Bear Defense Round....

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I think the choice to carry a revolver into bear country where you are on foot is simply an insurance policy and one to make the guy lugging the gun around feel like they have options should the worst begin to pan out. In which case, I heartedly recommend the 357 or 45LC revolver.

I have read that it is usually the young males that are the problem with aggressive human-black bear encounters versus the age old belief it is a mother bear with cubs. But I would stay clear of the cubs if they wander close to you because mama is close by.
 
I gotta say, all of the anecdotal claims about the lightening quick and indestructible bears are interesting. They are not true though.

Bear attacks certainly do happen and I would never go into bear country unprepared. While I do agree that spray is the first option, why would you be in back country with no defense anyway? I would worry more about people than animals and a good .357 revolver takes care of both concerns.

While it would not be my first choice, a .357 is certainly capable of stopping a bear.
 
Schwing said:
I gotta say, all of the anecdotal claims about the lightening quick and indestructible bears are interesting. They are not true though.

Bear attacks certainly do happen and I would never go into bear country unprepared. While I do agree that spray is the first option, why would you be in back country with no defense anyway? I would worry more about people than animals and a good .357 revolver takes care of both concerns.

While it would not be my first choice, a .357 is certainly capable of stopping a bear.
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Very well put. I agree completely.
 
I've got a .45 Colt blackhawk and several .357s. I'd be comfortable with either. The Blackhawk is stainless and kinda heavy, the 4" Taurus 66 carries better. Both are plenty powerful and accurate with the right loads and I handload hunting loads for both.

For ease of carry, I'd probably pick the .357 and carry it in my Hume JIT slide. I ain't really skirt of black bears and in the rare event I needed it, I KNOW I can hit with my .357 about as good as anyone short of Jerry Miculek could. I'm well practiced. I have head shot a charging wounded hog before. It was an adrenalizing experience, but I made a head shot from about 10 yards in heavy cover. I load a 165 grain Keith style SWC to over 1400 fps from a 4" gun.
 
I think the choice to carry a revolver into bear country where you are on foot is simply an insurance policy and one to make the guy lugging the gun around feel like they have options should the worst begin to pan out.
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I think this sums it up for me. I've spent some time in bear country, have had some very close interaction with black bears, and have even had actual person-to-bear physical contact with a live, wild adult bear. You've read that correctly; it was very unusual to say the least. I've never been too concerned, except that I'm now contemplating bring my young boy along. He's 7 now, but very small for his age (he was born very prematurely). I've read about some brazen black bear attacks recently, one where a young guy was killed by a large black in New Jersey of all places. So, I would agree that for the most part bear attacks are both very infrequent and something that a good bear spray can handle. BUT, I'm not willing to risk my boy's health over: 1) hoping we don't run into an aggressive bear, 2) who responds as expected to a spray solution, and 3) to show some respect to bears. We equip ourselves with firearms for a reason. So, back to my original inquiry, cast or HP? How about simple FMJ rounds? Why not? I don't know much about the toughness of bear hide.
 
A Keith style SWC has brought down big boar hogs and deer for me. I cast mine in a Lee 158 grain mold and with the gas check it weighs a consistent 165 grains. I load a 180 XTP, but haven't shot anything with it. Only thing i've shot is with the 165 SWC. It works.

If you don't handload, think Buffalo Bore heavy cast load.
 
Do not let anyone convince you Black Bears are not potentially dangerous. We seem to have many opinions on this thread and I am not going to get into a debate about Black Bear encounters. So, I suggest you read a book written by a Canadian wildlife biologist who has studied Black and Brown bears for a long time. Bear Attacks: Their Causes and Avoidance by Stephen Herrero, ISBN-13: 978-1-58574-557-9, published by The Lyons Press, Guilford, CT, www.lyonpress.com. Mr. Herrero is a Professor of Biology and Environmental Science at the University of Calgary in Alberta. He has a few chapters devoted to Black Bears. If you want some authoritative advice, read the book, especially for your wife and son.
 
