308win
Member
In central Ohio the only predators you have to worry about are large dog or man. I usually carry either a 1991 or 4506.
Trail/Camping gun decisions
- Thread starter David E
- Start date
- Status
For those folks that do hike, camp, and hunt in bear or mountain lion country and think an encounter is better than average I would get some this as well
http://www.tbotech.com/bearspray.htm. It's some pretty cheap extra insurance for you kit bag. I'm a realist (not saying other posters here aren't) and think this stuff is going to have more of an immediate effect than any handgun on a really large bear. I'm a pretty good shot with my hangun but I don't think I would do so well if I had a enraged big A$$ grizzly coming at me full bore.
http://www.tbotech.com/bearspray.htm. It's some pretty cheap extra insurance for you kit bag. I'm a realist (not saying other posters here aren't) and think this stuff is going to have more of an immediate effect than any handgun on a really large bear. I'm a pretty good shot with my hangun but I don't think I would do so well if I had a enraged big A$$ grizzly coming at me full bore.
mbr
Member
I hike and backpack a lot, and 9 times out of 10 have my S&W 351pd in .22mag, with a couple of speed strips of extra ammo. My reasoning is this: 1, light weight. 2, loud enough for signalling if I break a leg and can't walk out. 3, Better than a pointy stick.
RETG
Member
I camp and off-road a lot in CO and other western states. When in the high-country (aka bear country) I sleep with a S&W 500, but during the day I carry just a PX4 or Stoeger in either 9mm or .40.
Have never had to fire the 500, but have fired off a few 9mm rounds (into the ground) one time to get a large cat out of the camping area. He was looking for dinner and I was not feeling feeding him.
Have never had to fire the 500, but have fired off a few 9mm rounds (into the ground) one time to get a large cat out of the camping area. He was looking for dinner and I was not feeling feeding him.
The Bushmaster
Member
A whistle with a compass?? [Chuckle]
My handgun of choice for hiking, backpacking or horseback in the mounatins is a S&W mod 19 nickel plated 2 1/2" Combat .357 Magnum...
rcmodel...You don't have any bears over there? Walkalong has been chasing his bears up here. Should be reachin' you soon...
My handgun of choice for hiking, backpacking or horseback in the mounatins is a S&W mod 19 nickel plated 2 1/2" Combat .357 Magnum...
rcmodel...You don't have any bears over there? Walkalong has been chasing his bears up here. Should be reachin' you soon...
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carbuncle
Member
Millcreek, thanks for sharing your carry preference. I have seen black bear in WA only once, just over Stevens pass while camping (not hiking, just tents and cars) within a mile of the highway, but mama and cubs ran away when they saw us. We spend a bunch of time up in Whistler in the summer, and I've had more close encounters there than I can count but none that were scary.
Never seen a big cat, and honestly I hope I never do...
Never seen a big cat, and honestly I hope I never do...
NVCZ
Member
Here on the Eastern Central Sierra Nevada mountains, we have black bear but they are no big deal. We have Mt. Lion, but I don't worry much about them. Honestly, the average person will never see one in the wild in their lifetime.
However we do have rattlesnakes and BG's.
I will usually carry either my S&W Model 51 (.22 mag), or my CZ 82 with me.
Now if I was in Alaska, that would be different, they have more bears than BG's. I would have to get a .44 mag. and file off the front site. So it wouldn't hurt so much when the bear sticks it up my a$$!
NVCZ
However we do have rattlesnakes and BG's.
I will usually carry either my S&W Model 51 (.22 mag), or my CZ 82 with me.
Now if I was in Alaska, that would be different, they have more bears than BG's. I would have to get a .44 mag. and file off the front site. So it wouldn't hurt so much when the bear sticks it up my a$$!
NVCZ
content
Member
Hello friends and neighbors // The Bushmaster, the Whistle/compass also has a fold out magnifier. I like versatility.
