# 35 Whelen



## Rajun Cajun (Sep 5, 2010)

I have been debating over what gun I would buy in the 35 Whelen caliber (CVA or TC)......After much research I decided to buy a TC Encore frame (Don't like the swing hammer on the Pro Hunter) and have a custom gun built.......I will be putting a 1 inch bull barrel with muzzle brake and my question for you guys is what do you think the ideal barrel length would be (including the brake) as for accuracy and velocity?.......I will be shooting 200-225 gr. Barnes Tipped TSX bullets.......All comments welcome, thanks!

RC


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## southdakbearfan (Oct 11, 2004)

Well, lot's to ponder here. With a bull barrel pushing around 25 inches you will push close to 10lbs which should give you aroun 25 ft lbs of recoil with a 225 going 2600 fps, which would put you in the 300 win mag range in a 8 to 8.5 lb rifle shooting 150 to 180s, give or take.

If you are intent on a muzzle break, you may want to consider a heavy sporter or sporter barrel instead of a bull barrel. With a break and good recoil pad you can probably drop the recoil down to well below anything considered abusive and yet save your back a bit of carry weight.

25-27" seems to be a standard for most single shots and puts the overall length of the rifle at or shorter than most 22" barreled bolt actions.

A bull barrel with a muzzle break is probably going to be a pussycat to shoot, but loud, so it is all in how much weight you want to lug around.

I always thought the 35 whelen was a very under appreciated round.

Anyway, thats my 2 cents. Personally, I would choose a 26" heavy sporter without the break, but I am fairly recoil insensitive and still don't mind quite a bit of weight in my rifles. Plus the new recoil pads, like the limbsaver, are so much better than the old ones. I couldn't believe the difference it made to my mod 70 300 win mag. I could shoot it quite a bit before it began to bother me, probably 20-30 rounds of 180 gr full power reloads, but now it doesn't even bother me at all.


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## Rajun Cajun (Sep 5, 2010)

southdakbearfan said:


> Well, lot's to ponder here. With a bull barrel pushing around 25 inches you will push close to 10lbs which should give you aroun 25 ft lbs of recoil with a 225 going 2600 fps, which would put you in the 300 win mag range in a 8 to 8.5 lb rifle shooting 150 to 180s, give or take.
> 
> If you are intent on a muzzle break, you may want to consider a heavy sporter or sporter barrel instead of a bull barrel. With a break and good recoil pad you can probably drop the recoil down to well below anything considered abusive and yet save your back a bit of carry weight.
> 
> ...


Thanks for the informative reply, I appreciate it.....The reason I was going with the bull barrel is because I was always under the impression that the stiffer the barrel the better for accuracy......Weight isn't a big issue with me with this gun as the majority of the places I will hunt with it are not far walks to tree/ladder stands or box blinds so once there it will be sitting on my lap......I am planning on starting to reload instead of buying factory ammo so I figure I will be spending a considerable amount of time at the range experimenting with loads and such so thats why I was going to put a muzzle brake on it.......I have a lead sled that I normally shoot my rifles in to site in but this particular rifle will have a VERY nice high grade wood stock and I was advised not to shoot it out of the sled so thats where the muzzle brake would come in.......I must admit I am not looking forward to how loud those bastards are but they are comfortable to shoot with when shooting a lot on the range.......I was thinking about going with a 26 inch barrel (including brake).......How does that length sound?


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## southdakbearfan (Oct 11, 2004)

I would think 26" would be fine, I actually prefer a 26" barrel in most of my rifles. In the single shot I would think the length wouldn't be too much of an issue as stated above and typically the longer the barrel the better the velocity.

In theory I have also heard the stiffer the barrel the more accurate, but having custom barrels of sporter, heavy sporter and bull weight, you couldn't prove it by me as they are all very accurate, except that the bull takes longer to heat up. All are either free floated or glassed. All things the same, quality optics, good shooting technique and quality ammo seem to be the deciding factors in accuracy in my custom rigs. Also, read up on the barnes bullets and loading techniques. They can be very finicky to their distance from the lands, but very accurate also, and as with any rifle they can be tempermental as to what type of bullet they shoot best.


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## Rajun Cajun (Sep 5, 2010)

southdakbearfan said:


> I would think 26" would be fine, I actually prefer a 26" barrel in most of my rifles. In the single shot I would think the length wouldn't be too much of an issue as stated above and typically the longer the barrel the better the velocity.
> 
> In theory I have also heard the stiffer the barrel the more accurate, but having custom barrels of sporter, heavy sporter and bull weight, you couldn't prove it by me as they are all very accurate, except that the bull takes longer to heat up. All are either free floated or glassed. All things the same, quality optics, good shooting technique and quality ammo seem to be the deciding factors in accuracy in my custom rigs. Also, read up on the barnes bullets and loading techniques. They can be very finicky to their distance from the lands, but very accurate also, and as with any rifle they can be tempermental as to what type of bullet they shoot best.


This rig will have a hanger bar system in the forearm to float it......Not sure what scope I will put on it yet but I have a Bushnell Elite 4200 series on my Rem 700 that I really like, good glass for the money and a tough scope from what I've seen so I might go that route again, not sure though.......As for ammo, I like what I've seen out of the Barnes stuff so far with other rifles I've had and from friends that I talk to that shoot the TSX.......Not only in accuracy but they seem to be devestating on game (deer and hogs anyway, never shot elk etc. with them).......Like you mentioned though, each rifle likes certain ammo and this rig might not like them but I will give them a try to find out either way.......Another ammo that my Rem 700 REALLY likes is Rem Ultra Premium Core Lokt, shoots them great but doesn't like the Hornady Superformance stuff (factory stuff, never reloaded for it).......Hopefully reloading the Barnes stuff will give me good accuracy as I like what they do on game.......Thanks again for the response.........It will be several months before the rifle is done but I will post some pics of it once its finished.


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## Whelen35 (Mar 9, 2004)

I shoot a 35 Whelen improved. If you are going with a single shot I would pick a 24 inch tube. You are already a bit shorter with the action, and most powders will be done in a 24 inch barrle. If this is going to be hunted with, a heavy sportster diameter would be fine. With the improved chambering I get very close to the 338 win mag. You can also load down to very low speeds for plinking and or small game hunting. A very fun chambering to explore.


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