Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles .338-06 vs 35 Whelen vs 9.3x62

Probably the 9.3
I run 250g Accubonds at 2700fps, .497bc
Got a bull elk this year w it

I run 286 western cast lead bullets over trail boss for plinkers

I have an MC Ace chamber adapter to run 9mm Markov for small game

You used to be able to get cheap $20/bx PPU ammo for deer to 250y.

I have a 35 Whelen also, run 225g Accubonds at 2800fps, 0.44bc
There is a bunch of newer powered published loads that make the 35w pretty hot
I have 180g XTP pistol bullets for exploding milk jugs
The 35w sits in the safe usually

You might work on finding a rifle that fits you best, then see what caliber you can get

I have a 338-06 and a 9.3x62, but have never felt a need to own or want to own a 35 Whelen. If your ranges aren't too long the 9.3x62 shooting 286 grain bullets at 30-30 velocities packs a wallop. When I put together a pair of rifles to take to Africa, assuming that I ever actually go again, I settled on a matched pair in 7x57 and 9.3x62.

I'd settle for just the 9.3X62. It'll reach about anything anyone takes a whack at in Africa.

Years ago I took a 12-12/9.3X74R drilling and shot everything with it from Steenbuck to buffalo. I had a 35 Whln in a very early Rem 700 Classic and never warmed up to it. I got a scruffy looking Huaqvarna 9.3 from Simpson and never looked back at a 35 Whln. Nothing wrong with it, but it's like the 16ga guns I shoot, neither fish nor fowl.

Gotta love those Swedish Husqvarna's. My Model 46A is all original in 9.3x57mm Mauser. It's iron sights are regulated for one load. This one is so new to me that I'm still trying to figure out what that one load is. I'm getting closer. So far it likes 286gr PPU, and Norma bullets. Actually, it likes anything 286grs. Factory ammo shoots low, but handloads are bringing up the POI incrementally.

Where are you finding factory ammo? (I've been looking at a 46 but don't need another reloading project in the lineup!)

My choice made long ago is the .35 Whelen, I've only used it for Whitetails it has always produce great results. I like the Whelen's ability to use a broad variety of bullets, cast, pistol bullets and jacketed. My deer load is one of Ken Waters Pet Loads, it uses a 200gr. Hornady RN bullet and IMR 3031. This load is incredibly accurate often producing 3 shot cloverleaf groups. I've only recovered one of these bullets from a whitetail, it was perfectly mushroomed and retained 66% of its original weight.

🤫🤫
It's all on the Fire baby. Right place, right time, right people

If a family member asked me I'd have to pick the .338-06 dead last, since none of them handload, and they'd have to custom order the ammo.

Otherwise, take all 3 rifles with you hunting, shoot 3 of the same animal, and you wouldn't notice the slightest difference in performance within 300 yards.

Great, now the Grinch shows up to throw the cloud of logic over everyone‘s fun. C’mon, man, we’ve got hairs to split! At least if I followed your advice I’d get to shoot 3 animals. 😁

I forgot to also mention about those three animals.... I've yet to bump into a game warden or a check station...

Truly a pick' em as far as performance goes.

I am a huge 338-06 fan, and would not hesitate to use it on anything with the exception of elephant and rhino.



That is something to consider, but a 375 H&H or 338 Win Mag would be more logical? If going down that rabbit hole.
All three benefit from handloading.

Big “+1” on the handloading vs factory ammo argument. A handloader can make a .338WM or Whelen a versatile rifle that can also digest factory loads when the need arises.

338-06 is not exclusively a "reloading project" At one time it was in the Weatherby factory line, don't know if it still is. Brass is still just as damn simple as 1 stroke in a Redding sizing die with a once fired 30-06... mb

Finn Aagaard wrote an article for American Rifleman in the 1980s(?) that compared the performance of the 35 Whelen vs 338-06 vs the 30-06 (loaded with a 200 grain jacketed bullet).

Result?

The 30-06 loaded with a 200 grain jacketed bullet was as good as any of them, if not better. Can't remember if it was a Nosler Partition or Speer. My memory is ?like a steel trap, "old and rusty."

Findings were based on muzzle energy at various distances, trajactory, bullet ecpansion and penetration. I THINK there was some "real life" game performance in the article too. Typical high quality Finn Aagaard pragmatic reporting.

Bottom line? You may want to include the 30-06 loaded with a 200 grain jacketed bullet in your cartridge selection.

I have reamers for all 3 but the only rifle is a 35 Whelen. I doubt I'll ever build myself either of the other two just because I don't feel the urge. I had built a 35 Whelen, based on a 98 Mauser, in the early '80's. It came out pretty good and I decided I should have one like it; so, I built another for myself. I still like it. GD

I would not include the 30-06 in this lineup. Powders are a little different than when Fin pinned his article. Granted one can sneak RL-26 in the '06 and run those 200's at 2700fps, but the Whelen easily does 2900fps with the same weight. The '06 would be better at long range where the 200 fps difference is erased, but that's only with RL-26...and I haven't seen that anywhere. Real world the '06 is 300 to 400 fps behind the Whelen with similar weights. In my hunting experience the Whelen drops game quicker than a tough 200gr '06 bullet

I have all three, but would unhesitantly go 9.3 if forced to choose.