I like versatility.SharpsDressedMan
member
There are times when you see a squirrel, or potmeat target, and that .500 S&W that has been making your a** drag for the last 15 miles is now, surely, the wrong weapon. Thee are times when you stumble on mama bear, and that S&W .22 Kitgun just seems to be the wrong weapon. Life is a crapshoot...............
OP
OP
David E
Member
- Joined
- Aug 3, 2008
- Messages
- 7,459
That reminds me of one time long ago in the mountains of Colorado.
I had my Smith & Wesson Model 29 in the shoulder rig and a Colt 1911 on the hip.
I smiled smugly to myself, "I'm ready for man or beast!" I thought.
Then the squirrel jumped out on the rock 15 yds away......and I swear that furry little bastard smiled at me.......
I had my Smith & Wesson Model 29 in the shoulder rig and a Colt 1911 on the hip.
I smiled smugly to myself, "I'm ready for man or beast!" I thought.
Then the squirrel jumped out on the rock 15 yds away......and I swear that furry little bastard smiled at me.......
The Bushmaster
Member
A "magnefier" too? Wow!! Just wondering who you are going to whistle for out in the mountains? I [sometimes] carry a brass cased compass, but not often...
A whistle? Naw. If I'm out alone it has no use. If I'm with friends they know where I am...
A whistle? Naw. If I'm out alone it has no use. If I'm with friends they know where I am...
amd6547
Member
A whistle carries farther than your voice, and is easier to produce sound with. Some are very high tech and made of light zytel plastic. It's purpose is to help rescuers find you, and should be an item lashed on to your pack.
Dirty Bob
Member
No bears that I know of in south Texas. Skeeter Skelton favored the .357 for this part of the country, and I think that's still a great choice. Wadcutters for plinking and small game, heavier stuff for more serious work. Can't go wrong around here with something like a S&W Model 66.
Regards,
Dirty Bob
Regards,
Dirty Bob
I don't venture into the woods
very often. If I did, I live in Maine, I would feel very comfortable with one of my Vaqueros in 45 Colt. I like the OPs choice of the 25-5 with 5" barrel, nice gun, hard to come by these days. I wish I had never sold mine.:banghead:
very often. If I did, I live in Maine, I would feel very comfortable with one of my Vaqueros in 45 Colt. I like the OPs choice of the 25-5 with 5" barrel
, nice gun, hard to come by these days. I wish I had never sold mine.:banghead:Vern Humphrey
Member
Which is why I so often carry my Colt Woodsman.
It is only a myth that mother bears are more dangerous than other bears. If you get between a mother and her cubs, they will just scatter and link up with each other later.
Ed Harris
Member
Hand Cannons Get Left Behind
An American Rifleman article changed my perception of compact revolvers. It was entitled “Sporting Uses of the Snubby” and written by retired Arizona game ranger, Harley Shaw. I met Harley in 1974. He is the only Arizona Game & Fish employee ever shot on duty, even though his working title was Research Biologist for his entire career. The culprit wasn't a game law violator, but an escaped convict who killed an officer, wounded Harley and a companion and was finally killed by a young highway patrolman on his first duty day in his new district. His experience proves that ”any gun is better than no gun,” when you don’t think you need one, but the fickle finger of fate isn’t in your favor and all of a sudden life goes sour.
The common image “trail guns” requires a 4-inch or longer barrel and adjustable sights able to take the head off a grouse at 25 yards with rifle-like accuracy, and be powerful enough for combat. When I accompanied Harley on a horseback trip in Arizona’s Tonto National Forest near Prescott, the game & fish department was monitoring telemetry from collared mountain lions. Harley carried either a 2-3/4-inch Ruger .357 Speed Six or a 2-inch S&W Model 34 .22 Kit Gun, depending upon the season and mission.
A trail a gun is “carried a lot, but seldom shot.” A holstered gun on the hip snags brush and may poke you inconveniently when sitting. When the task at hand doesn’t require a firearm, carrying one anyway can be a damned nuisance. Harley’s ideal trail handgun was a compact, reliable revolver, tucked into his chaps pocket with no more thought than pulling on his pants in the morning. Tuck it and forget it. Snake and furry varmint ranges in the scrub are short. There is no need to shoot beyond 50 feet.
Simplicity, comfort, constant availability and compact convenience are the name of the game. His reasoning was that a “camp gun” was used more for protection from small 4-legged and slithery varmints up close, and as a deterent for the two-legged type, than for shooting camp meat at distance.
I’ve dabbled over the years in comparing the .22 handguns vs. center-fires, both small revolvers and pocket autopistols. Revolvers enable greater versatility in ammo, while auto pistols are flatter to carry and carry more rounds. Both types of guns have their advantages.
Utility with shot loads is important in snake country. The choice of a pocket gun for such use favors either a .38 Special snubby revolver or compact .45 Automatic with Speer loads. The utility of .22 shot loads is extremely limited. They require that you get within 5 to 6 ft. of the snake, which may be interesting if it’s a “big” one like Burmese pythons they have around South Florida these days. Most .22 auto pistols don’t extract or eject shot-loads reliably, so follow-ups are slow and you will need to carry a knock-out rod along.
Harry Archer taught me that practical "evasion and wilderness survival range" http://www.naderlibrary.com/cia.secret.war.markham.htm is the longest distance at which YOU can do 2 second head shots under stress or shoot small game, say a 2-inch group from an improvised field rest using your handgun of choice. Most pocket pistols or revolvers do so at ten yards. But few do at twenty. Very few can do so at 25 yards.
Standard service pistols and revolvers never intended for target work group about “one inch per ten yards" and always have. This has been satisfactory for over 100 years. The very best pocket pistols and small revolvers group two inches out to only 50 feet or so. For the great majority of most handgun use this is quite “good enough.” Frontiersmen and soldiers shot tons of game for camp meat, and killed bad guys with handguns no more accurate than this. If you don’t believe it, just try any 4-inch barrel fixed sight .38 Special “cop gun” or cowboy revolver sometime.
The .38 Special +P represents about the limit of recoil which the average non-expert can handle with reasonable accuracy. While a .22 may not be your first choice as a combat gun, its lower weight and cube of ammunition makes sense when the trip is long and there is to aerial resupply coming. You pay your money and make your choice.
An American Rifleman article changed my perception of compact revolvers. It was entitled “Sporting Uses of the Snubby” and written by retired Arizona game ranger, Harley Shaw. I met Harley in 1974. He is the only Arizona Game & Fish employee ever shot on duty, even though his working title was Research Biologist for his entire career. The culprit wasn't a game law violator, but an escaped convict who killed an officer, wounded Harley and a companion and was finally killed by a young highway patrolman on his first duty day in his new district. His experience proves that ”any gun is better than no gun,” when you don’t think you need one, but the fickle finger of fate isn’t in your favor and all of a sudden life goes sour.
The common image “trail guns” requires a 4-inch or longer barrel and adjustable sights able to take the head off a grouse at 25 yards with rifle-like accuracy, and be powerful enough for combat. When I accompanied Harley on a horseback trip in Arizona’s Tonto National Forest near Prescott, the game & fish department was monitoring telemetry from collared mountain lions. Harley carried either a 2-3/4-inch Ruger .357 Speed Six or a 2-inch S&W Model 34 .22 Kit Gun, depending upon the season and mission.
A trail a gun is “carried a lot, but seldom shot.” A holstered gun on the hip snags brush and may poke you inconveniently when sitting. When the task at hand doesn’t require a firearm, carrying one anyway can be a damned nuisance. Harley’s ideal trail handgun was a compact, reliable revolver, tucked into his chaps pocket with no more thought than pulling on his pants in the morning. Tuck it and forget it. Snake and furry varmint ranges in the scrub are short. There is no need to shoot beyond 50 feet.
