How Big a gun do you need to take down a angry Grizzly?

[EddieH4444]

Why anybody would choose a pistol over a Shotgun in close quarters combat, against a bear expecially, is beyond me. Doesn't make much sense.

It's more practical to walk around with a holstered pistol on you waist than a 12 gauge on your shoulders. Of course if you have your pick, then a shotgun would be preferable in close quarters, but you don't always have that luxury when a bear is charging you.

Learn the real names of guns, ya N00b. lol.


My choices, up close, Desert Eagle .50 cal; medium range, AR-15 in Beowulf .50; distance. Barrett Light .50 cal rifle.

Have you ever shot a Beowulf? My mom's fianc

 

[Barut]

Why anybody would choose a pistol over a Shotgun in close quarters combat, against a bear expecially, is beyond me. Doesn't make much sense.

It's simple. Slugs are soft and are not made for deep penetration. They expand rapidly. In a defensive situation with a big, heavy - boned animal penetration to the vitals and CNS is the difference between life and death. You have to use a bullet that is designed to penetrate.

You have obviously never shot any of the handguns that people regularly carry for bears. The .475 Linebaugh that I mentioned earlier produces almost 3 times the recoil of a .44mag. The round is nearly perfect for stopping dangerous game.

Read this:
Linebaugh Penetration test results - Shooters Forum

Penetration testing Big Bore Handguns: we pit a .500 Nitro Express against some of the biggest, baddest Magnums and the results may surprise you. A handgun isn't all that far behind an Elephant rifle | American Handgunner | Find Articles at BNET
(Just for reference, the .500 Nitro express is on the heavy side for ELEPHANTS.)

Shotguns for Protection in the Field
(Shotguns, especially with buck shot are NFG for Bear protection, Slugs are a bit better)

The moral of the story is that you should use a round designed for your application. Slugs are for deer hunting. If you're going to carry something for bear, carry something that can actually stop a bear.

Editted to keep from coming off as a total asshole.

 

[Ryo]

It's simple. Slugs are soft and are not made for deep penetration. They expand rapidly. In a defensive situation with a big, heavy - boned animal penetration to the vitals and CNS is the difference between life and death. You have to use a bullet that is designed to penetrate.

You have obviously never shot any of the handguns that people regularly carry for bears. The .475 Linebaugh that I mentioned earlier produces almost 3 times the recoil of a .44mag. The round is nearly perfect for stopping dangerous game.

Read this:
Linebaugh Penetration test results - Shooters Forum

Penetration testing Big Bore Handguns: we pit a .500 Nitro Express against some of the biggest, baddest Magnums and the results may surprise you. A handgun isn't all that far behind an Elephant rifle | American Handgunner | Find Articles at BNET
(Just for reference, the .500 Nitro express is on the heavy side for ELEPHANTS.)

Shotguns for Protection in the Field
(Shotguns, especially with buck shot are NFG for Bear protection, Slugs are a bit better)

The moral of the story is that you should use a round designed for your application. Slugs are for deer hunting. If you're going to carry something for bear, carry something that can actually stop a bear.

Editted to keep from coming off as a total asshole.

You can give me all the internet statistics that you want. That's great. Go up North to Alaska and look at the guns that most big game & fishing outfitters & guides carry. 12 guage shotgun with 3' magnum slugs. Infact look at just about any Bearhunting guide website you can find. Just about everone of them gives you the option of a rifle or a Shotgun.Stop talking bullshit, the slug is sufficient to penetrate vitals on any animal in North America.

For example. 3" lightfield hybred elite slugs that launch a 546 grain sabot at 1730 fps. Thats good for 3628 ft/lb of energy at the muzzle and 1943 ft/lb at 100 yards. there are factory slugs out that are pushing almost 5000 ft/lb of muzzle energy. i doubt there are many animals in north america that can take a 600 grain .73 caliber slug at 1900 feet per second to the vitals and shrug it off. It aint happening.

Pistols are much harder to learn to shoot adequately. Especially with recoil on something the size or a .475 Linebaugh or a .500 magnum. I love my pistols just as much as the next guy. But when push comes to shove I'll take the shotgun first anydy.

