Alaskan Brown Bear hunt + Rain + Wooden Stock = ???

[Cold Trigger Finger]

All my rifles have laminated or synthetic stocks. An important thing to remember and practice is to not think a brown bear is impressed with all those ft.lbs of energy that the 30-378 produces. When you do shoot your bear. Hopefully it will be a huge one. Make a good first shot and then several more. Also. It is very important to be able to hit from field positions. Kneeling and offhand. And to be able to go from being in position to take the shot and taking the shot quickly.
The better you shoot and operate your rifle, the greater your chances of success. If you have a smaller, less expensive rifle that you can shoot a lot to practice with or if you can make up reduced recoil loads for the rifle you will hunt with, practice, practice, practice.
From field positions. Wearing the clothes you will wear on your hunt.

 

[Sikadog]

Its easy to read none of you have hunted in Scotland where it can rain constantly for days on end so you have to keep water out of a wooded stock. People have hunted with wooden stocks for over a hundred years .
Take off the barrel and treat the channel with a good wax furniture polish 3-4 coats replace the barrel and wax the outside of the stock it has never failed for me but we dont have bears just rain.
PS and RED DEER

 

[Cold Trigger Finger]

How much rain falls on the Lock Ness a year
I've lived on the coast of Alaska for close to 28 years. It rains 160" a year on a dry year in Ketchikan. . Sitka is pretty dry with 100" a year.

I used to wax and oil my stocks before synthetic were popular.
Its really important to treat all the ends of the stock. Take off the recoil pad and completely seal it.
Seal all the vertical surfaces in the action mortise . Seal all the wood. But especially the vertical grain.

 

[Sikadog]

The west coast of Scotland averages over 175 inches of rain a year.
I live about 160mls south of Scotland within 20 miles of the of the west coast and it has been a very wet year over 3 days at the begining of October it rained 4 inches of rain but the duck shooting was great we now need some winter weather.

 

[Akhunting]

This thread is getting a bit old but I figure to offer my $.02 as it is a subject I know something about. I lived in Sitka for 15 years but worked 9 miles north of the wettest weather station in the continental US, it was not unusual to average 2" a day during the entire month of October and averaged over 200" annually. During my time there I hunted an average of ~60+ days a year for deer, brown bear, black bear, mountain goats and ducks. Most of the time with a stainless synthetic gun but had plenty of opportunity to use wood/blued as well.

First off i would not recommend your gun for a bear hunt, 30-378 is certainly adequate but a bit over powered and under bored to be ideal. In most instances something like a a .338 WM or larger would be better suited. You dont really need something to shoot 600yds in most instances, especially if it is rainy, with associated fog and wind. I don't know where you are hunting so can not say about shot distances or hunting method. Most 30-378s also have 26"+ barrels that are not real convenient for close work. That being said, your wood stock will work fine but be prepared for it to develop some character (scratches, dings, etc) and i would do as others recommended and coat all surfaces and exposed grain with a quality penetrating wax, especially the barrel channel which most people neglect. i would also use a thick based protectant like LPS3 to coat all hidden metal, there are a lot of nice looking guns out there that are rusted to crap inside the stock. If it is a boat based hunt get a Pelican case for the plane/boat/skiff or a specialized dry bag and soft case for the skiff. I would also make sure once the hunt starts and the gun gets a bit wet to check and make sure the fore end does not swell or warp and start putting pressure on the barrel.

My thoughts on the subject, take it for what it's worth.

 

[Mossy49]

Figured I give my 2 cents,I live in Alaska in Fairbanks. I've hunted must in the state for over 25 years and would not recommend a wood stock up here at all. Would be cheaper to restock your rifle for the hunt, then ruin a nice rifle.Personally i would hunt with a 338WM or the trusty old 375 H&H..Up here it could be sunny and 10 minutes later its raining like a wildman. Weather is always changing.
Enjoy the Brown Bear hunt!!!!

 

[Cold Trigger Finger]

That's real great advice. I think the 338 is a lot easier to shoot than the big 30 . And I like it a lot better on brown bear I like the 375s much better than either

 

[hammertyme]

Not sure if our poster is still following his/this request for knowledge any more.

