Man kills grizzly bear with a handgun

[Por_sha911]

A 72-year-old man picking huckleberries in Montana shot and killed a grizzly bear after it attacked in a surprise encounter and injured him badly enough that he had to be hospitalized, authorities said Friday.

The man was alone on national forest land when the adult female charged him Thursday. He suffered significant injuries before killing the bear with a handgun, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks officials said.

https://www.foxnews.com/us/berry-picking-man-kills-grizzly-bear-montana-attacks

What I want to know is WHAT CALIBER was it ?!
I can see heads exploding it was a 9mm or smaller.

[LWJ]

It was a large caliber. Have you seen a Grizzly up close?

[Por_sha911]

This was in the news a while back
https://www.liveoutdoors.com/news/240665-alaskan-fishing-guide-kills-grizzly-with-9mm/

[bugstrider]

Originally Posted by Por_sha911

https://www.foxnews.com/us/berry-picking-man-kills-grizzly-bear-montana-attacks

What I want to know is WHAT CALIBER was it ?!
I can see heads exploding it was a 9mm or smaller.

.44 Mag,.454 or .50 cal bear gun. Those revolvers are massive.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Jeff Higgins]

Originally Posted by Por_sha911

This was in the news a while back
https://www.liveoutdoors.com/news/240665-alaskan-fishing-guide-kills-grizzly-with-9mm/

This story has certainly made the rounds in the hunting world. It's been beaten to death in those circles. At the end of the day, it was what he had on him at the time. His success is absolutely in no way an endorsement of the 9mm as an effective "bear gun". The only reason this story has gained so much notoriety is because he prevailed with such an unlikely weapon. "Kids, do not try this at home..."

Originally Posted by bugstrider

.44 Mag,.454 or .50 cal bear gun. Those revolvers are massive.

Some are, but they really don't have to be. "Hunting" revolvers, wherein one is carrying with the intent of shooting game, afford us the luxury of more weight, because we don't mind lugging one around while hunting. Out berry picking, or just general "woods bumming", most of us don't like to carry a really big gun that gets in the way of why we are out there, which isn't hunting. For that duty, such as berry picking, I carry what is actually a pretty lightweight, smallish revolver. I have several to choose from. They are still stuffed with pretty darn heavy loads, so recoil is definitely a problem. That is, of course, until one needs to fire it. At that point, recoil hardly matters in the grand scheme of things.

A few of my "bear country" revolvers. Carried not for hunting, but for berry picking, mushroom hunting, day hiking, back packing, and the like. Super Blackhawk and Model 29 in .44 mag, and a Blackhawk in .45 Colt. Not small by any means, but not all that intrusive to carry while doing other things. Plenty of power, each launching 300 grain cast bullets at over 1,200 fps when loaded with my "bear country" loads:

[sc_rufctr]

When all else fails?

[bugstrider]

Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins

This story has certainly made the rounds in the hunting world. It's been beaten to death in those circles. At the end of the day, it was what he had on him at the time. His success is absolutely in no way an endorsement of the 9mm as an effective "bear gun". The only reason this story has gained so much notoriety is because he prevailed with such an unlikely weapon. "Kids, do not try this at home..."



Some are, but they really don't have to be. "Hunting" revolvers, wherein one is carrying with the intent of shooting game, afford us the luxury of more weight, because we don't mind lugging one around while hunting. Out berry picking, or just general "woods bumming", most of us don't like to carry a really big gun that gets in the way of why we are out there, which isn't hunting. For that duty, such as berry picking, I carry what is actually a pretty lightweight, smallish revolver. I have several to choose from. They are still stuffed with pretty darn heavy loads, so recoil is definitely a problem. That is, of course, until one needs to fire it. At that point, recoil hardly matters in the grand scheme of things.

A few of my "bear country" revolvers. Carried not for hunting, but for berry picking, mushroom hunting, day hiking, back packing, and the like. Super Blackhawk and Model 29 in .44 mag, and a Blackhawk in .45 Colt. Not small by any means, but not all that intrusive to carry while doing other things. Plenty of power, each launching 300 grain cast bullets at over 1,200 fps when loaded with my "bear country" loads:

Thank you Sir!!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[pwd72s]

Moral...carry a big club....better than a stick.

[Por_sha911]

Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins

His success is absolutely in no way an endorsement of the 9mm as an effective "bear gun". The only reason this story has gained so much notoriety is because he prevailed with such an unlikely weapon. "Kids, do not try this at home..."

+100 Unless you have a lot of good fortune, a 9 is only going to annoy the bear and it will be worse for you.

A few of my "bear country" revolvers. Carried not for hunting, but for berry picking, mushroom hunting, day hiking, back packing, and the like. Super Blackhawk and Model 29 in .44 mag, and a Blackhawk in .45 Colt.

From what I have, my New Model Blackhawk 45 Colt 4 5/8 barrel and Underwood ammo (but not Ruger Only) would be my 'go to' when taking a stroll through the woods.

