9ballbilly
New member
Anybody have any experience with this rifle chambered for this caliber?
.35 Whelen Handi rifle
- Thread starter 9ballbilly
- Start date
No personal experience with that caliber, per se, but they've sold a heck of a lot of them in Louisiana over the past couple of years. Three of my co-workers own them to take advantage of a weird Louisiana law that allows .35 caliber, single shot rifles with an exposed hammer to be used during a particular part of the deer season. I blogged about our weird Primitive Weapons Season at the link.
While I don't own a .35 Whelen Handi Rifle, I do own four of the little rifles, in .223, .308, .30-30, and .45-70. Some of them are capable of surprising accuracy and all of them are fully capable hunting rifles.
While I don't own a .35 Whelen Handi Rifle, I do own four of the little rifles, in .223, .308, .30-30, and .45-70. Some of them are capable of surprising accuracy and all of them are fully capable hunting rifles.
My first center fire rifle was a pawn shop $65 H&R Topper, 22 Hornet, sweet little gun. I also had a Mannlicher stocked 30-30 that I used with 130gr Speer HP's.FrankenMauser
New member
Since no owners are coming forward to bring it up, I'll do the dirty deed....
Between 2008 and 2010, there was a production run of .35 Whelen Handi-Rifles that had bad chambers. They were cut with a worn chamber reamer that had the wrong shoulder dimensions.
In addition, there was a run of receivers that had transfer bar issues.
There were a lot of problems encountered with the bad receivers, but the bad receivers with bad .35 Whelen barrels were a nightmare for their owners (often times being worthless right out of the box).
The older rifles and newer rifles don't suffer from the same problems. So, if you want a .35 Whelen Handi-Rifle, make sure it's of recent production (or used and preferably 2006 or older).
You'll want to look for a serial number prefix of P through Y for used models (P, R, S, T, U, V, W, Y - they skipped Q). Receivers with anything prior to a P prefix is not rated for .35 Whelen and should be avoided like the plague if there's a .35 Whelen barrel on it.
For new models, serial numbers after 2008 are prefaced with "CBA". You can ask your dealer how long they've had it, or call H&R for a production date.
Between 2008 and 2010, there was a production run of .35 Whelen Handi-Rifles that had bad chambers. They were cut with a worn chamber reamer that had the wrong shoulder dimensions.
In addition, there was a run of receivers that had transfer bar issues.
There were a lot of problems encountered with the bad receivers, but the bad receivers with bad .35 Whelen barrels were a nightmare for their owners (often times being worthless right out of the box).
The older rifles and newer rifles don't suffer from the same problems. So, if you want a .35 Whelen Handi-Rifle, make sure it's of recent production (or used and preferably 2006 or older).
You'll want to look for a serial number prefix of P through Y for used models (P, R, S, T, U, V, W, Y - they skipped Q). Receivers with anything prior to a P prefix is not rated for .35 Whelen and should be avoided like the plague if there's a .35 Whelen barrel on it.
For new models, serial numbers after 2008 are prefaced with "CBA". You can ask your dealer how long they've had it, or call H&R for a production date.
savagecornmuffin
New member
H&R vs CVA
I'm done with H&R. They can be a decent rifle with some work, but they will shot loose over time with any high pressure cartridge. 30-30, 22 Hornet, and a few maybe the exception. Every H&R I've owned needed a trigger job. H&R told me in a phone call the as long as the trigger pull falls under 7lbs, they ship it out. I've had several that were much heavier than 7 lbs. Another reason, weak safety strap. I've never broken one, but I've seen one break on a few dry fires. My local GS confirmed its a problem they've always had. Fit and Finish just suck. They're heavier than they have to be. I'm happy with the ones I have after putting some work into them, but I'm not getting anymore.
Just picked up a CVA scoped combo in 7mm-08. Fit and finish are much better. Trigger breaks at 3lbs. Came with iron sights and a 1 piece scope base/mount. "Plastic" stocks are nice and nearly atomic blast proof. Rifle feels less than 7lbs scoped (I haven't weighed it). All in all its a real nice shooter for $209 on sale. Non-combo models were $179 on sale. Shooting 1.5" groups with cheap ammo. I expect much better with quality carts and handloads when I get dies and bullets. Even with the goofy looking release mechanism, I like them. I hope to find one in 30-06. They're available in 35 Whelen. No word on shooting loose, but the rifle just seems tougher than the H&R.
I'm done with H&R. They can be a decent rifle with some work, but they will shot loose over time with any high pressure cartridge. 30-30, 22 Hornet, and a few maybe the exception. Every H&R I've owned needed a trigger job. H&R told me in a phone call the as long as the trigger pull falls under 7lbs, they ship it out. I've had several that were much heavier than 7 lbs. Another reason, weak safety strap. I've never broken one, but I've seen one break on a few dry fires. My local GS confirmed its a problem they've always had. Fit and Finish just suck. They're heavier than they have to be. I'm happy with the ones I have after putting some work into them, but I'm not getting anymore.
Just picked up a CVA scoped combo in 7mm-08. Fit and finish are much better. Trigger breaks at 3lbs. Came with iron sights and a 1 piece scope base/mount. "Plastic" stocks are nice and nearly atomic blast proof. Rifle feels less than 7lbs scoped (I haven't weighed it). All in all its a real nice shooter for $209 on sale. Non-combo models were $179 on sale. Shooting 1.5" groups with cheap ammo. I expect much better with quality carts and handloads when I get dies and bullets. Even with the goofy looking release mechanism, I like them. I hope to find one in 30-06. They're available in 35 Whelen. No word on shooting loose, but the rifle just seems tougher than the H&R.
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