 

[Barut]

You can give me all the internet statistics that you want. That's great. Go up North to Alaska and look at the guns that most big game & fishing outfitters & guides carry. 12 guage shotgun with 3' magnum slugs. Infact look at just about any Bearhunting guide website you can find. Just about everone of them gives you the option of a rifle or a Shotgun.Stop talking bullshit, the slug is sufficient to penetrate vitals on any animal in North America.

For example. 3" lightfield hybred elite slugs that launch a 546 grain sabot at 1730 fps. Thats good for 3628 ft/lb of energy at the muzzle and 1943 ft/lb at 100 yards. there are factory slugs out that are pushing almost 5000 ft/lb of muzzle energy. i doubt there are many animals in north america that can take a 600 grain .73 caliber slug at 1900 feet per second to the vitals and shrug it off. It aint happening.

Pistols are much harder to learn to shoot adequately. Especially with recoil on something the size or a .475 Linebaugh or a .500 magnum. I love my pistols just as much as the next guy. But when push comes to shove I'll take the shotgun first anydy.

I guess you missed the part where the sectional density of a slug was given...

A thread from an AK hunting forum can be found below. Please note the difference between normal slugs and specialty slugs. Slugs are not slugs. If you're buying slugs from a sporting goods store you're buying forester style, soft slugs. They are NOT appropriate for bears. Shooting the Dixie slugs will not be any easier than a big bore pistol and the pistol is a LOT more comfortable to carry while fishing.
12 Ga Slugs for Brown Bear - Alaska Outdoors Forums

I maintain that for purely "defensive" purposes, a large bore handgun like the .475 Linebaugh is the way to go.

 

[Valiss]

Deagle. And come extra clips.

 

[Ryo]

I guess you missed the part where the sectional density of a slug was given...

A thread from an AK hunting forum can be found below. Please note the difference between normal slugs and specialty slugs. Slugs are not slugs. If you're buying slugs from a sporting goods store you're buying forester style, soft slugs. They are NOT appropriate for bears. Shooting the Dixie slugs will not be any easier than a big bore pistol and the pistol is a LOT more comfortable to carry while fishing.
12 Ga Slugs for Brown Bear - Alaska Outdoors Forums

I maintain that for purely "defensive" purposes, a large bore handgun like the .475 Linebaugh is the way to go.

I know the difference between normal slugs and specialty slugs. I gave an example of a type of slug that would be appropriate in defensive situations against Large Brown bears. And I am not talking about recoil as far as pain tolerance goes. I'm talking specifically in accuracy, controlling the gun. The kick on the shotgun is not gonna effect follow up shots like it would with a pistol. Pistols are much harder for somebody to learn to shoot and controll sufficiently. It takes lots and lots of practice to be able to shoot one accurately and on top of that in a highstress defensive situation? Shotguns nowhere near as much. That's pretty much a known fact.

 

[RedNeckJiuJitsu]

No, Eddie, I haven't shot a Beo yet, altho I'd like to very much. I'm a poor college student with limited options tho. lol.


And Ryo, by close quarters, I meant when it would be hard to swing a shotgun into position. Obviously, a bear attackin' ya inside a buildin' is gonna be extremely unlikely, but in thick brush or w/e, sometimes the bulk of a shotgun makes it hard to point/aim where ya want to.

 

[hunto]

"Just a quick letter of appreciation for your RSG-12 rifled slug gun. I've been looking for a gun that would put down an Alaskan brown bear at close range and believe I have found it. I had the opportunity to shoot a brown bear this spring and it did just what you said it would. By that I mean this gun kept the bear down, which in turn kept him from getting back into the brush. The bear squared 9ft 6in and the surrounding alders were thick and twisted and could have presented a problem if we had to try to find him.

The NP-3 ****l Finish is easy to take care of and as you know we live and hunt in some very severe weather conditions which make it hard to keep a gun from rusting. The NP-3 finish won't rust and it won't wear off.

The camo stock fits nice to the shoulder and with the muzzle break is a pleasure to shoot and very accurate.

The Zeiss 1.5-4.5 scope is a good match for this slug gun, the optics are clear and it gathers a lot of light for early morning or late afternoon conditions. And with the variable power can be set to fit the conditions.

Again, thank you for making a gun that will do what is needed and is a pleasure to shoot.

