35 Whelen Project rifle

[kiwi98j]

Just completed assembly of my winter project for a one-off elk hunt this fall.  The barrel is a A&B blued 24” 1-12 magnum contour chambered in 35 Whelen, Savage e-series action, Sharp Shooters Supply comp trigger, bolt handle and recoil lug.  I set it up in a Savage laminate varmint stock until I find the stock I want.  IÂ’m leaning toward a traditional walnut classic sporter style, either an aftermarket or a Savage take-off if I can find one with good wood. IÂ’ll refinish the stock, bed and pillar the action when I find the right one.  I will rework and re-install the stock trigger after load development.  The final scope will be a Burris 4x14.5 bplex, Burris dovetail base & Signature rings.  

I mounted the 24x target scope and spent the past weekends breaking in the barrel and starting load development.  I used 2 boxes of Rem. 200 gr. factory loads, then 2 sets of 5 each min and midpoint charge handloads of R-19 over 250 gr. GameKings and Partitions.  Now that I have a supply of formed cases, the fun begins and I can start working on load development using the Sierras and Noslers over R-19, IMR-7828 and H-4831.  

I was pleasantly surprised with the A&B barrel.  After I settled down and got the scope zero set, I was able to print groups at less than 1.75” and a bit tighter with the midpoint handloads.  IÂ’ve found the “sweet spot” for 30-06 and variants to be near 90% of case capacity so I expect this rifle to be 1.5” or better shooter in final form and adequate for my intended use.  Copper fouling is as expected but should lesson as the bore smoothes out, hopefully! Recoil was significant, tolerable for a hunting rifle but I reached my pain threshold at the end of the afternoon.

I will have a bit over $650 in this rifle including the action, barrel, estimate for the stock, trigger, misc. parts and caliber specific dies, jags, cleaning rod etc.  This has been an enjoyable and pleasant project and will be a nice addition to my battery of Savage project rifles -.243 Win, 25-06 Rem, .308 Win.   My next project will be a short action varmint rig, either a 204 or 22-250 or similar.

Here's a picture of the rifle in the cleaning cradle in it's present form.  Not sure if I will keep it chambered in 35Whelen after the Elk hunt. It will  depend if I get a ticket for another but I'm considering changing to a .260 variant.

I build these up from take-off parts and aftermarket barrels. All the work is my own, good or bad.  


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[Mike in Ct]

U did a really fine job ...looks nice but that stock is heavy to hunt with..I like the burris scope too..I use one on my old 270 win. Sako hunter..I love both of those rifles & they shoot well under an inch at 100 with good handloads..The A & B barrel is a great bargain ..I dont recall the rate of twist but it loves 250gr hornady bullets & IMR 4064 powder ...I started 3 grains under the max loads & worked up 3 tenths of a grain at a time..seating the bullet about 3/4 of a turn down from the lands on my RCBS dies...somewhere just over 55 grs in that barrel was the sweet spot My buddy had 3 touching at one hundred yds..That load kicks some but not really all that bad..no pressure signs...I used the old plastic stock but put some bedding in front of the barrel / lug area..I had to open up the barrel channel to get that magnum contour A & B barrel to fit in that stock..So I guess u can say it is fully bedded...the barrel rests all the way out on the filmsy plastic stock....Can't fault success...We hope to get a moose tag up in new hampshire one of these years..I'm sure that will be more than enough for a moose under 200 yds..If u want a lighter wood stock to mess around with let me know..I have a old colt long action I'm sure u could make work..very pretty wood & trims..no floor plate..but a workable solution can be found...mike in ct

[BloomGrad]

Hello kiwi98j

Just my 2 cents on your powder preferences of R-19, 7828 and 4831.  I think you might find your choices of powder a little slow for the 35 Whelen.  Unless you are intending really full house on 250 gr stuff and over.

Mine did much better with R-15, 4895 (either IMR or H), and IMR4350.  The first two for all around and the 4350 for heavy 250+ pills.  They all were more accurate than the slow stuff of the 4831 and 7828.  Must say have not tried the R19 due to the poor 4831.  I just jumped slower in my choices after trying the slower ones.   

Notice as you go up in bore size in relation to case size, the powders that do a little better are in the mid range burn rates.  I noticed this in reading the sections on powderselection in the manuals.  IMR 7828 does well in my 7mm Rem Mag. but leaves a very dirty barrel in my 35 Whelen.  Powder too slow.

Just my 2 cents

[Stoneybroke]

What Bloomgrad said about R15.  I use 57-60 grains with 225-250 bullets.  (usual precautions apply!)  My rifle is a 700 CDL fuly bedded into a TI stock, currently wearing Conetrol mounts and VXIII 2.5x8.  I do my range work with a lead sled since the rifle "full-up" is less than 8lbs.My handloads (partitions) shoot 1.2"1.5", but factory Federal 225 Trophy Bonded Bear Claws will shoot under 1" all day.  Go figure!  I'm going to try working up so deer loads with the 225 Sierra or 220 speer.