35 Whelen on Moose

[The Lost Yooper]

Greetings,

I'm wondering if anyone one here has used the 35 Whelen on moose? Does anyone think it will poke a hole through the shoulders of a bull moose beyond 250 yards?

Thanks,

Mike

 

[bcat]

SHOT PLACEMENT --I gues anything is possible!! I shot my moose (shirus) 4 times at less than 30 yards with a 338 and he just stood there. He finally piled up, but it took a couple minutes. he never even flinched or bated an eye. The first one shoulda done it, and probably would have, but i kept shooting. Good luck on it, anything is possible. bcat

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If you aint the lead dog the scenery never changes

 

[AlleninAlaska]

Hey Yooper, the 35 Whelen with a good quality bullet in the 225-250 grain weight will poke a hole through a moose at 250 yards. I personnally prefer the lung shot.

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Allen

 

[bcat]

Good to see ya over here Allen in Alaska!!!! I hear alot of good things about 35 whelens but have never had the oportunity to shoot one. Share some pictures with us if ya will Allen! We all love to see Pictures from the land of Milk and Honey! bcat

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If you aint the lead dog the scenery never changes

 

[The Lost Yooper]

Thanks guys for sharing your insights. I, too, would prefer the behind the shoulder lung shot, but if circumstances were such that you needed to try and drop the moose immediately, I would opt fo the double shoulder shot. Such an instance may be an evening hunt where a big moose presents a 250 yard shot and good likelihood he'll take off for a swim if not dropped immediately. I"ve talked to some guys who have poked a hole through both shoulder with 338WM (resulting in an instant drop_, but I'm looking at other rouds like the 35 Whelen and the 300 Mags.

Thanks a lot,

Mike

 

[Ray Alaska]

Mike: I killed a moose last year with one shot through the lungs with my .338 Magnum. The moose was 100 yards out, and after the first shot I didn't even load the chamber again, because by then the moose was dropping on its chest. It took maybe two second for it to drop. I shot it with a 230-grain FS. I have also done the same thing by hitting the moose to break the shoulder (at 200 yards). The results have been the same. The bullet also clipped the top of the heart when I shot that one on the shoulder.

What I have found out so far is that if the moose is not aware of my presence when I fire my rifle, it usually drops pretty fast. However, if I spook the moose before I fire my rifle it may walk a few yards. I have been extremely lucky, because only one moose (the largest one I have killed) I spooked before I shot it, and even so it only walked about 25 yards. I could be wrong about all this, of course, but so far that is what has happened to me.

The .338 sure packs a good punch, and the more I use it on game the happier I am with it.

 

[AlleninAlaska]

Hey Bcat, I actually tried to post some pictures but it didn't work for me. Must be I'm too puter illiterate. HeHeHe

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Allen

 

[The Lost Yooper]

Ray In Alaska,

Nice to talk with ya again. You are one of a small handful that I have talked to that have taken a shoulder shot at a moose at longer ranges. Judging from your experiences, and a few others, with the 338WM, it seems to me the 35 Whelen would also be able to make the shot as well. My notes show the 35 Whelen only lags behind the 338WM by about 100fps.

Thanks again.

 

[Bill Hefner]

Lost Yopper...I've killed 5 moose with my H&H .375 magnum with 300 grain Noslers. It may be considered too much gun by some, but it's a matter of personal preference.

Moose #1 took 2 rounds. The first was dead on in the upper chest at about 35 yards and then another behind the left shoulder while he was quartering away on a dead run about 20 yards away. He piled up in the bush before I could chamber a 3rd round. Later when we skinned him out we found that the first round took out his right lung and the 2nd shot took out his left lung.

Moose #2 was shot from 134 yards. The first round was a double luns shot and then when she spun around the 2nd shot was another double lung shot. She ran about 125 yards before she collapsed 2 feet away from the edge of a pond.

Moose #3 was from about 160 yards and ducked behind a small clump of trees. When she emerged on the other side she took another double lung shot and dropped on the spot.

Other guys who hunted with me used .270s with 140-150 Noslers and only had to shoot their moose once! So go figure!

 

[The Lost Yooper]

Bill,

The same darn thing happens on whitetails! Sometimes they drop, and sometimes they don't. There doesn't seem to be a good explanation why -- just theories.

