It's not a power or energy question because, obviously, the .35 Whelen is going 1000 fps faster than the .357 Maximum would be out of a rifle.You seem to be asking if the .357 's in a rifle would be equivalent to the .35 Whelen. The Whelen of course is an '06 case necked up to .35, and a similar question might be if a .30 carbine is equivalent to an '06. Obviously not of course. Some time back there was discussion of the .35 Whelen vs the .350 Remington mag, and the winner was the Whelen. I do have both calibers in model 700s and I had previously favored the .350 Rem. So I don't think that the .357 's in a rifle could in any way challenge the Whelen, if I'm interpreting your question correctly.
I'm a reloader, so that doesn't apply to me lol.No. There's no comparing the Maximum with a Whelen. A 180 grain bullet out of the Maximum runs about 1968 FPS. A 180 out of a Whelen starts at a bit more than 2500 FPS. The most important part is that you can buy Whelen ammo fairly easily. The Maximum (considered hand gun ammo)you'd have to hunt for.
Okay, what can Whelen hunt that Maximum can't effectively hunt?For fun let's go with the .357. I do have that in a Henry lever action; for hunting grab the Whelen.
We're getting into the realm of the absurd here. You can kill anything in North America with a .22lr if you shoot it in the eye. Get your reloading manual out and compare the two cartridges for muzzle velocity, muzzle energy, trajectory, and bullet weights and it's pretty obvious to anyone what the differences are. I can't imagine that you can't see the difference between the two.....it's night and day. No one is going grizzly bear hunting with a .22lr, they're going to get something more appropriate and it's not going to be the .357max. The .357max is pretty much a caliber designed to be used at less than a hundred yards and the .35 Whelen is still going strong at over twice that distance. That's why we have different calibers and cartridges. You pick one for its intended purpose and design. The .357max was not designed to be used for hunting large bear or mountain sheep at long ranges. That's just the way it is...whether you reload or not.Okay, what can Whelen hunt that Maximum can't effectively hunt?
I don't know what either are capable of, it's why I'm asking. If the .357 Maximum is a whitetail only kind of cartridge, then fine, but if the .35 Whelen can't do bear, elk, moose effectively... then it doesn't really interest me. If it can, then it does even though I'll probably never hunt that game.We're getting into the realm of the absurd here. You can kill anything in North America with a .22lr if you shoot it in the eye. Get your reloading manual out and compare the two cartridges for muzzle velocity, muzzle energy, trajectory, and bullet weights and it's pretty obvious to anyone what the differences are. I can't imagine that you can't see the difference between the two.....it's night and day. No one is going grizzly bear hunting with a .22lr, they're going to get something more appropriate and it's not going to be the .357max. The .357max is pretty much a caliber designed to be used at less than a hundred yards and the .35 Whelen is still going strong at over twice that distance. That's why we have different calibers and cartridges. You pick one for its intended purpose and design. The .357max was not designed to be used for hunting large bear or mountain sheep at long ranges. That's just the way it is...whether you reload or not.
That answers my question."Okay, what can Whelen hunt that Maximum can't effectively hunt?"
I wouldn't worry on a Kodiak Bear hunt with the Whelen but there's no way in hell you'd ever get me to even consider the Maximum for that job. No way that Maximum is gonna outperform my Whelen with a 225 gr. TSX. Be a lot more comfortable on a moose of big bull elk with the Whelen as well.
Paul B.
I've owned/own a good number of .357mag and .357max rifles and handguns over the last forty-seven or forty-eight years, and they are one of my favorite calibers. I've killed over fifty deer with the .357mag in a handgun alone. That being said, there is simply no comparison between that caliber and a .35 Whelen. Absolutely none what so ever. Don't just look at bore size and think there's any comparison to be made. It's like asking if a .22lr and a 22-250 are comparable. It's an apple vs oranges comparison.You need to think about what the intended use is and what your needs are. Then pick the one that fits.
No, just asking cuz curious.Hmmmm, let me guess, I think the real reason behind your post is that you have an opportunity to buy a Whelen and just need some encouragement. Go for it.
No.I was wondering: in a rifle, does the decent power of .357 Maximum and the versatility of being able to shoot .357 Mag and .38 in it make up for the lower velocities compared to the .35 Whelen?
No.So for the game that .357 Maximum can take most effectively, it could probably done just as well with a .357 Magnum, yeah?
2,900 fps at the muzzle with a 200 gr bullet designed for such velocity.No, just asking cuz curious.