Hawk1,
Elmer Keith used the 275-grain Western Tool & Copper Works bullet in the .35 Whelen. Or at least that's what he states in his books BIG GAME RIFLES AND CARTRIDGES (1936) and RIFLES FOR LARGE GAME (1946).
He says in the second book that he asked Fred Barnes--the originator of Barnes bullets--to make a 300-grain .35 but even by then Elmer had moved on to the .333 OKH. After World War two he pretty much abandoned the .35's for the .33's, because the grester sectional density of the .33's provided better penetration at close range and better ballistics at longer ranges.
One of the problems with the .35's has always been the 1-16 twist common to so many older rifles, and still found in some factory rifles. This is what allows .35's to shoot cast handgun bullets so well, but few bullet companies are going to come out with a spitzer over 250 grains when it might not stabilize in many rifles. So the very versatility of the .35's is one of its downfalls, one of the reasons for the limited bullet selection.