Simplicity, comfort, constant availability and compact convenience are the name of the game. His reasoning was that a “camp gun” was used more for protection from small 4-legged and slithery varmints up close, and as a deterent for the two-legged type, than for shooting camp meat at distance.
I’ve dabbled over the years in comparing the .22 handguns vs. center-fires, both small revolvers and pocket autopistols. Revolvers enable greater versatility in ammo, while auto pistols are flatter to carry and carry more rounds. Both types of guns have their advantages.
Utility with shot loads is important in snake country. The choice of a pocket gun for such use favors either a .38 Special snubby revolver or compact .45 Automatic with Speer loads. The utility of .22 shot loads is extremely limited. They require that you get within 5 to 6 ft. of the snake, which may be interesting if it’s a “big” one like Burmese pythons they have around South Florida these days. Most .22 auto pistols don’t extract or eject shot-loads reliably, so follow-ups are slow and you will need to carry a knock-out rod along.
Harry Archer taught me that practical "evasion and wilderness survival range" http://www.naderlibrary.com/cia.secret.war.markham.htm is the longest distance at which YOU can do 2 second head shots under stress or shoot small game, say a 2-inch group from an improvised field rest using your handgun of choice. Most pocket pistols or revolvers do so at ten yards. But few do at twenty. Very few can do so at 25 yards.
Standard service pistols and revolvers never intended for target work group about “one inch per ten yards" and always have. This has been satisfactory for over 100 years. The very best pocket pistols and small revolvers group two inches out to only 50 feet or so. For the great majority of most handgun use this is quite “good enough.” Frontiersmen and soldiers shot tons of game for camp meat, and killed bad guys with handguns no more accurate than this. If you don’t believe it, just try any 4-inch barrel fixed sight .38 Special “cop gun” or cowboy revolver sometime.
The .38 Special +P represents about the limit of recoil which the average non-expert can handle with reasonable accuracy. While a .22 may not be your first choice as a combat gun, its lower weight and cube of ammunition makes sense when the trip is long and there is to aerial resupply coming. You pay your money and make your choice.
danez71
Member
and teach her cubs how to eat 
Backpacker33
Member
For David E, My photos
Per request of David E, Here are some pics of my backpacking revolvers.
The first set are of my modified S&W 329PD. I added Crimson Trace Hog Hunter grips. The MagNaPort is also visible. This is before I added the Ashley Outdoors Big Dot front sight, and the Cylinder & Slide Extreme Duty rear sight with tritium dots. This combination lets me shoot in any light condition from daylight to full dark. The grips have no provision for a lanyard ring so I drilled holes in them and passed a piece of parachute cord in and through the grip frame. I stitched this in a loop and use a Pistol Leash to secure it to my belt. During the NRA convention in Milwaukee I showed this to the Crimson Trace rep, lobbying for a factory version. I’m not sure they were impressed.
I wish I’d had this some years ago when I was backpacking in Idaho and took the “short cut” down the mountain into the Selway River. Brrrrr! The Hamilton Bowen .500 Linebaugh I was carrying did exactly what I thought it would: it sank. My pack also did exactly what I thought it would: it floated. I had to make a quick decision to either chase my pack in the cold snow melt, swift current, or plunge again into the approx 4-foot deep water for the Bowen. My buddy was laughing himself sick up on the slope, but agreed to watch where my pack went, so I went diving.
The target is of one of my preferred loads. The 240-gr jacketed hard lead flat nose bullet powered by 16.5 grains of HS-7 will go end-to-end on almost anything I’m likely to encounter in black bear country. You’ll see my note that the group is at 30 feet. That is my chosen distance because I can be sure to get a kill shot on just about anything with a point-blank aim out to 75 feet. That way I can point rather than aim under duress. Today I carry LeverEvolution ammo, sighted-in the same way.
The third pic is pre-MagNaPort, etc., when I was experimenting with grip techniques to control the recoil. Snicker. . .. ;-)
- Backpacker
THR won't let me upload the pictures again, even if I rename them. They are on "revolver picture thread of all time."
