Why not the .358 Winchester for Iowa Whitetails?

[Bluefish]

Took a nice Iowa buck tonight with a 358 JDJ. Similar to a 358 win, but lower pressure so it works in a contender. 160g Cutting Edge ER Raptor at 2700 mv. First bang flop at about 150 yards.

Lots of good 35 cal cartridges out there. Finding a rifle already chambered in them is the issue. CVA does a nice single shot in 35 whelen. Ssk50/contender can handle the 350 legend, 360 buckhammer, and the 358 jdj. Encore can handle those as well as the 358 win and 35 whelen, almost the same except a few 100 fps difference. For some reason the 06 case is a good fit for the 35 cal. Lots of good powders work including varget. Henry does 360 BH levers and single shot. You can do a custom barrel from preferred barrel.

 

[brianwagan]

When Iowa changed to .35 and larger I did alot of research. I ended up going with 35 Whelen. The reasons I went with 35 Whelen were, I had a .270 as a doner rifle, 35 Whelen ammo was more available, and better performance at longer range. Gunsmith tried to talk me into .358 but Whelen just made more sense to me. I haven't seen any .358 win on shelves here in Iowa but 35 Whelen is available.

 

[Luke S]

I loved my .358 and I could tell all ki ds of stories about it making things dead (bears, moose, caribou).

Bullet selection and keeping velocity high enough for reliable expansion is an issue. Supposedly Cutting Edge bullets open below 1800 fps. I got their 160 grain bullets and shot two into moose at close range. They worked fine but not enough of a sample size to say much. They were super accurate in my rifle though. IF the do reliably expand at lower velocity I'd say they would work well.

A 35 Whelen would probably be worth a look IF you are caliber restricted and IF you want to shoot farther. But I do want think you need it for any other reason. My .358 was really overkill for most things.

 

[Bluefish]

I loved my .358 and I could tell all ki ds of stories about it making things dead (bears, moose, caribou).

Bullet selection and keeping velocity high enough for reliable expansion is an issue. Supposedly Cutting Edge bullets open below 1800 fps. I got their 160 grain bullets and shot two into moose at close range. They worked fine but not enough of a sample size to say much. They were super accurate in my rifle though. IF the do reliably expand at lower velocity I'd say they would work well.

A 35 Whelen would probably be worth a look IF you are caliber restricted and IF you want to shoot farther. But I do want think you need it for any other reason. My .358 was really overkill for most things.

Cutting edge claims opening down to 1500 for the er raptor 160. I have found them to be quite accurate and taken 3 animals from 3 different 35 cal guns. From a lowly 357 max pistol to a 35 whelen. I think in the whelen you can push them over 3k fps.

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

I had the braked CVA in .35 Whelen. I killed one buck with it but got rid of it due to the muzzle blast. If I was to build a new one for Iowa it would be a Tikka in .358 win.

 

[robtattoo]

If I could only keep one......

220gr Speer Hot Core at 2450fps & it'll knock ANYTHING'S dick into the dirt inside of 400yds.

We really ought to start a petition to get Speer making that bullet again.

My .358 is by far the killingest rifle I own & when they start throwing dirt on me, it'll be in the box.

 

[TSnave]

Dang Rob, that's nice! Makes me want a bolt rifle to go along with my Savage 99-358 that has put the thump on a mule deer or two.

 

[Jimbee]

The biggest problem with anything bigger than .30 cal is that it won't fit through any of my supressors.

 

[Jimbee]

After shooting a handful of deer over the last couple of years with a supressed 223 it seems ridiculous to be forced to use something loud and unpleasant to shoot.

 

[Bluefish]

The biggest problem with anything bigger than .30 cal is that it won't fit through any of my supressors.

They make bigger suppressors. I suppress my 45-70 and 358 rifles/pistols. Seems so uncivilized to shoot unsurpassed now.

 

[Jimbee]

They make bigger suppressors. I suppress my 45-70 and 358 rifles/pistols. Seems so uncivilized to shoot unsurpassed now.

I've debated getting a bigger bore supressor and also taking a sharpie and writing .35x on the side of already capable and owned gun.

 

[Southernfried]

If I could only keep one......

220gr Speer Hot Core at 2450fps & it'll knock ANYTHING'S dick into the dirt inside of 400yds.

We really ought to start a petition to get Speer making that bullet again.

My .358 is by far the killingest rifle I own & when they start throwing dirt on me, it'll be in the box.
View attachment 808104

That to me, is perfection in any caliber. Short, light, simple.

 

[Gsr1578]

I have a custom build rem 700 in 358 win w/ 20” Schneider barrel. Run Barnes 200 TSX’s and varget powder. Squeeze the trigger and wait for the show! Everything hits the ground lifeless!

 

[ozyclint]

How does the .358 perform with short 16.5" and 20" barrels that the .308 commonly uses?

 

[onlybrowning]

How does the .358 perform with short 16.5" and 20" barrels that the .308 commonly uses?

I’ve not made any long shots with it, but I love a .358 BLR. Lots of great experiences with it.

I think .358 win and .338 federal are excellent medium bores that should be chambered in BAR, BLR, and various bolt guns with 18-20” barrels.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Bluefish]

How does the .358 perform with short 16.5" and 20" barrels that the .308 commonly uses?

The 358’s will push a heavier bullet as fast or faster than a 308. I would expect 2700+ with a 160 and 2500+ with a 200. Bc is lower than the 308 so it won’t have the range, but still 300+ yards.

 

[ozyclint]

Sounds like it would be a good chambering for the CVA scout.

 

[Bluefish]

Sounds like it would be a good chambering for the CVA scout.

It would. I used a 358 jdj last year, took 3 deer with it. It’s a wildcat for contenders to duplicate 08 cartridge performance at lower pressure.

I know the cva is chambered in 35 whelen which is the 30-06 case necked to 35 cal. Ammo isn’t too hard to find and easy to load from 06 brass. A little more speed than the 358.

 

[ozyclint]

The CVA Whelan is a 25" barrel. The 358 with a short barrel would be more compact which is appealing.

 

[Bluefish]

The CVA Whelan is a 25" barrel. The 358 with a short barrel would be more compact which is appealing.

True. Also remember that a break action is shorter than a bolt gun or ar already. My contenders with a 20” barrel are about the same or shorter than an 18” ar. You will be 200 fps or more slower than the whelen, but still a step up from a 350l. A 360 Buckhammer would also be in the mid ish 2000’s with a 20” barrel. I have a 360 bh pistol and it’s only 200 fps slower than box at 14”, if I remember right it pushes a 180g to 2200 fps.

Encores are now back in production, so T/C would be an option instead of a CVA, but double the cash.