Thread: .35 cal, why is it so rare here?

Hehe, never hunted bulls, and not sure I want to start in that up close and personal manor you suggested.
Have had a pig run my way once, luckily she ran straight and copped a 243 round between the eyes at <10mtr.
Besides I've had a feed failure from my mag and until i know its 100% that bit of doubt is troubling.
. (think it was to do with short pistol bullets allowing the cartridge to move forward in the mag and not engage the bolt face)
Z

35 wsm aka 35 sambar looks cool to me. Would fit in a tikka :-)

There are a few 358 BLRs floating around. Have been tempted a few times but as others have said in NZ a 308 with 180s will stop everything at the ranges I would use a BLR. Add to the fact that there is stuff all factory ammo and the cool factor is just not enough, 338 Federal suffers from the same.

Originally Posted by Flyblown

But in the riparian bush on the edges of the Mangahaupapa or Raukokore, I didn’t fancy my chances with that rifle and a soft 150 grain. Too dark, too much crap in the way. If any of you been up there and heard those big ball bags moaning their bass rumble at you, you’ll know exactly what I mean.

Oh yes!

Greetings All,
I think one of the problems with the .35 calibre is that most US rifles have slow twist barrels. This does not allow the use of high BC projectiles and without them they do not beat the same cases in .30 calibre by much at all. The .358 Win mostly had a 12 inch twist but lacked capacity and the .350 Rem Mag and .35 Whelen, I think, had 16 inch twists. Consequently few high BC projectiles are made.
Regards Grandpamac.

Some interesting views and observations, thanks fellas. @grandpamac, very interesting about the twists, didn’t know that.

I have wanted a .358 Win Browning BLR for years, in fact I am pretty sure it was the subject of my first post here a few years ago when I got back from Aus. But I’ve not seen one come up (might have missed it, easily done) and the NZ importer wasn’t interested on bringing a new one in.

Anyway I ended up with a lovely .308, and will be experimenting with heavy .30 cal bullets to see how much short range punch I can get out of it without removing my shoulder. It’s a 12” twist, but that won’t matter as I’ve no need for long pointy high BC bullets for this rifle. Still undecided which bullet I’ll go with for full power loads, but the Sierra ProHunter RN 180gr is looking likely.

@Flyblown......please make your first foray into the 180s a box of bog std winchester 180grn power points.....you will love the terminal effect and the recoil is LESS than the 150grn factory stuff.
I looked for the projectiles to reload and couldnt get them so settled on hornady 180grn round noses...so far the terminal business has been faultless.....both are soft enough to dump energy and expand heaps...the blood trails look like a 4" paintbrush has been used...

Originally Posted by 300CALMAN

I don't feel sorry for them.

Now the few 760 and 7600s in 35 cal will join it. What a waste..

I find that pretty sad really. ALL guns that go to the crusher is a waste...not just a select few...


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35 caliber rifle cartridges are powerful medium bore numbers designed for use on large (CXP3) game like elk and moose, the most popular . 35 caliber rifle cartridge is the . 35 Remington. This is basically a deer and black bear (CXP2 class game) cartridge,

The .35 Caliber Cartridge Family
(.357 Mag., .35 Remington, .356 Winchester, .358 Winchester, .35 Whelen, .350 Rem. Mag. and .358 Norma Mag.)

By Chuck Hawks


.35 caliber rifle cartridges have been around practically forever without ever really becoming popular. This is in sharp contrast to the overwhelming success of the .357/9mm handgun cartridges, whose popularity dates right to the beginning of the self-contained cartridge era. Of course, it took the .338 Winchester Magnum many years to catch on, and it took the .243/6mm cartridges over a half century after the introduction of the 6mm Lee Navy cartridge to gain popular acceptance, so perhaps there is still hope for the .35's.

Today the .35 caliber family, at least in North America, includes the .357 Magnum, .35 Remington, .356 Winchester, .358 Winchester, .35 Whelen, .350 Remington Magnum and .358 Norma Magnum. That list, by the way, is in ascending order of power.

That is quite a few cartridges considering that there is not a single best selling rifle cartridge in the bunch. Far more alternatives, in fact, than exist in several more popular caliber families. So it is fair to say that, over the years, .35 caliber rifles at least have caught the interest of the gun and ammo manufacturers, if not the general shooting public.

While most of the .35 caliber rifle cartridges are powerful medium bore numbers designed for use on large (CXP3) game like elk and moose, the most popular .35 caliber rifle cartridge is the .35 Remington. This is basically a deer and black bear (CXP2 class game) cartridge, although it is reputed to be superior to cartridges in the .30-30 class for game weighing over about 400 pounds.

The recent introduction of a Hornady LeverEvolution factory load for the .35 Remington has usefully improved its ballistics. This load uses a 200 grain Flex-Tip spitzer bullet and delivers a MV of 2225 fps and ME of 2198 ft. lbs. from the 24" barrel of a Marlin 336XLR rifle.

The .357 Magnum revolver cartridge has also gained considerable popularity as a combination rifle/pistol cartridge and lever action rifles for the .357 Magnum sell pretty well. The .357 Magnum is ideal for light game like javelina and will do for the smaller species of deer and antelope at short range. It is a good choice for shooters who are very sensitive to recoil, since its free recoil energy is only about 4.5 ft. lbs. when fired in a 7.5 pound rifle.

