35 Whelen project

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I picked up a rough 1903 Springfield last year for a project . The serial number was well within the safe range so off to my gunsmith it went. We discussed options and he just happened to have a nice 35 caliber barrel on hand. 35 Whelen it is. New barrel, bent the bolt for scope clearance and mounted scope based. I was able to wheel and deal for a new sporter stock. I believe it was a Fajen semi inletted for the 03 Springfield. I did all the wood fit and finish work. Glass bedding of the recoil lug and tang area. Just have to build some ammo and get her sighted in.
 

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SAWEEEEEEEET!!! The .35 Whelen is a Neat Cartridge :lewis:

Funny short story, I got hurt worse Recoil wise from a .35 BROWN Whelen than anything else i have ever Shot, it was back when i lived over in the Same Country as you, It was HOT out, and SULTRY/MUGGY (Go figure huh? :)) The Rifle was a Friend of mines, He was Having a Bad Range Day, He Couldn’t shoot a Group for Nothing? He handed the Rifle over to me, I rested over the Hood of His Truck off Sand Bags, I settled in and Squeezed a Shot off, It about RIPPED MY FACE OFF!! The light perspiration on My Cheek caused my Face to STICK to the High Gloss Finish of the Buttstock, Talk about a wish I hadn’t did that Moment, I haven’t again since! :roll:
 
That is a nice hunting rifle. That action brings back memories of a sporterized 06 I had.
 
Very nice work. I have killed moose and elk with my .35 Whelen. All were one shot kills...under 150-175 yards. None took more than 5 steps before collapsing.
 
I carried a custom 35 Whelen for 17 years when I guided and hunted in the NT, great caliber. Many giants fell to that rifle and the Nosler 250. None took more than one shot. Good luck with it.
 
Nice rebuild. Very cool stock. I also have a whelen. It’s a killer. Very underrated.
Many giants fell to that rifle and the Nosler 250. None took more than one shot. Good luck with it.

I took my biggest 6 x 6 elk with a 35 Whelen and The old style Barnes Copper 250 grain bullet. I have always thought the cartridge to be severely under rated. Enjoy.
 
I took my biggest 6 x 6 elk with a 35 Whelen and The old style Barnes Copper 250 grain bullet. I have always thought the cartridge to be severely under rated. Enjoy.

You don’t hear much about the .35 Whelen that’s for Sure.
 
I had good luck with H414 powder. 66 grains. 2706FPS with the 250 hot core. The book shows that is likely a very hot load. My gun showed no pressure problems and was accurate with it.
 
I was able to get to the range and test fire today. Went with Hodgdons load recommendations for H4895 using a 250 grn bullet 49 grns as a starting point. Book says 2300 ish FPS. I was not really interested in accuracy or load development...just want to see if she would go Bang! She did just that. All was good with the rifle. I used a spare Leupold VX3 3.5-10-40. I had not returned this scope back to mechanical zero before mounting. I learned that I didn't have enough elevation left to get to zero at 100 yards. I was about 4" low and had no more adjustments left. I have since returned the scope to zero. I will have to remount and see if that helps with bore sighting adjustments. If not ???? I did check to be sure the scope bases (Weaver) were in the correct order front and rear. I was pleased to see that the group I did fire showed promise for this new barrel. The fun continues!
 
I was able to get to the range and test fire today. Went with Hodgdons load recommendations for H4895 using a 250 grn bullet 49 grns as a starting point. Book says 2300 ish FPS. I was not really interested in accuracy or load development...just want to see if she would go Bang! She did just that. All was good with the rifle. I used a spare Leupold VX3 3.5-10-40. I had not returned this scope back to mechanical zero before mounting. I learned that I didn't have enough elevation left to get to zero at 100 yards. I was about 4" low and had no more adjustments left. I have since returned the scope to zero. I will have to remount and see if that helps with bore sighting adjustments. If not ???? I did check to be sure the scope bases (Weaver) were in the correct order front and rear. I was pleased to see that the group I did fire showed promise for this new barrel. The fun continues!

I would get a Set of these Burris Signature series Rings
Signature Rings™ | Burris Optics

And a Kit of these offsets.
https://www.burrisoptics.com/sites/...ew/downloads/xtrsignatureringsinstruction.pdf
 
I have those on my Rem 700 .300 Win Mag and ABSOLUTELY LOVE them! They are SOLID! And as you can see in the “Offset Kit“ You can Miss/Match Halves to get whatever you need? Ingenious, They FLAT OUT Work AWESOME!
 

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