Brown bear Rifle

[Pdvdh]

Big difference between killing a bear that can't possibly reach / injure / kill you, versus hunting a bear that can reach and kill you - and stopping that bear quickly enough to avoid injury / death should it come after you.

Hunting baited bear from the safety of a tree stand, I've watched video filmed near my home of a guy killing a bear with a hand held spear. Exciting... yes. Was the hunter ever in danger that any bear could injure or kill him from the safety of his tree stand... no.
Never heard of, or seen a video of anyone carrying solely a spear on foot into the alders following up a bear.

Likewise, never seen or heard of anyone carrying a 22 caliber anything into the brush following up a potentially wounded bear. No licensed Alaskan bear guides carry 22 caliber while guiding their client bear hunters.

On the other hand, I knew one local hunter that was killed by a local brown bear after failing to stop it with a rifle chambered in 280 Rem. And I know another local hunter that was mauled by a brown bear after failing to stop it with a rifle chambered in 30-06. Happens on a fairly continuous basis. With cartridges much more powerful than any 22 cartridge.

Doubt the OP was seeking advice for a brown bear rifle/cartridge that could kill a brown bear restrained in a snare or a cage trap, from the safety of an elevated tree stand, or from a hovering helicopter.

Discussion of hunting unrestrained brown bear from ground level with a 22 caliber anything rifle/cartridge is when/where this Thread left earth's atmosphere and entered Never-Never Land. Akin to Timothy Treadwell believing that Alaskan brown bears could be his friends, and needed his guardian presence and protection. Was only a matter of time... and one hungry bear uninterested in friendship. Consequence? Treadwell and his girlfriend both gone, killed and eaten by a brown bear prioritizing survival.

Opportunistic predators. Give them enough opportunity, risk predation.

 

[comfisherman]

Let's be honest, nobody is ponying up for a brown or Grizzly hunt and packing a 223. If ya do more power to you, you've proved money doesn't buy good sense.

If I hear a guy gets tore up packing a 223 cause he read it on the innernet... I'm just gonna laugh and hope his genetics mixed smarter.

 

[akmtnhnt]

Let's be honest, nobody is ponying up for a brown or Grizzly hunt and packing a 223. If ya do more power to you, you've proved money doesn't buy good sense.

If I hear a guy gets tore up packing a 223 cause he read it on the innernet... I'm just gonna laugh and hope his genetics mixed smarter.

I don't know about on a guided hunt but the locals kill them with 223 every day...from ground level. The one guy just posted photos on the thread in question the other day.

 

[Noobie]

I know that all of those animals that you just wrote about can hurt you, but..... they do not weigh in at 800-1400 pounds, have a nasty disposition with teeth and claws that will tear a person apart "just because", and will fight to the death for their cubs or for their latest kill. I have a post in this thread somewhere in the "500+" replies where a group of hunters, who have been hunting Alaska for decades, switched from .300 WinMags to controlled feed .338 WinMags because one of the group was seriously injured by a wounded bear. I wrote controlled feed because when he tried to rack in another round the extractor (Browning X Bolt?) pulled through the rim of the case causing a catastrophic jamb when the bolt picked up the followup round out of the magazine. I haven't read Creedmoor yet, perhaps a .22 Creedmoor with a 77 grain TMK will get the job done But... I would not want to be the one doing the evaluation of that combination.

Was curious as to the status of the OP since this has been going since 2021 and he was going on a brown bear hunt in 'a couple years', and was wondering about upgrading his 300 winmag / nosler partition combo.
As of this week it seems he has been looking for a 'controlled feed' .375 H&H rifle for a griz hunt. Still seems to be leaning towards a Nosler Partition however. Due to my experience of a partition shedding pretty much everything on an elk at close range, with no heavy bone hits, I have never used them again. Swift A-frames have a far heavier construction.
Regarding the controlled feed thing, it appears they are highly favored in Africa where it is really hot and humid. That could definitely cause extraction issues, especially in the 'hot' handloads people tend to favor on this forum. Not sure what the conditions were in Alaska to cause the rim tearout he cited. One thing I personally don't like about controlled feed actions is that most can't be easily fed a single round.
One nice thing about the .375 H&H is the tapered case. That is definitely going to ease extraction issues. It is one of the reasons the 7.62X39 is so incredibly reliable in very harsh conditions and inexperienced hands.