I have long been something of a .35 caliber fan, but I have to admit that I believe the reason for the general lack of public acceptance of all but the least powerful .35's is, in a word, recoil. However, that may be changing, or at least the possibility of change may exist. I say that because so many reasonably successful yet hard kicking cartridges have been introduced in the last few years. Cartridges that in many cases cannot match the killing power, at normal hunting ranges, of comparable .35's.

For example, take the most powerful of the factory standardized .35's, the .358 Norma Magnum. This standard (.30-06) length magnum cartridge drives a 250 grain bullet at a muzzle velocity (MV) of 2799 fps with 4350 ft. lbs. of muzzle energy. This is comparable killing power to the long .375 H&H Magnum with a 300 grain bullet (ME 4331 ft. lbs.), but with considerably less recoil. In fact, the recoil of the .358 Norma Magnum, at about 35 ft. lbs. in an 8.5 pound rifle, is comparable to the much more popular but less effective (on CXP3 class game) .300 Weatherby or .300 Remington Ultra Magnums. As a "stopper" for use on dangerous game the .358 Norma is clearly superior to the .300 Magnums. Clearly, for the hunter seeking heavy game and willing to accept this level of recoil, the .358 Norma Magnum deserves far more popularity than it has received.

Compare the Queen of the .35's, the .350 Remington Magnum--the original short (.308 length) magnum cartridge--with the new generation of short action magnums. This is a particularly apt comparison because the re-introduced .350 is available in the Remington Model Seven rifle, which is also offered in .300 short magnum calibers.

The .350 can drive a 250 grain bullet to a MV of 2500 fps. That load has a maximum optimal range on 1000 pound game (like a big Alaskan moose or brown bear) of 151 yards. It will kill farther than that, of course, but that is its optimum range. The .300 Rem. SAUM and .300 WSM, with their 180 grain bullets at a MV of 2960-2970 fps, have an optimum range of about 120 yards on 1000 pound animals.

Food for thought, is it not? Particularly when you consider that every one of those newer short magnum cartridges burns more powder to achieve less killing power than the .350 Rem. Mag. Perhaps, if the word gets out to the shooting public, the born again .350 may finally achieve the commercial success it deserves.

Moving down a notch and comparing the .35 Whelen (250 grain bullet at a MV of 2400 fps) to the .30-06 (220 grains at 2410 fps), which have nearly identical case capacity, we find that the optimum game range (OGW) on 1000 pound animals is 10 yards for the .30-06 and 100 yards for the .35 Whelen. Quite a difference!

Compare the .308 Winchester and the .358 Winchester, which are based on the same case, and the .358 wins hands down. On a 600 pound animal like a big bull elk the optimum game range of the .308 (180 grain bullet at a MV of 2610 fps) is a useful 175 yards. However, the optimum game range of the .358 (250 grain bullet at a MV of 2300 fps) is 240 yards.

Compare practically any small bore cartridge (.32 caliber or less) with a .35 caliber cartridge of similar powder capacity and the result is pretty much the same. The .35's are just plain superior for CXP3 class game.

They will also slap down lighter game like deer, feral hogs and black bear with authority, of course. However, the small bore cartridges from .24 to .32 caliber have proven quite reliable on these smaller animals, so I am not going to argue that anyone needs a .35 to hunt CXP2 class game. If you happen to have a .35 and don't mind the extra recoil, there is no denying that it will flat get the job done. In addition, for stopping the big predators of the world, it's hard to beat a suitable .35 caliber rifle.

I have a Henry Repeating Arms Side Gate .35 Rem Lever Action Rifle 20" Barrel 5 Rounds Tube Magazine Adjustable Rear Sight Walnut Stock Brass/Blued Finish.

The rounds cost me between $1.65-95,depending on availability (for which there are plenty)(In the US).....thought about bringing one back to kiwi a few years back.......as others have alluded to ,a 30-30 round etc works just fine for the same thing..short range great round,pigs deer etc.....now I have a 45-70 as well.....just as efficient.........

You can never have too many guns!!!

Originally Posted by Flyblown

Some interesting views and observations, thanks fellas. @grandpamac, very interesting about the twists, didn’t know that.

I have wanted a .358 Win Browning BLR for years, in fact I am pretty sure it was the subject of my first post here a few years ago when I got back from Aus. But I’ve not seen one come up (might have missed it, easily done) and the NZ importer wasn’t interested on bringing a new one in.

Anyway I ended up with a lovely .308, and will be experimenting with heavy .30 cal bullets to see how much short range punch I can get out of it without removing my shoulder. It’s a 12” twist, but that won’t matter as I’ve no need for long pointy high BC bullets for this rifle. Still undecided which bullet I’ll go with for full power loads, but the Sierra ProHunter RN 180gr is looking likely.

Thanks for the mention Flyblown,
I have loaded both the .358 Win and the .350 Rem Mag, both my sons rifles. Both are easy cartridges to load other than the short mag on the .350 limiting the projectile choice somewhat. My son now loads the .350, now suppressed. with all manner of projectiles from cast lead, pistol , flat point Speer and the standards. It is a very tractable cartridge. I still have dies here for the .358 Win and Ruger chambered the round a few years back so one day perhaps.
Regards Grandpamac.