However some have taken the time to post some very valid and beneficial information that all can benefit from. 35 years in Kodiak and 2 years in Cordova have taught me many valuable lessons. Guiding taught me a few more.

If your gun is custom and special to you do NOT bring it into the brush country of Alaska. One slip or fall and that pride and joy is now ugly. I saw more than one super special, bought just for the hunt, weapon go from slightly rusty to extremely rusty with finish pealing off the stock.

I have spent a lot of time painting stocks, barreled actions and equipment trying any and everything for Alaska weather of every kind. My hunting rigs are either Nitrided stainless with Synthetic stocks or teflon coated with synthetic stocks. Laminated stocks do move with rainfall. But I am unaware of any honorable guide allowing a hunter to shoot at a brownie past 200 yards.
That being said, your gun is not normally going to have accuracy affected to miss a 200 yard shot.

A 200 grain premium 30 caliber bullet like the Barnes will flat out hammer any bear when putting the shot through both shoulders. Brownies are not very good at reading so are not impressed with the energy people say this cartridge produces. Like what has been said, 33 caliber diameter bullets and larger hit harder because of the larger surface diameter.

I do understand that a $15,000.- $20,000. hunt many times does not leave extra money for another gun. Be confident that the gun you have will more than do the job. An aweful lot of Bear have fallen to the 30-06!

I killed my first with a 358 Win Handgun and a 200grain Hornady.

Neal

 

[TX mountain hunter]

Thanks everyone for the recommendations and advise. I haven't given many replies but have been soaking in all of this information. I checked into the extra laminated stock idea but then got steered in the direction that if I'm paying for that and the work that I might as well buy a new rifle. Then I came to the conclusion I didn't have the money to be doing that. Fortunately, one of my friends has recently offered the use of his 375 built specifically for an Alaskan brown bear hunt. He's offered it up multiple times and this sounds like my best option. I hope to be able to go test this rifle out soon once the load is resolved and the scope is tailored for proper conditions. He's had some excellent results already with a 300 gr. TSX (2" at 400 and 4" at 600 yards, 5 mph wind). I'm thinking this could be pretty ideal as I should have a wolf tag in pocket and would like to be prepared for a long shot if necessary. The backup plan is a relatives wooden stock 460. He's taken it on this same hunt in the past and isn't worried about the weather. Still, I'm hesitant with the idea...

Thanks again to all for the replies. Merry Christmas!

 

[Cold Trigger Finger]

Sounds good execpt for the long range, but if its a wolf then long range is good. . Brown bear should be taken from as close as you can get to them. Some P.Hs up here like the 50 yard mark. Close enough to insure a good hit but far enough so the client doesn't soil himself or blow a no brainier shot.
I like less than 50 feet. And 20' is real exciting. With a 375 you should be good to go.
Are you able to Handload for the rifle. A mid book load using an inexpensive 270 gr.bullet makes a great field shooting practice load.
What scope is in the rifle. A 2-7x Leupold with a heavy duplex reticule is pretty ideal.

 

[Cold Trigger Finger]

The 460 is like the Hammer of Thor on brown bear. But with a 500 gr bullet at 2600 fps you will think that hammer hit you. A 350 gr TSX @2800 fps is pretty easy shooting and is like a death ray if put close to the right spot. Also, there are no bad angles on a bear with that combo as long as the impact is online with the vitals. I was shooting that bullet from my Lott at 2700 fps and it wasn't bad at all from that 9.3 lb rifle. I wanted to put that barrel on a 416Rigby action and have it reamed to 460 but I traded it before I did.

 

[TX mountain hunter]

The long range reference was for the wolf. I will shoot from where the guide recommends and no further on a brownie. Will also keep that in mind on the lighter loads. Thanks. The scope I believe goes down to a 2 power, I'm thinking he got a VX-6...

 

[Africa Shooter]

I have wondered about taking my 375 with wood stock to Alaska .

 

[akdad]

I love wood stocks but ak is not nice to them at all.