Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns .45 ACP for bear protection - what bullet?

There are some serious flaws in the studies you mention. You need to read the papers, and critique them with a researcher's perspective. The Herrero paper states clearly that a large proportion of the people using firearms for bear defense were hunting; they were moving quietly and were in close contact with the bears when the attack began, whereas the pepper spray attacks were for the most part at greater distances.

The ferocity of a bear attack when surprised at close quarters, and the difficulty in defending against it, is much greater than if the bear is encountered at a greater distance and is not "surprised" by the human(s) in question.

I'm not saying that pepper spray is not effective... it's demonstrably effective. But these studies are skewed in favor of the spray vs firearms by their failure to take into account other factors of the bear attacks.

If i had a pile of schit in one hand and ppines thoughts in the other. I would coddle the turd,as the return investment woukd be infinately higher in value

I think another facet of that is people will tend to be more proactive with spray and more reactive with firearms/deadly force.


Travis

Unquestionably. That's why I carry both.

There's also the unknowable factor... when you spray or shoot a charging bear, and you deter the attack, you have no idea whether it was a bluff charge or a real one.

I strongly suspect many bear attacks which are silenced through the use of a gun are not reported, due to fear of repercussion from the law.

Quite likely. I am fair certain that if I'd had to kill that black bear in the Swan Hills back in the 80's, I'd have kept my mouth shut. In that day in that jurisdiction, the consequences of turning myself in would have been catastrophic to my future hunting privileges.

I'd suggest any commercial loading that propels a bullet of a minimum 300 grains at about 1300 fps. Now all you need to do is scour the ammo catalogs to find the load you prefer.

That's a bit stiff for a 45 ACP ...

Might want to opt for a heavier spring in your rig...


Travis

Wouldnt a short barreled pump shotgun, maybe with a folding stock be a better choice?

I'm not even sure if the .45 Win magnum in an LAR Griz would make that kind of speed.

This subject has been pounded on for about all it's worth, but I'll throw my log on the fire. I settled on the 225gr TCFP from Laser Cast at 850fps. It's a cream puff to shoot, roughly dupes the standard 230gr ball load but with a small meplat rather than a round nose. Shot placement trumps most other considerations, so I'm willing to sacrifice some ballistics for more controllability and faster splits. IMO most of us are much more likely to run into some very bad people than we are bears angry enough to bring a fight. Since bad people (and wolves while we're on the subject) run in packs, I'm very content with the balance of power and mildness that the 45acp provides. If four-legged, toothed threats were completely off the table, I'd carry .230gr Gold Dot in the woods, but the 225gr TCs cover the bases a little better I think.

Yep

Way, way back at the start of the thread the OP mentioned he was headed to Glacier NP. NP meaning the bears may not be terribly afraid of people.

My "bear weekend" was a solo backpacking trip in King's Canyon NP. The first night I camped by a stream, with my food in a bearproof container, well away from the tent. The bear decided to paw my tent anyway at 2 am. After I quit screaming like a girl, I could hear him breathing outside the tent. He finally walked away.

The next day I stop at a nice meadow, talk to a guy, and tell him the story. He tells me he had a buddy who caught a mess of trout, cooked & ate them, then fell asleep beside the campfire - only to be wakened by a bear licking his face An hour later I'm setting my tent, and a cinnamon bear walks past 30-40 feet away, sniffs around, looks at me, and walks down the main trail.

The final day I'm headed back down the trail, hear footsteps, step aside, and meet a guy with four deep scratches across his face & neck. A little deeper, it would have killed him. The previous night the bear had taken possession of his pack, and charged him and knocked him down after he threw rocks at it.

These were of course all black bears, and they had little fear of people. I would expect a griz would be bolder if anything. So, take the bear spray, bright flashlights, umbrellas, whatever if you like, I'm not going anywhere in bear country, unless I've got a stout pistol, too.

When I bow hunted Moose in Alaska the shotgun was around but it wasn't always carried. On the other hand my .44 mag with proper hand loads was always on my side.

I used to live 20 mins from MacDonald Lake. My advice is stay away from Kintla Lake. I drove up there to camp in my 70s vintage Jeep Grand Wagoneer (a very long ride on all washboard dirt road unless it's changed). The grizzlies chased me out of there. Walked along the lake and the shore was covered with grizzly tracks. Asked a Glacier Park Ranger friend of mine about it when I got back and he laughed at me. He told me that's where they dropped off the problem grizzlies. I should've know better. That may have all changed it was 35 years ago, but maybe not ...

Well, the road hasn't changed much, if at all. Three years ago, I drove my Accord to Bowman Lake (along much of the same road) and it was as you described.

My choice if carry a semi auto pistol in Bear Country it would be my Glock 20 10 mm

Good choice. If a guy was to chart all of the requirements for a backwoods pistol, the lines would converge on a Glock 20.

I've been away for a while...didn't read all 8 pages...did anyone mention,

"...they ALL FALL to HARDBALL..."

...?

You want something heavy. Using Power Pistol I can get a 250gr hardcast at 1000 fps from a G21. Buffalo Bore does make a 255gr hardcast for the .45 ACP, but more than that, you can shoot .45 Super out of your 1911. You might want to put heavier (stiffer) springs in it, but it gives you more power than a regular .45 ACP.

While BB doesn't load the Super to it's full potential, their 255gr hardcast is showing to be doing 1075 fps. They also sell a 230gr FMJ FN @ 1100 fps, which would be good too. The good thing about that is that recoil won't be a whole lot more than regular .45 ACP.

I say a 480 Ruger with 400g bullets

Snake