Reviews & Ratings for Thompson Center Encore Pro Hunter Rifle .35 Whelen Barrel — 1 review — Page 1

I purchased this barrel only because nothing else was available. I’m starting to hunt in neighboring states that offer more hunting opportunities than Ohio. I wanted something that could easily take bigger game. My state only allows one whitetail buck for the entire season. We are only allowed straight walled cartridges in my state. I wanted a rifle that could take basically any animal in North America. I decided a 300 win mag barrel that I now have on back order. But the 35 whelen was in stock and on sale for $299. After some research I decided to order it first. I knew I could have it very quickly with the provided free 2 day shipping. This caliber is definitely not talked about or well known. For anyone that has not heard of it. Let’s call it what it really is a 35-06. As with most any ammo in our current situation no one has it in stock. This is easy to overcome if you reload. Most 308 powders will work and brass is easy to form from 30-06 cases. I’m getting 200 grain bullets in 2800 to over 2900fps with published data using 4895 and 4064. I was able to put 4 shots all touching on paper at 100 yards with 4064. The load averaged 2852fps this is faster than the load data suggested it would shoot. Probably because of the longer than normal 28” barrel length.