Real Bear Encounters Handgun Vs Bear Spray, Handgun wins!

[Joefrazell]

I personally do carry bear spray, and a sidearm. It just stays on my pack and is always ready. Personally I'd rather spray a bear thats bluff charging me with spay then have to shoot it. I think knowing when to apply what is the key. Sidearm would be first to come out in a serious situation. If the bear isn't commiting to charge it will get a face full of spray with my sidearm in my other hand.

 

[FEENIX]

I carry both bear spray and sidearm (previously .44 Mag, now 10MM) that readily available when hunting. When hiking/camping, my Karelian Bear Dog tags along.

 

[Jerry M]

I never understood why it's either or? Carry both the spray and the handgun as stated above.

 

[Pdvdh]

I never understood why it's either or? Carry both the spray and the handgun as stated above.

I've heard of, and personally seen, where there's not enough time to use either. If carrying both allows one to feel safer, yeah, carry both. On the other hand, in a dead serious attack, many may prefer to use the little time available attempting to employ the more effective of the two. If that's a firearm, I'll carry two. For those that don't like handguns, or can't shoot them, that could be bear spray. If that's the case, maybe carry two cans of bear spray. In case one fails to discharge, or discharges and doesn't deter the bear. So I understand one or the other, rather than both. Not gonna carry a spear or a billy club, in addition to a firearm.

For those contemplating bear spray, Post #307 in this Thread, https://www.longrangehunting.com/threads/bear-spray-vs-bullets.149875/page-22 offers a recent example of bear spray failing to deter an attack. Last month in Hope, Alaska, bear spray was completely expelled, and did not deter the bear. From the evidence at the scene, officials believe the bear was a female brown bear. The safety was removed from the can of bear spray, and the can emptied of its contents. A 46 year old man bet his life on bear spray. He was found savagely mauled..., dead.

The examples of use of bear spray that count the most, in my opinion, are use against bears committed to killing you. All other examples carry and speak much less to effectiveness, in comparison. Might have been ***** bears that were never serious enough to have made physical contact in the first place. Bears come in all different flavors. The ones protecting cubs, a meat cache, and the predatory bears intent on eating you, are the ones most apt to kill. The Hope, Alaska incident was one of those dead serious attacks. Score zero for bear spray in this incident.

 

[Dirtrax]

It's hard for modern folks to grasp the concept of the pure savage intent to utterly defeat any perceived threat that many wild animals harbor. It's not good or evil, it just is. Banking on winning a close encounter with them is necessary but the odds are in their favor. I choose the lethal response and I never try to ascertain whether one is bluffing or not. The stakes are too high. If becoming a bear turd sits well with you then spray away.

 

[J E Custom]

I carry both bear spray and sidearm (previously .44 Mag, now 10MM) that readily available when hunting. When hiking/camping, my Karelian Bear Dog tags along.

Now that, is the best of all. The dogs will at least give you warning and keep the bare busy long enough to dispatch them. With the dogs you can leave the spray at home and not distract them with the spray

J E CUSTOM

 

[memtb]

Just my opinion here. The majority of bear encounters take place in rather close quarters, and happen very quickly. If you do not have the handgun or the spray in hand at the time of the encounter.....you'll likely "not clear leather"! If you are in bear country, in a limited visibility area....you use the rifle that is in your hands. If hunting in limited visibility country, and the rifle is "not" in your hands.....you ain't hunting! I don't foresee me dropping my rifle to deploy pepper spray or go for my handgun! If rifle hunting, and you didn't have time (very possible) to use the rifle, the handgun "may" be of use after the bear has you down....if you are "not" already incapacitated! memtb

 

[dogz]

Always a fun and entertaining discussion... for me the bottom line on this is use what you're most proficient with. Seriously, drop the ego, and use what you have the most chance of success, hence surviving with.

IMO, there's a very small percentage of the hunters out there that truly possess the skills, cool and calm needed to effectively protect themselves via a handgun (and in a lot of cases with a long gun). That's not a dig, but it's a fact.

I know a lot of guys who carry a handgun and yet they rarely ever fire it, let alone practice bringing it to action from a holster in a nanno! That's a major part of the reason I encourage people to consider spray over a handgun. The spray will give most people the best chest to deploy and survive with.

Whichever one chooses, just be sure to have it at easy access, not covered up. In regards to the spray, I worked with it a bit last spring and found I could leave it in the UDAP holster, on my packs belt and put it to action while in the holster using my left hand.

That said, I carry a handgun, for the most part it's a Glock 10 in a Kenai Gunslinger chest holster. I'm comfy with the outfit, and I can skin it and get it into action now.

Whichever you use, practice a ton with it, don't be that guy that shoots 50 rounds a year at the range and feels like he's ready to rock.

Just a thunk

 

[Bravo 4]

It's hard for modern folks to grasp the concept of the pure savage intent to utterly defeat any perceived threat that many wild animals harbor.

