Suitable side arm for Grizzly country

[skyracer]

Any recommendations on a good caliber side arm and ammo for grizzly country. I rather not carry anything but I don 't want to be like that guy on the news who had to call 911 from a tree when he was mauled.

[mr surveyor]

on the low side, I'd say .44 mag, .454, .460, .500.....

[Bawanna]

Are you hiking or fishing? Open country or thick? If open and your like fishing a shotgun usually is good. Hiking or in the brush a large revolver is the ticket. Like Mr. Surveyor said start at 44 and up.

[tv_racin_fan]

Ruger Super Redhawk Alaskan comes to mind. I'd suggest either Buffalo Bore or Double Tap ammo, something like the Double Tap 320 grain flat nose ought to do the job.

[Planedude]

I have a buddy here in Texas who hunts Elk in Montana and Wyoming. His grizz gun is a Freedom Arms 454 Casull with 4 5/8 bbl. The gun has been Magnaported and has rubber grips to help tame it.
The effort fails...
That is the most bashing heavy recoiling gun I ever shot. Makes my wrist hurt thinking of it now.
So asked him, why so much gun. He states that in the wilderness of the far north, the bear has more rights than the man. He admits that if he shot an Elk, then hiked to find it and then found said Elk claimed by a Grizz then the bear could have the Elk. If said Bear though wanted to add my freind to the days menu, then he would pull out the ol 454 Casull. Since the law dimmly veiws the killing of the government bears and any dead bear should be shot point blank, in the open (toothy) mouth with powder burns around the wound to stay out of trouble with the law.
In that instance he asked me, can you really have too much gun?;)
Can't argue with that logic.

Home of the big ones http://www.freedomarms.com/

Gary Reeders customs are Soooo cool. http://www.reedercustomguns.com/revolvers/index.htm

Good luck with the search.

[OldLincoln]

If Grizzly's are a concern, then I'd carry my 12g Mossy loaded with a combo of #4 shot and slugs. I'd carry it on a sling with the barrel down in a fashion where I could swing it up for a shot, the first round being #4 shot so you have a better chance of hitting him. That won't stop him but may make him pause long enough to rack a slug, aim and shot, then repeat until it's completely down.

I say that not from experience but because that's what I've read the Alaska guides carry for them. Also, I saw a video from a link posted here a while back where a "great white hunter" (read disgusting) set out to prove a 50 cal handgun will stop a grizzly. It doesn't, at least not from the distance he shot. His backup with a rifle empty it into the grizzly after the handgun did the same and the bear kept coming until it realized it was dead.

How do I protect myself from Grizzly's? I stay the hell away!

[Snidely Whiplash]

The only way I'm going into grizzly country is with the entire US Army 75th Ranger Regiment deployed around me as my outer perimeter, the entirety of the US Army SOF Delta as my personal bodyguard, and at least one full troop of AH-64 Apache Attack Helicopters flying close air support. Did I mention that I would be in a buttoned-up Creighton Abrams M1A2 Main Battle Tank?

[FireMoose]

I'd be confidant i could fight off a grizz with my CZ85. IF it were to charge me and i saw it first....but i'd feel that way with any larger cal as well...it's all situational awareness.


of course, i'm young, confidant, and grew up in southern CA and have never ran into anything larger then an elk...

[MW surveyor]

a "how much gun for a bear" thread. :popcorn:

[Longitude Zero]

S&W 44 mag. Make sure it is capable of "relatively" fast followup shots as the first one will probably only anger the bear. Under the fear response your liklehood of a one shot kill are so immeseaurably close to zero. In fact your first shot will probably be a miss.

When in bear country DO NOT be quiet as a mouse. Make a racket so they hear you coming from a long ways off. Most bear encounters occur when you walk up and startle the bear.

[BEARDOG]

How do I protect myself from Grizzly's? I stay the hell away!

Old Lincoln gave some good advice above, but if you must go there maybe this sign will give you some helpful advice too......:D

http://i958.photobucket.com/albums/ae70/BeardogV1/grizzly_bear_warning_sign.jpg

[TheTman]

I'd want as much gun as I could handle. Starting at .44 magnum, and up, .454, .460, .500 S&W, whatever you can handle. Maybe a 5" ,460 S&W or 4" .500 S&W. They have built in compensators, which should help with the recoil some. I doubt if a Griz is after you that you are going to be worrying much about recoil anyway. Those big caliber S&W's are pretty costly, well over $1K, but I think that's what I'd want on my belt in griz country. I suppose I could make do with some hot loaded .44 mag, but I'd be more comfortable with something bigger .454 -.500 range. I've checked out some of that .500 ammo, and it makes a .44 mag look like very small in comparison. I just watched a youtube video of a young lady shooting the .500, and 2 shots was plenty for her, I was surprised when she stepped up for the 2nd shot. There are several youtube videos of young ladies shooting the .500. Might want to give those a look.

