.44 special 255 gr hard cast enough for woods carry?

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I believe the black bear you refer to was taken in PIke County, PA with a bow. That is the exact area I hunt both whitetail and small game. Many others have been taken black bears in the 500lb plus range just in the last two years. The population has exploded over the past 20 years to numbers greater than 20,000 in the state. Many suspect that is a conservative estimate. I live, hunt, hike and fish in this area and precisely the reason why I wanted to solicit information on my choice of backup sidearm. Hopefully I will never have to use it but many folks are feeding bears in the area and as a result the bears have lost their fear of humans.
 
In the last 120yrs, there have been three fatal black bear attacks in the state of Pennsylvania. One was a captive pet. One was in 1906 when a guy started skinning one that wasn't dead. The only true bear attack happened in 1883. So you are FAR more likely to win the Powerball than to be killed by a black bear in the state of Pennsylvania.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fatal_bear_attacks_in_North_America

Everyone is free to choose however they like. Some will want to err on the side of caution and go heavy. Some never do anything but. However, the idea that the .44Spl or standard pressure .45Colt is woefully inadequate as a sidearm in the lower 48 is just absurd and not very realistic.
 
PA Revolver Guy said:
I believe the black bear you refer to was taken in PIke County, PA with a bow. That is the exact area I hunt both whitetail and small game. Many others have been taken black bears in the 500lb plus range just in the last two years. The population has exploded over the past 20 years to numbers greater than 20,000 in the state. Many suspect that is a conservative estimate. I live, hunt, hike and fish in this area and precisely the reason why I wanted to solicit information on my choice of backup sidearm. Hopefully I will never have to use it but many folks are feeding bears in the area and as a result the bears have lost their fear of humans.
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You mentioned people feeding bears. That is a huge problem across the USA. Feeding bears and not properly disposing of garbage is a death sentence to black bears. Feeding is the primary reason we even need to consider carrying a firearm for black bears.
 
MaxP said:
You wouldn’t want a 9mm where I hunt black bear. Not all black bear are created equally.
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Agreed. I have seen some huge muscular black bears of size in my back yard that I think would only be aggravated with a nine. Of course, I don't know for sure but it is an counter I would NOT want test. I think the ONLY handgun calibers I would trust are the really big bore sizes that come in those foot and a half revolvers. But, this is just a feeling gained from my shooting experience and not scientific at all..... Fortunately it is a characteristic of back bears to be smart enough to flee humans. (we should learn something from that) And if a bears doesn't run - then it is especially dangerous.....
 
MaxP said:
You wouldn’t want a 9mm where I hunt black bear. Not all black bear are created equally.
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Absolutely true. My cousin carries a 44 mag Redhawk with handloaded hard cast. He has a custom mould for loooong heavy semiwadcutters that he made in shop class. I've seen those bullets in action and they are mean. Buffalo Bore would be proud. To fit the gun he only has room for what he calls 44spl+p powder capacity. I'd bet those bullets weigh in close to 400 grains.
All this because of a run in with a big black bear while bowhunting for whitetails.
 
Thought fellow THRs might find this interesting: If there are some doubting Thomas's out there, simple look it up!

North Carolina’s Coastal Black Bears

A little known Bear Fact is that coastal North Carolina is home to the largest black bears on the planet! How big are they? North Carolina’s coastal black bears average 50-100 lbs or more than their cousins. The current World Record black bear is an 880 lb. giant from Eastern North Carolina recorded in 1998. There have been more than a dozen bears over 700lbs recorded and dozens more over 600lbs harvested in the coastal region of North Carolina. In most of their North American range, an adult female black bear weighs an average of 150 lbs and an adult male weighs an average of 250 lbs. Coastal female, (sow), bears sometimes weigh 300lbs or more with the state record sow, (from Washington County), recorded in 2007 at 445lbs.
 
Milt1 said:
Thought fellow THRs might find this interesting: If there are some doubting Thomas's out there, simple look it up!

North Carolina’s Coastal Black Bears

A little known Bear Fact is that coastal North Carolina is home to the largest black bears on the planet! How big are they? North Carolina’s coastal black bears average 50-100 lbs or more than their cousins. The current World Record black bear is an 880 lb. giant from Eastern North Carolina recorded in 1998. There have been more than a dozen bears over 700lbs recorded and dozens more over 600lbs harvested in the coastal region of North Carolina. In most of their North American range, an adult female black bear weighs an average of 150 lbs and an adult male weighs an average of 250 lbs. Coastal female, (sow), bears sometimes weigh 300lbs or more with the state record sow, (from Washington County), recorded in 2007 at 445lbs.
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Just a copy and paste from Wikipedia here-

The biggest wild American black bear ever recorded was a male from New Brunswick, shot in November 1972, that weighed 409 kg (902 lb) after it had been dressed, meaning it weighed an estimated 500 kg (1,100 lb) in life and measured 2.41 m (7.9 ft) long.[55] Another notably outsized wild American black bear, weighing in at 408 kg (899 lb) in total, was the cattle-killer shot in December 1921 on the Moqui Reservation in Arizona.[55] The record-sized American black bear from New Jersey was shot in Morris County December 2011 and scaled 376.5 kg (830 lb).[56] Even larger, the most massive American black bear recorded in Pennsylvania (one of six weighing over 363 kg (800 lb) shot in the last 15 years in the state) weighed in at 399 kg (880 lb) and was shot in November 2010 in Pike County.

35W
 
35 Whelen, I stand corrected as you are correct! The town of Plymouth, N.C. has an annual Black Bear Festival and they are the ones that posted that this 880 lb Black Bear was a world record. I tried to call them today after getting their number off the internet to ask why are they making that claim of a world record. They are closed on the week-ends so I'll call Monday and let you know what they said. It's probably just to promote their festival.
 