 

[INVICTUS]

Planning on a once in a lifetime brown bear Alaskan hunt in a couple years. Have a 300 Win Mag that shoots 220 Nosler partitions and 200 Nosler partitions quite well. Don't really want to buy another rifle but should I move up to a 338 class? Thinking of either a 33 Nosler, 338 WM or 338 ultra??? Opinions???

I just left Alaska last year (military). I spend quite a bit of hours in the wilderness wherever I am and Alaska was no exception. I talked to numerous guides about what rifle they carried on their hunts and this may surprise you, as it certainly did me.
For Brown Bear, they all carried 6.5 PRC.
I was shocked that the answer wasn’t 338 win mag or similar.
That is what they carry.

Good luck and let me know if need someone to tag along!

 

[GMcQLSU]

Planning on a once in a lifetime brown bear Alaskan hunt in a couple years. Have a 300 Win Mag that shoots 220 Nosler partitions and 200 Nosler partitions quite well. Don't really want to buy another rifle but should I move up to a 338 class? Thinking of either a 33 Nosler, 338 WM or 338 ultra??? Opinions???

375H&H…. Shot mine at 17 steps. Glad I had a heavy caliber!!

 

[Reemty J]

He must have looked huge at 17 steps

 

[Lionel Boyd Johnson]

I just left Alaska last year (military). I spend quite a bit of hours in the wilderness wherever I am and Alaska was no exception. I talked to numerous guides about what rifle they carried on their hunts and this may surprise you, as it certainly did me.
For Brown Bear, they all carried 6.5 PRC.
I was shocked that the answer wasn't 338 win mag or similar.
That is what they carry.

Good luck and let me know if need someone to tag along!

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View attachment 577231

Invictus: You say ALL the guides you talked to carry 6.5 PRC rifles when hunting or guiding (?) brown bear. That is simply remarkable. How many guides did you talk to? Do they all hang out together, compare rifle performance, etc? Just curious. Thanks.

 

[Reemty J]

I was just on Kodiak in April with three guides rifles as follows 375 ruger, 375 ruger, 375HH AI that is my limited findings, in the airport or hotel locals as follows 375 Ruger, 375 ruger, 340 weatherby, just a small sample

 

[Tommy T]

Planning on a once in a lifetime brown bear Alaskan hunt in a couple years. Have a 300 Win Mag that shoots 220 Nosler partitions and 200 Nosler partitions quite well. Don't really want to buy another rifle but should I move up to a 338 class? Thinking of either a 33 Nosler, 338 WM or 338 ultra??? Opinions???

I would go with the 33 Nosler and a235 hammer bullet loaded with n560 powder I run 80.7 grains in mine or a 338 lapua with the 300 gn. Nosler ACB just remember it’s not so much as the rifle as it is the guy that’s pulling the trigger good luck on what ever you go with

 

[zeeman]

I started this thread three years ago! I still enjoy reading all the comments! Ended up buying a Montana rifles company 375 H&H. CRF. 2 1/2 to 8 Leupold scope recently. Haven’t shot it yet, but quite excited about it. A bit heavier than most of my hunting rifles. So I will have to get used to it. might still take my 300 win mag though as it is a very comfortable rifle force spot stock hunting.

 

[Smokepole50]

The 375 H&H should cover all your needs. I would have picked a 35 Whelen or a 9.3x62 built on. Mauser 98 or Husqvarna 1600 action. They are both more than powerful enough and they carry 5 rounds of ammo. The 9.3 can have a 286 GR bullet and is legal in parts of Africa for cape buffalo. The 35 Whelen is very powerful with 225 or 250gr bullets and doesn't kick to hard for practice. The 375 h&h is a slight bump up on the 9.3x62. 375 ammo is much more expensive that the 9.3 or 35 Whelen.
Hope you hunt is successful......

 

[bballard]

Never hunted brown bear, but if I ever do, no doubt I'm taking my 375 h&h. I was born at night, but not last night.

 

[Turkeytider]

Anywhere in the vitals. They don't wear body armor.

A guy just did this year. Post #6978.

They're killed all the time by the native's who prefer 223 and 243.

Most people aren't familiar with the anatomy of a bear and shoot too far forward. There is less hide bone and muscle between you and the vitals of a bear then there is an elk from a broadside shot.

I don't know why people don't think a 223 will kill just about anything. Arrows kill bears just fine. If you can bow hunt it, you can hunt it with a 223 successfully.

I`ve personally never said that I didn`t think a .223 " will kill just about anything ". Hell`s bells, it would kill an elephant if you hit it in just the right spot. AND had enough ammunition. The question, at least for me, is " Can " vs. " Should ".