If you have a 4" barrel or longer on the .357 i would look at buffalo bore ammo for bear protection, or load a hard cast flat nose bullet at max for your gun. On the other hand if you get a .45 colt in a gun that can shoot ruger only loads that will be protection equal to a .44 mag. I'm a huge fan of the .45 colt but for bear protection i would take a .357 double action over a .45 colt in single action. but both 4-5' barrels in double action and can handle ruger only loads i would go with the .45 colt. black bears are not like grizzly bear but the same type of stop from a gun is required. They do not bleed out with there slow heart rate so you disable the nervous system or create as much pain as possible. that being done with heavy flat nosed bullets at high velocity the bigger in diameter the better.
 
cast or HP? How about simple FMJ rounds? Why not?
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with bigger boned animals you need the bullet to punch though the bone and flesh in order to hit vitals. a hollowpoint will fragment upon impact with a thick enough skull or even in the event of a chest shot can completely fragment in the flesh before reaching the heart. the bigger the animal, the farther into its body the bullet has to travel before it hits something important. for best penetration you want a flat, hard face on the bullet. a pointy or rounded nose will actually cushion the impact. (i've always heard about the old army hack of making armor piercing rounds by simply pulling the pointed bullet out of a casing and turning it around backward to fly butt-first... that way the entire mass of the bullet is bearing on the target at impact... same principle)

i've carried a .357 with me in the woods for years and it does just great.
 
Hmm,

Any reason not to have spray AND a Blackhawk .45 Colt/ACP convertible? OK so the theorists would say no time in an attack to try both, reasonable, but that doesn't say a thing about how it would HURT your security.

Buffalo Bore .45 Colt for me over .357.
 
rswartsell said:
Any reason not to have spray AND a Blackhawk .45 Colt/ACP convertible?
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Two reasons: weight and space.

The same reason I don't carry a lot of things that would be nice to have but aren't essential for the trip.
 
Howdy Arch

I've lived in NW Montana my whole life and grew up with a chainsaw in my hand. Not sure where all the "bear spray" data is coming from, but I don't know one person who has thwarted a possible attack/encounter with bear spray. However, I do recall at least 30 (including myself) that have been handled with a firearm of some sort. A warning shot over the bow of a stubborn bear, moose, or mountain lion is far more affective than bear spray. You can do this at a much more safer distance if need be.

The bear spray may work (maybe a last resort), but I would try the warning shot first (if need be). And try firing that bear spray into a breeze! Not fun at all!!!

The problem with data for animal encounters with firearms is that the close calls thwarted with firearms (mostly warning shots) don't make the headlines. Only the blood and guts make the papers.

If all I had was a 357, I would probably go with the Buffalo Bore. Descent stopping power and a loud BANG!
 
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I think bear spray is a good idea, but I'd carry a revolver too.

I'd rather have a .357 magnum than a standard loaded .45 Colt (which is pretty much a 45 ACP). Butttt, if you get a Ruger or similar .45 Colt, then hotloaded .45 LC will do some damage.

I think a .357 Magnum is good enough for Black Bear defense, they are tough but aren't armored tanks. "If it bleeds, we can kill it"

For loads, I always visit Buffalo Bore first. They make some awesome factory loads, especially for people like me who do not handload. For .357, I like those loads that poster #2 linked.
 
BigBore45 said:
I do not know if you have read this article from the owner at buffalo bore about stopping bear with pistols but its a good read and he should know a thing or two about it, here is the link.


https://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l=product_list&c=108
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Excellent link BigBore45. I've book marked it for the future.

