzzle up before firing" deal, to get consistent velocity and accuracy, I would assume.

A heavier, bullet, like a 200 grain cast bullet might/maybe/possibly be easier to slow down, maybe get into .38S&W territory. !! ?

Maybe a pinch of pistol powder and ground charcoal briquettes....hehe

 

[Ugly Sauce]

And three Hail Marys.

 

[Hookeye]

Buddy got a 700 Classic when they came out.
Had to run a filler for airgap (forget what powder he was using) to get std dev tighter (IIRC would vert string without filler).
Fun rifle.
Would not get one unless I wanted 250's cranked.

 

[JShirley]

I shot a buddy's .35 Whelen some 18 years ago.



It did pretty well with .357 hamdloads at 50 yards with peep sights.



I have 2 Whelens now, my "truck gun" (both good for keeping in a vehicle or hunting trucks), a Reminton 7600 with peep sight and reduced LOP stock, and a custom build on a Montana 1999 action.

Personally, I think .357-loaded rounds are a great way to build an effective, low-recoil deer, hog, small game (FMJ or hardcast), or SD/HD load. I would also rather be holding a Whelen than a Casull if a big bear or moose is coming fast.

John

 

[GooseGestapo]

I wonder how much powder, and what type would get a 158 grn at 800 fps from a whelen case? Trail boss?

EASY! 3.5gr of Bullseye… but 5.0 is better, more consistent.
It’s just enough to make the bullet clear the muzzle. I tried it with my BLR-81 in .358Win.
The Whelen’s little brother.

 

[Ugly Sauce]

Would not get one unless I wanted 250's cranked.

itty bitty little 250's??? I like the 300 grain Barnes Bullet....cranked!

 

[Nature Boy]

I have an FN Mauser action on the bench saying, “put me in coach”. I got it with the thought of a 35 Whelen.

 

[9x56MS]

itty bitty little 250's??? I like the 300 grain Barnes Bullet....cranked!

I picked up a new old stock box of those Barnes 300 grain bullets at an estate sale. Haven't had a chance to load them yet.

 

[Nature Boy]

I picked up a new old stock box of those Barnes 300 grain bullets at an estate sale. Haven't had a chance to load them yet.

sounds like gun seeds

 

[tjmga]

Great cartridge with a lot of history behind it. Reading Whelen's pre-war writing as a kid back in the early 60's, it sounded like just the ticket to me if I ever got out to Colorado. At the time, with only a .22 Winchester single shot and a Remington 722 .243 for woodchucks, I knew I was under-gunned.

Then later when Remington came out with their model 700 in .35 Whelen, I had the bucks and immediately indulged in one of my boyhood fantasies. I had the gun glass bedded by Gary Roman, here in Louisville, & began load work ups. Sierra 225's were flat shooting out to ~250 for me, and I found I could easily boost them to over 2550 fps with the then available IMR 4320. With that bullet I've killed three elk, one at a paced off 250 yds; the others much closer in, as well as several deer. The gun truly loved them, and if I didn't shy away too much, they'd go into inch and a quarter for the first three.

But the gun, while a bit heavy for deer in the timber, is quite as good with 200 gr Remington RN Core Lokts, Sierra 200 gr RN's, and Hodgen's equivalent. Loaded to ~2500 fps, these are comfortable to shoot and practice with and will flat out hammer whitetails. While I'm a long time fan of Marlin's in .35 Rem with these same bullets the Whelen will push the easily 200+ fps faster giving some spectacular expansion. As a result, that old 700 still gets some local use. It's been my one and only elk rifle since '88, but now at 77 yo, those days are behind me. Son #1 will probably get it one of these days.

The .35 W is a reloading round, always has been & yeah, you've got to pay attention to die adjustment with regards to head space. For the most part, I make my own cases from LC match brass, fire forming them with Unique and RCBS's 35-200 gr FN. That bullet, BTW, pushed over 2000 fps is a heck of a deer killer. Gas Checked, and cast from 50/50 wheel weights & pure lead, it'll mushroom nicely on ~130 lb. (dressed) KY whitetails and give through and through penetration no matter where you hit them. I load mine to ~2300 fps and get no leading either. SR4759 is my powder of choice with any low velocity cast bullet in the .35 Whelen and 4895 or 3031 will do for faster velocities.

Lastly, if you've got a supply of .357 bullets revolver bullets, any of the 158 gr SP or JHP's make up into great practice rounds, and are also great woodchuck killers. I've not tried any that are lighter, but suspect they'd do OK too. For my .38's and .357's, I cast up a lot of Lyman's famous 358156GC, and have found that it's a suitable, light recoiling practice round. Unique is good for this as are Herco, and 2400. I size them to 0.359" and cast with a straight wheel weight alloy sweetened with a bit of tin for good mold fill out.

Overall, IMHO, the .35 Whelen is a good choice for the guy looking for one rifle from the big bears down to whitetails...IF: he's a reloader and accepts that this cartridge is not for cross the canyon shots. Shots to 300 yds are the limit IMHO, and only then if the shooter's done quite a bit of range and wind estimation to place his shots well. A bit heavy for deer when scoped properly, that same weight is a plus with heavy recoiling 250 gr spitzers. And with 200 grainers, it's down right pleasant...about the same as an '06 with standard 180's.

Just a last thought: For a one bullet for all uses, Hornady's 220 gr FN, pushed a bit will do well on both elk and deer inside 250 yds. I've had good/great accuracy with it, and killed several deer, tho no elk.

Best Regards, Rod

Did you mean the Speer 220 gr FN? If that is what you meant I have to agree with you.

 

[Ugly Sauce]

I picked up a new old stock box of those Barnes 300 grain bullets at an estate sale. Haven't had a chance to load them yet.

Yep, as always, when I go to an estate sale, it's baby-clothes and coffee mugs. I thought I was running low on mine, but I still have about 70 left. That's a good thing, as I need check the sights, shoot a couple groups. Last time I shot it, I had my right-eye contact in my left eye, and visa-versa, and was not quite satisfied with the results. As I have lots of 250's, I'll sight it with those first, then fine tune with the Un-obtainium Barnes bullets.