Must have given good advice at the lgs today

B

Boogershooter

New member
While visiting my lgs today there was a group of 5 young men that came in. A couple of them were very knowledgeable and the others not so much. While me and the owner of the shop were discussing primitive weapon season one of the young men asked what rifle caliber combo was the perfect combo. My friend and I looked at each other with a smile and turned back to him saying there is no such thing. His next question was about the ongoing conversation and primitive firearms. I had a brainfart. I told him that if he bought a single shot 35 whelen it would be a fine gun for all season and legal for primitive season as well. Whether my advice was good or not 4 of the 5 bought one before they left. After selling 4 guns for the shop I thought I might get a Lil better discount than normal but that didn't happen lol. My buddy called late this evening to tell me the other young man came back and got one just before closing time. I wasn't trying to talk these gentlemen into buying anything just voicing my opinion. 1 gun for both primitive and regular firearm season isn't for me but I do believe this gun cartridge combo will serve these young men well. They can kill everything from deer to bear and a rifle that let's them hunt a week before and a week after regular firearm season here in louisiana.
 
Living here in NH our primitive season is for single shot muzzleloaders only, what makes a 35 whelen single shot primitive? Just wondering.
 
"I had a brainfart. I told him that if he bought a single shot 35 whelen it would be a fine gun for all season and legal for primitive season as well."

I think you led those guys astray unless your state has some odd "primitive season" regs.
 
Both Louisiana and Mississippi allow the use of .35 caliber breech loading rifles with exposed hammers in the primitive deer seasons. MS was the first state to adopt this, and LA followed suit here is the information on the adoption of the regulation in LA in 2012. Both states only require a .35 caliber or larger single shot rifle breech loading rifle with exposed hammer. Any rifle .38 SP and up appears to be legal, giving many options for the recoil sensitive. Don't presume all states follow the same definition of primitive weaponry. In Missouri the atlatl and air rifles are now legal to hunt deer with as of about 2012, though I'm pretty sure they fall under archery and regular rifle seasons.

Mississippi Wildlife Department Regulations for "Primitive Firearms" for the purpose of hunting deer are defined as:

- Single or double barreled muzzle-loading rifles of at least .38 caliber; single shot, breech loading, cartridge rifles .35 caliber or larger and replicas, reproductions or reintroductions of those type rifles; and single or double-barreled muzzle-loading, shotguns with single ball or slug;

- All muzzle-loading Primitive Firearms must use black powder or a black powder substitute with either percussion caps or #209 shotgun primers or flintlock ignition;

- Single shot, breech loading rifles (.35 caliber or larger) must have exposed hammers and use metallic cartridges. Cartridges may be loaded either with black powder or modern smokeless powder;

Scopes of any magnification are allowed on primitive weapons, and
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Well that's a new regulation on primative hunting i've never heard of. So I wonder if a lever action 45-70 would qualify? lol
 
Sorry I didn't think to clarify the law. Any single shot rifle .35 caliber and above for primitive weapons is legal here in louisiana. The reason I chose 35 whelen is it is much flatter shooting than any of the other choices. As far as recoil my wife, sister in la, and mother in law all three shoot them. Mother in law did say she didn't enjoy shooting it but she isn't much on rifles anyway. The 35 whelen is capable of killing anything we have in this great country with one shot. If these boys get invited to go shoot a bear or elk they wouldn't have to rush out and buy a new rifle. Yes I have one for primitive weapon season but I prefer to use several choices thru out the season. On a good year I shoot a deer with my first rifle my dad bought me and another with my grandpa's favorite rifle. Dad passed away a year ago this week so I will add a couple of his rifles n the mix.
 
Well that's a new regulation on primative hunting i've never heard of. So I wonder if a lever action 45-70 would qualify? lol
Click to expand...

Nope. Has to be breech loading, single shot, with external hammer, .35 or larger.
 
If you need it to meet legal requirements for primitive weapons seasons it might be a good choice. Otherwise, not so much.
 
Jmr40 I read alot of post on this forum and very few do I respect and trust. For the most part I agree with you on most of your posts. I can't imagen anybody arguing against the 35 whelen. I do understand that it has range limitations and single shots don't allow fast follow up shots. But if correct bullets are chosen and proper shots are taken within range a man will never be under gunned with a single shot 35 whelen. Please enlighten us on the reason for disagreeing
 
jmr40 isn't saying the .35 Whelen isn't effective, what he's saying is for deer there are better choices unless you are restricted by hunting regulations to its use. The Whelen is a good cartridge I've had one for several years, but I don't hunt with it very often. The main reason is I have a lot of other rifles that are way more pleasurable to shoot. They kill deer just as well as the Whelen without the extra recoil.

Now if I was hunting bigger game than deer, the Whelen is an excellent choice. Especially if the animal is near to over 1000 lbs and has very large teeth and claws, and you want to use 225-250+ grain bullets. What jmr40 is saying is the Whelen has its place, but it usually isn't hunting white tail deer.
 
I don't own either one, but I can see that it might be kinda cool to hunt whitetail with an 1873 Springfield Trapdoor, or a Martini-Henry .450.
 
Thank you Taylorforce1 I do understand that clearly. I also understand not every state has the same laws as louisiana but I'm fortunate that I have my own range. I regularly have people from all walks of life show up to shoot. The popular rifles here for primitive weapon season are the h&r handi rifle and the cva. The predominant choices are 35 whelen, .444marlin, 44 magnum, and 45-70. Reason being is they are cheap and you only get one week before rifle season and one week after for primitive season. I've shot both rifles with all 3 calibers and the whelen is much more pleasant to shoot in these rifles than the other two choices. Between my wife and myself we had the pleasure of harvesting 5 deer this year with the 35 whelen. We shoot the hornady superformance 200 grain soft points. 4 of those were DRT and the other deer was shot thru both front legs by my wife. It was a long tracking job but a relatively easy one as the deer plowed a easy trail to follow. Most bullets will deflect off the first leg and never hit the leg on the off side but hers fortunately did. We shoot 200 yards or less and only shoot broadside shots. The flatter trajectory and less recoil of the 35-06 makes it the best option only in my opinion. I posted this only to get others perspective on this and see if there is something I'm missing. I do appreciate the feedback from everyone no matter if it's supporting my opinion or against.
 
Because of the popularity of the primitive season here the 35 whelen is very easy to find in just about any load you want. A very dear friend is trying to work up a accurate 180 grain load that our kids can handle in the whelen. I may be very wrong but I'm sure that's much more attainable with the 35 than either the 444 or 45-70.
 
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