 At the time of its introduction the .350 Remington had a short, fat case, similar to the current crop of short magnums except that the .350 carries a belt.Its closest competitor, the .35 Whelen was still just a wildcat from a necked-up .30-06, so the .350 Rem was the most powerful .35 caliber around, and in a short cartridge that allowed the use in compact quick-handling rifles.However, gun writers and shooters of the time were not yet enamored of the "short-fat" concept as they are today, and they preferred the older longer .35 Whelen based on the .30-06 cartridge, even though it had, at best, similar performance in short barrels.