I have had my .338-06 since 1998. I had a Kreiger barrel put on a 700 action. I chose the caliber so I could have something a little different. I was attracted by the wide variety of available .338 bullets, and I wanted a larger bore rifle without the recoil of a monster magnum. Many of these attributes can also be applied to the .35 Whelen Improved. These two calibers are nearly ballistic twins, but there are some slight differences between these calibers, some have already been mentioned.

.338-06 advantages:
better ballistic co-efficient and a higher sectional density of same weight bullets
more bullet selections
no need to fire form cases


.35 Whelen Improved advantages:
slightly higher velocities with heavy bullets
ability to use pistol bullets for low-recoil target shooting
readily available factory ammo in .35 Whelen