Per request of David E, Here are some pics of my backpacking revolvers.
The first set are of my modified S&W 329PD. I added Crimson Trace Hog Hunter grips. The MagNaPort is also visible. This is before I added the Ashley Outdoors Big Dot front sight, and the Cylinder & Slide Extreme Duty rear sight with tritium dots. This combination lets me shoot in any light condition from daylight to full dark. The grips have no provision for a lanyard ring so I drilled holes in them and passed a piece of parachute cord in and through the grip frame. I stitched this in a loop and use a Pistol Leash to secure it to my belt. During the NRA convention in Milwaukee I showed this to the Crimson Trace rep, lobbying for a factory version. I’m not sure they were impressed.
I wish I’d had this some years ago when I was backpacking in Idaho and took the “short cut” down the mountain into the Selway River. Brrrrr! The Hamilton Bowen .500 Linebaugh I was carrying did exactly what I thought it would: it sank. My pack also did exactly what I thought it would: it floated. I had to make a quick decision to either chase my pack in the cold snow melt, swift current, or plunge again into the approx 4-foot deep water for the Bowen. My buddy was laughing himself sick up on the slope, but agreed to watch where my pack went, so I went diving.
The target is of one of my preferred loads. The 240-gr jacketed hard lead flat nose bullet powered by 16.5 grains of HS-7 will go end-to-end on almost anything I’m likely to encounter in black bear country. You’ll see my note that the group is at 30 feet. That is my chosen distance because I can be sure to get a kill shot on just about anything with a point-blank aim out to 75 feet. That way I can point rather than aim under duress. Today I carry LeverEvolution ammo, sighted-in the same way.
The third pic is pre-MagNaPort, etc., when I was experimenting with grip techniques to control the recoil. Snicker. . .. ;-)
- Backpacker
THR won't let me upload the pictures again, even if I rename them. They are on "revolver picture thread of all time."
Attachments
Backpacker33
Member
For David E, photos 2
S&W 386NG.
The 386NG is my backup gun, also modified to my preferences. I have a 386PD, a nearly identical revolver with a titanium cylinder instead of the NG’s stainless steel. Frankly the SS does not make sense to me. The NG makes an excellent CCW gun with the snag-free C&S Extreme Duty rear sight, so why the heavier cylinder? I sent it to S&W to have the titanium one installed ($125). Then I sent the rear sight to C&S to have tritium dots installed, and sighted it in for Hornady LeverEvolution .357 ammo. The gun is not difficult to fire accurately repeatedly, though .38+P is easier and satisfactory for most intended uses.
S&W 386NG.
The 386NG is my backup gun, also modified to my preferences. I have a 386PD, a nearly identical revolver with a titanium cylinder instead of the NG’s stainless steel. Frankly the SS does not make sense to me. The NG makes an excellent CCW gun with the snag-free C&S Extreme Duty rear sight, so why the heavier cylinder? I sent it to S&W to have the titanium one installed ($125). Then I sent the rear sight to C&S to have tritium dots installed, and sighted it in for Hornady LeverEvolution .357 ammo. The gun is not difficult to fire accurately repeatedly, though .38+P is easier and satisfactory for most intended uses.
Attachments
Backpacker33
Member
For David E, Photos 3
.500 Linebaugh.
Then there’s the .500 Linebaugh. In about ‘96 I hurt myself while on the trail, and my doctor said that because I was, ahem, getting older (I had to kill him for that), I should lighten my trail load. I gave up my Marlin .45-70, changed my tent, pack, clothes, sleeping bag, cookware and food choices, and reduced from 75 lbs to 60.
At that time I was going most summers with a buddy into the Idaho Back Country. We’d fly his plane or mine into the Forest Service strips and pack in from there. One of my favorite areas was in the Bitterroots, out of the Moose Creek airstrip.
That is brown bear country, and most people gave that advice about filing off the front sight of any .44 Magnum revolver so it wouldn’t hurt as much when the bear shoved it up one’s ass. Several sages said, however, that the .500 Linebaugh would go end to end on any grizz encountered in Idaho.
