Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Looking for a lady's rifle for kodiac bear. What rifle to use?

I got multiple rifles for her to try. Best thing is bear will not happen this year. Training can continue for a while yet. Got her on 243 100 bullets now shooting coyotes. Next maybe the 7mm-08 120 grain then 140 grain. Hardest part is making sure the rifle fits. I want to try deer and antelope next. As long as she is having fun and stays excited.

Several springs ago I was stopped by a tiny, young female flagger in the middle of nowhere, AK. She was obviously lonely and we had to wait for a long, long bit for the pilot car to come back.

She was anxious to show us the picture of her Kodiak bear, shot just a couple months earlier. It was her first big game animal and her father's gift (at her request) for her high school graduation. She did not weigh over a hundred pounds nor make it to five feet.

She was very happy about every aspect of her hunt, her trophy, and her accomplishment.

I take nothing away from the fact it was her first big game animal...

Cindy Rhodes, all 4'10 or 11 inches of her killed an all-time top ten B&C Kodiak bear in full charge with a 7x57, on video.

It is well worth looking up on YouTube.

Were I looking at getting a special rifle for the hunt it would be either a 7-08 or a 7x57. It would be using a TTSX in either 120 or 110gr weight for the actual hunt.

To teach her how to shoot it well I would load hundreds of squib loads and have her shooting EXACTLY the same rifle she will hunt with. She would shoot at least a box a day off the bench at paper to let her know the rifle will place bullets in TINY groups, exactly where she aims.

At the same time she would be shooting far more rounds at all sorts of targets at all sorts of distances... clay pigeons work very well for long range, accessible targets.

And shooting sticks would see a lot of use...

Phuque porting!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Full bore loads would be introduced at the hunt, only! She will have no clue after shooting her Kodiak bear that the loads she shot in practice were less than the loads she just shot her magnificent bear with.

Heck a 260 Remington or 270 Winchester loaded with a 140gr partition or 130gr Tsx for the 260 or 140gr tsx for the 270 would do it or the nosler e-tip work just fine too. But a 7-08 loaded with 150gr partition or 150gr tsx would work just fine..

Riley shot a Kenai Penn brown bear with a 25-06 and 80gr TTSX... Both shots were 100% incompatible with continued cardiac health...

But I would prefer a little bigger hole...

Found the video of B&C Kodiak bear. Thanks Sitka deer. Looks like the 7 X 57 got the job done.

Ya, but Cindy is mean as a snake! I tried to order fries with my burger one day, when the fryer was shut down. After her response, I think I know what that bear felt like, as the sear on her 7x57 released!

Jeff

You expect too much.Start her on Deer with a 223.If she shows the inclination then proceed to larger game and larger rounds.I started my wife out with a 22-250.She worked her way up to a 30-06.She said if she would have used the 30-06 first,she probably would have quit shooting.

Anyone have a link for Cindy's bear? Can't find it on youtube.

Heidi Gutfrucht used to carry a 25-06 with plain old Rem 120gr ammo as a grizzly bear guide. If it worked for her...

http://www.riflemagazine.com/magazine/article.cfm?tocid=339&magid=25

Yeah, she is a bit crusty...

Think old....... 30-40 Krag ...... 1 in 10 twist ..... handles heavy bullets well (up to 220gr) ...... kick not that bad ..... cut the stock to fit ..... nice thick recoil pad ...... drill a hole in the stock and install a recoil reducer....... cut the barrel if need be...... it's been killing sheit for almost 120yrs :):):)

The problem isn't picking a rifle or that a 30-06 kicks too much. The problem is the lady does not know how to shoot. Get someone who knows how to teach her.

Plenty of women shoot Cape Buffalo. The minimum legal caliber is .375 H&H in most places where you find them.

But in a good "colorful" way. I kinda miss the place. They hosted a Friends of the NRA banquet about 10 years ago or so, and we happened to be working out of Glennallen at the end of a long stretch of 7x12+ hour days. We all were in need of blowing off a little steam, and we had a ball there. They did a great job, and put out a pretty decent prime rib.

Sorry for the highjack......back to our regularly scheduled program!

Jeff

Yep!

I've hunted with my wife for quite a few years. My first son hunted his first moose on his own tag at the age of 10. (I started him shooting a 270 #1-A to get ready for moose hunting, switching from light 100 grain loads, to heftier loads of the same bullet. And he shot heavy charges of H4831 with 140 A-Frames for hunting.) Six years later, I'd take him bear hunting, but my wife probably won't ever be ready. Bears aren't the same as shooting apples.

Anyone got a link to Cindy's hunt? Could not find on YouTube.

Because I have zero African experience and can only go on Alaskan stuff and the thoughts of friends that have done the African thing I am not sure how to take the Legend of the Cape Buffalo...

I have seen Kodiak bears take ridiculous poundings and keep going... and die like a light switch was flipped with a single modest bullet through the shoulders...

But I do know a lot about rifle stock geometry. A modestly weighted 375H&H is a pussycat compared to a light 338WM. The H&H will shove while the 338 will twist, kick, thrash, and pulverize.

A proper 30-06 with a properly-fitted stock is ideal, IMO&E... and training by someone that really understands the issues is important... short of that a more modest rifle will absolutely kill a huge bear reliably, but simply requires a better back-up.

Training with modest loads in the exact rifle to be used is important... the only shell game is the full loads at the Day of Reckoning.

Not really sure about this whole thread, but I was thinking a 9.3X62. It is a bit heavier rifle for the most part, that will cut the recoil. It does not kick much more than a 30-06, more of a stout push that a kick. My wife (5' 120#) has a Remington model 7 youth 7mm08. Frankly that rifle is very light and kicks sharply from the bench. Especially with heavy bullets. The 9.3X62 is much better suited for a Kodiak bear.. I would not want to put my wife in such a situation. Up to you and your guide. Just my opinion for what it is worth.

While I'm not much of a lever guy, in this case that was the 1st thing that came to mind. A relatively mild load with a fairly large diameter heavy bullet.