Congratulations on a fine rifle and finding a great load for it!

Partition or Accubond? My SS Ruger Hawkeye seems to like most any round I've tried in it. I'll admit, however, that it's seen a bit less use since I got my SS Hawkeye in .338RCM.

Sounds like you're set for anything you'd like to hunt with the Whelen, which is whitetail and up for me 😁

 

Congratulations on a fine rifle and finding a great load for it!

Partition or Accubond? My SS Ruger Hawkeye seems to like most any round I've tried in it. I'll admit, however, that it's seen a bit less use since I got my SS Hawkeye in .338RCM.

Sounds like you're set for anything you'd like to hunt with the Whelen, which is whitetail and up for me 😁

The "magic" Nosler round uses the AccuBond spitzer. The difference between this round and everything else I tried is night and day. Heavier and slower than than the Barnes, Hornady, BuffBore and the rest, but maybe that's what been needed all along. So rewarding to get modern accuracy results from a ".30-06 wildcat" (apologies to Col. Whelen and Mr. Howe).
Thanks for the reply, and yeah I'm looking forward to taking an animal with this baby.

 

Enjoyed your post.......keep posting more on this interesting cartridge and rifle!

 

Just a recommendation, but you should start hand loading for it.
You’re going to burn a lot of money just buying factory ammo.

There are several premium bullets out there you should be able to get really good results, and equal factory ballistics, or better a little bit.

I’m going to buy an aftermarket ER Shaw barrel to switch out the .270 Win barrel on my Savage 111 Hunter XP.

The .35 Whelen is an outstanding cartridge.
It is extremely powerful, even at ranges like you’ve shot.

Congratulations on the rifle, and finding factory ammo that it loves!


Hawk

 

Oh, hand loading for this rifle is definitely a future project! But getting a factory load that allowed me to validate the rifle/scope was critical to my way of thinking. Otherwise I would be trying to solve the 15 variable hand loading equation without even knowing if my setup was true. Now I have a baseline and I can try to improve on that! For sure, I want my .35 Whelen to be shooting 250 grain bullets. But until I can work up an accurate load for that, I feel pretty good having a sub-MOA factory solution for western bear or elk.

I will be sure to report on my hand loading project at some later date, as long as you tell us about the results of your Shaw re-barrel project!

 

I second the motion on learning to handload if you already do not do it. I have three rifles chambered to the Whelen. A Ruger M77, Remington 700 Classic and someone's custom based on a Mauser action. The factory rifles have 1 in 16" twist barrels and the Mauser 1 in 14". When I got mine the only ammo available was Remington factory 200 and 250 gr. bullets and Federal had a premium load with a 225 gr. bullet. The 2oo gr. bullet ran about 1.5" at 100 yards and the 250 gr. bullets were about 1.25" so while not bad for most hunting I decided to handload my ammo. I picked up some Nosler Accubonds, partitions and the Barnes TSX, all bullets in the 225 gr. weight. Started with the Barnes and struck gold in the Mauser. Half inch groups at the max load and 2710 FPS at the muzzle. So far, six elk have landed in my freezer, all taken with one shot each. The Remington and Ruger are gathering dust at the back of the safe.

If you decide to reload your brass, and I highly recommend you do so, look at Rl15 as one of the best powders around for the Whelen. It worked so well for me with that TSX bullet that I've never looked at anything else. FWIW, there isn't anything in North or South America I wouldn't take with that load and frankly that includes most African game as well.
Paul B.

 

Thanks for the dope on the powder choice! I will be sure to try it...
My Shaw is also 1:14 twist, and the factory loads with the 200 gr and lighter bullets just didn't cut it (they were all 2800+ fps). The 225 gr Nosler lists at 2700 fps (I haven't chronographed anything yet), so maybe my barrel has a speed limit..... Finding a hand load that betters .63 MOA is going to be a helluva challenge, and I'm truly looking forward to it.

 

This is good information, Winklerrob, and I'll try the Noslers in my temperamental 700 Classic .35 Whalen. I am interested that yours is another accurate Shaw barrel and I have had good luck with two rebarrels they did for me a few years ago. One is a .243 that will do consistent 1/2 MOA on a Springfield action. The other is a .338 barrel on a '98 action that will do just over an inch. Please keep us posted on other tests

 

@winklerrob

You already have most of the guess work out of the way, since it loves 225 gr Accubonds.

Believe it or not, Winchester makes some really good brass. You can usually get ‘06 brass for cheap, and run it through the full length sizer, and you will have ready made 35 Whelen cases.

The powders that work well in the 35 Whelen are the same that work well in the .308, such as RL-15, as mentioned above. Varget, IMR 4064, and CFE 223 seem to work very well too.

A lot of good friends on another site have had excellent results with RL-15, and CFE223.


Hawk

 

"I feel pretty good having a sub-MOA factory solution for western bear or elk."

Well that's all well and good. But think about this. Even a cow elk is a pretty big animal. I got lucky when I got that TSX bullet to shoot .50" one the first try series of handloads. But let's say the best it would do is 1.25" at 100. The kill zone on a cow elk is something like 9 or 10". At the worst, that 1.25" load will still be a 3.75" group at 300 yards, more than good enough to hit even the small Mule Deer in the chest at 300 yards. Besides, that half inch group was off the bench. There ain't any benches out in the boonies. FWIW, my load gives the same trajectory as the 180 gr. load from a 30-06.
There's a You Tube video with Ron Spomer where he compares the 30-06 vs the .35 Whelen v3 the .375 H&H Mag. I think you can goole it up as he gives some interesting number comparisons.
Paul B.

 

Just out of curiosity what is the length and twist rate of your Shaw barrel?

