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

I've been leaning towards the whelen but the federal still has me interested. I like the fact that the whelen has multiple ammo manufactures. The federal has one. I have read that the recoil of the whelen is comparable to the 30-06 with similar bullet weights. I've also read that it's more like a "push" than a hard smack of a 300 win mag. I would probably go with 180 to 200 for deer hunting. How would you guys say the recoil is for the whelen

Recoil is about 50% greater than a 30-06 in a rifle of the same weight.

Stock fit is a more important issue with powerful rounds than it is with ore sedate rounds, so that's something no one can really give you a definitive answer to.

Remember that recoil is mathematical, but kick is what you feel. Kick can feel a lot different to 2 different men firing the same rifle with the same ammo.

Kick (felt recoil) is something you will tell us about, not something we can tell you about.

The recoil is a bit more than a .30/06,not bone-jarring,but there.

I have used the 338-06 (since 1993), 35 Whelen (since 1995) and 9.3x62 (since 2001) on a fair bit of game (elk, moose, black and grizzly bear, gemsbuck, kudu, eland...) and have not noticed any difference in capability. I also know the 358 Win is a swift killer on a variety of similar game in Africa. I would expect the 338 Federal to run with the 358 Win. Kind of the 270, 280, 30-06 debate?

Depends really what hunting I had in mind and what other calibres were in the rack at home.

I could find a number of splendid uses for a .338F, where in some rare situations the .35wheelchair
or poor mans .375, might prove marginally more beneficial...but If I found I needed something like
that more often, I get another obsolete .35, called the .358 Norma magnum...

35 Whelen. Great classic round that will take pretty much anything in North America.

Currently I only have the 35 Whelen, a 44 Mag Carbine and a 22 10/22. They cover off all my small and big game hunting nicely. I have branched more into shotguns of late but am planning to add a 30/30 and a 22-250 to the safe soon.

The Whelen just because Col. Townsand Whelen's name should be kept alive among rifle loonies.

Otherwise I'd say get yourself a 6.5x55 and go out and kill anything that walks.

Recoil from a Whelen is not noticeably different from a 30-06. I've owned and shot .30-06, .300 WM, .300 Wby, .338 WM, .35 Whelen, 9.3x62, .375 H&H, .375 Wby, .458 Lott, .450 Dakota, .470 NE, etc.

Medium bores kick a little bit harder than a .30-06 but not a lot, even the .375 is pretty mild. Don't let the naysayers who have shot little but have read a lot on forums influence you. If you can shoot a .30-06 or .308 you'll be fine with a Whelen.

when I see someone with 'weatherby eyebrow', nothing needs to be said...




so he should instead be influenced by people who have shot heaps and who's tolerance level may be much higher than his own?
...how can you know someone so little but know whats so good & right for him?

Pretty good advice here. For instance, for many years I shot NRA Service Rifle with a Garand, 66 shots per match IIRC, .30-06 of course, never bothered me one bit. BIL gave me a little single shot .20 guage shotgun, Iver Johnson or whatever, dang thing beat me severely, 3 shots would bring tears to my eyes and bruise my cheekbone. Point is, if you get a stock that fits you, recoil will not bother you that bad. PERCIEVED recoil differs from person to person, no way to predict it.

I would choose a 338 Federal from the two listed.

I have owned a Whelen, brutal to shoot. I currently own a 9.3x64 and a 375 H&H. Enjoy shooting both of them.

With that being said, I am having another 338-06 built. Seems like every 338-06 I have owned, someone else wanted them more. But this one is staying!

For instance?

Recoil in the .35 Whelen is quite manageable if you load the 225gr. bullet, especially if the only game you'll be hunting is whitetail. It would be milder yet if you were to load 180gr. or 200gr. bullets. I also own a .257 Roberts and feel both are classic cartridges that are fine choices for a deer rifle.

Come on, if you have ever shot a Whelen you know it's about like a .30-06 recoil-wise just a bit more, less than a .338 WM and comparable to a .338 Fed. The difference between a .35 Whelen and a .338 Fed is about like the difference between a .308 and a .30-06 but the Whelen is more versatile.

I own a Model 700 35 Whelen. The felt recoil from a 200 gr. seems comparable to most 3006's I've shot on the bench. A 250 gr. is a different animal. Same with my 300 win. mag.. 180 gr. vs. 200 gr..

I've got a 35 Whelen that I used for deer for a decade. Of all my rifles, it has taken far more than any other of my rifles. I shot 200 grain Rem Corelokts over H4895. I downloaded mine a bit so it shot more like a 358 Winchester. It made the whitetails dead, but not in any way better or faster than my 30-06. When I figured that out, I shelved the 35 Whelen and used my 30-06 more.

I don't mean to knock the 35 Whelen. All I'm saying is all that extra energy gets spent on the far side of the deer at normal whitetail ranges. In return, the 35 Whelen offered quite a bit more recoil and was more expensive to shoot.

1) Despite my good experiences with the 35 Whelen, I would not recommend it on deer-sized game.

2) If you do pick a 35 Whelen or one of the others suggested, it would pay for you to be reloading.

I own a Ruger Hawkeye in 35 Whelen and have very limited experience with it. I bought it to be the second gun in a two gun battery for a New Foundland moose hunt (375 Ruger was #1). Due to an elbow injury I downsized my rifles. I shot Barnes Vor Tex 180 grain TTSX factory ammo at 2900 fps (that's 200 fps faster than an 30-06) into groups less than an inch. I hunt with a couple of guys who use the 35 Whelen and they swear by it. That's the way I would go, especially if you were going after game bigger than whitetails. Good luck.

I've killed deer and moose with the 35 Whelen and deer with the 257 Roberts. Both are great guns , but,it's easy to load the Whelen to 35 Rem. levels.In my opinion the Whelen is a much better all arounder.

Consider the 350 rem mag.

Here is a mighty fine Whelen for sale.


https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/11968196/Re:__35_Whelen#Post11968196