35 Whelen

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oldbear1950

New member
does anyone have any experience with this caliber?
I do know when I was stationed in Alaska was a popular caliber, and was said to be almost Identical to the 350 Remington Mag as far as bullets and ballistics,
and was powerful enough for anything in Alaska, within its limitations
 
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taylorce1

New member
I had one for several years. It was the easiest rifle I ever did load development for, it seemed to shoot everything well. Shooting full house loads with heavy bullets wasn't exactly pleasant.

I took it elk hunting a couple of times and never connected. I've shot a couple deer with it ans it does the job well. The .350 Rem Mag was an attempt to duplicate the Whelen in a short action.
 
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was said to be almost Identical to the 350 Remington Mag as far as bullets and ballistics,
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IT is, but the comparison is backwards, as .35 Whelen predates the .350 Rem Mag by decades as a wildcat round. The .350 Rem Mag was created to match .35 Whelen ballistics (they do use the same bullets) from a short action length case, the magnum case body allowing essentially the same amount of powder as the longer smaller diameter 06 case the Whelen was made from.

The Whelen started out as a wildcat around 1922, the .350 Rem Mag as a factory round about 1964 and Remington began producing factory .35 Whelen rifles and ammo in 1988.
 
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Paul B.

New member
I've always said that if I had togo with only one rifle/cartridge combo that it would be the 30-06 However since acquiring my first .35 Whelen, I now have three, I may change my mind. :eek:

Seriously, the .35 has done everything I could do with the 06 and then some. I can plink with light bullet made for the .38 Spl. and .357 Mag. Hunt deer with a 200 gr. bullet and larger game with a bunch of heavier bullets ranging from 225 gr. to 275 gr. I have a few of the long discontinued Hornady 275 gr. .35 caliber bullets. Current pet load runs the 225 gr. Barnes TSX to 2710 FPS using RL15. What's not to like Accurate as all get out and smacks elk hard. :cool:
Paul B.
 
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jmr40

New member
My brother and I hunted with 35 Whelen's for a couple of years. It doesn't do anything a 30-06 won't do except kick more. Recoil is almost exactly the same as 300 WM.

That doesn't mean it won't work, it does. But a 200-220 gr 30 caliber bullet will match or beat a 225-250 gr 35 caliber bullets penetration on game. Not enough difference in bullet diameter to matter. Less than the thickness of a dime.

It's only when you move to 275 gr bullets that the 35's start so show a small edge over comparable 30 caliber cartridges. But almost no one loads bullets that heavy in a 35 caliber rifle. IMO at that weight it's time to move up to a 375.

A tough 200 gr bullet from any of them will drop anything in Alaska. 30-06 will get 2700 fps with 200's, 35 Whelen, about 2800, and 300 WM, about 2900. But the 35 loses velocity fast. Past 100 yards the 30-06 is faster and the 300WM is a lot faster.
 
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FrankenMauser

New member
Like .358 Win, .35 Whelen tends to have snappy recoil. And plenty of it.
But you can launch .35 caliber bullets faster than same-weight bullets in .30-06.
You get the impact of a 4-lb sledge hammer, while only swinging a 32-ouncer.

I have had a .35 Whelen in two forms, and am currently building the next iteration on a commercial Mauser action.
I like the cartridge and want to hammer some elk (and bear?) with it.

.

*.35 Whelen is based on .30-03 (or, arguably, .30-01), not .30-06. Same for .270 Win and .280 Rem. They are all children of .30-03, including .30-06.
 
