What would you use for big black bear at about 50-75 yards in a 375 Ruger ALaskan

...260 Gr accubond, 270 gr Hornady SP or 300 gr Hornady SP?

Looking to use RL 15 primarily, but I do have other powders.

Thanks for any ideas.

thinking how to best sharpen my knife is a better Q...grin

any will do just fine

how big of black bear are you talking about when you say big...?

also, must be a bait hunt?

Dober

perhaps something like this..?

Dober

If I were hunting black bear using my 375 Ruger Alaskan, either the 260 AB or the the Hornady 270 gr SP would be fine.

At 50-75 yards, I don`t think that max or near max loadings would be necessary. The 260s and 270s moving along at about 2500-2600 (well below the Alaskan`s capability) is all you would need.

For the largest of b/bear, I would more inclined to use the 225 gr Hornady SP. But if the 260s and 270s are what you have on hand, they`ll be fine.

One max loading for my Alaskan is 79.2 gr RL15. That one got me 3016 fps using the 225 gr Horn SP. Though for a big blackie at short range, I`d load it down to about the 2700-2800 fps range.

Gotta love the bruins

Dober

These are about as big as they get in the lower 48, but not British COlumbia coastal island size.

I also have some 220 gr Hornady RN.

Maybe I should bring my SKS and use the bayonet...

U going on your own or guided?

I've never hunted bruins outside of Montana, that's where these pics are from.

Keep us in the loop as to how it goes, and have fun out there.

Dober

Since you have more rifle than you need, you have wiggle room in the bullet choice. If it were me, I would use a Barnes 270GR TSX to make sure I got an exit wound, though for a normal sized black bear any of the above choices will likely exit on a normal shot. Two holes are better when trackiing.

Hope you do get the big oen you seek. Guided or self guided hunt?

any of the 3 would work out for you

Nice pics. I forgot to turn the sound off on my computer so I could clearly hear them. (They said "oink", both of them. )

Thanks for the advice. I'll either go with the 300gr SP's or a 270gr TSX elk load I've been working up.

This is a guided hunt over bait. Not physically challenging, but should be a lot of fun.

One thing I really like about bear hunting is that a guy can sleep in a bit in the morning instead of being up before dawn.

post pics as I do love the bruins

Another bullet I liked but is tough to find is the 270 power point. Long ago i bought a tonnage of them and have shot them a lot!

It's really tough to go wrong with a bullet out of a 375.

Have you hunted bruins b4?

Dober

I've hunted over bait once before, but nowhere near this close. Used my 45-70 last time, but want to try my new 375 ruger. ALthough my 44mag would be plenty for this hunt.

Did you get a bruin when you hunted b4 and if you don't mind what's the name of the outfit you're going with and what size bruins do they tell you to expect to see?

Thx
Dober

Just another Big Sky bruin, one I called in and took a few falls back. 7'1" square, and 416 lbs and a noggin at 20" if I recall right. Not a POW or SE size bruin but dang good for a rocky mtn bruin.

Dober

WOW! That is one nice mountain bear! I have seen tracks and scat from one that might go this size where I will be hunting soon, but the underbrush and other foliage is very thick so my chances of seeing him are not so good. Still, it is whay we go and try, eh?

Leverite, hunting with the Quinnaults up North of you a ways, perhaps?

Thx and here's the first big bruin I took- 17 yds or so with a 340 and a 250 Noz. Spring bruin, 335 lbs, 19" and 6'4" sq if I recall right. And yeah that was a few moons ago...grin



Dober

Nice pictures Mark. My fall bear season opens tomorrow.. I have seen a few nice ones in the creeks chasing salmon, but haven't made up my mind if I want to hunt bears this fall. Bears just feel like a spring thing for me!

yeah...got a fairly nice spring bear in Idaho a few years ago. Not real big, but a good pelt. Made a great rug...and a few very nice roasts.

Used my Marlin Guide gun w/ a Williams peep sight. 300 gr X bullet at about 2100 fps (as I recall) did the trick at about 100 yards. Thick timber, steep hillside...aka "mountain" for all you folks east of the Mississippi.

This hunt is on the Quinalt reservation in NW Washington. Some pretty big blackies.

Gotta wonder about my thought process though. Here I ante up for a guided hunt and am reluctant to use my TSX bullets, because they're more expensive than my Hornady Interlocks.

You guys ever get caught up in that weird thought loop about ammo and bullet choices?

Nope, never happened to me...........

Dober

.........No, not really.

Any hunting bullet from 225 gr up to and including a 300 gr offered for a 375 by Sierra, Hornady, Barnes etc, should be fine for black bears. There maybe one or two brands and weights that might work a little better than others, but I see no issues where any 375 caliber hunting bullet won`t be OK.

I would be more inclined though (assuming I were using my 375 Ruger for black bears), to use the 270 grain and lighter bullets. Imo, one doesn`t need 300 grain pills out of a 375 for smaller black bruins.

I used a 300 grain Hornady on a good size black this spring, it took care of him in short order.

did you get an exit wound?

No, but I have never seen two shoulders with that much damage.

Those are sure nice bears Mark! Below is the only thing with claws I have gotten with my .375 Ruger. I think it was a B&C candidate but the skull was broken when I caped him;) I used the 225 Hornaday but I still got "way over-penetration" in the dirt behind it. Good luck on your bear hunt leverite2.

Over bait, the 250 or 300 SGK would be just the ticket outta your Rugger.

Took this Washington black bear at 306 yards yesterday with a single 260 gr Accubond from my .375 H&H Number One:



It did a fine job!

GuyM...so did you! Not an easy shot.

Loaded up a few test 270 gr TSX's over 74.0 gr RL 15. Cloverleaf 3/8" group at 50 yards...1/2" high.. This load will do...now to load more and see where it prints at 100 yards. Should be about an inch high.

I didn't feel much recoil off the bench...gonna have to keep on letting my son sight my rifles in for me! ;>]

That load ought to work just fine! I got a few of those 270 gr Barnes TSX loads with the rifle when I bought it used last year. Bullet looks like it would penetrate a wooly mammoth, let alone a bear...

Go for it!

Thanks for the good idea! I just picked up a 375 Ruger Hawkeye African last week. I'm gonna have to see if I can recruit my son to help with bench testing the loads.

For my 375, it's 270 gr TSX's for everything.

I've always figured my 270 was a bit overkill for black bear up to about 400 lbs. My first 7 bears I killed with a 243 ... I bought my 270 when I moved to Montana in 1973, grizzlies are a lot scarier.



Chuck

What powder are you putting under those TSX's? I'm just starting to work on handloads for my 375 Ruger.

DocRocket,

I shoot 72 grns. of RL-15 with the 270 TSX at 2725 fps out of my .375 Ruger, 20" bbl., with good accuracy.

Check this thread for lots of load information:

http://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/3980778/1

Manny

Thanks!

75 grains of Reloader 15 turns my 375 H&H into a target rifle!

Funny thing how Reloder 15 keeps cropping up in my own pet loads. Thanks, Brian.