Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting .35 Whelen Questions

Guys: I'm new to this forum. Also a sucker for classic cartridges and classic deer rifles: My son shot his first deer this year with my 1936 Winchester Model 64 Deluxe in .30 WCF and I shot my first a few years ago with my 1921 Winchester Model 1886 in .45-70. Other cartridges I'm drawn to include the 7mm Mauser, .30-40 Krag, .270 WCF, .300 Savage and .30-06. All of which leads up to my desire to acquire something that shoots the legendary .35 Whelen, and then to find an elk or moose to use it on -- or a big deer closer to home. I'm looking for a factory rifle, rather than a custom gun, and am partial to Rugers, but open to other ideas.

Reading through the other posts here, I can see that a lot of you have a lot of experience with this cartridge, so are there any near-unanimous conclusions as to the superiority of the No. 1 versus the Model 77 RS (rarity, carry weight, recoil, accuracy, etc.)? Preferences between Remington and Ruger (the Remmies seem to be easier to find)? I've read that some riflemen say both the Rugers and the Remingtons have the wrong rate of twist for this cartridge. Anything to that?

I'm not in a huge hurry, as I don't think I can swing an elk hunt until the fall of 2009, but these guns can take awhile to find, too, and I want to make sure I can make an informed decision whenever one turns up. Any advice will certainly be appreciated. TT

The Remington CDL's seem to be the best deal at the moment, and are readily available. I wouldn't worry about the twist issue -- that's an argument in vogue mostly with people wanting to shoot bullets heavier than 250 gr. I've been hunting with a Remington 700 .35 Whelen since 1993, and have yet to suffer from its twist rate. It shoots Hornady 250's into half an inch at 100 yards, at over 2500 fps. Reloder 15 is the powder of choice, btw.

Great cartridge...you just can't go wrong with it.

Dennis

I'm new somewhat to reloading and the 35 whelen. I've been reloading for a couple of years and loading for the whelen all that time. My rifles are a Remington CDL and a just aquired Classic. In my rifles I've loaded 225's and 250's with great results. I don't know about the heavier weight bullets yet. In my opinion its all hoopla about the twist with 250's, I think it depends more on the rifle itself.

If it was me I'ld be looking for a CDL or a classic unless you are going to shoot 270's or 300 grain bullets. Thats my experience so far.

+1 on what muledeer said

I have a remington classic in 35 whelen, I think the CDL's are a real bargain and thats what id buy. The 1-16" twist in NOT too slow, mine shoots speer 250's into less than one MOA. It shoots the barnes TSX 225's into half that. Its crazy I really cant believe how accurate it is for basicly a factory rifle except for bedding. RL 15 and TSX 225's is all I use now.

I shoot handloaded 250gr Hornady's with my Rem 700 CDL into .8" (never tried anything heavier).

Ruger M77 35 Whelens are fairly rare. They were fetching fairly high prices ($750-$950) until Remington came out with a CDL version. And now that the CDL's are practically free, the Rugers have come down some--not tons due to the fact that they're still uncommon. I wouldn't buy a Ruger Whelen to hunt with. Too many accuracy (or lack thereof) issues with older Ruger barrels. Plus aftermarket parts are so much more common for Remington.

Ruger #1's, however....I've never shot one in 35 Whelen, but the two I've owned are shooters. The stainless #1 in 35 Whelen sure looks nice!

I have a Ruger M77 in 35 Whelen. It is the tang safety, not a MII, have had it for a couple of years now. I haven't started re-loading for it quite yet, slowly ramping up to it, but mine really likes the standard Remington Core-Loks, esp in 250 gr. though the 200 gr rounds are good too. Good thing as the Rem stuff is all I can find in my area.
I plan to spilt the difference when I start loading and shoot 225 gr Barnes TSX's and/or Nosler Partitions. Hopefully it will shoot both well.
It will likely take some looking to find a Ruger but IMHO, it is well worth it. It is a good, solid rifle.

I went a different route for my Whelen. I'm more of a stailess/synthetic kinda guy (even with a classic like the Whelen). I got a used stainless Ruger MKII in .30-06 for cheap and had it rebarreled with 1:14 twist .35 Whelen barrel. It's a fairly inexpensive way to get a semi custom rifle.