I read an article about Hamilton Bowen’s “Alpine .500.” I called him, told him what I had in mind and he talked me out of it, instead suggesting what you see in the pix. It’s a Redhawk with the full grip frame, unfluted 5-round cylinder and plain finish - a working gun. I had him install the Ashley Big Dot front sight and Express rear, and I added Pachmayr “Gripper” grips. Then I had the MagNaPort quad ovals done, after these pictures were taken.
I also bought the dies for reloading, since Buffalo Bore ammo is $3 with every pull of the trigger. It is EXCELLENT ammo IMO, so if you need it, do NOT hesitate to buy it. It just kinda made me blanch to write a check for $150 for a box of ‘em.
I load a 435-gr wide meplat bullet to just under 900 fps.
This is a brutal gun to shoot. I hurt my wrist the first time I tried it with Buffalo Bore 435-gr slugs at 1200 fps. Then I read John Taffin’s advice about guns that recoil heavily, and do fine. Still, I fire only the minimum rounds possible, usually three, to sight in prior to hitting the trail. It is also terrifically noisy. Attached is a photo of my early attempts to find a way to control recoil, Snicker . . .. ;-(=)
Again, THR won't let me upload the phot0s because they are in "The Revolver Picture Thread of all time.
-Backpacker
.500 Linebaugh.
Then there’s the .500 Linebaugh. In about ‘96 I hurt myself while on the trail, and my doctor said that because I was, ahem, getting older (I had to kill him for that), I should lighten my trail load. I gave up my Marlin .45-70, changed my tent, pack, clothes, sleeping bag, cookware and food choices, and reduced from 75 lbs to 60.
At that time I was going most summers with a buddy into the Idaho Back Country. We’d fly his plane or mine into the Forest Service strips and pack in from there. One of my favorite areas was in the Bitterroots, out of the Moose Creek airstrip.
That is brown bear country, and most people gave that advice about filing off the front sight of any .44 Magnum revolver so it wouldn’t hurt as much when the bear shoved it up one’s ass. Several sages said, however, that the .500 Linebaugh would go end to end on any grizz encountered in Idaho.
I read an article about Hamilton Bowen’s “Alpine .500.” I called him, told him what I had in mind and he talked me out of it, instead suggesting what you see in the pix. It’s a Redhawk with the full grip frame, unfluted 5-round cylinder and plain finish - a working gun. I had him install the Ashley Big Dot front sight and Express rear, and I added Pachmayr “Gripper” grips. Then I had the MagNaPort quad ovals done, after these pictures were taken.
I also bought the dies for reloading, since Buffalo Bore ammo is $3 with every pull of the trigger. It is EXCELLENT ammo IMO, so if you need it, do NOT hesitate to buy it. It just kinda made me blanch to write a check for $150 for a box of ‘em.
I load a 435-gr wide meplat bullet to just under 900 fps.
This is a brutal gun to shoot. I hurt my wrist the first time I tried it with Buffalo Bore 435-gr slugs at 1200 fps. Then I read John Taffin’s advice about guns that recoil heavily, and do fine. Still, I fire only the minimum rounds possible, usually three, to sight in prior to hitting the trail. It is also terrifically noisy. Attached is a photo of my early attempts to find a way to control recoil, Snicker . . .. ;-(=)
Again, THR won't let me upload the phot0s because they are in "The Revolver Picture Thread of all time.
-Backpacker
Attachments
Peter M. Eick
Member
In my area of west Texas when I lived out there I carried a Witness 10mm then swapped it for a Glock 20. That was all I needed out there for many years.
Backpacker33
Member
For David E, photos 4
The last gun pic is a partial history of my backpacking guns, with a couple missing. My blue S&W .44 Magnum and .45-Colt Mountain Guns are not there.
