OT - Any 35 Whelen OR Remington pump rifle experience?

[86er]

Does anyone have first or second hand knowledge of the 35 Whelen used on game? Recommended bullets? Real-world trajectory? How about Remington 7600 pump rifles? Accuracy? Durability? Recoil? Anyone with experience with the combo: 35 Whelen Remington 7600? Thanks

[iceman]

I have had a few pump rifles one in 308 and a carbine in 30-06. Both were good shooting rifles, not sub moa but an honest 1.5 moa. They are relatively good carry rifles (not as nice as a mod 94) and quick follow up shots if you are used to pump shotguns. The weak point of them in my opinion is the mag. If you happen to drop them and bend one of the lips in you could have feeding issues in that the bolt won't pick up the round and if you don't notice you are carrying an empty rifle.
I also had a 35 whelan in a model 700. Great shooting but recoil was noticeable. I had best groups in my rifle with 225 gr Sierra BTSP bullets. I never shot any game with this rifle (other than clipping the head off a ruffed grouse once) but all reports I have read are good.
I think a Remington pump in 35 whelan would be an excellent do anything big game rifle.

[Old Savage]

The AMU used the 7600 in the running boar competition in a 6mm I believe. The barrel is essentially free floated. Paco wrote very glowingly about the 35 Rem in his most recent book. I had one the far exceeded the velocities published with a 1 in 16" twist in a Douglas barrel. 250 at 2600 fps with 55 gr of 4064. 2700 with the 200 gr.

[1886]

Hi Joe, I have owned 2 Rem. pumps chambered in .35 Whelen. Great rifles. Free floated barrel, very strong action. Both were very accurate. Triggers can be a hit or miss. 870 trigger group I believe. The triggers on my rifles cleaned up nicely. I was able to easily load the Barnes TSX bullet to 2750FPS w/RL-15. Never harvested a head of game. I am certain you can see the possibilities of that load. Best Wishes, 1886.
I know where there is a decent example with a 22" barrel for about $450.00

[86er]

1886 - PM coming your way. Thanks for the responses so far!

[Hobie]

We are forever selling replacement magazines. I personally think people are careless but they do seem to lose a lot of 'em. THAT is the sum total of my experience.

[arjunky]

I always thought of it as the perfect NA Big game rifle and cartridge. Probably even most in your line of work also.
Velocities seem to vary quite a bit from gun articles of the past. Always wanted to get one, haven't yet.
Had a couple in 30-06 and never seem to keep them, I don't know why I let the last one go except for money.
Shot 2 in .270 that would put most bolt actions to shame as far as accuracy with Rem factory 130's.
With a well seasoned action, they are pretty smooth to operate also.

Byron

[Lobo]

Hi All,

I've got a bolt rifle in .358 Norma that I handload down to Whelen ballistics. Great little rifle....kills like Thor's Hammer.

Paco's article on the 35 Whelen

http://fiveshot.org/backissues/paco/35whelen.htm

[Gary Norsk]

A fellow at work wanted one at one time. I told him I would rather have a 7.7 jap rifle to hunt with, I was not kidding. A gunsmith showed me a barrel extension that was sprung from a older 270 rifle Remington pump maybe they are better now. Gary

[6pt-sika]

I owned the same Remington 700 Classic in 35 Whelen twice !

The first time I owned it I used factory Remington 200 grain Core Lokt ammo and knocked the fire out of 3 or 4 unsuspecting whitetail slicks !
Had a new Leupold Vari XIII 1.5-5x mounted on top and it did rather well !

The second time I had it I used 225 grain Sierra bullets and again I killed a couple whitetail slicks . Although the second time I had a Leupold Vari XII 3-9 on top . I cannot remmember if I used the Nosler 225 Ballistic Tip or not .

Gun sgot very well with factory and handloads . However that 700 was fairly light for a full size gun and you knew it when you set it off ! Even when I was hunting !

[6pt-sika]

Over the years I tried the Whelen as mentioned before , the 358 WIN in a Ruger 77R , the 350 REM MAG in the Remington 673 and the 338 Federal in an Encore Pro Hunter .

Of the four I liked the 338 Federal cartridge the best . But I liked the Encore rifle itself the least !

I wish Remington would chamber the Model 7 CDL in 338 Federal

Oh yeah I had a pair of Marlin 336ER's in 356 WIN !

I would rank the 356 WIN cartridge second in my like category right under the 338 Federal !

[buckeyeshooter]

I currently have a 7600 in 35 Whelen. I bought it at the Remington plant in the early 80's. I have shot 1 deer a 12 point buck with the rifle. I used the barnes 180 grain X bullet. I dropped the deer DRT, it then rolled down the hillside, very steep, into a creek and was a pain to get out.

[SFRanger7GP]

I have taken 48 animals with a Rem 700 in 35 whelen. This includes whitetail, mulies, elk and red stag. All but animal (red stag) dropped dead where they stood when hit. I had shot the hornady 250gr bullet over Re15 for years at around 2600fps. After experiencing the bullet failure on the stag (blew up on the shoulder at 240m), I switched to Nosler partitions. I am going to try the Barnes TSX now as I just loaded some up.