You could do the same with the action of your choice.

I also shoot 225gr TSX @ 2700fps for great accuracy and awesome penetration.

I would go Remington all the way (over a Ruger #1, to your point).

I like the Ruger RS, I like those neat iron sights to back up my scope or visa versa...actually I would prefer a good custom Mauser, or a pre 64 Win. rebarrel...

I'm partial to the 77 RS as well, in part because I always like having iron sights as an option, and so few rifles come with them these days. I've seen the Remington Classics and like the looks of them a bit less (maybe because the rear sight seems kind of rinky-dink). But of course, accuracy is everything. So now I'll have to decide if I'm willing to take a chance on the Ruger barrel, or go for the CDL. Dang, I may have to buy more than one gun. Also, I'm not a reloader, or at least not yet. I think I've seen factory ammo from Remington and Federal. Are there others, and is one brand or bullet weight a clear winner? I assume the most important point is to pick a load and stick with it. Thanks for all the advice. TT

Atually a custon Mauser is what my 35 Whelen is. You can make it as fancy or as plain as your taste allows. I went for weatherproof and camouflage which isn't pretty but works very well.

TT-

I'd score the CDL. At around 470.00, they're an unbelievable value on a wonderful caliber.

SKane and All: Man, you guys are really wearing me down! But I don't get it ... why is such a great gun selling new for relatively so little money? And who sells them? Will Cabelas have one on the rack next time I walk in, or be able to order one for me if I call? Or is this some sort of close-out situation and one dealer is sitting on a hundred, or what? I see a couple NIB guns on GA, GB and GI at $580, $695, etc. Again, thanks for the advice. Great forum! Also, factory ammo preference? TT

Ya know, I don't care much for the S/S Synthetic rifles much but.....that is a good looking rifle!
I've been looking into the idea of building a 35 Whelen on a BLR. Seems possible so far. Stainless in a gray laminate stock would look good. Oh ya, I don't like S/S??????

TT-

Here's your new 35 Whelen:

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.asp?Item=102871898

You have one day.

I hand load for my Whelen. If I didn't, I'd shoot the Federal 225gr. Trophy Bonded Bearclaw.

Welcome to the Campfire!

I have a original Ruger tang safety RS. A twist of 1/16" works if the velocity is kept high enough (RPMs are what count). No problem with 250 Speers and RL-15. I have also found accurate loads with Rem 200 PSPCL, Hornady 200 SP, Sierra 225 BT, Nosler 225 BT, 158 lead RNFP, Varget, H4895, Blue Dot, etc... Overall I liked RL-15 the best, as do many others, but am still going to try TAC with the 200s.

A friend I hunt with has a Remington Classic in 35 Whelen. I reload for his rifle as well. Both my Ruger and his Remington have been equally accurate, essentially able to use the same loads, which makes life simpler.

Recoil off the bench with my Ruger is more than people expect with the light barrel. Not noticeable in the field but a bit much to shoot 50 from the bench all hunkered down and leaning forward... I use a taller bench or lower stool and a sissy pad for development.

The Ruger RS has iron sights in addition to the scope although I did switch to a XS receiver sight setup. Fun to use and handier to carry when I don't need a scope.

Not really any bad choices, just too many good choices. My $.02 - get the one that makes you feel warm and fuzzy when you bring it to your shoulder.

I'd also recommend the Remington CDL in 35 Whelen. It is a good buy and a very nice looking gun--especialy if you can find one with a bit of personality in the wood grain.

As already mentioned, any bullet 250 grain or under will shoot very well in the Remington. I only had minor issues with the 310 Woodleigh.

I'm also a huge fan of the Ruger No.1 and would highly recommend one, but I've never owned nor shot one in 35 Whelen.

As you say Federal makes a 225gr Trophy Bonded load for the Whelen.

Nosler makes several Whelen loads as well with the 225 Partition being my favorite for the "lower 48".

Don't buy a Remington; the bolt comes open with the safety on if you brush against something...get the Ruger with a bolt lock feature.