Bear/Hiking gun

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SniperStraz

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I need some help picking out a good revolver for as trail gun. Its mostly for defense against bears. I hike in GA so I'm mostly dealing with blackbear but I'd like something that I could use up north as well. So first of all which caliber is best?
357 if great because I can use .38s for plinking, but is it powerful enough?
How about 45 colt or 44 mag?
Thanks for your help.
 
I have two 44 mags...Ruger Superblackhawk SS 4 5/8" barrel and Super Redhawk Alaskan 2 1/2" barrel. I have always preferred single action for hiking/woods carry. When compactness is needed the Alaskan is a bit better. I do not reload so that is why I like the 44 mag.
 
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.357 is plenty and a 4" K frame or K frame sized gun makes a fantastic hiking gun, light, accurate, and versatile. I don't need no stinkin' Alaskan 5 lb chunk-a-steel in black bear country, sorta ridiculous. :rolleyes: I have a .45 Colt Blackhawk, but rather carry my Taurus 66, lighter and plenty powerful enough and the ammo isn't as bulky, so I can carry more in a given space. I like to tote along .38 wadcutters to take small game with, personally.
 
I believe black bears in the lower and eastern half of the US are on average a bit smaller than those found in the harsher climates up north. I would think some really good hardcast .357 magnums out of at least a 4" barrel would do pretty well. If going into brown bear country, I'd say .44 magnum would be a minimum in a handgun. If you look hard enough, you'll find reports of bears being killed with .22LR. But a .44 magnum would cover all your bases with a little breathing room. If you ever get into reloading, or already are, you can make some sweet little .44 special rounds for target practice or home defense, and load up nasty 300-grain magnums for hunting. Very versatile.
 
I chose a Taurus Titanium 44 mag w/ 4" barrel for similar reasons you are posting (hiking in bear country, also sidearm when hog-hunting). It weighs 28 oz. and holds six shots. Very light on the hip for all-day carry.

Here is a link to the gun info:http://www.taurususa.com/products/product-details.cfm?id=206&category=Revolver

Also, here is a mini-review when I first got it:http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/index.php?topic=9619.msg153131#msg153131

I've put 150+ mag rds thru it so far with no problems. Very fun to shoot.

It will be w/ me on my next AT hike.
 
.44 Magnum tends not to be loaded for snubbies.

You get a lot of noise and recoil, but not a lot of velocity.

There may be some snubbie-specific loads, but .44 tends to be loaded with (relatively) slow-burning powder. 4" really isn't quite enough for the round, but it's a reasonable compromise for trail carry IMO.
 
With a good holster and belt, the Ruger Redhawk chambered in .44 Magnum makes for a tough, reliable da revolver; adequate for bears (though I've never shot a bear with a .44 Magnum handgun) with the right bullets (extreme penetration being the most desireable factor in selecting them) I would think.
 
I use to live in the mountains around Blue Ridge. My carry gun was a Blackhawk handloaded with 158 gr JSP. Most black bears will get out of your way unless they have been fed by the weekenders.In the wild,the main danger is coming upon cubs.Walk backward and do not turn around running. Most will stay put and make a lot of noise.Putting a round in the ground will scar many off. Try hiking on the Benton/McKaig trail off of weaver creek road.
There are boar in thse mountains.
Byron
 
Handgun for bear?

Well the bigger the better I suppose. One interesting factoid about bears is that black bears apparently kill more people than grizzly...probably as a consequence of there being more people where black bears can be found. Some of these folks apparently do not have a deep end in their gene pool. If you listen to what some folks with the National Park Service folks have to say, some of the folks that got hurt by these things were candidates for the Darwin Award. Some folks that I know that have considerable experience with grizzly are pretty emphatic that if you carry a handgun for protection against grizzly you need to make sure you save the last bullet for yourself. The power and tenacity of a grizzly is something you have to see to believe. Black bears are not exactly fly weights in this respect either. Come across a grizzly with a grudge and I promise you that you will understand the true meaning of their scientific name: Ursis Horribilus. If at all possible, I would encourage you to do what the experts do for protection against bear...a 12 gauge shotgun loaded with either buckshot, slugs or some combination of both. A 20" 870 riot gun with a ghost ring receiver sight and a 3/32" front sight bead is just about perfect...fairly easy to bring into action and easily carried with a greater likelyhood of an effective hit at close range than the average person is capable of with a handgun in a high stress situation.
 
