davlandrum
New member
At Ft. Lewis it was a Black bear, even though it may have been brown in color. It was not a Brown bear.
Not hunting but need the power
- Thread starter DBLAction454
- Start date
Ok i was off on my numbers, but my sentiment still stands. The guy with the 500magnum didnt have properly designed bullets. A 454 with either hard cast lead, or some of the buffalo bore JSP(they say theres are tougher with a thick jacket) will penetrate to the desired depth. THe 454 has been proven to killl every animal that walks the earth, why wouldnt it take out a bear?
Again the rifle is a better weapon, hands down sure, but that dosent change the fact that out side of Alaska(which is as close to a wild wilderness as it gets in the usa) were you can open carry any gun you wish you cant do that most other places. Here in the lower 48 if your any place were their sizeable numbers of people, such as the afformentioned parks, and other public land, you will get harrassed and or arrested. For most of the places here that joe blow gun owner goes to that is inhabited by bears, and handcannon is going to work out better for him..
Again the rifle is a better weapon, hands down sure, but that dosent change the fact that out side of Alaska(which is as close to a wild wilderness as it gets in the usa) were you can open carry any gun you wish you cant do that most other places. Here in the lower 48 if your any place were their sizeable numbers of people, such as the afformentioned parks, and other public land, you will get harrassed and or arrested. For most of the places here that joe blow gun owner goes to that is inhabited by bears, and handcannon is going to work out better for him..
TheGoldenState
New member
Bear Spray and a Smith 8-shot .357 mag
Art Eatman
Staff in Memoriam
There are different pepper sprays which have differing amounts of capsicum. The seem to range from Merely Hot on up to "Oh, my God!" There is a good bit of literature on that subject, here and there around the Internet.
semi_problomatic
New member
I wonder if you'd get in trouble carrying a Saigas 12 loaded with slugs through a state park?
Maybe a 20 round magazine in. Now THATS bear defence.
Maybe a 20 round magazine in. Now THATS bear defence.grubbylabs
New member
As much as I like my 329 PD in 44 mag I think in this case the 12g would be the way to go for people who travel the country in an RV. Plus you can alternate rounds with slug and shot to be the most effective and if you are in a camp ground the short range effectiveness of the 12g shot will be important. Would be a bummer to send a high powered hand gun or rifle round astray and hit an innocent person.
I would also consider the spray since there is no chance of fatally wounding someone two camp spaces over when you miss the charging bear.
I would also consider the spray since there is no chance of fatally wounding someone two camp spaces over when you miss the charging bear.
Late, so I am. If Yogi, of any flavour, is within 100 yards, you'll never be fast enough. He can run at about 35 mph. He'll cover that 100 yards in less than 6 seconds. You think you can recognise the danger, make the decision to shoot then draw, aim and accurately place a shot in that little time? In any case, no handgun bullet will guarantee a one shot kill, never mind stopping him if he's PO'd.
"...some 00 buck wood(SIC) work fine..." Absolutely not. Not enough energy to be reliable. Certainly totally useless past 40ish yards. Yogi will be on you in 2.33 seconds.
"...considering loading .30 black tip A/P..." Those will go right through even a very big bear's and do nothing. .30 AP was for penetrating light armour. Yogi isn't armoured at all.
"...some 00 buck wood(SIC) work fine..." Absolutely not. Not enough energy to be reliable. Certainly totally useless past 40ish yards. Yogi will be on you in 2.33 seconds.
"...considering loading .30 black tip A/P..." Those will go right through even a very big bear's and do nothing. .30 AP was for penetrating light armour. Yogi isn't armoured at all.
a few things
a shotgun with slugs or sabots (if your choke will allow it) is by far the best, but unless your paranoid or will be very close to a boat or vehicle you will probably not have immediate access to it. I have heard reports of rubber shot being effective at preventing negative human bear interactions before they start. ie problem bear keeps sniffing around camp and you teach him a lesson. not sure about legality there as its not something i do. bear spray is iffy in that you can unintentionally fog yourself and bystanders so be wind aware. it is also very dangerous in small planes where if it accidentally go off in the cabin. ziplock it and put it in the float if you can. additionally the only time i used it it was at ten feet and the brown bear was dead down wind, while the bear went away it was back in ten minutes so we left the area. i feel that handguns are a viable option but not in the quick draw scenario that most people imagine but rather to dispatch a bear that is on top of someone at minimal distance with particular and crucial attention being paid to putting your shots into the bears skull and not your companion. also be aware of how relatively unpowerful most big bore handguns are as compared to a rifle you would select to harvest a bear under favorable circumstances.
More important than any of this is to not cook where you camp. keep food in bear resistant containers and clean up your trash. if possible cook in a tidal area where the tide will reduce cooking smell somewhat when they flood the area. there are also portable bear fences that never seem to go back into the bag they came from but are most definitely effective even at very low voltage. make human noise as you go though beary areas and dont wear those bear bells or use whistles as they mean nothing to a bear, your voice is much more effective and will not infuriate your companions. also unless you feel like you will die if you do not never fire infront or over a bear to scare it as it will learn to disregard gunfire. if you need to use your weapon to deter a bear be sure and use it for what its intended for. that got a little longer than intended but it should be reasonably thorough.
a shotgun with slugs or sabots (if your choke will allow it) is by far the best, but unless your paranoid or will be very close to a boat or vehicle you will probably not have immediate access to it. I have heard reports of rubber shot being effective at preventing negative human bear interactions before they start. ie problem bear keeps sniffing around camp and you teach him a lesson. not sure about legality there as its not something i do. bear spray is iffy in that you can unintentionally fog yourself and bystanders so be wind aware. it is also very dangerous in small planes where if it accidentally go off in the cabin. ziplock it and put it in the float if you can. additionally the only time i used it it was at ten feet and the brown bear was dead down wind, while the bear went away it was back in ten minutes so we left the area. i feel that handguns are a viable option but not in the quick draw scenario that most people imagine but rather to dispatch a bear that is on top of someone at minimal distance with particular and crucial attention being paid to putting your shots into the bears skull and not your companion. also be aware of how relatively unpowerful most big bore handguns are as compared to a rifle you would select to harvest a bear under favorable circumstances.
More important than any of this is to not cook where you camp. keep food in bear resistant containers and clean up your trash. if possible cook in a tidal area where the tide will reduce cooking smell somewhat when they flood the area. there are also portable bear fences that never seem to go back into the bag they came from but are most definitely effective even at very low voltage. make human noise as you go though beary areas and dont wear those bear bells or use whistles as they mean nothing to a bear, your voice is much more effective and will not infuriate your companions. also unless you feel like you will die if you do not never fire infront or over a bear to scare it as it will learn to disregard gunfire. if you need to use your weapon to deter a bear be sure and use it for what its intended for. that got a little longer than intended but it should be reasonably thorough.