.35 whelen owners

[mpmax]

Who owns one and why?

I built one for the sake of history and to shoot anything in North America.
I'm working on a load for 158gr. for "plinking" and coyotes.
What drew you to it?

[scottishsetter]

250gr. or 275gr. and 358 dia.
Frontal dia. and heavy weight.
Rifle weighs 7 1/4lbs with 3X9 Leu.compact and 5 rnds.
23" BBL. and Lone Wolf 22OZ.Summit stock.

[SeanD]

I wanted something different. I had a 30-06 and 300 mag and thought if I was going to deal with the added recoil of the 300 I might as well use something with more punch than the 30-06. So I sold the 300 and bought the 35 Whelen.

In retrospect I probably wouldnt buy it again. The 30-06 will do all the killing a guy will need for elk. Or a 300, or a 7 mag. But the Whelen is different, and a 35 cal TSX looks cool.....

[onstep]

Originally Posted by scottishsetter

250gr. or 275gr. and 358 dia.
Frontal dia. and heavy weight.
Rifle weighs 7 1/4lbs with 3X9 Leu.compact and 5 rnds.
23" BBL. and Lone Wolf 22OZ.Summit stock.

Nice build. I went with a 22" BBL and a Mcmillan Edge with a 2.5-8 Leupold. 250 gr Noslers at 2600 FPS is just cool.......

[CombinationLicense]

I'm curious why you went with the .35 Whelen instead of the .35 Remington Magnum? I have always wanted a .35 caliber rifle and thought about starting with the latter due to the better ballistics and other benefits associated with the shorter action. Am I missing something about the Whelen?

"CL"

[mpmax]

.350 Rem. Mag. is belted. Brass is more expensive. 35 Whelen can use fire-formed 30-06 brass, and loaded down to "plinking" levels. Since it uses a 30-06 case, lots of actions are ready for conversion (like my mauser). It's a budget big game caliber.

On paper it may be hard to understand the reasoning for picking the Whelen, it's kind of a personal thing I guess.

[ICHTHYDEMON]

Originally Posted by mpmax

.350 Rem. Mag. is belted. Brass is more expensive. 35 Whelen can use fire-formed 30-06 brass, and loaded down to "plinking" levels. Since it uses a 30-06 case, lots of actions are ready for conversion (like my mauser). It's a budget big game caliber.

On paper it may be hard to understand the reasoning for picking the Whelen, it's kind of a personal thing I guess.

Not to mention,if you don't reload,there is only one factory load for the .350 Remington.

A friend of mine had a .350 Remington and IIRC it was chambered in an old Remington model 600 or something like that. All I remember is that little rifle kicked like a Mule.

[ICHTHYDEMON]

I've considered a Whelen,but I can't find one anywhere. I'd like it to be in a Remington model 7600. I don't know why,but a pump action .35 Whelen seems just right for a chasing elk through the timber.

[James in Idaho]

Moose! Wanting a larger gun for a moose tag was why I went with the .35 Whelen. Turns out it is an easy reloader, decent bullet selection (I only shoot 250 grain slugs in mine, hunt with Partitions), and pretty managable in the recoil area. Don't get me wrong, it has a rather stout kick, but nothing like the belted mags in that size. If a guy wanted something different, but an all around do anything gun, it can be just the ticket. Because it is based on the '06 case, it is not a complicated build. That said, the .338-06 may be a slightly better round, there is a better bullet selection, and most of the same weights have a higher ballistic coeffecitent. Have to be a reloader for that one, you can usually find .35 Whelen shells. But I really like my Whelen, even if I did use my .270 on the moose.

Did I mention that it is just a cool looking round too?