Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles 35 Whelen

Getting the itch to try again for "One Rifle" the rule them all

North Idaho hunting, Moose, Elk, Deer, Black Bear, with the possible encounter while hunting of a Grizzly

The rifle I bought before moving up here in 2002 was the Marlin GG in 45-70 which is a capable thumper in the dark timber out to 150 yards if I push it but really 50-100 is more likely.. Loaded with 405gr Oregon Trail, Chrono says 1450fps

Last year I settled on a Model 70 XTR Magnum Sporter in 338 WM the deal was great,, and it only needed a scope, already had a Brake and was Bedded in a Factory Laminate stock.. Loaded with 210gr Barnes TTSX, Chrono says 2900

So I have the close up fast handling thumper, and a rifle that can reach out and hit hard if I want

What I am now thinking is the "ONE" that can do it more in the middle

So here is the thought and the itch

Buy a 30-06, 22" barrel in good shape, send it out to JES and have it re-bored to a 35 Whelen, add a brake, and a 2x7 or 3x9 scope
Load it up with 225gr TSX Barnes should be around 2600 fps
This should be a fast handling hard hitting rifle that I can comfortably reach out to 400ish yards, more than enough for most anything I might hunt up here

Anyone using a 35 Whelen that loves it or hates it ...

Seems like the 06 would handle all that business pre-rebore. But just to be stir the pot, why not a 9.3x62?

A d a Whelen does not need a brake but a little more barrel length makes for a steadier hand when shooting at something further away I find.

Buy the 30-06 reload the shells with suitable powder for 2600-2700fps with 200 grain Nosler partitions add an 2.5x8 Vari x lll go past go save 200 dollars forget all that ideological baggage your carrying and kill sh*t. Don't need no fugging brakes or non toxic bullets just kiss principle and keep the extra money instead of piss*ng it away on crap you don't need. You did ask. Mb

The .35 Whelen has been my choice for more than 30 yrs. now, accurate and flexible when it comes to bullet choice. I built mind on a pre'64 Winchester M/70, I had it rebored by Randall Redman and scoped it with a Leupold Var-XII 2-7x. My bullet of choice after testing most available at the time of rebore is a Sierra Game King 225gr. over IMR 4064. Recently I have been shooting Hornady Inter-lok 200gr. RN over IMR 3031 a Ken Waters Pet Load which is extremely accurate in my rifle and produces excellent results on whitetails. Off season I shoot a lot of cast bullet and pistol bullet loads, most are propelled by Unique. A final note is that because there have been reports here on the 'Fire of problems with JES rebores, I would choose another to do the rebore work.

Do you have first hand knowledge of problems with JES rebores? I have heard far more positive stories than negative.

Eh.... 99.9% of JES reports here are great. There was one guy a few months ago who was unhappy, but he did everything *but* contact JES about it and ruined things for himself. With JES you aren't going to get a bore that looks like Rigby just turned it out. But 99/100 it'll shoot well if it wasn't junk before.

Not a fan of brake on 338 Win Mag. Have shot 338 Win Mag for years and find the recoil complaint slightly overblown. You can load the 338 Win Mag with 160-200 gr loads from 3,100 fps-2,900 fps and mimic .30 magnums in trajectory. 210, 225, 230, 250 and 275 grain bullets take you anywhere you need to go. While the Whelen is darn good, it doesn’t come close to the 338 Win Mag in field versatility. A 338 Win Mag 250 grain load at 2,650 fps, which is about 100 fps shy of book load maximum is easy to shoot and a full 150 fps-200 fps faster than the Whelen or 338-06 (another fine cartridge in its own right). The 338 Win Mag’s existence is predicated on dropping large NA game at long distances and taking deer size game with bullet weights delivering .30 magnum trajectories. Bullet wise the .35s don’t carry the BC or SD the .33s do. Can’t see a Whelen being more of a one gun than the 338 Win Mag. Only one man’s opinion.

I dont have a 35 Whelan but theres no doubt it does fine tossing heavy bullets. Just my opinion but i believe the 35 is superior to all the 6.5, 270, and 30 cal types when cast bullets are used. At 35 cal we reach a diameter and weight where cast can be used even on larger game. The little efficient 358 Winchester is outstanding in this reguard too. Thats the advantage of the 35s, heavy bullets and in particular heavy cast bullets.

Your covered pretty well with that 338 win mag and up close using the 45-70. Maybe look into a smaller bore like 30-06, or maybe a 270 win?

Ive been a long time 308 win and 338 cal user but recently aquired a 30-06 and a 270win. No need for any muzzlebrake and easy shooting

Got a 7600 35 Whelen. Great rifle very accurate.