CraigC said:
Are we choosing our sidearm in the event that we encounter a world record bear and it decides to attack, in a state where three people have been killed by them in the last 120yrs? I'd rather play Powerball. :confused:
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Nice to see that you don't jump to conclusions!
 
When I lived in South East Tennessee it was common to have black bears come within feet of you due to tourists feeding them and such. I have had 300+ lb bears within 10 feet of me and been very uncomfortable . back then I only had one gun, a Taurus gaucho (SAA clone) in 45 colt. I felt well armed with that gun but now days I'd prefer a DA revolver if given the choice. I'm no expert, but 250 grains of lead going 1000 fps can and will kill just about anything.
I'm a hand cannon guy but I'm fine with a 357 or 10mm in most cases. If I won't have a rifle on a hiking or camping trip I bring a 454 casull, if I'll have a rifle the 357 is good enough for me.
 
35 Whelen said:
You know how it is on the forums, folks tend to gravitate to the excessive.

35W
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some do, but like a good friend that is a guide i know, always felt a 357 or a 10mm was just fine for hunting but always carries a 454 as a guide. Thats his choice based on his experience, but he has some at least. He carried the big boomer after tangling with a 7.5’ bear outside of high rolls new mexico. Craigc, i am not picking at ya but you are saying what works and what is excessive. Do you have one single picture of anything killed with a 250gr hc lead bullet or even one blackbear?
 
WisBorn said:
I think your 44 special is a great choice for a carry gun in PA. There are guys that will hunt bears/pigs/deer with a 357 handgun. Your 255 hard cast 44 special load is going to do more damage than a 357 will at close range.
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using the right bullet, the 357 will do more damage than the solid .429 bullet. Then again, why handicap the 44 by using a solid.
 
Tradmark said:
using the right bullet, the 357 will do more damage than the solid .429 bullet. Then again, why handicap the 44 by using a solid.
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Please, what 44 special load would be better for bear defense than the 255 grain hard cast from Underwood? And what load would you carry in a 357 that would be better?
 
WisBorn said:
Please, what 44 special load would be better for bear defense than the 255 grain hard cast from Underwood? And what load would you carry in a 357 that would be better?
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any 44 special load that involved a 240 gr aframe or a solid copper solid. Vastly superior wound channel on the aframe load, vastly tougher and more reliable bullet with the solid copper solid.

as far as 357’s go, 158 or 180 gr aframe all the way. I direct wound channel comparisons it made a bigger wound channel in deer and in a watusi that a 480 ruger with a 440 gr hardcast at 1100 fps. That 357 loaded with the aframe is a killer on anything smaller than 500lbs and within 100 yards. Thats with standard loads, run it out if a fa or other stronger gun then it can be even more impressive.

ive killed several large animals up to and including a bison with my 41 mag. It is without a doubt at its best with a 210 gr aframe.
 
in answer to the OP, perhaps, but why not just get a 44 mag? If ya dont feel ya need the horsepower, why not a 10mm? Definitely the best choice if meth addicts are on the list.
 
I do own a 629 44 mag and have put quite a few rounds down range over the past year. However, at this time my confidence in my own ability to shoot (regardless of the target) an accurate first shot and subsequent follow up shots under extreme stress rests with the 44 special.
I continue to practice with 44 mag loads. I have been using Grizzly's 260 grain WFN (among others) which does around 1,325fps out of my gun. I am working towards handgun hunting (thanks MaxP and CraigC) with the 44 mag. At this point, I don't intend on carrying nor do I think it is necessary to carry as a back up in PA.

My reason for starting this thread was to solicit opinions on what I am currently comfortable carrying as a side arm in the PA woods. From what I gather, most folks seem to think that a 255 grain hardcast swc in the 1,050 - 1,100 fps range is plenty power in a sixgun to take care of whatever I may encounter that has malicious intentions. Of course, this assumes I can do my part and I believe the 44 special gives me a better chance under the most stressful situations where range will be very close.
 
I really enjoy bear threads!

One of the times I got up close and personal with a black bear: I was living in New Mexico and we were in a drought. The bears came down from elevation (my house was 7,200' up a 10,650' mtn) looking for food. At 3 am I heard what I thought was my 3 year old son coming through the house to my room. I got up to go see. As I am walking through a darkened kitchen some movement catches my eye. A bear has removed the screen and opened wide a kitchen window and he is hauling himself inside, right above our kitchen sink. I ran over, grabbed a pan, and smacked it right in the forehead. He hightailed it to the woods. Game and fish trapped him a day or so later, right by my kitchen window, and he weighed out at just over 350 pounds.

Is there a moral to this story? No, but I don't think I will carry a pan around in the woods.
 
I always have to chuckle at the 9mm punybellum advocates who think that's good enough for bear protection.
Lived in the north woods all my life and used to carry a .45 1911. Saw a lot of black bears but they mostly ran off when encountered.
Then one day while grouse hunting with my golden retriever we stumbled upon a blackie in the 500lb. + range.
We looked at him, he grunted at us turned and slowly sauntered away. Even my golden had enough sense not to mess with that guy.
After that I started packing a .44 Blackhawk but it was to heavy for long hikes, switched to a model 629 but full house .44 mags didn't seem to make much sense unless you are hunting with it. Now I carry that .45Colt mountain gun.
The perfect Goldilocks solution.:p
44 special also fills the bill.;)
 
I don’t know a lot about the big bore stuff.. I do know that I never want to have a close bear encounter!! I would probably be trembling too much to do anything! I like being on top of the food chain as much as possible!! Lol
 
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