I' ve only used my 338-06 on whitetails and black bear. The preformance is awesome. I orginally built mine to take on an elk hunt about ten ago but I never had a chance to pull the trigger. I tried a number of different bullets and powder combinations. Most push a 200gr bullet between 2700 and 2800fps without pressure signs. That gives you about the same trajectory as a 30-06 with 180gr bullets. Fast enough for the type of hunting that I do but definately not magnum velocity. I' ve used 200gr speer and 200gr Nosler BT' s on deer and 210gr Partitions on deer and bear. As much as I like my 338-06 I know use it only for bears. I can' t say that a 338-06 is better than a 35 Whelan but it' s a great round. Kinda like picking between a 270 and 280, you just can' t loose. If your friend already has 35 Whelan then I would strongly urge him to build a nice 338-06 or better yet a 338-06 Ackley Improved. I think he' ll like it.