Scott Oman
Juneau, Alaska
Registered Guide/Outfitter"
from
Lightfield Sabot Shotgun Ammunition Slugs & Tar-Hunt Custom Hunting Rifled Barrel Rifle Slug Guns. Less Lethal Wildlife Control Ammunition.

Here's some different weapons against armored glass- note which gun penetrates the glass (12ga slug)
The Box O' Truth #6 - Ballistic Resistant Glass Gets Tested - Page 1

 

[IronShogun.]

"Just a quick letter of appreciation for your RSG-12 rifled slug gun. I've been looking for a gun that would put down an Alaskan brown bear at close range and believe I have found it. I had the opportunity to shoot a brown bear this spring and it did just what you said it would. By that I mean this gun kept the bear down, which in turn kept him from getting back into the brush. The bear squared 9ft 6in and the surrounding alders were thick and twisted and could have presented a problem if we had to try to find him.

The NP-3 ****l Finish is easy to take care of and as you know we live and hunt in some very severe weather conditions which make it hard to keep a gun from rusting. The NP-3 finish won't rust and it won't wear off.

The camo stock fits nice to the shoulder and with the muzzle break is a pleasure to shoot and very accurate.

The Zeiss 1.5-4.5 scope is a good match for this slug gun, the optics are clear and it gathers a lot of light for early morning or late afternoon conditions. And with the variable power can be set to fit the conditions.

Again, thank you for making a gun that will do what is needed and is a pleasure to shoot.

Scott Oman
Juneau, Alaska
Registered Guide/Outfitter"
from
Lightfield Sabot Shotgun Ammunition Slugs & Tar-Hunt Custom Hunting Rifled Barrel Rifle Slug Guns. Less Lethal Wildlife Control Ammunition.

Here's some different weapons against armored glass- note which gun penetrates the glass (12ga slug)
The Box O' Truth #6 - Ballistic Resistant Glass Gets Tested - Page 1

It definitely seems that slugs have heavy duty penetrating power. In that case i'd use slugs against a bear, if the slugs did damage like that to bullet proof glass imagine what it would do to soft tissue.

 

[hunto]

edit

 

[LuisHernandez]

a .357 would do it. .357 can put a hole thru an engine block, it'll stop a charging bear. but aim well, you only get one shot. bears are very fast. but don't shoot an animal for nothing,

 

[bubba]

Dunno if i would want to fully trust a shotgun slug to stop an angry bear thats charging me. I have shot deer at 45 yards(which i have my stand set up for that distance) and have them drop, other times they run for 40-100 yards. Still haveing to wait for them to bleed out. No matter what you use in large cal. for an angry full grown male or a defending mother bear charging you it going to be a head or heart shot to put it down.

 

[Barut]

a .357 would do it. .357 can put a hole thru an engine block, it'll stop a charging bear. but aim well, you only get one shot. bears are very fast. but don't shoot an animal for nothing,

Good luck with that...

Do you have a source for the engine block comment?

 

[Merrill]

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BTW, DO NOT go around shooting engine blocks at close range.

 

[Barut]

Thanks for posting that Merrill. That guy has a brass pair for tying that out though. Holy richocet Batman...

 

[DevilEyes]

Well, since no one has mentioned it yet, I'm going to throw the S&W Model 500 (.500 S&W Magnum) out there.

 

[Ryo]

^^ It's been mentioned.

 

[JerkWeed]

I would rather carry spray than a handgun. Injured bears have been known to go kamikaze.

 

[EpicDonkeyPunch]

They say the best protection agianst a bear is a 12 guage with buckshot, slug then more buckshot. But you place your shot right and that bear will drop. I believe a HUGE grizzly was killed a few years back by an older native lady who only had a .22 who shot it in selfdefence. That would have to be an eye shot though...

 

[Ryo]

I would rather carry spray than a handgun. Injured bears have been known to go kamikaze.

So shoot it angain.. and again... until it stops moving. You unload a whole chamber of 3" magnum slugs into the sweetspot of any bear in the world and it aint gonna be alive long enough to go Kamikaze. Sorry but I'd rather trust my life to an actual weapon then a can of spray keeping me from being mauled by a 1000 - 1500 pound animal.