Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire 338 federal or 35 whelen for a new hunting rifle.

I'm a fan of the .338 Federal. Ignore the numbers and just use one, you'll love it.

You haven't mentioned what you shoot now, except the slug gun. I have the whelen, admire the .338, but deep in my heart know a 30-06, or .308 will do the same job, sepcially on deer. Or a .270.
Any chance to find one to try before taking the plunge?

.33 or .35 is differenter, but that is all.

Reloading is fun, and saves money IF you shoot often, but you have to find the powder and bullet you like, and then may end up with a can or 2 of powder you aren't using. Both the choices can be formed from readily available brass.

I would start with Sierra 225 grain boat tail bullets and 55 grains of Varget or IMR 4320. (2,700 fps)
That should kill a deer just fine.
whelennut

I bought my Sako 85 on here a few years ago for the sole purpose of changing it to a 260. Once I read about it and bought the Fusion's just for the hell of it, I totally became a convert. It is a lot of performance in a small lightweight rifle. Accurate and the bc of the 338 pills are really good.

I shot two 10 points white tails in 30 minutes one morning two January's ago with one of my oldest friends at the lease. I find myself using the AR-10 260 suppressed or the little 338 more than the rest.

The guy wants to hunt deer and he gets a recommendation of 338 Win Mag?

IMO, if the OP wants to go big bullet for deer the 338 Federal is plenty. Sure, the 35 Whelen is more powerful, but it's a moot point for deer.

The key point is reloading. As much as I like both cartridges, I wouldn't choose either if I didn't reload. Ammo is just too hard to find and expensive. Get a 30-06 or a 308.

"There has been a host of great .35s and the only one to really catch on is the 9 x 57... errr Whelen."

IIRC, the 9x57 is closer to the .358 Win. and I think a bit slower in velocity.
Paul B.

I've had 2 .35 Whelen rifles and never really got into the cartridge. Liked my CZ 9.3x62 more. This was in my elk hunting days. Always wanted a .338 Fed but never did buy one. These days I shoot a 7mm-08 mostly and hunt antelope here in MT. Always thought the .338 Marlin would have been nice but never seemed to get off the ground.

I do plan to reload once I get the new rifle. I'll probably pick up a book for beginners. I have the hogdon 2017 reloading manual and have been thumbing through it. I usually use a 3030 for my deer hunting but after last year decided to get something different. I shot an 8pt at 17 yards quartering towards me. I had to shoot because I was behind a blown down tree on the ground. Hit him good and he still ran down a hill and 150 yards. I know there are a lot of 30 cals out there but want something different.

I do plan to reload once I get the new rifle. I'll probably pick up a book for beginners. I have the hogdon 2017 reloading manual and have been thumbing through it. I usually use a 3030 for my deer hunting but after last year decided to get something different. I shot an 8pt at 17 yards quartering towards me. I had to shoot because I was behind a blown down tree on the ground. Hit him good and he still ran down a hill and 150 yards. I know there are a lot of 30 cals out there but want something different.

Whelen

I try to get a double lung shot where possible. Even 35 Whelen won't make up for poor bullet placement.
However a 250 grain bullet will give you a good exit wound and a blood trail that Helen Keller could follow.

I am one of the converts to .35caliber. starting at 35remington, .358winchester, .350rem mag, .35whelen, and the top of the bunch .358norma mag.
I wouldn't consider the norma mag a short range rife, and i do
think the others work just fine at less than 250.
I just got through stuffing some hornady interlocks, 200 grain, and 250 grain into .358 casings. On the 200 it's a little faster, the 250's about 2200fps.
I think of the relationship this way , the whelen based on a 30.06, the .358win on a .308 casing.
the rem mag is basically a twin to the whelen.
one interesting thing about the . 358 is you can use surplus 7.62.51 brass to reload, like you can 30.06 for the whelen.
i also load for the .375winchester. a 250grain pill just smacks things. I did see a deer shot by a .358 win a few years ago at about 175yards, the exit side was biggley.
you need to be a reloader tho. But you can go up or down.
my next bunch to load on the .358win are cast 158grain keith style bullets with a little unique. the same is true on the whelen you can go up or down.

prm, I recently looked at a 338 federal reloading forum and I'm pretty sure you were on it and I think it was from 2011 or 2012. A lot of the guys talked about tac, leverevolution, 8208, and mr2000 powders. I was just wondering if you've figured out some good loads for the federal. Some of the velocities, bullets, and accuracy seemed pretty good to me. Are compressed loads hard to do? The 35 whelen seems like it would be easy to reload for without having to compress the majority of loads. It all depends on powders I guess.

R_h_Clark I've had the chance to fondle a mrc v2 which is what the whelen would be. It did have some heft to it. A mrc rep told me that it weighed less than 8.5 pounds. I'm ok with that rifle weight and I believe the x2 (338 fed) weighs in around 8 lbs. I took my brother with me to check out the v2 and on the way I told him that I hope I don't like it because of the price. The first time I shouldered it I said to my brother "Damn it" I feel like I need one of these rifles. He said well I have a couch that you could sleep on if it's going to make the old lady mad.

I vote Whelen...because it's a Whelen. I like the odd calibers. Have taken numerous whitetails, a Newfie Moose and even a few groundhogs with them. I load 225gr Sierras in one, and 250gr RN (forget brand) in the other. Both shoot great. The 250gr load is rather warm based on data and only loaded that way because it's what the gun shoots best. Recoil is manageable.

Chumleyhunts, a moose hunt would be amazing. I would like to go on one someday and plan on squirreling away some money for hunts like that. What powders are you using and velocities are you getting out of those loads?

.

Most compressed loads are just powder that is too high in the case to let the bullet seat without pushing some down. You can use a drop tube, or find some way if you think you are crushing too many pellets. It is not like the old black powder loads that had to be packed. The stick powders are worse for that, ball fills and meters very nicely. A bigger case uses more powder, and there are still some that will compress. The advantage is no loose powder to give inconsistent ignition depending on how it lays in the case.

Good to know. I didn't know that stick powders are bad to compress but it makes sense when I think about it. The whelen would be able to hold more powder because it has more case capacity. From what I've seen the hand loads for the 338 tend to be compressed loads. Thanks for the info, all of it helps.

From your choices I would pick a 338 Federal for these reasons.
1. Main use is deer
2. A 180gr bullet at 2600-2700fps will absolutely pancake a deer.
3. I am thinking a 200-210gr bullet will handle everything else.
4. You are going to reload, uses less powder, and does not need premium bullets.
5. If you ever decide to get a suppressor, it would be real easy to develop subsonic loads.

I love reading the Whelen advocates posts. But I just cannot drink the cool aid. My 338-06 will do everything the Whelen will do. If I need to go bigger, the Whelen is not the answer.

If I was going to do a 35 caliber, it would be a 358 Win which is a niche/cult cartridge. Been there done that. Or a 358 Norma mag, which is not legal for DG in Africa. Why put up with that much recoil?

Maybe I am lucky that I have never been drawn into the 358 club.