For those who wonder what handgun to carry for bears...

[Kor]

More advice on dealing with bears...

I've also been told that 10% OC pepper spray MAY be effective against certain species of bear - also that you can wear a couple of Christmas jingle-bells to make noise as you walk so that the bears hear you coming and avoid you. I understand, though, that this works better on black bears, as opposed to brown bears.

To determine what species of bear inhabits your area, check the scat piles left behind.

Black bears' scat will contain nuts, leaves and berries.

Brown bears' scat will contain jingle bells and smell like hot peppers.

 

[Sisco]

Several (30?) years ago at the local zoo a polar bear got loose and was mauling a zookeeper. Zoo staff tried tranquilizer darts with no effect. I don't know what kind of ordinance the police had but it took several shots from rifles and handguns before they finally stopped the attack.

 

[Handy]

Those bears are big, but keep in mind that the guy is standing close to a foot downslope of them. I'd estimate their height around 8 feet.

Apparently, only polar bears will choose to attack people. The rest will avoid you if they know you're around.

My brother went camping in Alaska, so he brought pepper spray. The one time he sees a bear, the animal is upwind of him and the wind is blowing at 20 mph! He was rethinking the aerosol defense at that point.

 

[Keith]

>>>>I'd estimate their height around 8 feet.<<<<

Nope, I assure you those bears are roughly the same size as Alaskan Brown Bears and a good male will stand close to 13 feet in that pose. The hide will measure as much as 10 1/2 feet from nose to tail, then add 3 1/2 feet for the legs... These are BIG animals! People who are used to seeing black bears or standard grizzly bears just don't comprehend how big these brown bears get.

Attached is a picture of a friend of mine named Dwight Van Brunt (of Kimber!) with a good bear taken here on Kodiak. Note, this is just a "good bear" that didn't even make Boone and Crockett. There's no fancy camera angles or photoshop games with this picture, just a shot of a hunter with a bear.

 

[Keith]

Oops - the picture!

 

[Neil Casper]

I don't mean to anger anyone, but....

If you can't carry a BIG rifle, stay home. Don't go there!

I feel that the only handgun that might be suitable for bears, big or little, is a 20 mm semi-automatic with a 60 round drum magazine. The longest barrel you can carry in whichever holster you can get! I know Oerlikon didn't make one and the miniguns need auxiliary power.

Bears sort of intimidate me. When I was a kid my folks took me to the Cleveland Zoo, (yes, they had a zoo back then), and the bears in the cages started salivating when they saw my round, pink body. That did it for me!

 

[Handy]

Keith,

The man in the picture of the five bears is between 2/3 and 3/4 the height of the animals. If the bears are 13 feet tall, he'd have to be a minimum of 8 feet tall!

I don't doubt that bears get bigger, but the ones in the first picture are about 8 feet tall if the man is 5'6". Keep in mind he is not standing on their level and his left foot is propped up.

 

[Keith]

I don't know how big the bears in the picture are. But, the bear to the left (his right) is actually on ground well BELOW his level, and he's only halfway up it, or something like that. He's 5 1/2 feet, so that bear must be standing 11 feet or higher, probably 12 feet since it's on lower ground. Look again.

It's unusual to see brown bears mounted like that because they literally will not fit in most houses. You need a vault ceiling to display a trophy like that.

I don't think these Kamchatka bears reach quite the size of an Alaskan bear (at least none are placing in B&C that I know of), but they are large bears. Keep in mind that when a bear is described as a "10 footer", they are talking about the hide measurement, not how tall it stands and ten foot bears are fairly common. a "6 foot" black bear might stand 7 feet or a little more when you add the length of legs. A "10 foot" brown bear is easily 13 feet when standing because the rear legs will add another 3 1/2 feet or so - you then must subtract the half foot or so lost when the snout is parallel rather than extended. Something like that.

You really have to see a live one to appreciate them. Sometimes they'll pound the ground in a threat display and you can actually FEEL the vibration if you're close enough. 1500 pounds of bear pounding the earth, clicking their teeth and grunting at you is an experience never forgotten!

Keith

 

[Baron Holbach]

I had no idea bears could be so overwhelmingly huge! Given that we are to conjure which handgun would be best in the event of an enounter with a huge grizzly, I use to think a .44 magnum or 10mm would be sufficient. Now I think a .454 Casull would be the minimum, or a .480 Ruger and .475 Linebaugh. I would rely on Magnum Research's BFR -- the 7 1/2 inch .45-70 revolver:

http://www.shootmagazine.com/Articles/Magnum.htm

John Taffin provides some interesting numbers about the .475 Linebaugh:

http://www.sixguns.com/tests/tt475.htm

 

[J Miller]

I've questioned in other forums and threads what the new S&W 500 Magnum might be good for.
I think this just might be a use for one.

These bears are huge. With critters like this rummaging around it makes me wonder how man became dominate.

 

[El Tejon]

Bears? Oh, no, make them stop! Ahhhhh.

Why not, which handgun for unicorns or dragons?

 

[HS/LD]

Now I don't see why you couldn't use a 9mm.

147grain of course.

But if you could place the shot well. Remember shot placement is the key.

Practise rolling into a ball with the 9mm pointing up and towards the target.

Probably you will need only one or two shots but a high capacity may make you feel more comfortable.

With nearly 400 lb/ft of energy a Glock 9mm is your best bet in BIG BEAR country.

Regards,
HS/LD

BTW Kor

Brown bears' scat will contain jingle bells and smell like hot peppers.

