Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles 300 Win vs 35 Whelen?

Because a 200 gr bullet in a 300 mag is a moose/elk/grizzly bullet and a 200 grainer in a 35 whelen is a deer bullet, you're comparing apples and oranges. It all depends upon what you want to hunt with it. I load 200 gr hornadys at around 2900 fps in my handi rifle 35 whelen because it qualifies for "primitive weapons" deer season here in Mississippi. I'd never shoot 200 grainers out of a 300 win mag at deer, what's the point of that? If I were to use a 300 mag for deer, which I don't, I'd load a tough 150 grainer like an accubond at warp speed and take advantage of it's flatter trajectory. Likewise I wouldn't shoot my 200 gr 35 whelen whitetail load at a moose, it'd probably work but I'd feel a lot better with more weight and sectional density.

That depends on the 200 grain .358 bullet. I'm not at all reluctant to use the 200 TTSX for the biggest game in NA......

Crowhunter hit it on the head. A 200 gr 35 cal Horn has a bc of .301 and a SD of .223 while a 200 gr NPT has .484 bc and a .301 sd. Apples to oranges indeed. I've used 200 Corelokts out of my Whelen on deer, yup it kills them. It acts more like a 125 gr in an 30-06 though . A fairer comparison would be 250 gr 35 against the 200 30 cal. When you shoot deer and elk with a 225 NPT at 2500+ out of a Whelen it doesn't blow the crap out of your eating and I suspect that is why more than a few guys like 200+ gr 30's the same reason Plus penetration at all angles. STA you need to come up with more plausible comparisons than that. Magnum Man

Suck bullets simply suck and I've long abandoned the 200 Hornady for deer even in the .358 Winchester. Penetration with that bullet is minimal. I've used 200 grain loadings in both cartridges (300WM & Whelen) on numerous animals in excess of a 1000 pounds and the only difference I can see (when using non suck bullets) is that the Whelen pounds me less, but the animals are pounded as hard or harder........

Quite right. The weight of the slugs alone means little. And while I wouldn't hesitate to tag my moose were there to be an unexpected opportunity with a 200 PSPCL in the 35, that isn't the bullet I'd choose for it if moose was what I was hunting specifically. And though the 200 XFB, TSX, or TTSX would all be more ideally suited in the 35 if one were collecting a large animal like a moose, it isn't a bullet one could count on to penetrate near as well as the same weight and type of bullet in the 300 Mag. The Whelen is much more of a niche rifle than is the 300 Win Mag, the latter being one of the top choices for all-around rifles one might pick for Alaska, perhaps a bit heavy in some other places in that role.

Don't get me wrong, I love the 35s, but you have to respect those cartridges that are effectively boring and often beyond realm of looney rifle hunters.

Wow JMR . . . I finally got around to looking at this "test".

Maybe I missed it . . . (I didn't read it line-by-line) but I could see no reference to the Whelen at all in this document? Please correct me if I am wrong.

Otherwise, I think you are making a gross generalization that cannot be supported by the "test".

The closest I could get to your conclusion was by noting that the 350RemMag didn't do too well (still better than the 300Mag, but the 358 did better). Then I saw that they tested both with 200gr factory ammo. WTF ??? I stopped reading at that point, and concluded the test was conducted by morons.

Probably shouldn't cite this one again

Same here...LOVE my whelens

I like the Whelen better for hunting in the rain because when I kill something with it I don't get as wet---and it usually is raining during hunting season here. The reason is the Whelen picks them up and shakes the rain off them, so I don't get as wet when I handle them.

I also like the way the Whelen blows chunks of lung out the other side of an animal, so they are easier to gut.

Only disadvantage of the Whelen is all that slipping and sliding on the huge blood trail---but it's never more than a few yards long. If you can find where the animal was standing when you shot it, you can just go there and you will be able to SEE where the animal went down. I just wish we Whelen owners got to shoot our Whelens more. One shot per animal is kind of a letdown, after waiting so long for the season each year.

Randy,
From my experience it does. Had both the Whelen and .300 in the Remington KS. The .300 was pretty sporty in a 7.6ish# rifle. (with scope) Of course the Whelen in a lighter package will get your attention when shooting the 250gr/up too.

The .300 went down the road, the Whelen stayed.

As an example of one each I killed a mulie at about 150 yds with a 300 WM. 180 Partition started at 3000 fps. Shot behind shoulder, deer did 50 yd death run and had a neat 1" hole thru the deer with little other damage. 35 Whelen similar shot and distance w/250 gr Speer SP started at an honest 2500 fps, the deer took 2 steps and down, completely destroyed the inside of the deer and did not exit. Upon gutting the animal, the guide said he had never seen so much damage to a deer.

Ive got to point out that when Remington offered those 7600 35 whelen rifles 4 guys in my elk hunt group purchased them within a year after seeing how well mine worked on the first trip I used it, (loaded with 250 speers)and how fast and effective it was,those that didn,t at the time all say they regret it and are looking, theres three basic rifle styles that at least three or four guys in my elk hunting camp have in common, those are, 7600 35 whelens, 358 win BLRs and a bunch of 45/70 marlin lever guns
all with a well proven track record in the area Ive hunted for decades, and yes Ill point out shots over 300 yards are virtually none existent in that area.

I normally try for double lung shots on deer and antelope. Elk are a different deal I try to place the shot to break them down on the spot. I have shot 2 bulls with the 180 NPT via the 300 Win Mag they went down on the spot.I've killed another bull and a cow with the 225 NPT in the Whelen . I didn't have near the meat loss with the 35 and 225 NPT's even with major bones broke. Moderate velocity I suspect is responsible for that. I like them both. As far as the 200 gr 30 cal, no experience but I'd bet my last dime it's even better than the 180 for everything. Magnum Man

have custom built in both 300 win mag and 35 whelen..both awesome.when i hunt where i might need to stretch it out a little i use the 300.when shots are max 300 yds and on tougher game on the menu i truly like carrying my shorter 22" barreled whelen.its all really just about what gives you confidence in different applications.just when in grizz country i like a larger diameter.

Taking a break some years back in big bear country in a place that used to belong to Russia. .300 Win Mag with 200 grain Nosler Partitions and really wishing it was a stainless .375.

I call BS on the statement regarding Hornady 200 grain bullets in the .35 Whelen, I took a whitetail @ 100 yds. with a raking shot that entered just ahead of the last two ribs. It lodged just under the hide on the offside shoulder, perfectly mushroomed and retaining 66% of original weight.

Haven't shot the dumb thing since I ran out of 208 Amax