35 whelen long range shooting

[WildRose]

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

I'd have to look at my notes from the African trip to remember for sure but it was quite the hammer on two zebra, a very large old Sabel and an Nyala I'll probably never better if I live long enough to make several dozen trips back. but the Zebra shots were all at better than 300 rested off of sticks truck or tree.

The mare went down hard enough to bounce on the first shot but she didn't make it half way up off her knees before I hit her with an unnecessary insurance round that was within 2" of the first shot, both on the shoulder triangle.

The stud was just a huge animal well over 900lbs. The first shot on him was about 325 standing right in the middle of a herd of 5 giraffes I absolutely couldn't afford to take a chance on wounding so I set up for a shot if/when he turned and they had cleared. when they moved out he spun and the round hit him about th last rib on the left side and buried up in the right hip. He ran 250/300yds before giving me a second shot whigh was through the shoulder triangle and put him down hard. If I had waited I think he'd have been done with the first shot within another 50 yds max.

Was shooting Hornady factory 270gr inerlock bullets that day.

Same everything on the 490yds shots on steel shooting out of the truck window/seat with temps in the 90's and no better than a 10mph full value crosswind.

The Nyala was dead before he even hit the ground with a perfect broadside shot through the shoulders and spine and that was completely free had off my knees elbown rested on thigh/knee at around 250, Sable same difference but straight on chest shot with him slightly uphill. Shot hit perfect right at the top of the sternum and flipped him over backwards. He too was obviously stone dead before he hit the ground, never so much as twitching his legs.

There's nothng magical about the gun or caliber but it shoots well and really carries quite the punch.

I'm going to try some Peregrine 270Gr VRG 4's and maybe the Hornady ELD-X if/when they come out with their .375's.

What I'm really impressed with though is how manageable the recoil is. I was a bit leery the first three shots down range with the .300gr's and I kept wondering when it was going to start to kick enough for me to not enjoy shooting it the first day and I just never really got there even though I ran a couple of boxes through it before the day was done and that probably took less than two hours.

Once I added the brake it just got to be silly/stupid fun to shoot.

 

[35 Whelen]

I have shoot the 35 Whelen out to 400 yrds. and would go to 500 but I feel that is the limit an only on a very go shoot. I do not like to take chances or risky shoots at animals. Target shooting I may play a little more.

 

[Aoudad shooter1975]

Not the 35 but have used the 9.3x62 for years, used it on game as far as a red hartebeest at 377...always stuck with the 286s but some of the more aerodynamic 250s should be key. Here are a few from the past...and my old Sauer 200:
Tessebee

 

[RevJim]

I used the 35 Whelen Ackley Improved with the Barnes 250X (2550fps) in '96 on Zebra/Red Hartebeest/kudu/Blue Wildbeest and again 2002 with the 200X (2970fps, the one with secant ogive) for my longest shot in South Africa. Black wildebeest at 347yds and then a mare zebra at 250yds. While I used the 300WM/338WM/340W/.375 H&H on a couple more hunts, I couldn't see any advantage over my old Whelen for 99% of the shots I took. Again, I only used Barnes or Failsafes, so penetration was no issue, but they had nice shapes too. The 300WM, 180xbt/338, 200X/340W, 210xbt was easier to hit gemsbuk & springbuk at 375yds in Namibia, but we could have gotten much closer; I was hunting with some "biltong hunters" who were used to roaring around the Kalahari in their little Toyota p/us and running the game off. They would eventually get winded and stop, but way out there. Hey..."when in rome". It would have been so easy to just "ease up on them over the big dunes because they were in the shade just on the other side of them...but No! Hardhead Afrikaners, ha.