It's hard for some to imagine there are people like this. Would you want to spray some stingy in their face and hope for the best? Never been toe to toe with a bear, fought a rather bowed up 6'9" 350 lbs guy once that was jacked up on something that made him the man of steel. As big and hard to handle as that guy was, he didn't have the speed of a race horse, 4" daggers on all 4's, and wanted to eat my face off (well maybe this). Couldn't imagine trying to fight off a ferocious beast with a can of peppers.

Just adding my worthless $.02 to the rest of the ante...there is a coin shortage you know.

 

[Old Rooster]

phorwath said what I was thinking,"if the spray deploys".
My brother in law used to be very active outdoors and always carried bear spray and a 454.
While high in the mountains in his favorite spot he encountered a bear and it looked mad!He started walking at first toward my brother in law yelled and the bear kept coming so he grabbed the bear spray and at 30 feet from a live person my brother in law deployed the bear spray,the spray went about 3 feet and stopped.He grabbed the 454 but not before the bear ran at him and bumped him while full speed running past him.He never got the 454 out completely before the bear bumped him and of course he fell down.
Thankfully it was a semi false charge but I learned a valuable lesson that spray can fail and if you have a jacket on over the 454 you are less likely to deploy the firearm before the bear is on top of you.
They are super fast.
Just my 2 cents
Old Rooster

 

[Dirtrax]

Always a fun and entertaining discussion... for me the bottom line on this is use what you're most proficient with. Seriously, drop the ego, and use what you have the most chance of success, hence surviving with.

IMO, there's a very small percentage of the hunters out there that truly possess the skills, cool and calm needed to effectively protect themselves via a handgun (and in a lot of cases with a long gun). That's not a dig, but it's a fact.

I know a lot of guys who carry a handgun and yet they rarely ever fire it, let alone practice bringing it to action from a holster in a nanno! That's a major part of the reason I encourage people to consider spray over a handgun. The spray will give most people the best chest to deploy and survive with.

Whichever one chooses, just be sure to have it at easy access, not covered up. In regards to the spray, I worked with it a bit last spring and found I could leave it in the UDAP holster, on my packs belt and put it to action while in the holster using my left hand.

That said, I carry a handgun, for the most part it's a Glock 10 in a Kenai Gunslinger chest holster. I'm comfy with the outfit, and I can skin it and get it into action now.

Whichever you use, practice a ton with it, don't be that guy that shoots 50 rounds a year at the range and feels like he's ready to rock.

Just a thunk

I'm an old IPSC Master. I can "clear leather" and deliver 6 "A" zone hits at 10yds in 3-4 seconds (Bill drill). That is with a comp gun with the old power factor of 175 mimicking a .357 mag. With my .44 mag revolver the time is more like 12-15 seconds using appropriate gear. That's not quick enough because a Man with a knife can cover 9yds in about 1-1/2 seconds. A bear can do at least that and probably better. So handgun vs bear spray...The difference is that center mass counts with a handgun but not with spray. Handgun wins the debate but not necessarily the encounter. So if the encounter is framed in survival as opposed to leaving unscathed the handgun still wins. It does make a strong argument for a 10mm semi auto if ya think about it. It's been shown that survivors often fire, or continue to fire while being mauled and live to tell about it. I'm assuming worst case rather a bear 30-50yds away.
BTW...Bravo 4 it sounds like you did have a bear encounter! Glad you made it out alive!

 

[Old Rooster]

If anyone thinks a roller coaster ride is scary just get within a couple of feet from a grizz.
I wet my pants but he just wanted my elk I guess.
I carry a 629 44 mag with 310 hard cast bullets now.If spray makes you feel good then carry it on one hip and on the other carry your favorite beast killer.
Old Rooster

 

[dogz]

I'm an old IPSC Master. I can "clear leather" and deliver 6 "A" zone hits at 10yds in 3-4 seconds (Bill drill). That is with a comp gun with the old power factor of 175 mimicking a .357 mag.

You're getting it Dirtrax---that's the kind of speed/accuracy that one needs to strive for! When one considers that a G Bear can cover 25 yards in less that 2-3 seconds......

Personally I feel that the Glock 10 is a good compromise of weight, ease to shoot, ability to come out of recoil and get back on target. Plus in the Kenai chest holster, worn outside the clothes one can get it into action toot sweet!

I (and my fam) do all our speed drills at 10 yards or less.

 

[Old Rooster]

Dirtrrax I wish I had the experience you have as it would be valuable in many different areas of life.
I have told my experience with a grizz encounter a couple of times so I won't bore anybody but if someone had told me a 500 pound bear can cover 40 yards as quick as that grizz did I would find it hard to believe but it did!
If you have a long range encounter it would be different but most encounters happen at close distances and you might have time to get to one defensive weapon but not two in my opinion.
Again,just my 2 cents
Old Rooster