I love the 35 Whelen and it is one of my favorite all time cartridges. I have no experience with the Rem pump rifles. I always thought they were awkward and ugly but each to his own. Rem used a 1-16 twist on their barrels and that is what mine has. Everyone told me the rifle would not shoot 250gr bullets because of that. Mine shoots bullets up to 300 just fine and I have fired the rifle out to 400yds with every bullet I ever loaded. I get a kick out of people that parrot info they heard or read but never experienced for themselves.

[firefuzz]

My experience with pump rifle's, or shotguns for that matter, is that in the hands of a shooter that's experienced with them they are faster than anything but a semi-auto (maybe) and more accurate than anything but a bolt gun (again maybe). Here's the only 760 in my safe right now, I call it my Utility Rifle.



It's a older model, the newer ones and the 7600's don't have the single contact point on the barrel, they're completely free-floated, in .30-'06. I bought it cheap to piddle with one winter as a test bed for some things I wanted to try. You can't see the Lyman sight on the other side of the receiver but it shoots bottom of pop can at a hundred all day long and quarter sized groups with the inexpensive Bushnell scope mounted on it. I was going to cut the barrel shorter but it shoots too well the way it is to mess with. I'm looking for another older model to have rebored to believe it or not a .35 Whelan.

My only true experience with the Whelan came from a custom '03 Springfield I had built in that caliber. It killed everything I ever shot with it using 225gr Sierra BTSP's and the buddy that has it now, a divorce caused it and I to have to part ways, has killed two elk, two black bears, and I don't know how many deer and hogs with it. He won't sell it back to me. My short range plans include another .35 Whelan either in a 760 or a '95 Winchester. In my mind it's the perfect short-range (250 yards or closer) elk and bear cartridge

BTW, I've shot two different Remington 700's in .35 Whelan. Both of them seemed to have very heavy recoil compared to the '03.

Rob

[JFE]

Rem pumps in 35 Whelan are quite popular here, particularly as we arent allowed to use semis anymore. They are favoured by hound hunters who may have to make successive shots are moving game. A lot of hunters use factory Rem 250gr CL and these work very well on our large deer (Sambar). Pump gun accuracy is generally 1.5-2 MOA.

[jimincolo]

86er,

I've owned several Remington pump rifles over the years, probably a throwback to my early years in PA. Most have been 30-06's, & have been 1.5 inch shooters. Be careful how much scope you put on one, as they seem to get heavy & out of balance in a hurry. The triggers are not the best, but that never bothered me in the field.

They are at their very best on moving game. You simply shuck the forearm under recoil, & you are back on target for a followup shot. The one problem is the magazine, which is cheap & usually does not lock in positively. You think it's in place, run the action & get nothing. This has cost me at least one animal in the recent past.

I have never owned a 35 Whelen anything, but my first centerfire (54 years ago) was a 35 Remington, & I am a .358 Win. fan. I can attest to the effect of .35 caliber bullets on game. Simply put, they kill faster than comparable 30 caliber cartridges. You will normally get a complete pass through.

All guns are different, but from my experience, the best bullets seem to be: the 225 Sie. for accuracy, the 225 Partition for all around use, & the 250 Speer for big stuff.

Hope some of this helps, & good luck.

Jim

[tman]

Have a 30-06 pump with an old Redfield 3x9 TV. scope. A little on the heavy side, but the rig can out shoot me.

[Bigahh]

A good friend has a 7600 in .270, and he is deadly with it on Deer! It shoots 1.5" with cheaper factory fodder. His only complaint is the forearm rattle. It is there, but he is a tree stand sitter, and the rattle is not there while sitting still. He has taken many all out running bucks with it in the heavy timber. He swears by the quick follow up shots.

[marlin shooter]

I have a 7600 in .35 Whelen. I have never shot any game with it (not the gun's fault ) But it is accurate, dependable, and pretty fast handling. It will also get your attention when shooting it. It's pretty lively with 250 grn bullets (hornady rn @2300 FPS is very accurate) I don't mind the trigger though it is mushy. A 3 shot group seems to alway's have 2 touching and another about 1 inch away. For loading and unloading a lot I like the magazine's. I got to think it would make you a pretty good rifle.
Karl

[Rifleman336]

Sadly the .35 Whelen suffers the same fate as the .35 Remington, and .358 Winchester-------- No love, and little respect that are very good cartridges. A gun writer joked when taking about the .30-06 that "The .30-06 is the most over developed cartridge in the world. And he's right. I can't think of another cartridge that has more bullets, factory loads, handloads ect.

But I can tell you the most under developed ones are the .35 family. Sad to say with friends like these, who needs enemies??!! The gun makers and bullet / Brass makers kinda tied their own hands with a lack luster selection of factory ammo or components that turned of the public, resulting in slow to nonexistent sales, no wonder the cartridges "to good to die" did.

Rifleman 336