I laughed so hard my eyes are watering

 

[Frohickey]

I want what the guy in the middle is carrying.

 

[Frohickey]

These bears are huge. With critters like this rummaging around it makes me wonder how man became dominate.

Thats easy. We have big brains compared to our body size, and we have FIRE

 

[JMLV]

WELL SINCE LARRY kELLY HAS TAKEN THE BIG FIVE

IN AFRICA WITH THE 44 MAGNUM (INCLUDING ELEPHANT AND RINO AS WELL AS CAPE BUFFALO) I WOULD HAZARD A GUESS IT WOULD KILL A BEAR AS EASILY WITH THE PROPER LOADS. OH YES LARRY HAS TAKEN KODIAK BEARS WITH THE 44 MAGNUM AS WELL. AND HE'S NOT THE ONLY ONE WHO HAS DONE SO! IT CAN AND HAS BEEN DONE MANY TIMES BY MANY PEOPLE. THE 454 CASULL HAS ALSO TAKEN THE BIG FIVE(ELEPHANT, RINO, CAPE BUFFALO, LION & LEOPARD) HIPPO TOO. AS WELL AS KODIAK BEARS IN ALASKA SO IT TOO IS A VIABLE OPTION. HANDGUNS CAN GET THE JOB DONE WITH PROPER LOADS, BULLETS AND SHOT PLACEMENT. IF IT WILL KILL AN ANIMAL AS LARGE AS AN ELEPHANT I DOUBT A BEAR WILL BE ANY HARDER. EVEN ONE AS BIG AS THESE.
HANDGUN HUNTING HAS ITS PLACE. AS LEE JURAS SAID ITS THE SPORT THAT CALLS TO THE BOLD!(HANDGUN HUNTING BY JURAS & NONTE). HANDGU HUNTERS HAVE TAKEN EVERY TYPE OF GAME ON THIS PLANET INCLUDING POLOR BEARS (WHICH I AM TOLD ARE NOT REALLY BEARS BUT A (LARGE) MEMBER OF THE WOLVERINE FAMILY).

 

[denfoote]

For bears like that, I had better carry a Vulcan 20mm cannon at the very least!!!

 

[ACP]

HS/LD,

With all due respect, you're talking about 'capping' yourself in case of imminent bear disembowelment, right? I mean, we've all read the debates about 9mm vs. a 200 lb. human. I don't think you're seriously proposing a 147-gr. subsonic load against a 2,000 bear. Curling up and firing upwards means you're already under attack. Too late. Unless, of course, the shot is aimed at your own brain matter.

 

[Dave Markowitz]

I don't think I'd want anything smaller than this:

 

[ThePerfectOne]

that is one awesome pic
altough these creatures are well above normal size, you can still get them down with 9mm explosive ammo when aiming at the head!
there is only one problem: 9mm explosive ammo is highly illegal

 

[Kahr carrier]

That pictures to Cool.

 

[Lone Star]

Well, you could use Marguerite Krux's little S&W New Departure Safety Hammerless .38 from the "Lost World" TV show. She sometimes kills dinosaurs with that when the men are afraid to fire their rifles! I think it's Political Correctness in action!

Actually, I think Marguerite could flay a bear with her sharp tongue, although she's mellowed during three years on the Plateau. I'll miss her now that it's been announced that there will be no fourth season. But a TV movie to bring conclusion to the avid fans may be in the works...

Seriously, I would never carry more than a .44 Magnum, and try for a brain shot. I would certainly carry a rifle, too, and employ the .44 only if a bear caught me when I couldn't reach the rifle or it ran dry. The .454, .480, this new .50 S&W...they'd all be too bulky and kick too hard for me to shoot them well.

Massad Ayoob once wrote about a .38 lead Plus P HP .38 Special being used by a NYC cop to kill a big polar bear that had grabbed someone at a zoo. Took one shot, about where the throat meets the chest.

I knew that NYC didn't issue/allow hollowpoints, so asked Ayoob about this. He swore that the cop was carrying that load for his S&W, in violation of regulations.
Lone Star

 

[Keith]

I'm sure we can come up with all kinds of anecdotal information about giant critters being killed with puny firearms. The bullet hits the right place from the right angle and ...poof, animal expires.
There are also stories about human predators going down from one well placed eyeball hit from a .22 short. That doesn't make a .22 short a reasonable self defense firearm.

Keith

 

[Handy]

About 25 years ago at one of the Air Force landing strips in Alaska, the control tower noted a grizzly on the runway and a plane inbound. Instead of having the plane make a low pass to scare it, they sent two APs out in a jeep with .45 pistols.

Later, an empty jeep, two empty .45s and the partial remains of two servicemen were found on the runway. A guide/hunter was called in. After several weeks he killed a large grizzly with scars on its muzzle and forehead. When examined after skinning, light marks on the skull could be seen from where the .45 Ball ammo had bounced off (230 FMJ at 850 fps, or so).

Shot placement is only one factor.

 

[New_comer]

I'd take a 10mm or 9x23 at the very least, loaded the hottest possible...

Tipped with C4 or maybe cyanide/morphine capsule

 

[ThePerfectOne]

that's some scary **** handy, gives me the creeps

if just those 2 AP's would have carried 9mm's
yep, I'm serious. the military 9mm para (in Belgium) is a 124 grain FMJ fluing around at 1250 ft/s and a rough 425 ft/lbs. on a human being, that would cause overpenetration, on a grizzly, that would cause death

too bad that there aren't any grizzly's here in Belgium