[Tobra]

He should have blown his whistle more

[ckissick]

In the 80s I applied for a USGS job doing field mapping in Alaska. They issue you a 9mm, pistol, but everyone said I would need a 44. There was a young lady who still worked there who had two artificial arms with hooks for hands. A griz had ripped off her arms while she was mapping in AK. I was relieved when I didn't get the job.

[Jeff Higgins]

Here are my dedicated "hunting" revolvers. The first is an Interarms Virginian Dragoon in .44 mag. They were only produced for about ten years, unfortunately. Too expensive to make and about half again the price of a Blackhawk or Super Blackhawk. They do have one significant advantage over transfer bar (New Model) Blackhawks, in that they have a traditional single action lockwork. This lockwork allows one to set it up for an absolutely silent cocking of the hammer, with no clicks, no rating cylinder, none of that. Simply bring it to full cock on a live chamber, lower the hammer to half cock, and sit on your stand like that. When game arrives, hold the trigger back while full cocking the hammer, then silently release the trigger so it grabs the full cock notch while carefully releasing the hammer into that notch.

There is no such ability on a transfer bar gun, nor on a double action. Cocking the hammer will always make noise, no way around it. Fine for a defensive gun, since you would not be defending yourself if the critter didn't know you were there already. But if you want to see game scamper off, just provide them with a metallic click.

Here's the Dragoon. Not real big, 6" barrel, about the size of a Super Blackhawk. I've been hunting with it since 1981. I used a 300 grain bullet from an LBT mold for years, but have now returned to the traditional 250 grain Keith bullet. I've never recovered one from any animal, it always goes all the way through.



I've hunted a bit with this 7 1/2" Colt in .45 Colt as well. Always with traditional black powder loads, which significantly outperform modern smokeless loads. A full case of 40 grains of Swiss 3Fg will crack 1,000 fps with a 250 grain bullet. Same advantage with the traditional lockwork. It's a much lighter gun as well.



Here are a couple that I could hunt with, but never have. S&W Model 29 in .44 mag and a Ruger Bisley in .45 Colt. Lots of people hunt with these, but the inability to cock them silently has dissuaded me for now. Handgun hunting is about like bow hunting, we need to get close. Close enough that the game would hear one of these being cocked.





So, it strikes me that my dedicated hunting guns aren't really much "bigger" than my woods bumming guns. Same calibers, same frames, just longer barrels. There are, of course, far bigger "handguns" with which some hunt. Some even have slings on them. Some weigh more than my lighter hunting rifles. Some have scopes on them. At some point, I have to wonder what's the point. But that's just me. Pretty much a traditionalist.

[id10t]

Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins

This story has certainly made the rounds in the hunting world. It's been beaten to death in those circles. At the end of the day, it was what he had on him at the time.

This is all that needs to be said really. Just like with carry for protection from 2 legged critters, once you cross a minimal threshold for power it is more important to have it when you need it than it is for it to be the perfect choice for whatever situation you've found yourself in.

[varmint]

A larger caliber buys you time. A 9mm may kill a grizzly. But he can still cover a hundred yards and shred you in the ten minutes it takes him to bleed out.

I have a freedom 83 in .454 casull. Don’t carry it enough because it’s so damn heavy,

[aschen]

I have the exact same model 29 as jeff, its a big ole chunk o metal! I only hunt paper though and fire ants are usually my greatest natural threat.

Shopping for a new revolver currently for the first time in 15 years. My son is 12yo and likes to go to the range. He is currently shooting my .22 ruger mark 3. Want to pick up a revolver we can both enjoy. Thinking maybe S&W .22 WMR, maybe one of the new colts.

[Bill Douglas]

There was that joke a while back about the best bear gun being a .22 pistol. You shoot your friend in the knee then run for it.

[flipper35]

Back in the 80s a guy was in northern Canada and was attacked by a polar bear. He waited until it was over him in a position to shoot up into the head between the lower jaw bones. Certainly more patience than I would have. Was featured in American Rifleman as well as the news media.

Bill, that thought crossed my mind way back in jr high. Hunting squirrels with my cousin that was bow hunting. I had a single shot .22 and we came across a mountain lion. Thankfully it kept an eye on us as it crossed the gap and moved on. Though I might rather fight one of those hand to hand over a badger.

[varmint]

My back yard just now. A hole ate all my blue berries and then left this as a final FU on the way out.

[Wetwork]

The go to pistol right now for a lot of folks is a 10mm Glock shooting buffalo bore +P solids. Theres a few vids with guys trying to see and compare fast, multiple shots and the Glock seems to win. The bigger recoiling pistols seemed slow on the follow ups.-WW
ps. I prefer my 45-70 lever.

[Por_sha911]

I agree that the Glock 10 mm (I like the G29) is a great hand cannon for overall dependability, ease in carry, dependability, and (in spite of recoil) great for getting off multiple shots when the adrenaline is pumping. Have I mentioned dependability?
Easy to clean and work on and availability of parts and upgrades are bonus points as well. I'm a huge fan of the brand and have drank the Glock kool-aid.

That said, I'm not sure I'd run Buffalo Bore +p through it. I think it would be too much pressure for the standard Glock.