Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns 45acp or .357?

Just looking for suggestions. I'm headed to the backcountry on a fishing excursion this month and was wondering what handgun I should carry for protection. The area is in the Beartooth Mtns and yes it's Griz country. I could also purchase bearspray and leave the gun at home. The 45 is a Colt Lt wt commander and the .357 is a Colt King Cobra. Both have 4" barrels. I would say the 45 is a little lighter but not much. Thanks for any advice.

if bears are your main concern, then I"d say 'neither', and choose at least a .44 Mag or a heavy loaded .45 Colt.

Either one is under powered for griz. You need really big, heavy bullets with a griz. For a .45 ACP you can get a 255 grain load, but not one with a very large meplat, so I think I'd pick a .357 with a WFN hard cast bullet, aim for the brain and pray like hell you hit it. Remember, it's 5 for the bear, and one for you.

JWP had a .45 Super load with a 255 grain bullet, but like I said, the meplat wasn't very wide. Penetration was downright impressive, but I'm not sure how it would be if you hit heavy bone being that the bullet is mostly round nose. I think the .357 WFN would do a better job of penetrating in a straight line. Either way, I wouldn't want to run into a pissed off griz with a .45 ACP or a .357.

buy a used marlin .45/70 guide gun with some 400grain buffalo bore rounds

Thanks for the info. Sold my 45-70 last year. I've been on this kind of trip and never taken any firearm, never needed it. This year I was told by a few locals that precaution should be taken more than ever. I will probably opt for the spray (cheaper).

Forget the guns and buy spray. A better deal.

If you want to take a gun, take a rifle that shoots heavy bullets for the caliber.

Now if your reason is for two legged predators either one will work.

WWPSD?

(What would Phil Shoemaker do?)

Don't know what Mr. Shoemaker would do but I seem to recall that his daughter carries a 3" S&W .357 loaded with 180 grain bullets as her bear protection.

The 357 with hardcast 180`s will be fine.Having nothing, well if your life is worth nothing ,go ahead. I would carry pepper spray also.

I have shot some Buffalo Bore 180 hard casts out of my Ruger SP101, and I would need a lot of time to do a follow up shot. They hurt, too. The Buffalo Bore 255 hard cast .45 Auto Rims I shot were much more controllable. I think I would try out the Buffalo Bore .45 ACP in standard and +P before deciding.

It's obvious people don't know much about Grizzlies.

Yup.

Wouldn't want either one for a grizzly, but since you're asking for a choice I'd probably go with the 357.

Yep

.45 colt

I know I don't want to square off with a griz armed with a .357 or .45 ACP.

There is one man on this forum who HAS squared off with a griz or two while armed wtih a handgun...I wish he would chime in. I know what he would say, but it's best having HIM say it.

I agree, I don't want to square off with a .357 or .45 ACP against a Griz either.

When I moved out here I had a Model 19 in .357 mag. I thought it was the revolver. I sold it to raise the money for a .44 mag. Wish I hadn't sold it but that's another story. I bought the .44 mag at the suggestion of my friend who was an outfitter and guide. He had a number of run ins with Griz and the .357 mag just wasn't cutting it so he bought a .44 mag and suggested I get one to because of the Griz.

Even the FWP wardens gave up on the .357 mag for Griz and went to shotguns and rifles. Griz are tough to put down when they are pissed and on the fight with plenty fat, hair and hide to stop a bullet especially from a handgun.

Nope, if I was afraid of Griz I would get a bear gun, be it rifle or shotgun, to make a impression on a pissed and on the fight Griz.

The 255 grain hard cast flat point from Buffalo Bore would be my choice of the 2 that you listed. The load is a +P and is 960 FPS plus or minus

Number of run ins...... how many griz did he shoot with the 357 that did not work?

We've only got black bears around here, but I faced a similar decision and came to the conclusion that a 1911 with 225gr TCFPs @ 900fps would be a good compromise. Hopefully enough for bear, and about perfect for the low-end people who I'm MUCH more likely to encounter than bear. IMO all the things that make the 1911/.45acp combo one of the premier fighting handguns also qualifies it as a great woods defense gun IF the right bullets are selected. The 225 TCFP is only 5grs under the standard 230gr ball, but has a slightly better nose profile for disrupting tissue and boring a straight hole.

A 10mm Glock has even better ballistics, more capacity, and simple, weatherproof construction. I'm geared up for .45acp though, so I'm doing the best with what I've got, and I really don't feel too under-gunned. In Grizz country I'd want a 12ga with slugs and not even entertain handgun thoughts.

357 with a good hard cast bullet 158 gr or bigger