Thanks for the stories,

Mike

 

[Ray Alaska]

Mike: You are correct about the .35 Whelen and its use for moose. It should be an outstanding moose and bear gun, much like the .338-06. I would be more than happy with any of these two.

One can handload for the .35 Whelen and get more velocity than those shown in reloading manuals, but I would stay within those ranges, which are low when compared to the velocities of the .338 Magnum. However there is nothing wrong with a big bullet traveling a little slower, simply because those big bullets kill just as dead as the ones from any Magnum.

The .338 Magnum is a handful sometimes, depending on the ammo you use. For example some of the factory loads with 250-grain bullets develop over 2,800 fps.



[This message has been edited by Ray, Alaska (edited 01-23-2001).]

 

[Spike]

Here's a Moose picture for ya. This is a Shira's from Wyoming

 

[Elkhunter]

Thanks for the pic and welcome aboard Spike. Throw a log on the fire, pull up a stump and share a tale or two. Heck, make them up if you wish like the rest of us do

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Elk Hunting 101: Everything You Need To Know About Elk Hunting
www.jacksonholewyoming.net/elk

[This message has been edited by Elkhunter (edited 01-24-2001).]

 

[Mark C. Kimmell]

While I haven't shot any moose with the 35 Whelen yet,but I have shot a cow elk with my T/C Encore 15" 35 Whelen handgun,using a handloaded Hornady 250gr. round nose at 2100fps. The shot was behind the front shoulder. She went down in a hurry. I personally think it would go through both shoulders with no problem.

 

[Spike]

Thanks for the welcome Elkhunter. I've spent some time on your website and it's well done and informative. Your state is my paradise.

The two bulls above were heavily in the rut. We backpacked into an area for mule deer and picked the wrong spot to set our tents, those two boys were walking within feet of us gruntin' and groanin' all night looking for love, we didn't get a wink of sleep. I won't even get into the bull elk screaming their heads off only yards away. Like I said...paradise.

 

[Bill Hefner]

An outfitter friend of mine in Newfoundland said that when he was a young man in his late teens he shot his first moose with an old .32 caliber. He said the first shot shocked the young bull so much that his legs locked up on him and he didn't move. Well, he claims, he continued to pump another 11 rounds into the "shocked" animal, which did not move after each subsequent shot. After the last round he and his buddy, who didn't have a weapon, slowly crept up to the moose. My buddy said he took his rifle and carefully poked the animal and he fell over! I have no reason to doubth this story as I have known the guy for years. Comments?

 

[outlaw from Idaho]

I've slammed anuff elk with a 358win 225gr sierra to know a 35whelen should work just fine. Its in the same boat as the 338-06.

Outlaw

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Life is short,but I can say I've had a good hunt!

 

[davey crockett]

I've only shot one moose so far (with a .303 Brit), but she dropped within 10 seconds and only walked less than 20 feet. I shot her twice @ 40yd. One through both lungs and the other through the heart. I have a Rem 7600 in .35 "Wailin'". I load it with 200 gr. Barnes "X" bullets. Judging by what I've seen with recovered bullets, I don't think I would have a problem punching through at 250 yds. I bought the rifle for two reasons: moose and spring black bear. Unfortunately, my elected officials reacted with the threat of not being re-elected and cancelled the hunt on me. I feel fully confidant of dropping anything in my neck of the woods out to 250 with a heart/lung shot.
Good hunting!

 

[Elkhunter]

Welcome Davey "King of the wild frontier" Crockett. You are now a member of the best group anywhere.

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Elk Hunting 101: Everything You Need To Know About Elk Hunting
www.jacksonholewyoming.net/elk

[This message has been edited by Elkhunter (edited 01-25-2001).]

 

[sdgunslinger]

Lost Yooper , yes I think a .35 Whelen will do for moose at 250 yards . I have taken one game animal with mine . A full grown boar 'coon . The 250 gr Speer gave excellent penetration and left a 4 inch exit hole . I'd say it also retained most of it's weight , as I saw the bullet bounce off the frozen ground right behind the 'coon , and continue on to hit snowdrifts a good 300 yards further . Excellent bullet performance , I think !