I agree with that article completely, with the exception of the notion that injuring a bear is often enough. It may be enough to drive the animal away, but an injured animal is an animal that will possibly die from starvation or infection. It is also an animal that will be highly defensive if another human runs into it. I believe if you are going to shoot, a warning shot is alright if you have time, as skidder asserted earlier. However, if you are going to shoot to hit, I believe in shooting to kill. JMO

I really do get a little aggravated when I read posts in bear threads suggesting that bears are really no threat to people. I certainly believe most animals want nothing to do with us. But most is not all, and bears are more than capable of killing a human with ease.

To assume bears are not dangerous because you have had run-ins with bears that resulted in the bear retreating is just as silly as assuming that all people are not dangerous because you've never been attacked by a criminal on nut job. It just isn't true.

Your best first line of defense is situational awareness, and noise. If the bear hears you coming, it is more likely to walk away from the noisy human. If it's in a bad mood, I want a big and powerful gun with me incase it decides its in a killing mood. In the case of bears in general, the largest bore with the highest velocity and heaviest bullets you can stand is probably your best bet. Deciding if black bears warrant a big bore or not is up to each of us, and is dependent on what you can stand shooting, and what your tolerance for risk is.
 
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archangel14 said:
I may be heading to some wild back country to do some serious fishing. The area is heavy in black bear. I'll be bringing my boy and think it might be a good idea to bring a revolver. I have a .357. Question is this: should I load with cast or HP (or something else....SP?)?

As an aside, I've been thinking about stepping into a single action in .45 Colt for some time now. Think such a caliber would perform better on defense against an aggressive black bear, compared to the .357?

Many advance thanks for your opinions.
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My advice, if you stick with the 357 Magnum; would be to use ammunition like this...
• https://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l=product_detail&p=100
• http://www.federalpremium.com/products/details/handgun.aspx?id=327
• http://www.corbon.com/corboncart/corbon/hunter/corbon-hunter/handgun/ht357200hc-20

Personally, I carry a Taurus® TRACKER™ chambered in 41 Remington® Magnum Loaded with Buffalo Bore® 230gr hardcast...
• https://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l=product_detail&p=92
Tracker_Houge_Grips.jpg
 
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Great link about bear defense (Buffalo Bore). I also bookmarked it for future reference.

Cooldill, most milsurps are too heavy to just carry with you "just in case" unless that is all you're carrying.

Ammo > I would just get the Buffalo Bore stuff (solids) and be done with it. I generally carry jacketed soft points hunting, but like the XTP's a lot. I feel there are some other brands around HSM "bear loads" that would work fine too. I keep the HSM available for my 41 mag (230 gr lead swc gas check). I would suspect they have something similar for 357 mag.

The above ones fit my advice by Dawei.

The purpose of the solids for bear defense is to break bones and hopefully fully penetrate.
 
I'm hoping that bear spray and the poop in my boxers would save me if a bear attacked.

.357 in hardcast may work with black bears, but I would feel better with a more powerful round at the ready. .44 or .454 Casull would be my choice.
 
22-rimfire said:
Great link about bear defense (Buffalo Bore). I also bookmarked it for future reference.

Cooldill, most milsurps are too heavy to just carry with you "just in case" unless that is all you're carrying.

Ammo > I would just get the Buffalo Bore stuff (solids) and be done with it. I generally carry jacketed soft points hunting, but like the XTP's a lot. I feel there are some other brands around HSM "bear loads" that would work fine too. I keep the HSM available for my 41 mag (230 gr lead swc gas check). I would suspect they have something similar for 357 mag.

The above ones fit my advice by Dawei.

The purpose of the solids for bear defense is to break bones and hopefully fully penetrate.
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I agree. The HSM bear loads are loaded pretty warm. That's what I carry in my 460 mag when hiking in grizz country. They make a 325 gr load that cooks along pretty good.

And yes, they do offer a 180 gr load for the .357. The HSM bear loads are quite a bit cheaper than BB ammo, and based on shooting it, it seems like decent stuff to me. If you can't find BB or don't want to pay BB prices, the HSM bear loads are a good alternative.
 
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