Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game Minimum caliber handgun for Black bear and Cougar

medicman,

You have cogently conveyed the reason why I have chosen an S&W 1911 .45 ACP as my trail gun. While I fish where there is no griz, black bears are more than common. I appreciate the idea of a powerful cartridge in a handgun design that facilitates easy deployment and incredibly fast and accurate follow-up shots. While a .41 Mag would be better, I am not willing to accept the trade-offs of greater length and width, increased recoil, and not as quick follow-up shots!

To me, it is most difficult to eliminate the venerable 1911 handgun in .45 ACP as the single best handgun for nearly all applications, from target practice/plinking to self-defense, to trail use.

When was the 1911 invented and who invented it???

Just kidding!!!