[Barth]

Any recommendations on a good caliber side arm and ammo for grizzly country. I rather not carry anything but I don 't want to be like that guy on the news who had to call 911 from a tree when he was mauled.
http://www.theblaze.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/Grizzly.jpg
I've got a S&W 629-2 44 Mag Mountain Gun
that I would load with Garrett 310 gr super hard cast bullets for such duty.
http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRVYyLVe63GRqyZICviYL7g9nVrzfhMK nicolz0gKi4j8XTAaxe9g

But I've got to be honest.
No revolver is guaranteed to stop a charging determined grizzly IMHO.
Nothing short of a heavy rifle would make me feel comfortable.
A personal choice would be a .375 H&H Magnum.

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTk4-3U2W_Ilw4Nh_5rRJTKiF0EfLUj3Lqn7tU1libmnISV1Qvcmg

[DKD]

You also need to take a look at what you can effectivley shoot and do follow up shots with reasonable accuracy. The largest caliber won't help you one dang bit if you can't hit what you are shooting at.

I agree with Barth, a heavily loaded 44 magnum with heavy hard cast bullets in a full sized handgun will penetrate like crazy and most probably get the job done for the most part and be alot easier to shoot,cheaper to practise with than the other hand cannons mentioned. With dangerous game penetration is the name of the game, as standard hollow points and soft lead point bullets with over-expand and deliver shallow wound channels....not what one wants in this case.

[jeepster09]

Like said in another post.....just bring a fat slow friend with!

[Longitude Zero]

A hit with a 44 beats every miss with a 454, 500 etc. Also those cannons can be a bit much to hump all day thru the forest.

[jocko]

if u have a 6 shot wheel gun and a grizzly attacks no matter what caliber it is, save the last round for urself. Far less painful--so I have been told. Just sayin

[OldLincoln]

If a friend refused to heed my stay away advise and insisted on a handgun, I would steer him to a Magnum Research BFR shooting a .50 Action Express (A&E) round. That's the one on the left below. Makes a 44mag cry momma.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/82/CartridgeComparison.jpg/400px-CartridgeComparison.jpg

Reloads call for up to 35gns of powder and it's reputed to have a very large smoky muzzle flash, which is a good thing as that might be what slows down the grizzly. Oh, yes... it does have a bit of recoil.

[Bawanna]

A hit with a 44 beats every miss with a 454, 500 etc. Also those cannons can be a bit much to hump all day thru the forest.

I agree with this one. A 44 is quite often all most people can handle. Usually the bear gun see's little use so the user is not intimately familiar with it.

I've always been a revolver guy for this type of work but thinking on it a semi with lots of bullets and a few extra mags with lots more bullets makes some good sense. Use ball ammo for penetration.

I'm sure the adrenaline dump in a Griz situation is probably 10 fold what a BG situation might be. I suspect it would be best to keep it simple and use something you can shoot well over your shoulder.
I also suspect that some of the fastest track stars on record could improve their times with a Griz chasing them.

Good ideas on bring the slow friend along, saving the last round for yourself, and best one staying out of bear country. But they are way cool to see.

[MW surveyor]

Bring the slow friend along and a 22. Bust a cap in your slow friend's knee assuring yourself a clean get away.

[les strat]

old lincoln gave some good advice above, but if you must go there maybe this sign will give you some helpful advice too......:d

http://i958.photobucket.com/albums/ae70/beardogv1/grizzly_bear_warning_sign.jpg

lmao!

[mr surveyor]

the only semi-auto I would put near, or into, the same class as the .44 mag and up revolvers would be the 10mm. Not sure why it is, but I have always preferred a suitable revolver in "the field" over a semi-auto.

If long guns are now in the discussion, I too would prefer an 18(+)" slug gun if I were to end up in a nasty encounter. But, the long gun may not be an option in some locales.

[Planedude]

Ruger Blackhawk in .44mag or .45LC found used in a LGS/pawnshop near you.

Holsters available for this gun/use are common and well thought out.

Ammo? Hard cast solids as big and fast as your hand can stand.

That said, stay away from the dang Bears...:eek: