Bear protection handguns?

[WYO300RUM]

Not saying easy, but long shots are likely wasted shots. If one can maintain their composure….a good hit at under 10 feet is a lot easier than a shot at 10 + yards.

Also, when you shot a bear, it must be justified by the investigating officers. It matters not what you see as justifiable! memtb

Stick to your black bears brother. 10k fine if the USFW nazi feds don't think you shot in self defense . All this bs on calibers for griz in numerous threads has got me wanting to puke. Most have never seen a griz let alone hunted where they are. I read for humor but I think I'm done with the "what should I I
Use in bear country " threads. I carry it all. Pistol. Oh ya , I want to spray 15 rounds of 10mm . That's my goal. Not a well placed head shot... I carry bear spray. A 6 in. Straight blade. My Chesapeake if I'm hunting alone. He minds my commands and doesn't chase anything.Try cutyi g up a deer or elk by yourself in the North or South Fork of Shoshone river. There's a few here who know what I'm talking about . Hope someone from another state starts another bear/pistol thread so I can laugh. Wait.no I don't want to. Goodnight.

 

[HNDLDR]

@WYO300RUM You did your part to get us to the 50 page mark. That's what counts in these bear defense threads.

 

[Tactical45]

I use my G21 SF with a G20 10mm KKM barrel and G20 mag full of Buffalo bore.

 

[Morrison]

When I was hunting Colorado, Wyoming and Utah I was carrying a Charter Arms 44 Special. This is a lightweight gun that was easy to carry. Alaska is a different situation, the 44mag has been there for a long time but I think that I would prefer the 480 Ruger. It is something that I can shoot that is less punishing than the 454, 460, 500 magnums.

 

[memtb]

When I was hunting Colorado, Wyoming and Utah I was carrying a Charter Arms 44 Special. This is a lightweight gun that was easy to carry. Alaska is a different situation, the 44mag has been there for a long time but I think that I would prefer the 480 Ruger. It is something that I can shoot that is less punishing than the 454, 460, 500 magnums.

If ya handload, any of those magnums will "end to end" most any bear using a heavy, fairly high BHN @ around 1200 mv. as per the late John Linebaugh…….who did extensive testing with bigbore revolvers on various large animals. That will help reduce recoil to a pretty comfortable range.

You can always bump the velocities up to flatten trajectories for their use when handgun hunting, to give a bit more effective range! memtb

 

[VLD Pilot]

Why do you assume the Glock guys are spraying and praying and mag dumping?

Isn't a bear with one 10mm through the brain just as dead as a bear with a 500 S&W through the brain?

I have a 10mm (not an Glock) and a double action 454 Casull. Would feel just as comfortable with either.

You get the shot right you win, you don't, might not be your day.

You'll get more opportunities to get that "One brain shot" with a 10mm than with a 500 or 460. I can't get more than two good shots off with my 460 on a moving target advancing at me at 20 yards real accurately. I can get 7-8 shots off with my 10mm with the same scenario AND shot placement is much better. I'm sure there are guys that can but I'm not one of them. I'd much rather have a 460 hit a bear in the head than a 10mm but I'm not much of a gambler. I'll roll the dice with the Glock. I'm all for anything that shoots best for someone. For me, it's the 10mm.

 

[stazmania]

PMR 30 22 mag

 

[wilkup]

You'll get more opportunities to get that "One brain shot" with a 10mm than with a 500 or 460. I can't get more than two good shots off with my 460 on a moving target advancing at me at 20 yards real accurately. I can get 7-8 shots off with my 10mm with the same scenario AND shot placement is much better. I'm sure there are guys that can but I'm not one of them. I'd much rather have a 460 hit a bear in the head than a 10mm but I'm not much of a gambler. I'll roll the dice with the Glock. I'm all for anything that shoots best for someone. For me, it's the 10mm.

I feel the same. Even though we supposedly have grizzly where I hunt I actually just carry the Buffalo Bore 9mm Outdoorsman in my Glock 17 if I'm not packing a short levergun in hand. If WA succeeds in importing more of them from MT or Canada as they're proposing, I may be stepping up to the 10mm.

 

[VLD Pilot]

I feel the same. Even though we supposedly have grizzly where I hunt I actually just carry the Buffalo Bore 9mm Outdoorsman in my Glock 17 if I'm not packing a short levergun in hand. If WA succeeds in importing more of them from MT or Canada as they're proposing, I may be stepping up to the 10mm.

There are some on this forum that have no use for the semi auto platform due to possible dependability issues and inferiority to the big bores. Also the non-magnums are also inferior to many for bear defense. Because we're not voting on the matter and it's only opinion and some cases where a 9mm, 10mm or 45 ACP have got the job done without failure, everyone is happy with what they use or carry. I tried the big wheel gun option with less than satisfying results (carrying and slower followup shots mostly). I'd much rather have a shotgun in my hands if ever faced with an attack and I do carry one on my pack on certain hunts. Mostly for a camp gun. Couple years ago a forum member from Alaska posted some of his targets with his big bore wheel gun. He has a range and uses it for hand gun training. He certainly seemed very proficient with it and if I were him, I'd use that gun also. He's the minority of big bore wheel gunners. Most can't put many in the bull with accurate and fast follow ups. Kudos to him for his dedication to make that happen with a big heavy recoil wheel gun. I can get maybe 2 shots in the bull fast but follow ups after that are not where I'd want them on a charge by a bear.