 

24" Sporter profile, 1:14 twist. Chrome Moly steel, rather than stainless (to each his own). That was the twist that Shaw offered as standard for the caliber, and it is consistent with other similar rounds (like the 9.3 x 62). My brother and I originally went down the (false, I guess) path that this slow twist would do better with bullets on the lighter side of historical convention. Boy, were we off base! My barrel seems to be better suited to 225 grains at the minimum. And all of the feedback we get from 9.3 shooters suggests we explore heavier yet....

 

I found a dusty box of 100 Hornady 275 grain round nose 358 bullets at an estate sale still had the seal on the box. Going to work up a load for that to use on bear this fall.

 

Love the Savage action (which is what the Shaw is) and always wanted a 35 Whelen! I plan to eventually build one myself. Glad you found a load it likes!

 

It sure does make for a nice looking rifle! Shaw makes the process really rewarding as well. Near custom-rifle results for less than $1400.

 

" found a dusty box of 100 Hornady 275 grain round nose 358 bullets at an estate sale still had the seal on the box. Going to work up a load for that to use on bear this fall."

I have a few of those bullets. The first edition of the Hornady manual had data and also state the bullet is discontinued. Copyright date 1966.
At the time of printing the powders available were 3031,4064,4895,4320,BL-C2 H380 and 4350. Except for BL-C2 abd H380, I think the rest of the powders were IMR as made by DuPont. All except 4350 gave a max speed of 2300 FPS. The 4350 did 2200 FPS. Frankly, I'm too lazy to type out all the data but I can give specific data for one or two powders if you want.
Paul B.

 

That would be greatly appreciate. I have 4895 and 3031 if that’s not too much trouble.

 

For comparison, the .350 Rigby's published factory load is a 310gr bullet at 2150fps. John Taylor, of African fame, praised that cartridge for its effectiveness on really big and tough game. (If only he had experienced the power of the Whelen, we probably would not heard as much about several European cartridges of lesser power of his day IMO.) Thanks for the reloading data, Paul.

 

Yes the .350 Rigby did shoot a 310 gr. bullet at 2150 FPS but I was talking about the .350 Rigby Magnum which Rigby brought out because people wanted more velocity. The .350 magnum does 2600 FPS using a 225 gr. bullet, exactly what I surpass by 100 FPS in my .35 Whelem. (225 gr. TSX at 2710 FPS.)
In reality, Taylor did in a roundabout way did experience the Whelen and he used the Rigby magnum on game as tough as taking on a pair of lions. I have his book African Rifles and Cartridges. I just referred to it because of the 350 Rigby vs the .350 Rigby Magnum.
Intersting thing. If you read his thoughts on the .318 Westley-Richards, especially the ballistics, for all practical purposes, the .318 and the 338-08 are the same thing, the only difference being the shape of the case and a slight diameter difference in the bullet. What one will do, so will the other.
Ballistically, the .358 Win. is just a hot loaded 9x57 Mauser. Actually a super plus P if you will.
I find it fun to look up those old cartridges and compare them with some of the current popular models. Nothing new under the sun; just different packaging. 🤣
Paul B.

 

Long term update on this post;
Bison hunt outside Madrid NM just wrapped up. Stalked up to just under 100 yards from this brute and put him down. Was the Nosler polymer tipped bullet ideal for this situation? Probably not, but he sure was dead. Great hunt, and a great confidence builder with the Shaw Mk VII in .35 Whelen. First animal I have looked at in the crosshairs of this rifle, and
now the stock has an imaginary notch.

 

 

"A 250gr. handload is an imperative in my mind for brown bear and the big African (non-dangerous) game species."

If you don't mind me sticking my two cents worth in on this, I strongly suggest the 225 gr. Barnes TSX, The 225 gr. TTSX may be a it better with the polymer tip but I haven
y tried that one I can speak for the TSX though, the 225 gr. model which I've use on six elk. None of the bullets have been recovers That TSX bullet is one penetratom S.O.B. THe first elk I shot with thaqt bullet was at dead run about 75 yards out when I shot. That elk dropped so fast and hit the ground so hat it acually bounce. Bullet hit just before the crease of the hind leg and exited just in front of the right front leg. Two elk were nect shots, on accidental when a scope failed at the shot.I was aiming for a lungs shot. Layer checked the scope and for the reticle was loose. The other neck shot was just about O'dark 30 and the light was fading fast. Elk was running directly away from me. Bullet caught it at the base of the neck and almost tore the head clean off. The rest of the elk were normal chest and raking shots but each and every one only took one bullet to bring it to the skinning shed.

If I were headed for a great bear hunt like the Kodiak variety, I'd be taking that Whelen as the go to gun. Back up in case of a rifle problem would be a Ruger M77 Tang safety model chambered to the .375 Taylor, AKA .375 Chatfield-Taylor, the designer of the cartridge, or as my rifle is marked, the .375/338 Win. Magnum. The rifle was built to be a lightweight thumper for use on a dark timber elk hunt with the possibility of bumping into a Grizzly Bear. Properly hand loaded It will duplicate the .375 H&H in a lightweight handy rifle. I don't name rifles very often but this one is called, "The Hammer" as it hits hard on bother ends. At 7.5 pounds loaded with full magazine and one in the chamber, scope and sling it will set you back a bit. The good news it is very accurate and delivers top .375 H&H velocity. Sadly, that hunt never happened due to problems with the gentleman who was to be our guide. It shot the best with the 300 gr. Hornady but was a bit more pleasant with the 270 gr. Hornady bullet. Powder of choice was IMR 4350 but I liked the H4350 a little bit better. You could call it a short action .375 H&H.
Paul B.