What are everyones opinions on using the 225 grain ballistic tip in a 35 whelen? I'm looking for a good bullet for whitetail and mule deer. I'd like to stretch out the whelen a little bit and still have a bullet that will work well on deer. Are the .35 BT's constructed a little tougher than the smaller calibers, or will they have the same results as smaller calibers? (ie. meat damage or destruction when hitting bone)
Thanks

when we reach the .35 cals there's not much to say....if it's deer it hits it's going to die.

The .35 Ballistic tips will do fine for deer but the same can be said for any .35 caliber bullet for the .35 remington and bigger.

Some of the pistol bullets might be a little light for deer but I suspect they too will kick the snot out of Bambi any time you shoot them.

It don't take much to top bambi over.....just hit them well and it's over with.

very little meat damage with the 225bt's. you can eat right up to the hole on both sides. tracking is no problem when bt's are used. they are a tough bullet.

quote:

Originally posted by rkd:
What are everyones opinions on using the 225 grain ballistic tip in a 35 whelen? I'm looking for a good bullet for whitetail and mule deer. ...

Hey rkd, Nothing at all wrong with that bullet for Deer. It should do fine on them and Black Bears as well.

If the Brown Bear's are not where you hunt, I agree with Vapodog. It will be difficult for you to find a 35cal "Rifle Bullet" that won't work well for you.

My favorite is the good old tough 200gr Hornady SP. It is my favorite 35cal bullet for Deer, Hogs and Black Bears. It is best for these bullets to enter a Shoulder and if you can get both shoulders lined up, that is even better. Running them through nothing but Lungs has the "potential" to cause long tracking jobs.

Best of luck to you.

I'm running them in front of RL 15 @ 2610 fps out of my Whelen. Accuracy is outstanding as one would expect from a BT. I'll post terminal results on whitetails if I score with it.
Sako

Love them in the Whelen. I wished they'd fit in my Sako AII 358 Win magazine.

quote:

Originally posted by Dr. Lou:
Love them in the Whelen. I wished they'd fit in my Sako AII 358 Win magazine.

Short necks and short actions don't you just love em. roger

RKD, my Whelen won't shoot them at all. Some other's rifles obviously do, though.

RKD:
I like the 225 Ballistic tip in the 35 Whelen. I run mine just under 2700fps, in front of 4064. I have had the opportunity to shoot an elk with the above mentioned load. 1, dead elk! The recovered bullet weighed 206 of the original 225 grains, pretty good weight retention I'd say!

On the other hand, the year before, I shot another elk with the 250 grain Speer hot core, range 130 yards, 1 dead elk. The recovered bullet weighed 56 grains. The bulet never hit any bone, and blew up in the heart. The elk went down within 10 yards. Still good performance.

With this experience, I think I would use the ballistic tip on any game I would consider hunting with the GREAT 35 Whelen!

Jerry

Thanks for the replies everyone, i just ordered a box and will start trying them soon.

My experience reflects that of Jerry's. The "whelen" BT is a modern well made bullet that is very suitable for Whelen velocities, and although it expands rapidly and makes very large muchrooms I think it has a fairly tough jacket and it seems to hold together quite well.