Recommend me a bear gun!

[Van Blamm]

I have been hiking more and more lately and I think it's time I start carrying on the trail. I mostly backpack for two to four days at a time, mostly in black bear country. Any suggestions for a revolver? My only requests are that it be relatively affordable, and in a caliber I can afford to practice with, at least a little bit.

Your input is appreciated!

 

[The_Pretender]

I would suggest nothing smaller than a .44 magnum. If you can handle heavy recoil, 500 Smith & Wesson is the top of the heap in terms of power.

Check out a Smith & Wesson model 629 (.44 mag), and see what you think. Ruger makes very decent revolvers as well.

From what I've heard, the bear mace you can get is pretty mean stuff. I haven't used it personally. And even if I did, I would still carry a .44 mag.

 

[gglass]

The Ruger .454 Casull Super Redhawk Alaskan is what I would carry.

Review:
http://www.gunblast.com/Ruger-SRHAlaskan454.htm

Purchase:
http://www.impactguns.com/store/736676053018.html

 

[Gary K]

The Ruger .454 Casull Super Redhawk Alaskan is what I would carry.

+1. That, or a .44 in the same, if .454 is too much a handful for you (need to be honest with yourself). A .44 with solids will work too, and is what I have (SRH .44, 7 1/2" SS; bought long before the Alaskan model came out). The heavy long barrel makes followups quick, but a shorter barrel would be handier for packing in waders.

 

[SalchaketJoe]

4 inch barreled .357 Mag. Ruger GP100 is a good one. For the woods carry a heavy hard cast loaded hot. Can practice w/ lite 357s or 38s.

Many on here will tell you this isnt enough, well I guess one could argue NO handgun is enough, carry a rifle or shotgun. I carried a S&W 29 .44 mag around on my hip in Alaska growing up. If you go with one of those big cannons you will tire of carrying it, shooting it and feeding it.

I took my CCW class from a well known Alaskan who had spent years in the woods. Hunting, doing research for fish and game. He told of shooting charging Musk ox on two occasions; one with a .44 mag, other a .357. Same shot placement, same penetration depth, same results = animal dropped in its tracks. At that point he carried the lighter framed 4in .357 exclusively.

 

[KFISHCAT]

Any big game rifle.:banghead:

 

[Wishoot]

Black Bear? A .357 should do the job in the highly unlikely event you encounter a bear with an attitude. Bear Spray may be an even better alternative.

 

[calaverasslim]

5.5" Ruger SBH 44 mag. Practice with 44 special and carry 44 magm while backpacking

 

[SalchaketJoe]

+1 on the bear spray as well.

 

[hogshead]

444 marlin

 

[Loki7154]

How about a S&W 460? You can get'em in the 460V (5") or the 460ES (snubbie--talk about painful to shoot) for carry. You have three (technically four, counting the 45 Schofield) choices of ammo in the 460, 454, or 45LC. You can go from loadings as high as 2800ft-lbs from buffalo bore in the 460 down to 300ft-lbs in the 45 LC. I think that may be the largest variety of energy of any revolver from factory loads. Just gotta be prepared for just how BIG the X-frame revolvers are. Might be overkill for a black bear, though. As a side note, lots of people say that the .500 is the baddest round on the block, but purely in terms of energy, the 460 seems every bit its equal, no?

I know this is the revolver forum, but lots of people seem happy with their 10mm G20s for black bear defense (something on the order of 750+ ft-lbs in a double-stack autoloader would probably take care of a lot of ornery creatures).

The Ruger Alaskan in .454 would probably also be a good choice (and overkill, too), and it has the added benefit of having all the grip choices of the Ruger Super Redhawk line.

 

[Gary K]

Black Bear? A .357 should do the job in the highly unlikely event you encounter a bear with an attitude. Bear Spray may be an even better alternative.

Coming from Alaska where I carried while fishing due to browns I often forget about their smaller blackie bro's. A .357 aimed well will do a far better job than any larger caliber aimed poorly. For griz with a denser skull, though, a .44 or higher solid is more likely to penetrate. But quite honestly if I know I'm likely to meet a bear I'd rather skip the wheelgun and have a 12 ga slug pumper ready.

 

[Malamute]

A .357 with decent loads will do it, in a medium size gun with a 4" barrel. 180 gr hard cast or full jacket. A 41 or 44 will do, but will be generally heavier and more expensive to feed.

I'm not a fan of the super sized or powered guns. They simply arent needed for what you're doing, and even in grizzly country arent required to get the job done. They are also generally heavy, bulky, and expensive to buy and feed. Most also have rather unpleasant muzzle blast and recoil. If you can't shoot it well, you're wasting your time.

