Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles What will a .338 win mag give me over my 35 Whelen?

Of all those, only SD and BC matter very much; though 200 fps of velocity might matter to some. More recoil is never a good thing; nor are belted cases. Broader selection of bullets is pretty irrelevant in today's world of extraordinary choices -- I have three rifles in two .338 cartridges, along with three rifles in three different .358 cartridges, so I know what's out there in both cartridge selections. While there are "more" .338's, there is no shortage of .358's. As far as a bigger selection of rifles, well...yes...but I couldn't care less. As long as the rifles I want are at home, I really don't care who makes what. And if I were deciding between rifles in two cartridges that I wanted, then it still wouldn't matter -- because what I'm choosing between are there. And if what I want isn't made -- like my .338 Fed RSI -- it's pretty easy to have one built.

I've killed game with my .338 Fed and my .338 RCM, and I'm sure if I wanted a .338 belted mag of some persuasion, it would kill game too. So will my .35 Whelen, and just fine too. In reality, the distinction is pretty esoteric, when it comes to killing big game.

Dennis

As you say, there are SD and BC differences, enough to matter even <grin>. The BC of the .33-cal, 225 Accubond is high enough to create a significant seperation between the two cartridges... an accurate .338 Win is a bona-fide longer-range rifle if the person driving it is so inclined, and has the skills.

Can't like the belt though. Could be coincidence I guess, but both my belted magnums need the brass to be formed to their chambers to shoot well, to a degree that none of my non-belted cartridges show. Since accuracy is a primary concern in both cases ( for longer-range shooting), it adds significantly to the expense and hassle of running them.

That 225-NAB will mess with folk's heads who see the .338 WM as an intermediate-range thumper. It opens up whole realms for .338, allows it to hang right with say a .300 WM in terms of wind drift at extended ranges... pretty cool. The bullet performs on game, too.

If the recoil of the 338 mag is too much, then lighten the load. Slowing the bullet down to Whelen velocities does not take away the SD and BC advantages, and it will still kill game.

If you're hunting deer or the like with your 338 mag, then use a lighter bullet to reduce recoil. It doesn't take a 250 grain bullet to kill deer, and you don't have to shoot max loads all the time. A decent 200 grain bullet at 2600-2700 fps from your 338 mag will flatten deer and be a pleasure to shoot.

I have a perfectly good deer load for my 45-70 that shoots 400 grain cast bullets at about 1000 fps. I can shoot them all day long. When I carry that gun elk hunting I change to 350 grain jacketed bullets at about 2100 fps with a case full of H322. It's a totally different rifle with that load, believe me.

considering velocity and trajectory: a 35 Whelen is a smaller 375 H&H(250 grain from Whelen is similar to a 300 grain 375H&H), while a 338 Winchester magnum is a bigger 30-06 (180 grain from 30-06 is similar to a 250 grain 338 Winchester magnum). Thus the 06 and 338 are faster and falter shooting with less weight. If you are satisfied with the velocity and trajectory of the 35 Whellen, but want more bullet mass, then buy a 375, but if you want to change to a faster velocity and falter trajectory with the same bullet mass, do for the 338.

I know various bullet weights change the formula a bit but if you match these perspective ratio of weight, it comes out about the same. It depends on what gain you desire.

Just a note, the 270 and 300 Winchester magnum are a bit faster velocity and falter trajectory, but to get the mass of a 250 grain bullet, you would have to use a full length magnum, such as a 340 Weatherby.

It all comes down to knowing what you actually want and need.

Well Gents, I will just say I have hunted and killed big game animals with both calibers. I perfer the .338 Win mag over the .35 Whelen as it is more short range. I also perfer the .338 win mag to my other wildcat, which is a .338/.300-Ultra mag because it is just to friggin much in the recoil department, to be as accurate down range with me shooting. My .338 Win mag develops some 33 pounds of recoil and my wildcat caliber .338/.300Ultra mag develops 60 pounds. You think there might be a difference hey!---???

The main advantages of the belted magnums over the 35 Whelen are
1. More recoil
2. Expensive ammunition (verify this before you buy)
3. Short case life
4. Muzzle blast
5. Heavier rifles
6. Flinching
The more I think about it the more I like my 35 Whelen.
whelennut

.................Those two overlap each other. If you see a need for a 375, go up to a 375!

So I don't know about recoil of the 35 Whelen so I won't say anything�

I reload, so I don�t know about Factory ammo cost� but the difference between reloading a 30-06 and a 338WM is no biggie

I throw away my cases after 6 reloadings� whether I need to or not� as I do with the 30-06

The rifles may be Heavier?

Flinching � no biggie for me or any of my 3 sons� who have shot my 338wm since they were 12(ish)� BUT not a steady of the 338� they had their own (or mine 30-06)

But�

we all pays our money and picks our pleasure� Get or keep what you want I did