That might be more of a case for the .358 Win., no pun intended. Paul B.
The 358 looks interesting. Anytime I start thinking above 35 I default to the 45-70.
I'm not going to knock either. However, I do have some experience with both-- well, sort of. Two of my favorite deer rifles of all time are a Savage 99 in 308 WIN that I downloaded to 300 Savage levels and a Rem 7600 that I downloaded to 358 Win levels. The latter one was my top deer killer for about a decade.
What I can tell you is that the Whelenizer did not kill any better than the Savage. In fact, I had better DRT-type performance out of the Savage. The Whelenizer made a bigger noise, created more recoil, and didn't go losing any deer, but whitetail deer ran further with the Whelenizer than the Savage.
I use a 165 grain bullet in the Savage, and a 200 grainer out of the Whelenizer. I used H4895 for both.
I use the Savage as my Opening Day GOTO rifle. I've been hunting the same stand for the Opener since 2003. Shots are normally inside 80 yards. Some are inside 5. The Whelenizer did most of its work on the ground at distances out to 150 yards.
This all may sound counter-intuitive, but the way I see it, the 30-something rounds tend to open up better inside a deer's innards. Normally my shots are aimed to take out both lungs and the top of the heart. An 06 or a 308 or a 300 Savage will turn the chest cavity into jelly. The bigger 200 grain .358 tends to just poke big holes. After I retired the Whelenizer in 2014, I started using a 30-06 bolt gun again I've seen more poleaxings.
Inside 80 yards, I'd say a 300 Savage-type round is the best mix of power versus recoil. Beyond that, I favor a 30-06.
Thanks for the story. My late hunting buddy loved his Savage 300. I agree with the comments about the 30 cal bullet performance. They start and end in the sweet spot.
