Kwik Klip Conversion

My 35 Whelen Remington 700 Classic project is nearing an end.  What started out as a somewhat rough Rem 700 Classic has slowly turned into what just might be my all time favorite rifle. You can follow the progression here, and here.

As a final touch I decided to replace the standard internal magazine and hinge-plate with a removable magazine. My choice of conversion was the Kwik Klip conversion for Long Action Rem 700; mainly because it was easy to obtain and most of the reviews I read were positive.

Kwik Klip for Rem 700 Long Action

I placed my order through T. E. C Trade Ex Canada Inc. I placed my order on a Monday and received the kit in one week. The price was the cheapest I could find in Canada.

During installation I ran into an immediate problem because the Bell and Carlson stock needed a bit of sanding in order for the bottom metal to fit. After a bit of work things came together well with a surprisingly snug fit despite there being a bit of space around the rear.   (See photo)  The kit comes with shims that I used to level the kit with the bottom of the stock. (the photo shows the fit before shims were used)

Next came the inevitable ammunition feed test ... which didn't go well. The first 2 rounds fed perfectly, but the last always slipped downward and off of the bolt face. A quick check online solved the problem though ... all it took was a slight bending open of the top of the magazine housing. The cartridges now fed perfectly.

Overall I am pleased. The Kwik Klip metal has a shine, which matches my Remington bluing, and the basic fit and finish of the kit is good.

The conversion to removable magazine is the final change I envision making to the Whelen. It's been an enjoyable journey.

Kwik Klip Long Action installed in Bell and Carlson Stock

Rainy Weather Bull

The first few days of the 2018 hunting season started out wet..... and I mean really wet and cold. Misty, cold, sleet layden weather had settled in for a few days prior to opening day of elk season. My hunting partner and I had decided to start the season with an attempt to ambush elk as they either came to, or left a corn field. For two mornings and evenings we tried different locations, saw lots of deer, and a few coyotes, but not a hair nor tine of any elk. And this, despite the fact that the corn field was loaded with elk tracks. The worst part was that the wind was up each day, and it constantly drizzled near freezing rain. For whatever reason, the elk that had been frequenting the field had moved on... including a decent 6 by 6 which had been caught on trail cam.

If the elk weren't going to make it easy, we decided to change tactics to search, and hopefully score.  We took one of our favorite trails which wound its way into the hilly semi-forested country several miles beyond the corn.

We made contact pretty quick in the form of several elk bugling within close proximity to each other. We spotted a small bull bugling on an open hillside about 700 yards out.

We cow called and bugled several times, and almost immediately got answers from several bulls, but it soon became apparent that the herd bull was pushing his harem further away. This forced us to pursue.

An hour later found us on a scrub covered hill within 300 yards of the herd which was somewhere on or over the hill opposite us. Visibility was obscured by clumps of pine and willow, but fairly large gaps gave good glimpses of the opposite slope. We paused to cautiously scan the slope but as soon as we did, the bugling from the herd seemed to be still moving away. The end of legal daylight hunting was approaching, which was unfortunate, because the remaining half hour we had was not enough to launch a stalk on the herd bull.

We decided to try calling.  My partner gave a long location bugle which I followed up with several pleading cow calls. Almost immediately a spike bull appeared in a gully below us, and began working his way around the wet bottom. And then, right on his heels came a 3 or so year old bull with funky misshapen antlers. I liked the look of them.

That bull soon vanished in the willows which lined the bottom of the gully. He splashed right through the water and after about a minute the brush on our side of the gully began to shake and snap as he raked his antlers on the trees.

I gave a soft cow call and up he came.... straight to us.

"I'm taking him!" I whispered.

The bull just kept walking strait up the slope, winding in and out among the willows. At thirty yards he emerged completely from the scrub and paused. I had my Nikon Prostaff 5 dialed down to 2.5 magnification and the safety off, so all it took was a lift of the rifle, a moment to aim, and the 35 Whelen thundered. The bull collapsed as if all four feet had been cut out from under him.

The other bulls in the herd kept calling as if nothing had happened, but I didn't care, I was headed down the slope the short distance to my elk.

He was about the size I expected.... not very big by trophy standards, but the experience and the unique shape of his antlers made him a trophy to me.

My newly refurbished Whelen had its first kill... and I was delighted.

Taken at 30 yards with my 35 Whelen

35 Whelen Re-do

1988 Remington 35 Whelen bedded in a Bell and Carlson stock with an AC Douglas Brake

6 years ago I bought a 35 Whelen in Remington 700 Classic. The rifle was from Remington's 1988 offering.  Apparently the Whelen's that year flew off the shelves ... it was the first large commercial product run of the caliber.

My Whelen looked somewhat worse for wear, but the price was right and given that I wasn't sure I would like the cartridge, the old Rem Classic did just fine.  I promptly set about rejuvenating the old-timer.

First I gave the bore a good cleaning and made sure that the rest of the rifle was clean ... the previous owner had been kind to it, so not much cleaning was needed. Then, I went to work restoring the bluing ... it looked sad.

I ran a small test strip using Blue Magic metal polish and was delighted with the result.  The polish came off completely rusty, but left the metal looking much healthier.  My concern was that it would take off too much bluing, but the Remington bluing held fine. I gave the barrel and all visible parts a blue magic rub.  After that i applied a few layers of carnauba car wax and the barrel looked amazingly good; it once again had that 1988 Remington shine. 

My next project was to bed my Remington Classic stock. It was my first ever bedding job, so I proceeded with extreme caution; perhaps a bit too much caution because I was too sparing with the epoxy and ended up with several small hollows. The bedding did it's job though, and the rifle's performance improved markedly. Up until now it had had trouble holding zero for even a few months.

A scope upgrade to a 2.5 - 10 x 50 Nikon Prostaff 5 completed the package.  Experimenting with a variety of ammunition (reloads and factory) and dropping 3 moose and a couple of elk over the next few years had me falling in love with the rifle and the cartridge. It became my go-to rifle.

All About the 35 Whelen