Thoughts on loads for Bear defense from a snub?

Status
Not open for further replies.
M

Mark in GA

Member
Joined
Nov 19, 2013
Messages
29
Location
Coastal Georgia
Soon I will be taking my family (wife and 2 daughters) hiking in the mountains of NC and TN. Generally, I carry a S&W 642 as a CCW. I also have access to an all steel 640 38 +P and a 640-1 357. The odds of running into a unhappy Black Bear may be low, but I would rather be prepared just in case.

In an ideal world, I would be packing my 4" 629 loaded with WFN cast loads, but that isn't feasible on this out of state trip. So, I have the following components on hand to build a load and the three S&W snubs listed above. What would you do?

Bullets
0.357" Hornady 125 gr. XTP
0.357" Hornady 158 gr. XTP
0.358" 158 gr cast SWC

Powder
HP-38, HS-6, H-110

Have both 38 special and 357 mag brass and plenty of CCI 500 and 550 primers.

My first inclination is to go with one of the 158 gr bullets loaded stout. Obviously, the most powerful would be to carry the 640-1 in 357 mag with a 158 gr loaded heavy with H-110. What do you think? Go with a heavy mag load or stick to 38 +P levels?

Mark in GA
 
Last edited:
Mark in GA said:
My first inclination is to go with one of the 158 gr bullets loaded stout. Obviously, the most powerful would be to carry the 640-1 in 357 mag with a 158 gr loaded heavy with H-110. What do you think? Go with a heavy mag load or stick to 38 +P levels?

Mark in GA
Click to expand...


My first inclination would be to get a can of bear spray and carry the 642 for two legged predators.
 
Hmmm, Black Bear defense from a .357 Mag snubbie, eh? Probably better off with bear spray. If you have to carry the snubbie, I use 180gr hardcast from Buffalo Bore.
 
use the swc bullet, hs-6 powder, cci550 primer, 357mag cases and a heavy crimp.

load as fast as you can stand it (safe, of course).

make sure the load doesn't jump crimp.

have a great hike and don't worry about the bears.

murf
 
So a 158 cast SWC at 1100 fps in not enough?

Granted, I would feel most comfortable with my 629 and a 255 WFN cast hard at 1200, but need to keep it concealed in this case and the 629 doesn't work for that in light cloths.

Mark in GA
 
Bear spray does work. Just last week 2 guys near here were attacked by a grizzly sow with a pair of cubs. One guy was injured, but the other guy got the sow good with spray and it drove it off.
I still like to pack my 460 S&W though.
 
load up the swc bullets with hs-6 in 38 special +p for your wife to carry. put them in the other 640.

murf
 
So we are talking hot 38's for the wife, solid 357's for me both using the cast bullets and a couple cans of bear spray if I can locate some. Right?

Mark in GA
 
Any kind of 38 SPL is too light for any kind of bear IMO.
If you need to defend yourself against a bear it's most likely going to happen fast at a rapidly moving target.
If that's all you have, forget it, and practice getting the spray out and ready instantly.
 
Oh good a Bear thread.;)

The big can of Bear Spray with the Handle thing. A snubby 357 is just gonna piss him/her off.

Most bear attacks are over before you have a chance to draw a gun. If you are in any thick bushes of come around a bend in a trail, they are way faster than you,

We were up in GA picking berries and came up on one. Thought I was gonna die. I guess she had enough berries or seen enough people we just slowly backed away. I Had a 40 SW 15 rounds and felt very under gunned.

Or wherever you want to buy it; Just an example

http://www.udap.com/product.htm
 
I live in bear country and we encounter bears while walking our dog every summer. We can't put our trash out the night before it's picked up or the bears will tear it all up and make a mess. I've seen black bears killed with a couple rounds from a 9mm, but it was all the guy had. My wife and I have also been cornered by a bear who was "posturing", letting us know we were in his territory, even though we were only a couple hundred yards from our house.

For handgun loads, use the lead SWC bullet, loaded with the H-110 in .357 Magnum, but consider that a last resort. Bear spray works, but something else that works is the small air horns they sell for boats and sporting events. They are cans of compressed air to activate the horn and some have a clip for your belt. My wife has "tooted" 3 different bears while walking, and they've all run off into the brush.

This time of year the bears will be gorging themselves on anything edible to fatten up for the winter. That means they'll be out scavenging. Just stay alert and whatever you do, don't run if you see one. Stand erect and face the bear, and slowly back off, but if he/she starts to smack his jaws at you, then it's getting ready to charge. Prior to a charge, they will sometimes "posture", which means they walk slowly back and forth in front of you, looking at you over their shoulder. This is a warning that the bear is claiming the ground, and if the bear feels you aren't heeding the warning, then the jaw snapping and charging begin, but they will charge without snapping their jaws if alarmed or surprised. They're also better tree climbers than humans............

Hope this helps.

Fred
 
Mark in GA said:
So a 158 cast SWC at 1100 fps in not enough?

Granted, I would feel most comfortable with my 629 and a 255 WFN cast hard at 1200, but need to keep it concealed in this case and the 629 doesn't work for that in light cloths.

Mark in GA
Click to expand...
I have used a fanny pack, turned around so the pack is in front, when hiking the Smokeys so I can carry a 44 magnum concealed.
 
i'm going to assume you will take reloaderfreds advise and are asking what to take on a hike to repel a bear attack.

there are four people on this hike. all should have a way of defending themselves. you should have the 357, your wife the 38 special and a can of spray each for the two daughters. that way all four of you will have the confidence to deal with the situation. oh, and make sure everyone in the group is proficient with their weapons.

just my opinion.

murf
 
I don't know beans about shooting bear or using bear spray, so I'll leave that for the others.

However, during ICEX 2000, where I deployed under the polar icecap, we had civilian training on Arctic wildlife, Polar Bears being part of that.

Polar Bears, like other bears, have stalking cues...and if you exhibit those same cues, they'll think YOU are stalking them and will be far more likley to challenge/attack you for it. Turns out those cues are universal among bears (and other critters).

Bears stalk by walking laterally (meaning neither towards or away from you) and turning their heads to maintain eye contact. They may pace back and forth doing this. If you are presenting such a profile to a bear, the bear will think you're stalking it. So, walking by a bear and looking over your shoulder at the bear tells him that he's being stalked. Same for turning your body to walk away while maintaining eye contact.

Breaking eye contact and turning away from a bear entirely may be also interpreted as showing weakness or lack of alertness which may trigger the predator instinct to chase/attack.

Maintaining a frontal posture with eye contact in a manner that it is submissive, such as slow movements away, non-threatening appearance, is far less likely to make the bear think you're a threat. This can allow you to slowly move away without triggering a violent response from the bear.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

N
  • Locked
Hard Cast versus Soft
Replies
4
Views
504
MMCSRET
MMCSRET
I
  • Locked
Any load data for .357 Mag Winchester 158-gr JHP and W-231 or VV-340 ?
Replies
5
Views
2K
Texas Colt
T
R
  • Locked
.357/38 Special
Replies
17
Views
1K
robctwo
R
M
  • Locked
2015 .357 magnum load data vs 1994 .38 spl load data
Replies
2
Views
885
Buck13
Buck13
Steveo_1704
  • Locked
Coated bullets/powder thoughts
Replies
7
Views
517
Steveo_1704
Steveo_1704
Back
Top