I need some help picking out a good revolver for as trail gun. Its mostly for defense against bears.
Click to expand...

Let us know how that goes. If you can try to bring a crew from Youtube to film it. If you're really and truly defending against a bear, that means it's charging you. Lighten your load by only carrying two rounds - one is for shooting into the ground to try to stop the charge. You can guess what the other is for. Honestly, I think the money a person could put towards a "bear defense handgun" could be better spent compensating a zoologist for a few hours of his time teaching you how bears behave, why they do what they do, and how to avoid them.
 
Just to round out this thread...

When the bear starts to attack on your day hike and the SHTF, you better have your BOB and your CCW so you can stop the BG (bear). Then you can discuss the relative stopping power of a 9 mm, a 45 ACP, a 357 Mag, and a 45 Mag.

Slugs vs. Buckshot....

...Just rack the pump on your shotgun and the bear will soil the pants he's not wearing...

By the way, according to Wikipedia:

Although 15 North Americans have been killed since the year 2000, it is estimated that there have been only 56 documented killings of humans by Black Bears in North America in the past 100 years.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Black_Bear
 
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My general advice in threads like this is why are you worried about bears? When hiking in the south east you are much more likely to be killed by humans than bears.

Prepare accordingly. Leave the bear gun at home. Take your Glock/1911/Sig/Whatever.
 
Right because no bear has ever been killed by a pistol round.
Click to expand...

I didn't say that; nor did you say that you intended to kill a bear with a handgun, but to defend against one. If you're really defending against one, you've pretty much got one angle to shoot at - head on. Bear skulls are thick enough and angled correctly during a charge to deflect most bullets (handgun or long gun). So, now you've taken a bear that you surprised and turned it into one that you've pissed off. A cursory search of Google for charging bears killed with handguns netted one result of one lucky gentleman with a 1911. There's several more that stopped charges by discharging a handgun that intentionally or unintentionally missed the bear. In those cases, caliber was most likely inconsequential.

In still other cases where a person managed to score a hit:
hunters or individuals who have shot at grizzly bears have generally ended up with serious injuries about 40% of the time. Shooting a charging grizzly bear can be very difficult and will require nerves of steel. If you miss or just wound the bear you can count on getting seriously mauled, or killed.
Click to expand...

Highly suggested reading on bear behavior.

You are, of course, welcome to go ahead and carry what you wish for hiking in the wilderness, but your plan to defend against a charging bear by shooting it with a handgun is not a plan grounded in reality or experience. While it makes for great internet fare to discuss the fantasy of taking out a charging bear with a handgun, I'd take my ques from the guy (reference link) who taught Grizzly Bear Biology and Behavior for 14 years at the University of Montana and researched in the field prior to and during those years. Software first, then hardware.
 
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psyopspec said:
I didn't say that; nor did you say that you intended to kill a bear with a handgun, but to defend against one. If you're really defending against one, you've pretty much got one angle to shoot at - head on. Bear skulls are thick enough and angled correctly during a charge to deflect most bullets (handgun or long gun).
Click to expand...

This is totally incorrect. You need to read Phil Shoemakers writings. He is a master guide in Alaska, a bear guide in particular, and has written extensively on this subject. He has proven time and again, that a good hard cast bullet of semi-wadcutter design will penetrate a charging bears head or body, even out of a .357. In fact his daughter, Tia, carries one so loaded when guiding.

As far as shooting a charging bear goes, most people would indeed be better off with a shotgun loaded with slugs, not buckshot. Buckshot is even less effective at penetrating than a .357 beyond anything but a few yards. When I lived in Alaska nobody I knew carried buckshot, it just wasn't reliable. Slugs are. Drawing and firing at a bear that you've suprised is much harder than you could imagine. All the practice in the world will do little good in that situation. Your gun should be in your hand anytime you are in bear country, not in a holster or slung over your shoulder. The speed with which they come at you, is unbelievably fast and not usually from a convenient angle.
 
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