Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles The 35 Whelen Is Dull & Boring

What Twist ?
I’d be inclined to use the traditional 16” on the shorter gun, and something more LR oriented on the 26” .
Or is the 22” Suppressor Oriented ?

Curious

i have not read every post on this site but i feel its a great cartridge the 35 Whelen , but now at age 69 with poor shoulders recoil is not fun anymore so i tend to shoot and reload much smaller cartridges for fun . for me shooting cartridges for accuracy if its bigger than a 6.5 Creedmoor i don`t enjoy it anymore . good luck,Pete53

My pet load in the .35 Whelen is the 225gr. Barnes TSX over a top load of RL15 for 2710 FPS. The rifle is a custom Mauser with 24" 1 in 14" twist barrel. The load has proven to be a great killer of elk but is too hot for my Remington M700 Classic and Ruger 77RS.

As to recoil isn't all that bad in the Mauser but has proven to be a bit snappy in the M700 and Ruger M77. Recoil pad on the m700 has turned hard s a rock and need to be replaced. The Ruger is on a Ramline stock as the factory stock was cracked and not repairable. It also has a somewhat oversized chamber. I use it for cast bullet loads. I picked up another sizing die for it as the headspacing is a bit more loose than the other two rifles.

I have to sort of agree with Pete53 in the recoil. I'm 84 and it ain't the fun it used to be. The Mauser is still tolerable for short sessions as it's about a pound heavier than the other two rifle with the M700 being the lightest of the three. On the fence on just what I may use if I can get an elk tag and have been playing with stiff loads in a 7x57 as a possible elk load. That .35 with the 225 gr. TSX just flat elk flat, DRT! I could also use a .270, 280 or 30-06 for elk. But first, I have to snag a tag.
PJ

You do realize you can shoot 0.357" pistol bullets @ 1,200 fps and circumvent that issue?

I'm fi'nda take the Whelen out for hogs in about a month, and will echo all the comments about easy load development. The pad on the 700 CDL works well, but slingin' 250 SP's is all I care for in the recoil department. This hunt will see me tossing 225 TSX's over Varget, and they're not all that much easier on my shoulder.

In its life with me, this rifle has obliterated a few hogs, and flattened a Flathead Valley Shiras Moose. I don't foresee myself needing more oomph for anything I'm planning to hunt.

FC

My 35 Whelen is a relatively svelte package – 225's is all I care to absorb on the backend.

I hear ya. The aforementioned 700 CDL goes 7#, 12 oz, all-up. It carries & points like a mountain rifle, but it sure rips 'n snorts when then trigger breaks.

FC

My 20” Whelen was a .270 that I bought used and sent to be rebored by JES. I put it into a B&C synthetic stock, replaced the firing pin and spring, added a Trigger Tech Primary and had the bolt spiral fluted and changed the bolt knob. It’s designed for sub 200 yard work and it’ll shoot 250-280gr cup & core or 225 monos.

My .338wm is setup for 200-225gr while I use the Whelen for the heavy’s. I’m sending two rifles to JES in the coming months one will become a 24” .338wm and the 1953 model 70 will become a 24” Whelen.

It’s been my experience that the “medium” bores are not finicky and typically shoot well.

I love the 35 Whelen. I own many.

So far, I’ve taken Elk (250 gr. NP) and Moose (280 gr. SAF) in America with my Ruger Hawkeye SS/syn. Whelen.

In Africa, I’ve used my Dakota Classic Deluxe 35 Whelen to take: Leopard, Sable, Sitatunga, Hartebeest, Lechwe, Bushbuck, Oribi, and Warthog, all with 250 gr. NPs.

I also use a 9.3x62 as much as the Whelen in Africa. Both have similar ballistics, and I love the way they both drop animals quickly. I took two Hippos, Kudu, Hyena and Warthog with my Ruger African 9.3x62 two years ago, using 300 gr. SAFs.

This year, I’m going to try my 9.3x66 (286 gr. NP & BBS) for the first time, mated with my 404 Jeffery (430 gr. NF) in the Luangwa Valley in Zambia. The ‘66 is an AHR custom, and the 404 is a Dakota Safari. The 404 will be for Buffalo, and the ‘66 for Cookson’s Wildebeest and the rest of any PG I decide to take.

Smaller calibers would work as well on the PG I hope to take, but one never knows what one will wander into in the Valley, so I prefer something a bit bigger when hunting even PG there, hence the BBS for the 9.3. Two years ago, I was hunting Croc on the river, when my PH and I walked into some Elephant. I don’t want a 30-06 in my hands in such cases. A 9.3 with solids is not the best medicine in these situations, and I wasn’t using my 404 on the Croc hunt, but I prefer the 9.3 over my 7mm. Bell wouldn’t have minded I don’t suppose, but I’m not Bell either!

My Ruger is just a tick over 7 1/2lbs in the High Tec. 220’s at 2800 is plenty for me.





I had a 700 CDL 35 Whelen for a lot of years. 250’s at 2600 were easier when I was young. Today, I use the 200 TTSX @ 2900 or the 220 Hammers at 2800.

I don’t feel left out leaving the 250’s behind anymore.

dull and boring until something gets hit by one....things happen pretty quick then

That's interesting – just a few short years ago in regards to recoil in an Alaska forum thread:

Fun thread fellas! I’m currently a 338-06 & 9.3x62 guy but who doesn’t need a gap filler like the Whelen. Love it.

well thanks for the reminder , maybe reread and try to understand i may still shoot some bigger cartridges in my rifles for hunting but i don`t make it a habit to bench shoot a whole lot with rifles with alot of recoil. does that make since that you can understand ? maybe some day you will man up and quit the B.S. ? you looked foolish or maybe a little boy shameful again . yes you do make it interesting making yourself look foolish in your posts. he haw good luck getting better,Pete53

I’m not the one that continually overdrives my headlights.
And I’m also not the only one that calls you on it.

Tis a damned shame you can’t even recall your own sausage talk. Pick a damned story and stick with it.

You want dull? 200 gr corelokts are soft on the shoulder and kill plenty well. Cheap too.....

If a guy actually “hunted”, it would be tough to top a whelen for a 1 gun killin rifle.



I could do lots of periods that would mean I’m real serious!!!…………………………………..

Pards be posting stuff.

Alwaysindoors be livin vicariously

You be suckin’ my cock if I ask . Your fat Washington ass don’t mean schidt here. Go back to trading slaps with Beaver. LMAO