My friend shot a nice grizzly with a 6.5x55 (M/38) from about 50 yards. The bear stood up on its hind legs to survey the situation - the brush was about waist high - and the shot went straight into the chest. The bear turned to run away while dropping and made it less than 50 yards before giving up the ghost. The ammunition was cheap Privi Partisan soft point.
A couple of questions come to mind: 1)What is a "nice grizzly", and 2)What if that grizzly had been big and tough enough to drop down and come for the hunter, 50 yards away, since the bear was in waist-high brush that would have posed a possible serious threat to the hunter, no?
About killing 100+ moose and 50 grizzly with a .30-30... Those were days and times in which better armament was in short supply, and hunters were not sportsmen or hobbyists... you're not suggesting that with much better cartridges available today that hobbyists should try that, are you? I hope not. If your point is, if that's all you have and are caught in a wilderness area with a .30-30, then you had better know how to use it, that's for sure!
I know a fellow (NOT "know of...)who went on a western trip from Ontario with his family. They camped somewhere in the Rockies... and it was hunting season. I know nothing about the details of that, but a grizzly shows up in camp, getting too close. He had his .303 Brit along with a 10 shot clip loaded. He UNloaded all 10 shots into the grizz and it was still making hast in his direction. It finally dropped dead a few feet away, and he was shooting in an open area.
I also KNOW a fellow who unloaded his Winchester 94 in .30-30 into a bull moose in Northern Ontario. He finally brought it to bag... but, according to him, he wouldn't try that again with a .30-30! Too much misery for the moose! Yeah, I know elephant have been killed with the 6.5X55 and Inuit have slaughtered dozens? hundreds? of white bear with the .222 and .223 Rems! Are we suggesting that as a good policy for everyone?
I know Phil Shoemaker has killed many brown bear with his .30-06 using premium, heavy bullets, but few (especially Canadians)have the military background of Shoemaker as a sniper in Vietnam!
In my firm opinion, I'll go with the guide-outfitter who says "Take the heaviest caliber you can shoot well. If it's not heavy enough, get one that is and LEARN to shoot it VERY WELL!"
Bob
www.bigbores.ca 
