35 whelen long range shooting

[tankgijohn72]

Anyone shoot 35 whelen or other 35calibers out to a 1000 yds or so? Hadnt shot my 35 whelen past 300 yds until last weekend. Hit a 12" rock multiple times at 1050 and was very surprised at the accuracy. Load is 200 gr ttsx at 2800 fps.

 

[sable tireur]

tankgijohn72,

I haven't used a .35 Whelen in years but I thought you might enjoy this article about the medium .35 in Africa.

35 Whelen in Zimbabwe

Given your parameters though it's seems that you achieved some good luck with your shooting since the drop would calculate out to be 43 feet approximately with a 100 yard zero. The drop would be less based on a longer range zero of course. Then too take into account that you were probably into the trans-sonic region of velocity at the 1,050 yard range. This as we know can wreak havoc on accuracy due to the aberrant performance of the bullet. I would hang onto that rifle as long as possible if it were mine. Gotta love those TTSX bullets also!

The last .35 I used was the .350 Wells Express. This is the .378 Weatherby necked down to take .35 caliber bullets. You can also neck up the .338-378 Weatheby but you wind up with a shorter neck.

Using 225gr. Accubonds muzzle velocity was approximately 3,400 fps. Normally this rifle was packed for the longer range elk hunts in the high desert or alpine regions of AZ.

Regards.

 

[tankgijohn72]

Nice article. the 350 wells sounds like a monster of a round. You are correct that it was near/at transonic velocity. Was at ~1000ft elevation. Im looking to take this round elk hunting in the fall at 10000-13000ft elevation. Puts me at ~600 yds for reliable expansion according to barnes. Know of anyone that has done ballistic gel testing with hide and ribs at 1800fps? Been trying to find that info. May just have to try it myself. Do you know any place that has light recoil reloading data for the whelen?

 

[ATH]

It's not a 35 Whelen but I have a .358 WSM 1.8", one of the more potent cartridges created to deal with the pre-2016 Indiana laws for deer season. Velocity-wise it modestly out-performs the Whelen with the 225 AB.

I consider it a 500 yard deer round. Beyond that velocity drops outside the performance window of the bullet and wind drifts in all but ideal conditions get outside my comfort zone.

I've shot several deer in the 300s so far and it's been an absolute hammer.

With the change in laws I will likely carry my 243AI this year, but that .358 wildcat will serve as an elk mountain backpack rifle in the future.

Choices are individual, but I make this decision based on experience. Winds in the mountains of elk country are a given on most days and variable, and governed by terrain. Multiple wind shifts across the bullet trajectory can be expected. This past weekend I was shooting my 243AI at 843 yards, and with the 105gr AMAX it basically duplicates the ballistics of my 300WM 200AB load (with lower energy). Last year on this same setup with high wind in one direction I accurately predicted drift and put rounds on target within the kill zone of an elk. This time, I tried three calculations and couldn't hit a 4X4 foot target in 15-20mph wind. The next morning in 10mph wind I was within 6 inches of bullseye on the first shot. Adjusting, I shot a .5 MOA 5 shot group off a questionable shooting position. All I can figure is the wind was wrapping around a woods mid-range in an unexpected way and altering the left-right trajectory. My dad was safely down-range near the target under cover and could hear the rounds impacting either left or right of the target.

Moral of the story is, accept what level of confidence you have in the performance envelope of the bullet and your ability to judge the left-right placement. With LRFs distance is easy.

 

[tankgijohn72]

ATH,

Glad to hear there's another Hoosier on the site. I'm from Richmond and hunt in warren county. I live on the east coast now, so dont get as much trigger time.
I was suprised to hear they are opening it up for more rifles this year. Im very confident in my 300 win mag and have run it multiple times in the mountains past 800, and out to 1050 in more normal conditions. Trying to decide which rifle to carry. The whelen is 2 lbs less, but restricts the range a bit. The area I plan to go in CO this year is much more rugged and higher elevation than Ive previously hunted in Idaho. Barnes told me they expand well in their tests down to 1800 fps shooting into water. I really want to do some testing at lower speeds with the barnes to confirm or bust what the low end envelope is for expansion. Im interested in the terminal ballistics should the bullet not open up. I know everyone has their theories (as do I) about how a bullet will perform. But would like to see/or do some controlled testing. I think i willl have to take the 3.5 hr drive back into PA to do my testing. No place to shoot past 300 yds here.

 

[Frank in the Laurels]

Nothing wrong with the ole' cartridge, just like any centerfire the bullet will travel a 1000 yards with no problem ....however, there's a big difference between punching holes in paper or ringing steel than hunting and harvesting an animal. The big old usually short bullet with low B C's for the most part just don't retain velocity/energy needed to get it done..like any cartridge you can adjust the scope to make the hits on steel but what's left for harvesting an animal is questionable at best. Also, it's a little expensive shooting .35 cal bullets compared to .243 bullets/powder amounts and then recoil for bench rest fun, the recoil after 20 shots would bother most shooters. Under 300 yards I wouldn't be afraid to handle anything but brownies, that goes back to a 100 for them...nice ole' timer, glad to see she still has a following .

 

[tankgijohn72]

It is fun to shoot. It was my first rifle build. Chose it as something a little different but still hit hard. It shoots 200 gr ttsx and 250 partitions well. Havent gotten a chance to put it to an animal yet, but don't see any reason why it wont knock things over. Wish there was a comparable boat tail to the ttsx but will still expand at lower velocity. However I don't see there being much room for improvement.

 

[TOM H]

Anyone shoot 35 whelen or other 35calibers out to a 1000 yds or so? Hadnt shot my 35 whelen past 300 yds until last weekend. Hit a 12" rock multiple times at 1050 and was very surprised at the accuracy. Load is 200 gr ttsx at 2800 fps.

I've got 35 WhelenAI and I've taken it on couple elk hunts here Co and nothing LR. Been shooting 225gr AB and I've run ballistic tables out to 1000yds also I've shot steel and paper out to 500yds.

I'm not shooting factory chambered rifles so what I'm shooting is what I like and what yardage I want to shoot them at.

When I had it build I never consider it for LR as I had other builds that I used.

 

[Old Corps]

I love my .35 whelen but as a rule I get in about 800 yards closer

 

[tankgijohn72]

Agreed, i think 800 is about the max range of effectiveness when at higher elevations and 600-700 when you get closer to sea level.

 

[Old Corps]

I believe you misread my post...lol

 

[tankgijohn72]

I did misread it. I like letting the bullet close the distance!

 

[WildRose]

I've got 35 WhelenAI and I've taken it on couple elk hunts here Co and nothing LR. Been shooting 225gr AB and I've run ballistic tables out to 1000yds also I've shot steel and paper out to 500yds.

I'm not shooting factory chambered rifles so what I'm shooting is what I like and what yardage I want to shoot them at.

When I had it build I never consider it for LR as I had other builds that I used.

I'm quickly starting to feel the same way about the 375 Ruger. Even in my 20" Ruger Alaskan it's been very accuate and I've already had success with it out to just shy of 500yds with factory ammo.

 

[tankgijohn72]

Wildrose. What was the distance/animal/bullet/muzzle velocity/result etc of the shot you described? I keep hearing how much better medium bores are at putting down animals. but don have any experience larger than 30 cal. Thanks