jeepsuck

im looking for people with personal experience hunting bears or defending themselves from bears.

the reason i ask is because i want to purchase a handgun with enough oomph to stop an attacking bear from hurting myself or my camp. i have and idea of what kind of gun i need to stop a bear, but im wondering what is a "safe" distance to shoot a bear from? if he's already in my camp tearing apart my truck looking for people (as) food is he too close for me to safely dispatch him, with say... a .500 S&W? can a bear be stopped dead in his tracks with enough firepower? i realize that i may not need so much handgun to stop the average bear, but the ridiculousness of the 500 SW is appealing to me.

either way i want a gun that can be ready at a moments notice and posseses the authority to tell ol' Yogi that hes not welcome in my picanic basket!

i guess this is a two part question: is it safe to shoot a bear at close range (25 ft) with the proper shooting iron?

what caliber would you reccomend for self defense in bear country?

westcoaster

http://www.pistolmikes.com/870expsyn18.htm

My opinion (not through personal experiance) is a 12GA shotgun and alternate between slugs and shot when loading. In a hurry, you won't have to be all that accurate and the 12GA has more than enough stopping power when using the 3" magnum shells


The further away from a bear you are before shooting it the better off you are. You can shoot one from 25 feet but that is far from safe. The animal won't drop right away and when you are that close it will more than likely be very very agitated (before the first shot) and very angry after the first shot.

Timberman

If you have a sudden urgent need to shoot a bear, I doubt you'll worry if it's too close or not. You'll know. If you must have a handgun, there are several out there now just for packing in bear country, I think Smith and Ruger both make one with a short barrel in calibers around .50 or 500. I would much rather have a shotgun with slugs, which is what a lot of guides carry, or you could get one of Marlin's Guide guns, chambered in either 444, 450, or 45-70. They'll put a real stomping on a bear, where a handgun is just for stuffing down his throat and pulling the trigger.

Hondo

What kind of bear? Grizzly, or black bear? Doubt you have too many griz' in southern california. Black bears are not that hard to kill. Something in the .44 cal or .45 Colt will stop the average Blackie. Griz are another story go big or go as supper...

Hondo

MikeyB

I'm with the other members here, 12ga riot shotgun that can handle 3" mags or a Marlin Guide in one of the .44-.45 caliber offerings.

MikeyB

wannadiesel

S&W now has a couple of "emergency kits".



http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/w...07&isFirearm=Y

Silverjay

May not be ideal, but I know a 41 mag will work. 5 rounds at ~15 feet did the trick. By the way, don't flyfish laying on your side in western Colorado.

Fronty Owner

there are also some chemicals to prevent bear attacks.
from personal experience in the woods, bears will usually slink off and avoid humans. if you pursue, or startle one, especially a sow with cubs, you will get hurt.

jeepsuck

well, the reason i lean more towards a handgun is because i want something that i could easily carry on my side or in a backpack while on a hike or some other activity where i dont actually plan on shooting anything. as for shotguns, a Winchester Super X2 3.5" mag seems like it would do the trick. but again, i want something that doesnt remind me that im a scared a bears while im lugging it through the woods. then again, im probably much more accurate and effective with a 12ga. also, i've read that bears are more impressed with projectile diameter than energy or velocity.

who am i kidding, im just looking for and exscuse to buy the 500 S&W. maybe i should just find someone to let me shoot theirs first.

Fronty Owner

http://www.rei.com/online/store/Prod...cat=REI_SEARCH

230 gram can of pepper spray.

westcoaster

Now this I do have personal experiance with.... (at an "attacking" tree, not a bear)

Bear spray is a VERY short range defense. I was actually shocked at how short of a distance it would squirt. Add to that, if the wind is blowing in the wrong direction all you have done is add a bit of seasoning to an otherwise bland bear dinner....

That being said, I did go buy another can and I do carry it from time to time.

phox_mulder

Or, you just pepper sprayed yourself, and are trying to run away from a bear, blind.

Any firearm can take down a bear, if you have the time to place the shot.

I pack my .357 when camping in bear country, as it packs the biggest punch in my current arsenal.

7 shots of .357 versus 15 of 9mm, either one will equally scare off the bear or put numerous holes in him.


phox

jeepsuck

one of the stories that comes to mind about people trying defend their family from bears involved a .357. the bear died, but not before completely tearing apart the camp and killing the shooter. on a lighter note, the family did get away !

at least thats the story told by my high school sceince teacher.

another story i've heard was about a guy bow hunting in a deer stand. the bear climbs the tree to fish him out so the man does the only logical thing he can: unloads his .45 in the bears face. bear pulls him down anyway, and the man narrowly escapes with his life by using an arrow rammed through the bears chest. the moral of the story? 45 ACP will bounce off a bears skull.

of course, these are all just stories, which i cannot prove or disprove. but the fact of the matter is, if a bear comes after me, i would probably will pass on angering him with my SA GI replica. i'll take my chances with playing dead.

Fronty Owner

most things bounce off a bears skull. my uncle swears he shot a bear repeatedly in the head with a .30-30 and only left skid marks across the skull.

the pepper spray is exactly that, a last line of defense.
your brain is your first line, use it and it wont go further.

vess33

I shot a black bear in the head from 20-25 yards with my colt delta elite 10mm. It was loaded with winchester black talons. It dropped the bear like a bad habit. It slammed the bear on the ground and he did'nt even twitch.