The 35 whelen is an honest 300 yd gun and don't let anyone tell you any different. I have one in the 7600 that I bought at Grices' in Clearfield, PA a few years back. I picked up another in the Ruger M77 Hawkeye this year. From my experience the 1:16 twist favors the heavier bullets 225-250 gr range. If you don't handload I suggest you start. It is most definitely a lot more thump than a 35 rem. that's on both sides of the gun. My Ruger is the anything bigger than deer gun and the 7600 wears a Williams receiver mounted peep and is my 307's partner for the thick woods. The Whelen is starting to gain in popularity, just a few years ago there were only three factory loads available, now there is over a dozen.