Don't get too excited over 100'/sec.....if it was all that important you should have built a .358 Norma in the first place.

Further...there is absolutely nothing second rate about Remington's pump.....it'll hold pressures as well as any bolt out there

In my .35 Whelen bolt action(FN Mauser) with a 23" Douglas barrel I am getting 2700 fps with 58 gr of RL15 and 225 gr Nosler Partitions. Pressures appear moderate. I have loaded to 61 gr but the pressures were a little over the top so I backed off.

As a matter of interest, I'm getting 2600 with 250 gr Hornady SP and 57 gr of RL15. Alliant lists 59.5 as max with the Hornady 250 RN. I went there but wasn't comfortable with the pressures

You didn't mention your barrel length.

I don't think mgnum primers are going to do it for you.

The Barnes #3 shows 60 grs of Rel 15 as max with a 225gr bullet giving 2713fps. They are right on the money. I just built a 24" Whelen on a 700 action. It does 2725 average with 60 grs of Rel 15 under a 225 Partition.This is with new RP brass and WLR primers.

honestly, you are using the wrong powder to get what you want...

blc2, 748, 3031, 4895, etc will get you there with an uncompacted loaded, with high denisty....

jeffe

Since there is but about 1 GRAIN difference in case capacities between these two cartridges, the starting loads could be identical, and there's no reason at all why the Whelen could not give equal velocities with the same bullets!

I've been working up some loads for a Rem 700 with Nos BT 225 gr. The Rem factory 200 gr. loads go 2659 in my rifle and I can't see why I shouldn't approach ~2600 with 225 gr. handloads for this rifle.

Nosler and Speer manuals show velocities of about 2500-2550 for 225 & 220 gr bullets with 56.5 gr. max loads of RL-15. My Sierra manual doesn't list RL-15 but their max velocities are the same. I suspect max listed loads are conservative due to their possible use in a pump rifle. My thinking is that I should safely be able to get pretty close the same velocities with the Whelen in a 700 as are possible with a 350 Rem Mag in a 700.

I'm using new Rem 35 Whelen brass, fireformed in this rifle and neck sized, and RL-15. I used Rem 9 1/2 and CCI 200 primers behind 54, 56, & 58 gr. RL-15. Everything shot under an inch, which was great, but velocities were less than expected (2519 with the Rem primers and 2484 with the CCI's). Although I've got the bullets seated quite far out (COL 3.495, but still short of the lands), I don't think I can get more than maybe 2 additional grains of powder in the case and I can't see 60 gr. getting me to 2600, even with the Rem primers.

My thought is to use magnum primers and work back up through 58 gr. until I get the velocity I'm looking for, unless accuracy goes south on me. I loaded another box using Rem 9 1/2M, Win WLRM, and Fed 215 but haven't had a chance to shoot them yet.

Any other suggestions? Thanks. -WSJ