 

[ohlongarmisle]

You'll get more opportunities to get that "One brain shot" with a 10mm than with a 500 or 460. I can't get more than two good shots off with my 460 on a moving target advancing at me at 20 yards real accurately. I can get 7-8 shots off with my 10mm with the same scenario AND shot placement is much better. I'm sure there are guys that can but I'm not one of them. I'd much rather have a 460 hit a bear in the head than a 10mm but I'm not much of a gambler. I'll roll the dice with the Glock. I'm all for anything that shoots best for someone. For me, it's the 10mm.

Sounds great but I pose one question how many can remain composed under high stress,been in two gunfights ,cruiser struck 4 times ,my partners and myself went towards the threat and ultimately won, a bear is nothing,especially when a 3in 000 buck slams his noggin,very hard to miss, 50 yards from a big bear is unnerving but with the right mindset it can provide a positive outcome,that's the closest I ever came but was 12 feet up, and he made me.

 

[VLD Pilot]

Sounds great but I pose one question how many can remain composed under high stress,been in two gunfights ,cruiser struck 4 times ,my partners and myself went towards the threat and ultimately won, a bear is nothing,especially when a 3in 000 buck slams his noggin,very hard to miss, 50 yards from a big bear is unnerving but with the right mindset it can provide a positive outcome,that's the closest I ever came but was 12 feet up, and he made me.

Very few. 12 gauge rules without a doubt. Nobody knows what their made of until an encounter of either occurs.

 

[ohlongarmisle]

Very few. 12 gauge rules without a doubt. Nobody knows what their made of until an encounter of either occurs.

I still shudder thinking how I wasn't even phased under gunfire, and fleeting thoughts of my family and training is all I remember, and how ****ed off we were that some dirtbag fired upon us, he got life in the big house 32 years old ,three years ago.

 

[VLD Pilot]

I still shudder thinking how I wasn't even phased under gunfire, and fleeting thoughts of my family and training is all I remember, and how ****ed off we were that some dirtbag fired upon us, he got life in the big house 32 years old ,three years ago.

Not all LE officers react the same in a real life scenario. All train equally while on the clock but some in their hearts train for their own personal lives and for an event while defending their own life or family while off duty. That's how I always looked at my training. Sure the chances are greater that I'll need it while on duty but I always considered the defense of my family to be more important to me. I've been composed during a few scenarios, one being a bear incident while in a tree. Never fired my pistol as the bear got within 3ft of me but decided to draw my spray and hose her down. Her and cubs vanished very rapidly after that.

 

[Taj]

There are some on this forum that have no use for the semi auto platform due to possible dependability issues and inferiority to the big bores. Also the non-magnums are also inferior to many for bear defense. Because we're not voting on the matter and it's only opinion and some cases where a 9mm, 10mm or 45 ACP have got the job done without failure, everyone is happy with what they use or carry. I tried the big wheel gun option with less than satisfying results (carrying and slower followup shots mostly). I'd much rather have a shotgun in my hands if ever faced with an attack and I do carry one on my pack on certain hunts. Mostly for a camp gun. Couple years ago a forum member from Alaska posted some of his targets with his big bore wheel gun. He has a range and uses it for hand gun training. He certainly seemed very proficient with it and if I were him, I'd use that gun also. He's the minority of big bore wheel gunners. Most can't put many in the bull with accurate and fast follow ups. Kudos to him for his dedication to make that happen with a big heavy recoil wheel gun. I can get maybe 2 shots in the bull fast but follow ups after that are not where I'd want them on a charge by a bear.

You guys are all correct, however I'm going to stay with my model 29 5". Auto stuffers under most conditions are extremely reliable but after teaching firearms for almost 40 years at a POST certified academy, I can tell you that they still do, in fact, have the occasional stoppage even in perfect conditions. Whether it's ammo, firearm or shooter induced is sort of irrelevant. Most folks do not practice or even know how to properly clear a stoppage and I have seen many an untrained individual make the situation worse by improper clearing methods. Revolvers can aslo malfunction but the biggest concern for a properly maintained wheel gun is a failure to fire. The malfunction clearing drill for that (DA) is to just pull the trigger again, which can be done with one hand. CQB with a big bruin might increase the chances for a shooter induced stoppage and it generally takes two hands (or one hand and one of something else) to clear it which may or may not be available if a big bear is sitting on your chest. There is also the fact that most folks get wrapped around the axle over big magnum velocity, which by physics increases recoil. Randy Garrett of Garrett ammo proved along time ago that a heavy for caliber, properly constructed bullet out a .44 mag at just under a 1000 fps will pass completely trough any bear alive at just about any angle. There are published papers to that effect on Garrett's website and are great reading for aspiring ballisticians. I load a hardcast 320 grain LBT or Montana Bullets at 995 fps and it's surprisingly easy on the hand and gun. It has a big meplat and I have killed numerous very large hogs with that load. Complete pass through is the norm. I teach wound ballistics for a living and have shot a lot of gelatin. I have personally shot that same load completely through two 16" blocks of 10% gel (end to end) and it kept on trucking. My wife handles and shoots that load out of her S&W Mountain Gun and is pretty fast at follow up shots. I'm not against auto loaders if that's what a person wants to carry in bear country but like anything else one needs to consider the worst case scenario.