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Pumpkin

New member
Had a 700 BDL, it had the double brass pins in the stock and the same recoil pad as the same gun in 300Win Mag. Kicked same too!
Wish I still had it:(
 
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stagpanther

New member
I can't help but bring it up every time the subject of 35 whelen comes up--but here's a glam shot of my 2015 special edition ruger hawkeye in 35 whelen (one of 150 made that year)--one of the top pride and joy guns in my collection. She's not just pretty and very well-built--but very, very accurate.:)

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FrankenMauser

New member
I can't help but bring it up every time the subject of 35 whelen comes up--but here's a glam shot of my 2015 special edition ruger hawkeye in 35 whelen (one of 150 made that year)--one of the top pride and joy guns in my collection. She's not just pretty and very well-built--but very, very accurate.
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Oh, no! It looks like Ruger forgot to finish the barrel properly.
If you'll just box that up and ship it to me, I'll get it all fixed up at no charge.
I might even consider sending it back in 15-95 years.
 
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stagpanther

New member
Oh, no! It looks like Ruger forgot to finish the barrel properly.
If you'll just box that up and ship it to me, I'll get it all fixed up at no charge.
I might even consider sending it back in 15-95 years.
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Sounds fair enough.:D I know it's heresey; but I sometimes consider the hawkeye MI (model 70 Improved).:D
It's up there, right behind the .270 and .338-06!
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Got them too, there's no denying the 270 is an all-time classic--IMO the 338-06 suffers from "in betweenism"--a bullet selection that is dominated by either 338 federal or 338 lapua magnum. but the whelen punches above its weight.
 
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MarkCO

New member
taylorce1 said:
It's up there, right behind the .270 and .338-06! ;)
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I'd argue it is right behind the .338-06 and the .280AI. :D Those are two of my favorite cartridges. Add a 223 and a 6.5CM and I could be very happy with those 4 rifle calibers to do it all.

The .35 Whelen is a very good and capable cartridge. Less recoil than the magnums, better sectional density than the .30s. For Moose, Elk and Bear, I'd take a .35 Whelen over anything that is .30 caliber or smaller. It is pretty easy to handload for as well.
 
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ligonierbill

New member
Some years ago, I decided I needed a >30 bore rifle. OK, I'd been reading too much Elmer, but I nee...wanted one. Considered 338-06, 338 Win Mag, 35 Whelen, and, in deference to my German ancestors, 9.3x62. All capable medium bore rounds. But I went 338 for the bullet selection. And I figured you can load the Magnum down, but you can't load the -06 up.

With one exception, 35s just don't seem to catch on in the US. The exception being the 35 Remington, still fairly popular in my native PA. I have a 35 WCF, never the most popular round in the 1895. The 348 was actually fairly short lived, although a good Model 71 commands a high price. And Old Bear's other queried round, the 358, has not exactly flown off the shelves.

The Whelen has the history and the capability. It will be around longer than most of us. But if it kicks less than the 338 Win Mag, it's not by much. And those high BC 338 bullets are hard to beat.

Oh, I did buy a 9.3 as well. If you like the Whelen, you'll love that one.
 
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taylorce1

New member
stagpanther said:
a bullet selection that is dominated by either 338 federal or 338 lapua magnum. but the whelen punches above its weight
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We'll agree to disagree on that one, the .338-06 and .35 Whelen work best with 250 grain or lighter bullets. I like the bullet options better for the .338 in that range. There just isn't enough difference to make me get another Whelen.

Don't get me wrong I really liked my Whelen. I only sold it because of not having any income for a year because of an accident. In fact all my rifles were for sale, and I also parted with one of my two .338-06 rifles.
 
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oldbear1950

New member
9.3X62

I checked all those rounds 338-06, 35 Whelen, and 9.3x62, and the truth is the 9.3x62 has a lot to offer, and even beats the two American calibers by a slim margin. Trouble is finding rifles a person on a fixed income can afford,
and brass here in the USA. I have also read 30-06 can be formed to make brass.
I doubt if any game shot with these three rounds could tell the difference, or if the hunter using them could tell by looking at the game , and if they traveled when hit, what round was used.
 
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oldbear1950

New member
I did check gun broker and buds and they both sell a single shot by traditions and CVA, in the 5 Whelen, but not the other two. and since I reload , that would be my choice
 
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