Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles .35 Whelen vs .338-06?

Let’s say a fellow with more than a passing interest in rifles desired a hunting rifle in a caliber greater than the classic .30

Considering the availability of both .30-06 parent brass and actions, something descended from the grand .30-06 seems a good idea.

.35 Whelen and .338-06 both seem like good options.

Which would you choose and why? If your answer is something else, then why that instead?

I pondered that same question many moons ago...so my game plan was why not just build one of each?

after all, 30/06 donor rifles are a dime a dozen... plentiful..

so I started out with the 338/06... and picked up a Brand New Model 70 post hunting season in Butte Montana for $250.00

I had the barrel rebored to 338/06 from the 270 barrel that came on the rifle..

after playing with it, and hunting with it... I never built a 35 Whelen... just saw it duplicating the 338/06...

so that is why I would go 338/06... my original motivation was the bullet selection from Hornady..

If I had built the 35 Whelen first.... then I would never had built a 338/06....

not enough difference between either to pick one over the other...

I have both and like them both a lot and consider them equals, although the 338-06 has a slight edge if used at distances longer than say 300 yards, which I do not do, plus it has a better bullet selection.

That said, if you reload get the 338-06 and if not the 35 Whelen will be a better option due to the availability of factory ammo.

I'm liking my 338-06.I make my brass from once fired 30-06 brass.Lot of bullets to pick from with a wide variety of weights too.I found it to be very easy to load for.I picked 200gr Nosler Silver Ballistic Tips and Accubonds as my go to bullets.I can get 2800fps with every powder I tried between Varget and 4350 burn range.It shoots fairly flat at that speed.It has the energy level that is close to a 300 Win Mag with a 200gr bullet.I've shot two red deer with mine so far and it performed really well on them.It hits hard.As good as the 30-06 is,when it comes to the heavier bullets,either the 338-06 or 35 Whelen gets a little more power out of the 30-06 case.Either one is an amazing cartridge.

Definitely would shoot handloads for either choice. My bolt action rifles see 95% to 99% handloads. Some of them only see factory ammo once in a blue moon to get a chronograph reading with factory loads for reference sake.

With the rise of the “primitive” weapon seasons in some states that allow .35 Whelen from a hammer fired rifle the availability of Whelen ammo is pretty good. Ultimately not really a concern to me, as I have a nice stash of once fired .30-06 brass that would be put to use.

My first was a Mod 700 Classic 35 Whelan reamed out tot he Ackley Improved. Used it 20yrs, all the while trying out different .338 rounds, which I also loved. I never got my 338/280 going well as time/sorry Nickle plated brass at the time were an issue. I have used the 338 WM, 340W, 338 RUM and my furthest shot on any kind of game with them all was the 35 WAI and the 200X. 347 lasered yds. With a 24 inch barrel and todays powders, a standard Whelan can give a 35 WAI a run for its money! Same can be said for the simple 338/06 I think. My "problem" if you would , with the Ackley version is all my hunting loads were hot. The "cases" never showed me any indication, but the "math" of QL showed I was running around 72K. I only have one good eye left ( non shooting related btw!) so I quit it. Its much safer to gain speed/oomph via a bigger case. All it takes is "once"...:)

I've had both, sold both. Unless you move up to 250 gr or heavier bullets neither offer any advantage over 30-06 with 200-220 gr bullets. And even then the advantage is quite small and the recoil is not. But if I were tempted to go back to either it would be the 338-06.

+ 1.

In my case, I bought a Whelen on a whim 'cause of all the nostalgic tales here on the 'Fire, & I found a smokin' deal on one. Turns out the rifle handled like a dream, & shot extremely well. It whacked hogs hard, & took a nice Shiras moose for me.

Later on, I found a sporterized Mauser in .338-06. Even a small amount of range time found it to be the equivalent of the Whelen at the distances I shoot, and the rifle itself didn't handle nearly as well as the Whelen. Accordingly, that Mauser went down the road.

I've seen it opined that if one wanted to truly step up from a .30 cal, it would make more sense to just go up to a .375 H&H. I dunno that I'd necessarily disagree.

As it is, I really don't see myself hunting anything necessitating the Whelen anymore, and its recoil with 250's is the very most I'd ever want to endure. Practicality says I should sell it & let someone else experience its joys, but it just shoots too well to leave the safe.

In summary - flip a coin: you're the only one you've got to please.

FC

I was in your situation few years back.
I love my 06, already have 270 and wanted something to shoot heavier pills. Using the 06 parent case.
Since I wanted to shoot the heavies, I ended up with 9.3x62.
The 9.3 did scratch my thumper itch, maybe little too much thump until I got limb saver. Anyways, looking back, sometimes I wish I would have had bought a stainless donor T3 , send it to JES and re bore to 338-06 as my original thought.
Lots of bullet selection compared to 35 or 36 cal.
But, I also love the fact my 9.3 can be used on anything

I had a 9.3x62, great round. I kept my .375 H&H, traded the 9.3.

I have a 338-06 and prefer the latter for my use.

DF

338-06

I've been shooting the Whelen for 35 yrs. or more and have always been satisfied with it so no reason to try the .338-06. One advantage the Whelen has is its ability to shoot .357 pistol bullets for small game and plinking.

Having had 9.3x64, 9.3x62, 35 Whelen, 350 Remington Mag, 338 WM, a bunch of 338-06's, and 30-06's.

I have a 375 H&H for the bigger end. Currently have one 338-06, with a suppressed and African style 338-06 in the works. All are Model 70 Classics.

I prefer the 338-06, it is a nice addition to my 270's. Have used one in various guns for close to 20 years. I have used mostly 200-210gr bullets, but have recently started shooting 180-185gr. Plan on taking one to TX in March for some hog hunting.

Don't neglect the 160 TTSX with Varget. Very accurate.

Have not yet killed anything with one, but reports are very good regarding terminal performance.

DF

All of the '06-based mediums are good choices, but if you need more than a 30-06, you probably need a LOT more. For me, that starts at 9.3x62.

CZ 550 is the ticket.


Okie John

I have a 35 and 400 Whelen and for a while had a 375 Whelen. I considered a 338-06 before I had the 35 Whelen but the classic won out in the end. To be honest I could be happy with any one of them, 338/06, 35 Whelen, 9.3x62, 375 Whelen or 400 Whelen if I was limited to one. My favorite of course is the 400.

Both are very good for intended need on larger game (700 lbs up) as well as 9.3x62. Even though it never got traction, Hornady’s 376 Steyr is a better fit for non-mag heavy hitter than all three in my opinion. Having flat trajectory and power to spare as well as many .37 cal bullets to choose from.

If you are buying factory ammo, go 35 Whelen, if you are reloading go 338-06 A-Square, I think that it's more efficient from a ballistic standpoint. If it were me, I'd probably go with the 9.3x62 if I wanted to keep the basic case size, or just download a 338 Winchester magnum.

First, thanks for all the replies. I see I’m in good Company here when it comes to interests in rifles

Second, I see a lot of references to the 9.3x62. I have no experience and little knowledge of this round. Is it based on a .30-06 case?

Uses the same rim size of 0.476 so it can fit in a standard 30-06 bolt and action. The round was developed at the start of the 1900's for the Germans in Africa that couldn't afford the 375 rifles for hunting. Kind of like the 6.5x55 and 7x57 with killing efficiency. I have one and that is my moose and bigger gun. Dropped a moose with one several years ago. Do a search on line for it.