I have made quite a few of each and I have owned and killed game with the 338-06 and the 9.3X62. (I also have killed game with two 9.3X57s and a 9.3X74R)
The only one of the bunch I have not made for my own use is the 35 Whelen and for NO good reason. Those I have made for clients have all be very pleased with the performance of the 35 Whelen.
These days bullet availability and pricing are both factors that can't be gotten around as easily as they were 30 - 40 years ago. So in discussing theses things we can take 2 paths.
The first is to discuss the merits or each with the best ammo that can be loaded for any particular game animal.
The other is to discuss what we can actually buy and use today (which should include the consideration of a mold and the making of bullets yourself because in today's world what you want to use and what you can actually buy are often very different)

I have made probably 35 338-06s and I kept 3 of them for a while and used 2 of those 3 to hunt with. It is simply a wonderful cartridge. It can handle bullet all the way up to 250 grains, but my experience has shown me it's at it's best with 200-225 grains. I know several people who love the 185 grain Barnes and a few who use the 250s but from what I have seen the low end and the high end don't seem to give any advantages over the 200-225 range. No that there is anything bad to say about them mine you. Many worked well. The bullets I have personally used that didn't hold up well when hitting heavy bone were the Speer 200 grain and the Hornady in 200 and 225 grains and one that was a shock was a total failure with only about 5 inches of penetration against a mule deer's spine was the Hornady 250 grain RN bullet. All other bullets I have used or seen used by other hunters worked very well. Partitions, A-Frames and every bonded bullet I have seen used. The 185 Barnes TSX is also quite good, but possible not quite as quick to kill elk (so far) as the 210 and 225 grain Partitions

35 Whelen: I get a call to make a 35 Whelen fairly often and have been making them since the 70s for men who wanted one. Less today then years ago, but there are many who still love the Whelen. Many of the older .358" bullets seemed to be made more for lighter and smaller game and so going back 40+ years getting a tough bullet was a bit harder to find then it is today for use on heavy game. Today many companies make a .358 bullet that will chop off a moose upper leg bone and still do a good job. The 35 has (in theory) bullets available from use on any animal from Moose to buffalo and so if you can really find them, it has a lot of versatility as a cartridge that covers a LOT of ground and can be used with very little compromises in the game fields for many applications. Buy the bullets that suit your needs and go hunt.

9.3X62 (and 9.3X74R and to a large extent the 9.3X57 also) The 9.3s all seem to have few week spots. If there was one thing I dislike about the 9.3MM is that in the lighter range of bullet weights they are very hard to find and as with all larger bore sizes, fairly expensive. One bullet that was the exception to the cost was the PPU 285 grain which seems to work extremely well to kill game, was easy to get (maybe not anymore) and in my four 9.3s they were accurate. Not the most accurate 9.3 bullet but shooting very close to MOA and in 1 gun a bit less then MOA, that's good enough to kill game with.

I am a bit shocked at the popularity of the 9.3X62 in the last 8 years or so. Custom rifle and re-barrel jobs in this caliber have become VERY much in demand here in Wyoming and to some extent in near by Idaho, Montana and Utah as well as a few from Nevada. 15-20 years ago a lot of American hunters had not even heard of the 9.3X62 and now it's seems to be the one that I am getting the largest call for.

Norma makes some 232 grain bonded bullets that allow faster speeds in the 9.3X57 (I have 2 of them) and they are simply great, (in all 3 of my 9.3 cartridges, the X57 the X62 and the X74R) but finding them is a problem and when I do, affording them is a bigger problem.

The Speer 270 grain is the most accurate 9,3 bullet I have used in all 4 of my 9.3 bore rifles but also has a tendency to break up very badly. It's basically a vary big varmint bullet and I have had extreme blow-up many times on smaller game like antelope does and white tail deer. It is better then the 9.3X57 because slowing it down a bullet does seem to help some, but not enough. I killed several antelope with my Ruger #1 in 9.3X74R with that bullet out at around 350 yards and they still blew up about 50% of the time. They kill deer and antelope well enough just owning to the size of the bullet, but it's very hard on meat.

The Hornady 286 grain has been good for me in my experience, but 3 times I have seen it break up badly too. Those were elk shot with guns I made for friends on hunts I was along on, so I have seen a few problems but for my own kills so far I have had good results with the Hornady.
Nosler Partitions; The gold standard. Very accurate and superb results on all game. The down side is expense and lack of availability (like man other bullets in many sizes today)

Nosler 250 grain Accubond; In the 9.3X62 it's wonderful and it's accurate. I made 3 kills with this bullet also from my 9.3X57 and at close range its ok but at range out close to 200 yards the bullet's jacket is too thick to let it open much at lower impact speeds.

So, from the list above which do I recommend? All 3!

Take your pick and if you can get the bullets you want, all 3 will be "the one you love".

If you like some complexity in life get 2 or maybe get all 3. At the time to grab a rifle and go out the door to hunt it's a problem choosing which you want to take.

It's kind of nice problem to have.

Never owned any of them, or shot one.

If you buy bullets for the 9.3 they were likely designed for it, and it's performance level.
Most any, from light to heavy, CC or Mono.

That can be a big deal, and issues avoided.

Throw all three up in the air. Catch one coming down and you’ll be well suited for all of NA including big bears.