 

[WTBguns10kOK]

BEAR SPRAY. Then get a .357 and use Buffalo Bore or Double Tap or Grizzly 180 grain, like they all say. I carry it in grizzly country, and you've got even less to worry about.

 

[JMusic]

The 10 mm Glock would be my cal for this it will handle brown, bears too. I use the 45lc vaquero. 21 grains universal 255 hard cast.now.. Genuine paint peeler.





Jim

 

[JMusic]

The 10 mm Glock would be my cal for this it will handle brown, bears too.


Jim

 

[captainjoe]

I'm not big on handguns for bear defense, so I'm inclined towards a .45-70 Guide Gun. You can carry a reasonably heavy load and still be very controllable. The advantage that guns like the .45-70 have is that they don't just have enough power to kill effectively, they have enough power to stop the animal in its tracks.

If the Guide Gun is not practical, a 45 Colt loaded heavily is my second choice. Some guys are happy with a 357 loaded with Buffallo Bore, and I used to be that way. However, my philosophy has changed after a couple of bear troubles and the minimum for me would be 44 Mag or 45 Colt.

Fortunately, if you are going to face a bear, blackies are smaller than others and are generally the most timid. For comparison, here's some big animals to look at:

http://shootersforum.com/showthread.htm?t=26791&page=2

 

[Prosser]

What do you call affordable?
BFR .475 Linebaugh would be my choice, to start with. .475 ammo, up until the Obamanation ammo craze was the same price as 44 mag. One might also use the .480 Ruger in the same gun.

.500 JRH in a .500 S&W, but, the light load, not the heavy.

 

[oneounceload]

Here's a bear gun:

http://www.serbu.com/top/superShorty.php

small, holds three rounds, a "bear" to shoot.......

 

[woad_yurt]

Ruger Redhawk with Buffalo Bore or Double Tap ammo. 1250 ft lbs, easy!

 

[Cosmoline]

What "bear country" are we talking about specifically? There are black bear, and there are black bear. Some regions have little bitty ones that are not a serious threat, other areas have 500 pounders.

 

[clang]

Carry a 12 ga shotgun with slugs. Cheap AND effective.

 

[iiranger]

#1, #2, etc.

#1). Many, many articles over the years in the likes of Outdoor Life and Sports Afield recommended carrying a whistle around your neck and blowing it hard before going around curves in bear country... If not too obnoxious, you might consider wearing a bell or three (small). Few bears are looking for a confrontation... They eat a lot of carrion, already dead...

#2). With the reduced number of bears, the bear spray is responsible. Hit them in the face and let them get away if they will. Beware the wind. You "get a whiff" and you may wish the bear would eat you...

#3). Couple decades past a rabbit hunter in Outdoor Life I think, told of carrying a Ruger single action in .357 while rabbit hunting with a shotgun. (5 shots back then, hammer on an empty chamber.) His buddy carried a surplus Luger back when they were common. Of course they had a "run in" with a bear. Each emptied his handgun. All the Luger slugs were found in the fat under the skin. The .357's that hit, one complete miss, penetrated the body and killed the bear. Where to shoot. You put a big heavy slug into a shoulder and you should be able to out run the wounded bear. Hitting the brain, unless you have nerves of steel and some drugs (downers) to boot, ... Not a risk I would care to take...

#4). Mr. Keith did not feel undergunned with the WW I .45 ACP revolvers on the Rocky Mountain bears, black or grizzzzz... A big, heavy bullet at any velocity is going to ruin their day, don't imagine they like the noise and if in the vitals end their life, probably. Now if you were "bear hunting" and might want to "take a bear" at 50 yards, then, yes, .44 Magnum or larger.

For self defense, the NUMBER ONE RULE, the best gun is the one you will, WILL have with you. Better a .38 noise maker than a stick. (or knife.) The cowboy copies in .45 Colt (aka Long Colt) are handy and adequate. There are .44 Special snubs. And there are double derringers, over under in .45 Long Colt. (or...) How much you want to spend? How much you want to carry? How much you want to practice? Gun Digest Annual has a list and many pictures of the "guns in production" for that year. You might care to review the handgun options. Discretion is the best part of valor and the bears are getting "thinned." Then there are the hassles with the authorities. Best of luck to you in the great outdoors.

 

[22-rimfire]

My general recommendation is a 357 mag such as the Ruger GP100 (3"), or 4" Smith & Wesson Model 57 with a 4" barrel. The Smith is more expensive. Ruger makes the Redhawk with a 4" barrel in 44 mag which should do also. I don't think it is necessary to go any larger caliber-wise for Black Bear. More than likely, you'll never need a firearm for Black Bear defense, but attacks happen just about yearly these days somewhere in the US.

 

[Wishoot]

What Bears think of all this...