They are, from left to right, the 329PD, the 629 Mountain Gun, 625 .45-Colt Mountain Gun, my beloved Colt Anaconda, LAR Grizzly .45-Winchester Magnum, now in the capable hands of our LEO son (he stole it from me!), and the Bowen Redhawk .500 Linebaugh. All, including the 386NG, show holster and trail wear. As I said, “working guns.”
The final pic is in a place sacred to me, high in the Rockies, that I try to camp in every year. And no, I won’t tell you where . . ..
In 38 years of packing the Rockies and Idaho, I have never fired a gun in defense. I HAVE used shot shells to dispatch pesky rodents and the occasional wasp and biting fly.
- Backpacker
AND, for the last time, THR won't let me upload a photo because it is already on "Revolver Picture Thread of All Time."
The last gun pic is a partial history of my backpacking guns, with a couple missing. My blue S&W .44 Magnum and .45-Colt Mountain Guns are not there.
They are, from left to right, the 329PD, the 629 Mountain Gun, 625 .45-Colt Mountain Gun, my beloved Colt Anaconda, LAR Grizzly .45-Winchester Magnum, now in the capable hands of our LEO son (he stole it from me!), and the Bowen Redhawk .500 Linebaugh. All, including the 386NG, show holster and trail wear. As I said, “working guns.”
The final pic is in a place sacred to me, high in the Rockies, that I try to camp in every year. And no, I won’t tell you where . . ..
In 38 years of packing the Rockies and Idaho, I have never fired a gun in defense. I HAVE used shot shells to dispatch pesky rodents and the occasional wasp and biting fly.
- Backpacker
AND, for the last time, THR won't let me upload a photo because it is already on "Revolver Picture Thread of All Time."
Attachments
Trail and camping gun.
45cal. will stop just about anything, but if your around big game like bears and such, I suggest the .454 kodiak revolver. This is a big revolver that is made for bears. If the bear is big enough, a .45 will not stop it. In addition, there is no need for concealing if you are on a trail or camping. I wear my .45 kimber on my belt when camping. Concealment is for public places.
45cal. will stop just about anything, but if your around big game like bears and such, I suggest the .454 kodiak revolver. This is a big revolver that is made for bears. If the bear is big enough, a .45 will not stop it. In addition, there is no need for concealing if you are on a trail or camping. I wear my .45 kimber on my belt when camping. Concealment is for public places.
Cosmoline
Member
My primary considerations are ease of carrying, speed of draw, power, penetration and accuracy. I have disliked the very large magnum handguns for the first two reasons. For a handgun I use the .357 with 200 grain hardcast solids. These have surprising penetration due to the high sectional density. The Speed Six revolver is also very easy to carry.
But if I have the chance and I'm heading into the woods very deep I avoid handguns entirely and use a rifle or slug gun. I'm always tinkering but my current load is a 460 grain hardcast out of a .450 Marlin. The ultra-potent revolver rounds that can chamber similar slugs also come in bulky packages that destroy my wrist. My shoulder can absorb whatever recoil is required, but I don't like sacrificing delicate wrist muscles and bones.
I think most folks avoid long guns for trail use because when they think of long guns in the woods they think of full size hunting rifles, typically with a scope. These are pretty bulky and slower to deploy than a handgun. They're also usually not sighted in for close range shooting. The tool for the job is a more compact, iron sighted levergun or slug gun.
But if I have the chance and I'm heading into the woods very deep I avoid handguns entirely and use a rifle or slug gun. I'm always tinkering but my current load is a 460 grain hardcast out of a .450 Marlin. The ultra-potent revolver rounds that can chamber similar slugs also come in bulky packages that destroy my wrist. My shoulder can absorb whatever recoil is required, but I don't like sacrificing delicate wrist muscles and bones.
I think most folks avoid long guns for trail use because when they think of long guns in the woods they think of full size hunting rifles, typically with a scope. These are pretty bulky and slower to deploy than a handgun. They're also usually not sighted in for close range shooting. The tool for the job is a more compact, iron sighted levergun or slug gun.
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