[T.A.P.]

Do any of you shoot reduced loads in the 35 Whelen? If yes,could you tell me of some of your results? Many thanks in advance.

 

[density1]

I have two low power loads for my 35 Whelen. The lowest load uses a cast 158gr pistol bullet going at 1200fps using "Trail Boss". At 50 yards I have to aim a little high but accuracy is good. The second uses Alliant 2400 and a jacketed 158gr hollow point pistol bullet. At less than 100 yards it shoots well. Should make a good brush load for deer.

 

[outdoorsman72]

I have two low power loads for my 35 Whelen. The lowest load uses a cast 158gr pistol bullet going at 1200fps using "Trail Boss". At 50 yards I have to aim a little high but accuracy is good. The second uses Alliant 2400 and a jacketed 158gr hollow point pistol bullet. At less than 100 yards it shoots well. Should make a good brush load for deer.

Why would anybody down load a big game rifle to less than 357 magnum pistol ballistics? You mention that it should be a good brush load for deer. I would suggest that you leave the cork gun at home. I don't believe that 500 pounds of muzzle energy is enough to make a clean kill on a deer. Years ago, I watched my brother shoot a doe 3 times within 30 yards from a 357 mag, and he still had to slit its throat with a knife to finish it off.

Here is a low power load straight from hodgdon powders website:

180 GR. SPR FP IMR IMR 4064 .358" 3.040" 56.0 2544 39,700 CUP

 

[density1]

Here in Georgia, the deer are not all the big compaired to the central part of the country. A 35 Whelen at full bore power would do much meat damage to most deer here. T.A.P. asked for some reduced loads. I gave him my two.

Now people here have taken deer with .357's. As for your brother, maybe he is a bad shot.

 

[broom_jm]

OD72,

You might need to be a little less critical and read the OP a little more carefully. He didn't say he was going to hunt with reduced loads, nor did he state what bullet weight or velocity he had in mind. If he reduced his loads down to a 200gr bullet at 2100fps, he'd have a 35 Remington...which is widely recognized as one of the finest woods cartridges around, for whitetails.

Also, the owner of this board casts some 160gr bullets in the 35 caliber that will penetrate like crazy, even at 357 Magnum velocity. He's used them to harvest cow elk. Honestly, if you put a 35 caliber hole through a deer, in the right spot it's game over, regardless of how fast the bullet was going when it got there.

 

[Guidedfishing]

hey a reduced load with .357 caliber bullets can be a hoot. But I would caution you to take Broom's advice and get a cast bullet. I have found a full charge hunting load with a 200 - 250 grain bullets not to be explosive so much as penetrating. I can tell you a jacketed pistol bullet driven at even modest velocity out of the 35 can be explosive. Fun to shoot, easy on your shoulder but jacketed hollow points may make a mess on game. Target shooting great fun.

good luck
GF

 

[density1]

Good points about the hollow point bullets. I have considered cast bullets for the 2400 load. It goes about 1546 fps. The upper end of a .357 mag load. Problems are:
1. Georgia law requires an "expanding" bullet for hunting. Not sure a cast bullet would meet the requirements of "expanding". Thinking about using Hornady's XTP bullets.
2. Leading up the barrel is another worry. At 1500 fps, might be a possibilty.

My loads really were for reloading exercises. My Trail Boss load is a good cheap plinker. Could be used for squirrel or rabbit I guess. The second one I will test out on coyote or some such vermin before deer hunting. I do have better guns to use on deer.

 

[TMan]

Do any of you shoot reduced loads in the 35 Whelen? If yes,could you tell me of some of your results? Many thanks in advance.

Actually, reduced loads in the Whelen make a lot of sense, and corkgun comments aside, can substantially reduce the cost of practice with your Whelen.

Try the Beartooth 210gr RNGC's over 15-19gr of Trail Boss. The top end of that range is very close to .35 Remington power, and should be great for whitetails in wooded areas. The 180gr Hornady SP's are also very good shooters over Trail Boss, and are one of the most accurate loads I've ever fired in either of my Whelen's. Recoil with the TB loads is less than my .30-30. 5744 also works real well.

