Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles 35 Cal and Heavy for Caliber Pills

"That is a most impressive performance. Believe I am sold on the 225's and 250's. Now if I could only decide between SA/LA (358 or 35W)"

That's simple. Just go with the .35 Whelen. You can always load down to .358 Win. Specs if you want.
Seriously, I had the .358 Win. first and started playing with it. Then I got a Whelen and the .358's just sit in the safe sad, lonely and neglected. I really should take them out for some air one of these days. Maybe after hunting season is over.

Paul B.

If you're going to go long, you might as well go Norma. You can readily make cases from 7 Mag or 338 brass, and you can load down to Whelen speeds it you like. (Or just load 75 grains of 4350 behind 250s and call it good....is that a "no-brainer" load or what?)

George
Not 35 caliber but when I went looking for load data for the 375 Whelen I used 35 Whelen data as a starting point.
My heaviest bullet was 300 grain cast bullet from a NEI mold.
I used the 35 Whelen load data for 250 grain as the starting point and went up from there. If memory serves I settled on Accurate Arms 2520 powder and IMR 4064.
Some where I picked up data for the 35 Whelen with a 300 grain slug and used it for my 375 Whelen. I found both AA2520 and IMR 4064 to be forgiving and very accuraste.

Jim

350 Rem Mag on a LA is another option, although the Whelen is about the same ballistics wise.

I've always favored a SA; though it seems unanimous that the LA in 35 cal is more versatile. Especially if loading heavier pills, at the sacrifice of range at a point. Whelen with 225 or 250 seems like my ideal. Especially that I have read about people having trouble with Barnes TSX 225 in 358 win due to compression/OAL.

What is your 200 X load and your velocity please?

I have a 35 Whelen built on a 700 action and a BLR in 358. They both shoot great but the Whelen is outstanding. My son and I each took an elk with it in 2010. One shot each with a 225 grain Partition, no bullet recovered.

One other thing to consider, even for a handloader, is factory ammo availability. Neither one is 270 common but the Whelen seems to be a little more available. Even if it is not what you want, the ability to buy a box of Core Loct's is better in a pinch than using it as a club. I have been there, and in my experience rifles make poor clubs.

I got a kick out of the "Use it like a club" That is another plus for the whelen as well.

I've been reading about reloads for the whelen, specifically for the 225 TSX and the 250 Partition. For what I could find, 225's are getting push northward of 2600-2650. While partitions seem to go right about 2500 give or take. Certainly can get behind those numbers.

Using a .350 Rem Mag, 20inch barreled Model 7 KS, I settled on 250 grain Grand Slams. Used them on caribou, black bear, and a couple whitetail, never recovered any bullets, all were pass through, left great blood, but nothing went far enough to make the blood trail meaningful.

Just bought a few boxes of Nosler 225 Partition loaded ammo, will try those out and see if the rifle likes them.

As far as ammo availability....350 Remington Mag but Remington won't load ammo anymore.....yeah.

35 Whelen makes sense.

In the .35 Whelen 225 grain are my bullet of choice. This is based on 25+ years of reading, research, range testing and in the field experience on game.

Same here (although only about 20 years for me). I've settled on the 225gr Partition as the only bullet I'll ever need in the Whelen.

Man, a 20in barreled 358Norma should get a man's attention when it goes off. I thought there were several members that were sold on the load of 45-46gr of IMR4064 w/a 250gr Speer bullet in the 358. This is the first time I've heard of it being suspect of not opening. I'm referring to Klikitaric's statement that the 358 doesn't have enough juice to open any of the 250gr slugs. If I had a 358 I believe that would be the load I would shoot...that or the 225gr Partition. powdr

I went another direction from the Norma and went with the 35 Newton. Barrel is just shy of 21" and shoots excellent. I run 250 PT's at 2810 and it shoots really well. Very handy rifle with some extra reach.

Still hard to beat a 35 Whelen with a 225 or 250 though. A little less recoil and maybe a little lighter as well.

The 358 Winchester gets fed a steady diet of 225 PT's.

Following along, since I love the .35s, though I don't go NW enough to justify a Whelen I want, but have to make do with piddly 35Rs and 358s and such. It kinda confuses me (also) the insistence (by some) that 250s are too much for 358s, when they can be pushed to 2350-2400+? Seems that until they got below 1800, they'd open....IF we aren't talking tiny deer and few bones? I tend to think the 225s are probably best all around, and I tend to use lighter stuff for my area, since it's all that's needed....until I'm after bear or moose, then a 250 would make me more 'comfortable' than a 200.....Whelen, win, rem mag, or other.

200 Hornady for my 358. Full length penetration, doesn't get much better for my purposes.

For conventional softpoints I could never see a difference between the 250 Hornady, Speer or anything else. The only poor experience I ever really had was with the 280 Swift at about 2200fps, just not enough speed to expand on even a big pig.

When I run out of my current loads I will probably take a long look at the 200 TTSX cruising about 2800fps.

what have you shot with it. I am thinking about loading it in my 358 BLR

Not to answer for Fireball, but I've put 4 of those through 5 deer, and a few privet bushes, in a .358. The deer died, but the privet recovered.