I have a 35 whelen and I am very fond of it and shoot it a bit but have never killed game with it. I would not put a muzzle brake on it. I also have a 338-06 that does a great job on deer and the one elk I have killed with it.

I love both of those cartridges but if I already had a 338 win mag I would do like "Rossimp" said above and down load it a little for the times I new I would be hunting where extreme long range is not needed, say out to 300 - 350 yards. By getting the load down to about 338-06 velocity you will have a fairly flat shooting load that will go to 350 yards just find and you get to use a rifle you are familiar with in the process. You may find a load that would group well enough to your magnum load to use the same zero or a least group with the same windage to the point you would just need two drop charts and could carry the two loads with you on a hunt to cover all bases.

With all that said if you must have a new gun just get a 30-06.

I've used a Whelen & always liked them. But lately when I think of one, I lean towards a 338-06.

I varies at times, but usually better bullet selections for the 338. Plus, it could share bullets you have for the 338 mag if ya had too.

Then.... the easy button would be a 30-06 & not want for much.

The multiple 338 calibers were my first choice, in fact I was really after a 338 Fed when I bought the 338 WM I figured that would be a perfect caliber for up here..
Things don't always go as planned when a deal presents itself, plus I had Reloading supplies left over from my first 338 WM so that was a push

Not at all interested in a 30-06, sold two after we moved here, nothing wrong with it at all, in fact it might be the best all around caliber ever made
Just leaning toward bigger bullets over the last decade, the 06 would be easy as I have reloading stuff for it and hundreds of cases

I already own a 308 W and a 300 WM both set up to reach way out there..

I like brakes, I know many don't but that doesn't change my mind,, I like them, I like to enjoy shooting the rifle, especially at the bench

I have only heard good about JES, but like any craftsman there is bound to be somebody that ain't happy I will try and find the thread or if somebody has a link to it that would be great

Thanks for the info on the 35 Whelen from those that own them

No real reason, the only thing that makes a little sense is that I have hundreds of 30-06 cases that I can if needed blow out to shoot with

But really very little difference between the two

You don't seem to be really looking for a one gun rifle. Seems to be more of a case of wanting a 35 Whelen, and I'm good with that. If you want to do a rebore, JES did a Tikka T3 from -06 to Whelen for me that I was very happy with.

I can accept the 30-06 one gun argument, it makes sense. However, if it were me, I would gladly take a Whelen or the .338. I've used my Whelen more in the last twelve years than all other cartridges combined. This came about because in Mississippi you can use the Whelen during primitive firearms season. I, along with a lot of Miss. hunters, have found it performs so well that we just use it most of the time.

With all that being said, if I were only going to have one rifle it would be my .338 WM.

I have to agree if I were pressed to drop all but one hunting rifle in North America the 338 WM would be the one I would hold onto

You are probably right I just want a 35 Whelen because it is itching at my brain, just like the 338 appeals to me over a 308 hole the 358 appeals to me over the 338 hole

gssixgun, I'd go with the 35 Whelen. I much prefer it to my 338 Win Mag and if it kills with any less authority, I've never seen it. Skip the muzzle brake though. Worst thing I ever did was have Barnes Bullets' gunsmith put one on my 338 WM. It tamed the recoil, but the extra noise was miserable!!!

I too owned a .338 WM for many years but made the switch to a .35 Whelen as I got older. I find the Whelen's recoil to be very manageable, more of a push than a violent kick like the .338 WM.

I've owned a model 700 classic in 35 whelen for many years. I've taken one doe with it, and my dad has used it on two deer and a Javelina. The deer dropped in their tracks, and the Javelina had a very large hole through it. Growing up I used a 30-06 for many hunting trips, but when I had the chance at a whelen I jumped on it and am ever so glad I did. Using published handload data I can propel a 200gr Barnes TTSX at a chronied speed of 2891fps from a 22" barrel for flat shooting medicine, or I can hurl a 250gr Hornady round nose at 2530fps again using published data for a raw power load. This caliber has considerably more power than the standard 30cal version. I've also pounded steel targets with both rifles at 200 yds on an afternoon shooting excursion, and the difference is almost shocking. If I were to face an angry bear at close range the 35 whelen would definitely be my choice.

On the more enjoyable side of things I've had much fun with the whelen loaded with 13.0grs of bluedot and 158gr cast semi wad cutters. I understand this is very close to "The Load" as it has been affectionately called. This load clocks 1450fps and is an absolute hoot to shoot. My niece took this rifle and a box of 50 shells so loaded and burned them so fast it made my head spin. The big grin on her face was worth all the trouble loading them. It's been called a reloaders dream caliber for very good reason. Get an accurate whelen and you'll have almost never ending combinations to try