35 whelen question, need help!

[plom]

I just got a brand new remington 7600 with synthetic stock in 35 whelen. I'm in love with it but I have some questions.
A good friend told me this caliber is usable at up to 150 yards. Most of the wildpigs I've shot were shot 30 to 80 yards. Is it necessary to mount a red point or scope for shoot at this disctances?
What is the limitations of this caliber? meaning what kind of game at wich distances.

[Jimro]

Wow, your friend really understated the capabilities of the 35 Whelen.

The 35 Whelen is good for EVERYTHING in North America, including the big bears. Even the light 200 grain soft point loading by Remington has more than a thousand foot pounds of energy remaining at 400 yards. Just sight in your rifle 3 inches high at 100 yards and you can aim dead on out past 250 for even a small 8 inch kill zone.

A red dot sight is merely a matter of choice if you want to go that route. They are very fast and nice in low light, but there are many other options you can choose from.

Jimro

[plom]

thanks for your help Jimro! Would you stay with the iron sights on a short bareled Remington 7600? I mostly hunt wild pigs under 100 yards.

[Jimro]

It depends on how you hunt, if it were me I'd go with a ghost ring rear sight with a fiber optic front blade for snap shooting. Using irons helps me get a nice cheekweld on a rifle when I snap it up to aim.

However if you have a "Monte Carlo" style stock with a built up cheek piece for use with an optic then a red dot would probably be quicker.

You can usually find a cheap Tasco red dot for around thirty bucks. I'd buy one to put on your rifle and dry test out how fast you can get on target with a red dot. If you like it, then buy a better red dot like an Aimpoint or Burris and throw the Tasco on a 22 for plinking.

Have someone film you getting on target with the irons and with the red dot, then compare which one is faster. Go with that solution.

Jimro

[roklok]

As far as sights, that pretty much boils down to personal preference. As for the cartridge, like was already said it is useful for any North American game animal out to ranges exceeding what most hunters should be shooting at game. The .35 Whelen is my favorite cartridge, and with my favorite load, a 250 grain Nosler partition at 2550 FPS, it is still carrying over 1900 foot pounds of energy@400 yards. I have killed lots of big game with mine, including grizzly, moose, and muskox, with no problems.

[SGHOTH]

I just got a brand new remington 7600 with synthetic stock in 35 whelen. I'm in love with it but I have some questions.
A good friend told me this caliber is usable at up to 150 yards

My guess is your friend doesn't know the difference between a 35 whelen and a 35 Remington. (You can now get a little more distance from a 35 Rem with the leverevelution ammo.) As already stated the 35 whelen is good for any North American large game.

[plom]

Thanks for all those great undos guys!

[csmsss]

Congratulations on a great choice of caliber! The .35 Whelen is a dreadfully underappreciated cartridge and deserves its place along its parent the .30-06. A 250 grain, .35 cal slug at just under 2,600 FPS delivers a hell of a whomping to anything unlucky enough to be in its path.

[davem]

Okay- this the the thread for me. I was thinking a 35 Whelan Improved but someone told me the imporved was a waste of time- I forgot why.
Why the 35 Whelan? I've heard that some belted magnums head space on the rim and can only be reloaded about 5 times before the case has to be discarded. I've also heard that some of the magnums at really high velocity burn out a barrel pretty quick. I have shot the 30-06 quite a bit and frankly- I don't think the recoil is even noticeable- of course I've done a lot of shotgun shooting with magnum turkey loads, waterfowl, etc.
In any event I am looking for something a little bit more than a 30-06. I think the 35 Whelan is an improvement for larger game like elk and moose. I need to know how accurate the round is and how suitable for reloading, etc.
I like fixed scopes and was thinking the Weaver 6X. I feel that most of my shooting will be 150 yards, maybe 200 yards. Under field conditions I think over 200 yards becomes a hard shot unless you have a rest to shoot from.
In any event- 35 Whelan shooters TELL ME MORE!

[bcarver]

I agree with sghoth. Your friend was describing the performance of a .35 remington perfectly. The .35 whelen is moose size gun. Think 30-06 necked up.

[stevelyn]

Okay- this the the thread for me. I was thinking a 35 Whelan Improved but someone told me the imporved was a waste of time- I forgot why.

It's only a waste of time if you AI it strictly to gain velocity. Any velocity gains will be imperceptible in the field. However, AI case life should border somewhere between forever and eternity.

[Jimro]

Ok, the 35 Whelen AI has ONE field advantage over the regular 35 Whelen, and that is more of a shoulder to stop the cartridge from jamming too far into the chamber and getting stuck with a Push Round Feed action (say a piece of sand got jammed in the extractor and prevented it from snapping over the rim on time).

Since Remington was the one to standardize the 35 Whelen, and it is popular in their pump action rifles, I am going to say that they picked one of the several "35 Whelen" dimensions which would work reliably in their rifles.

If you have a controlled round feed rifle, you don't have to worry about jamming a round too far into the chamber.

As far as velocity goes, there is no need. But the AI process will make your brass last a few more reloads.

Jimro