Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles 30-06 to 35 whelen

Hello everyone, fairly new to reloading and i would like to get your opions. I recently purchased a 35 whelen rifle and need to reload some ammo for it but dies are hard to come by. I have a bunch of once fired 30-06 brass. I have rcbs 358 win., 30-06 and 270 win dies and also some 35 cal bullets and appropriate poweder. Is there anyway I can use a combination of these dies to reload the 35 whelen? Also i can get a hornady neck sizer die on line but i am not sure if I can neck up the 30-06 to 35 whelen cases with this die. Thanks paul

Just make sure you lube the inside of the case necks. Going from -06 to 35 Whelen is easy. Just take your time

Until I finally got a set of 35 Whelen dies I used my 358 Winchester RCBS dies to neck up and to load my shells. It only neck sizes and you have to set your die carefully but it worked for me at least 300 times. I recommend using Armorall protectant for inside neck lubricant. I had the best success using Federal brass but only split a few cases out of a hundred. I now use the Whelen dies simply because I have them.

Thanks. I am just wondering if the zip spindle on the hornady die would have enough grip not to slip when expanding the neck but it sounds like if i put enough lube it will be ok. Thanks again

While waiting for 338-06 Ackley dies a few years back I was able to make up some rounds to fireform for the die maker by neck sizing with 338 WinMag dies using new brass. If memory is right I fired some others about 5 or 6 times using the WinMag dies until they wouldn't chamber easily w-out FL sizing. By then the custom dies were in hand. The 06 & 270 dies wont help you.

You *MAY* be able to use the 358 Win dies in a pinch if there's a tapered expander ball, but you cant FL size with them. If you dont have one, RCBS should be able to supply a tapered expander for your 358 dies. Experiment with some junk 06 brass & see what you can come up with. FWIW Redding dies in 35 Whelen & 358 Win come with tapered expanders, or at least mine did.

These guys may be quicker than waiting for a run from one of the big 3. Good folks... https://www.ch4d.com/ You will need to specify a tapered expander if ordering from CH.

I make 358 from 308 using the 358 sizing die. You're essentially doing the same thing. I happen have dies for 32 Spl. so I usually do the expansion in two steps but have done it in one step, no problem. As mentioned, use lube on the inside of the neck and just take it easy, it'll go fine.

Since the headstamp will read 30-06, you might want to consider marking the expanded cases so you don't try to shoot them in a 30-06 though. I don't own a 308 so that's not problem for me.

Dale

I can say that you should use new brass. I got mine by pulling the bullets from factory loads, that is how anxious I was to shoot my Whelen. I never owned a Whelen factory load.

Thanks rickt, that what I would like to do until I get a set of whelen dies. I am assuming I can also use the 358 win seating die if I am careful. Any other helpful hints would be appreciated if you have any. Like I said I am fairly new to reloading and am learning alot on hear.

I use .30-06 for most of my cast bullet loads, lube the inside of the necks with Imperial Sizing Die Wax and run them into your .35 Whelen die. I've tried Hornady dies with the zip spindle and am not a fan. I prefer Redding FL sizing dies and Hornady seating dies with the sliding sleeve. I checked concentricity using this die combination and found none that exceeded .003" TIR. I get excellent groups too with 200gr. & 225gr. bullets, powder of choice is IMR 3031 with 200gr. and IMR 4064 with 225gr. bullets. Good luck with your Whelen, I've been shooting mine for nearly 30yrs. it shoots everything well, cast, jacketed and pistol bullets. I've harvested whitetails with both 200 & 225gr.bullets performance was outstanding.

I hope my rifle shoots good. I live in commy kalifornia so i have to wait 10 days to get it, 8 more to go. I have been ,looking for a 35 whelen for awhile and a lgs store had this one. It's a custom gun built on a interarms x mark action, older McMillan stock and a 24 inch McGowan barrel. I kinda shy away from one off guns but i know the owner of the shop and he has its twin in 280 remington and he loves it. I have some imr 4064 and speer 220gr bullets. I will keep my fingers crossed and hope it shoots well. Tha ks for the info and advice.

When i got my Whelen back from rebore I bought every bullet weight and manufacturer on the market at the time. I read everything I could find and did extensive range testing, that's how I found that Sierra Game King 225gr. with IMR 4064 produced the best groups with my rifle. Fast forward several years and I'd had rotator cuff surgery on my right shoulder, I was looking for a load that was gentler on my shoulder not that the 225gr. load was uncomfortable to shoot. Consulting Ken Waters Pet Loads I found the 200gr. load with IMR 3031. Using a 200gr. Hornady Inter-lok RN I got outstanding accuracy often shooting 3 shot cloverleaf groups at 100yds. In 2018 I harvested a whitetail with this load, a raking shot @ 100yds. which traversed the chest entering just ahead of the last two ribs came to rest just under the skin on the far shoulder. The recovered bullet was perfectly mushroomed and retained 66% of its original weight.

I had no problem using the 358 seating die to seat bullets in 35 Whelen cases. You just have to set it up pretty high on the threads. Favorite powders for the Whelen are 3031 and 4320. I never needed to make mine into a 338 Win Mag. That said I did make some heavy loads using CFE 223 powder. 250 gr. bullets at 2600 fps were more fun than I could take off the bench but as a hunting load I can't see why it wouldn't be excellent. My Whelen weighs just under 7 pounds without a scope and the Leupold M8 4x doesn't add a lot to that. On the other hand the Speer 250 started at 2300 fps has done everything I have asked of the Whelen from elk in western Washington to night hunting feral hogs in Texas.

Did you try the speer 220 flat base bullets and 4064 and if so did you have any luck with them? Since I have quite a few of these bullets on hand i am going to play with these first. Living in california we have to use lead free bullets. I have some barnes 200gr tsx for my 358 win so if I want to use this gun here I will have load them up.

Try the 4895’s and TAC

I do have some tac powder, do you know where a good starting load would be with the barnes 200 and speer 220?

I did use some of the 220 gr. Speers but with 3031 not 4064. Was totally unimpressed with them on several large feral hogs. Didn't even get an exit and one even got off the property. They were too soft at 2600 fps for large hogs and hard angles. But for deer they might be just fine, I quit using them after a few less than stellar experiences on the hogs and went back to 225 gr. Woodleigh RN's, 250 gr. Hornady RN's and the Speer 250's. My shooting is usually under 100 yards, often much closer than that. I should have run the Speer 220's at a slower speed and they might have worked better.

I will probably use the spears to get used to gun and have some fun with it at first then load up the barnes when i go hunting. It came with a 4x nikon monarch. Here in ca I can have shots at deer from 30 feet to 400 yards. i am thinking this will enough magnification for this caliber but i do have a nib leupold 3-9x40 vx 1 not being used. What magnification are you guys using on your whelens?

I tried the Speer 220gr. Flat Point but accuracy was disappointing. As far as scopes I've had a Leupold Vari-XII 2-7x on mine although for a while I had a Lyman All American 4x with a 2 minute LEE dot.

I think I will look through dad's reloading room and see if he has some diffent 35 caliber bullets than I. The store shelves are really bare hear so i will probably have to use the components that i have on hand.

cast 35 cal bullets rock in the whelen too....