I love my Rem 7600 in 35 Whelen, aka "The Whelenizer." However, I took it out of the line-up this year after 10 seasons' duty. In those 10 years, I had taken more deer with that rifle than any other. KYHillChick conspired with other Campfire members to acquire this as a Saint Hubert's Day present for me a decade ago.

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First off: why the high body count? Simple, after bagging a nice buck, I usually brought out the Whelenizer to top off the freezer. It accounted for 1-2 doe every year. Slam, Bang, Done. Also, the stock on the 7600 was a little beat-up when I got the rifle. As a result, I used it as my designated "Rain Gun"-- I wasn't hurting anything.

So why did I put it away? I had acquired 2 new rifles, one in '06 and another in 25-06. I wanted to get them blooded. The Whelenizer was getting to be so much of a sure bet, it was time to put it aside.

The cool thing about the Whelenizer is that EVERYONE knew I had that rifle out. I've had complete strangers walk up to me and ask if I had taken a deer that day. It has a very distinctive report even at a mile or more.

The big downsides to the Whelenizer? First off, the magazines. Those mags are very touchy. I've been down to one good working one out of 5 at the end of season. Second is the 35 Whelen is expensive to shoot-- about 2x over a 30-06. Third is the recoil-- I shoot mine at 358 WIN levels with 200 grainers. It still is a lot of work on the shoulder when an '06 will do the same job with less.

My plans for the Whelenizer? I am slowly working my way into casting my own bullets. The Whelenizer is going to be reworked into my first cast lead rifle. I had other projects come up this summer, otherwise it would have already been done. When complete, I will have something that shoots in the 35-REM range.





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