.358 Winchester or .30-06 Springfield

I like my .358.

I don’t get the velocity or range out of it that I do in my ‘06, but, that’s not what I bought it for. I wanted a heavy, large diameter bullet, without magnum recoil, and the short action was a nice plus. I had a .270 and ‘06 when I bought it (and now a .375 as well), so I didn’t mind giving up a little range by going with a .358.

I shoot almost exclusively 250’s out of it, at about 2,250 FPS. Not the fastest thing out there, but it’s taken down elk and antelope just fine.

.358 ammo is a little scarce in my area, but I have no problem finding brass or bullets at any of my local shops. Not as big of a selection as there is for .30, but I can find 200, 220, 225, and 250’s at the stores I frequent.
 
if you load, the .358 win is easy to feed and needs no help killing deer-bear and has been doing it for over 60 years.
 
That rifle can easily be rebored and as someone mentioned it, JES in Oregon can do it and has done quite a few from what I've heard. Of the OP is a handloader, brass is no problem. If you can't fine .358 brass, just run .308 Win. through the die using a tapered expander. Same would go with the .35 Whelen which is just a 30-06 necked up tp .35 Caliber. Personally, if I had to make a choice, I'd go with the Whelen. I have four rifles in .358 Win. and three in .35 Whelen so you know where I stand on the cartridges.
I've never shot anything but paper with the .358 and for some reason can't say why? However of the seven elk I have taken one with a .300 Win. Mag., one with a 30-06 and five with the .35 Whelen. Two elk dropped so fast that they were a bit difficult to find in waist high brush. Another DRT was nice enough to drop out in the open. The last three were hit a bit too far back but when Mr. Whelen speaks, they stop, drop and cannot get back up to run off. They did require finishing shots but they could go nowhere. The .35 Whelen is not a short range woods cartridge as I have taken elk as far out as 350 yards laser measured. I'm not a believer in extra long range shooting at an unwounded animal. FWIW, the only bullet I've used in the Whelen is the 225 gr. Barnes TSX.
Sorry if I touted the Whelen a bit but it's the reason my .358s stay home. I think though that with a proper handload a .358 should be doable to about 225 maybe 250 yards with a proper bullet. I think a good bullet like a Nosler Partition would do just fine on elk and maybe something like a 225 gr. Sierra for game like deer.
If the OP goes for a rebore or even a new barrel, I would suggest a 1 in 12" or 1 in14" as the slowest twist. Two of my .358s have 1 in 16" twists and they do not do well with 250 gr. bullets. The other two have 1 in 12" twists and they handle 250 gr. bullet quite well and they outshoot the other two by a noticeable margin. FWIW, the 1 in 16" guns are bolt actions and the 1 in 12" guns are lever actions. :eek:
Another nice thing about the .35s, they shoot cast bullet very well.
Paul B.
 
But the 7600 was never sold in .358 Winchester. It was sold in .35 Remington years ago and .35 Whelen for a short time.
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Grice Gun Shop here in PA is selling several varieties of 7600 in 35 Whelen starting under $700. It will cost you that much to convert.
 
Remy 7600s aren't exactly the pinnacle of reliability.

In the 35 Whelen chambering, I'd rather have a platform like a converted Mauser or S.A. 1903, or in a semi-auto, a Shuff's MiniG.
 
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