My favorite semi-reduced load for my Whelen's is the 220gr Speer FP over a moderate charge of IMR-4895 for 2200fps. It's an instant "buckstopper" without too much destruction. The same bullet over a top end load of R12 eliminates the need for a knife, and even makes the drag lighter, but it's non-ideal if you like the meat at both ends of the animal.

But reduced loads make a lot of sense for the Whelen. And they give the round more flexability.

 

[copen]

Go to the Hodgdon load data. You can find reduced load data,youth loads.
Or, use 60% of the max. load of H4895 of your bullet/powder choice that's listed.
Use H4895 loads only.

 

[Guidedfishing]

TMan,

I agree that 220 speer FN out of the Whelen is pure whitetail poison. I use them over a full load or RL15, they are by no means reduced loads however.

slowed down considerable it would still be deadly.

good luck
GF

 

[TMan]

TMan,

I agree that 220 speer FN out of the Whelen is pure whitetail poison. I use them over a full load or RL15, they are by no means reduced loads however.

slowed down considerable it would still be deadly.

good luck
GF

GF, I made the mistake of taking an onside, quartering to shot, at a decent 8 pointer at about 35yds down a steep bank. The exit looked like a groundhog den. With 58gr of R12 I was cranking out 2700fps+, and that may have been a bit much for that bullet. Using it in a .35Rem at 1900fps it still opens reliably and works like a champ.

For high velocity loads in the Whelen, the 225gr Sierra is a terrific deer bullet, and it also works well for elk. Out to 300yds, it's every bit as flat shooting as an '06/180gr SP.

 

[firebird]

A 158 Gr bullet at around 2000 FPS from a Whelen gives a light recoil and is plenty of power to drop deer out to 150 yards. It would be good bush gun. Save the full power loads for bigger game that needs it. A 160 Grain bullet from a Winchester 3030 doesn't go much faster and is used on deer out to 200 yards often. Light loads add some cost saving and fun versatility to normally hard kicking big boom rifles.

 

[black mamba]

I have a Whelen AI custom bolt rifle, and I shoot a reduced load of 32 gr of Accurate 5744 under a 200 gr cast GC bullet for right at 2100 fps. Recoil is noticeably less than a 180 gr 30-06, and accuracy is good out to 200 yds.

 

[Legolas]

T Man and Black Mamba have made reference to gas checked cast bullets at around 2100 FPS. I am curious about the cleaning and maintainence that would be necessary with gas checked cast lead bullets in rifles, as used across the velocity range commonly listed in the Lyman manual. It seems reduced recoil, barrel wear and cost might be beneficial in many calibers for extensive training at ranges up to 200 yds, if cleaning lead from rifle barrels was not too serious a problem. Would any experienced cast bullet rifle shooters use unchecked bullets, as some are listed in the Lyman manual?

 

[riley]

I've owned rifles in .357, .35Rem, .356Win, and .358Win that have killed deer; what's great about the .35 Whelen, it can duplicate all those other cartridges with accuracy. I find a 200Core-Lokt (pointed or round) "loafing" along about 2400fps a nice "mid-range" load for medium game. I particularly like it in a "pump" where the less recoil makes repeat shots quickly "repeatable".

 

[black mamba]

Legolas, gas checked bullets allow you to shoot higher velocity without leading the bore significantly, but they also have another benefit over plain based bullets. With the gas check at the base, you can shoot softer lead bullets without leading, which are better for hunting than super hard cast bullets which act like solids. Match the hardness of your bullets to the toughness of the game being hunted.

 

[TMan]

Do any of you shoot reduced loads in the 35 Whelen? If yes,could you tell me of some of your results? Many thanks in advance.

Actually, lots of them. I use a supply of 180gr SP Midway blems, and 23gr of Trail Boss. The load works well in my 7600 and my CDL out to 75yds, recoil is about like a .243. Noise is much lower than full on stuff.

 

[broom_jm]

Almost exactly 7 years between posts...what a great forum!

 

[TMan]

Almost exactly 7 years between posts...what a great forum!

Well, considering half of us can't remember what we wrote yesterday