9mm or .45acp?

gpt

Smolt
there is only ONE bear weapon worth having, 12ga with 550gr slugs. no pistol is going to do much on a bear intent on attacking. a friend was caught by a brownie in SE AK and the 12ga is the only thing that saved his life. with a head like an Abram tank, you have limited choices for placing a kill shot. even a 44 mag is not enough in an angry bear encounter.
 

gpt

Smolt
body shots on a bear are not going to stop an attack. you have limited targets for a quick kill so you had better have your nerve up and have practiced precision shooting before something like this comes along. 1" groups at 50 meters with my 44 is what i am suggesting.
 

krusty

We're on the Road to Nowhere...
Forum Supporter
A lot of this comes down to relative risk assessment. Constantly preparing for a hazard that has an exceedingly minuscule chance of occurring may, for many of us, be a very non-productive use of our time on earth. In fact it's likely to reduce our enjoyment of the great outdoors.

I've known quite a few people who've been killed via firearms, a great many more killed in vehicle accidents and shitty lifestyle choices (substance abuse and promiscuous mating practices) but not one killed by bears, sharks, or other wildlife.

I guess it comes down to which hazards we fixate our fears upon. Some of this discussion reminds me of the lurid Outdoor Life magazine covers of the 1920's ' - 1960's.
 
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gpt

Smolt
A lot of this comes down to relative risk assessment. Constantly preparing for a hazard that has an exceedingly minuscule chance of occurring may, for many of us, be a very non-productive use of our time on earth. In fact it's likely to reduce our enjoyment of the great outdoors.

I've known quite a few people who've been killed via firearms, a great many more killed in vehicle accidents and shitty lifestyle choices (substance abuse and promiscuous mating practices) but not one killed by bears, sharks, or other wildlife.

I guess it comes down to which hazards we fixate our fears upon. Some of this discussion reminds me of the lurid Outdoor Life magazine covers of the 1920's ' - 1960's.

good points for sure. my only caution is that people think by emptying a magazine full of bullets on a bear they can survive. nothing could be further from the truth. until you have an encounter or a friend who almost died because of a bear encounter, we tend to put this on the back burner. the important point is if you have a handgun, you need to understand how to accurately use that firearm. on a charging bear you only have the eyes, and nose as targets that have openings into the skull. are you prepared to make that kind of shot?? if the answer is NO, then why the hell are you carrying in the first place. a kill shot is your only hope of survival and hopefully you will never have to deal with anything like this in your lifetime
 

jaredoconnor

Peabrain Chub
Forum Supporter
Being new to this country and not growing up learning about all the wildlife, I did a lot of research. Most of the experts said that shooting a bear increases your risk of dying, because the probability of getting a kill shot (under stress) is extremely low and you will just enrage it further. For that reason, bear spray is argued to be far more effective.

Guns are cool and all, but I think they're probably only useful against other animals that have guns. That is definitely a concern, in some places.
 

krusty

We're on the Road to Nowhere...
Forum Supporter
Bears have never frightened me, but marsupials do...cuz' they're fast!
 

gpt

Smolt
Bears have never frightened me, but marsupials do...cuz' they're fast!
you will never outrun a bear of any stripe. bear spray is a better defensive weapon than any pistol. hope you never have to face this issue in your lifetime.
 

krusty

We're on the Road to Nowhere...
Forum Supporter
you will never outrun a bear of any stripe. bear spray is a better defensive weapon than any pistol. hope you never have to face this issue in your lifetime.
As the old saying goes...I don't have to outrun the bear...I just have to outrun you!
 

Scottybs

Head Master Flyfisher In Charge
Forum Supporter
Being new to this country and not growing up learning about all the wildlife, I did a lot of research. Most of the experts said that shooting a bear increases your risk of dying, because the probability of getting a kill shot (under stress) is extremely low and you will just enrage it further. For that reason, bear spray is argued to be far more effective.

Guns are cool and all, but I think they're probably only useful against other animals that have guns. That is definitely a concern, in some places.
Jaredoconnor… I’m probably misinterpreting your post, but please do not refer to guns as being “cool.” Firearms are a very deadly and unforgiving tool. I cringe when I see weapons handling at big box stores. Training, training, training by pros… think from someone with some sort of an Alphebet soup background. Sorry I digress.
To the OP…. no idea what your firearms background is, trade one in and buy a 10mm cartridge Glock 20 and TRAIN… next open carry in an easily deployable fashion in addition to carrying a can of bear spray.
 
Dude, guns are cool and fun and can be ones best friend. They have been a huge part of my life and I haven't killed anyone I didn't mean to, yet. Trade one in? Why, the more the merrier I say. I'm 73 and I don't get where you get off lecturing someone about this subject the way you are trying to do. I guess it's the whole woke thing. Anyway, I needed to up my post count and well????lol




Jaredoconnor… I’m probably misinterpreting your post, but please do not refer to guns as being “cool.” Firearms are a very deadly and unforgiving tool. I cringe when I see weapons handling at big box stores. Training, training, training by pros… think from someone with some sort of an Alphebet soup background. Sorry I digress.
To the OP…. no idea what your firearms background is, trade one in and buy a 10mm cartridge Glock 20 and TRAIN… next open carry in an easily deployable fashion in addition to carrying a can of bear spray.
 

jaredoconnor

Peabrain Chub
Forum Supporter
Jaredoconnor… I’m probably misinterpreting your post, but please do not refer to guns as being “cool.” Firearms are a very deadly and unforgiving tool. I cringe when I see weapons handling at big box stores. Training, training, training by pros… think from someone with some sort of an Alphebet soup background. Sorry I digress.
To the OP…. no idea what your firearms background is, trade one in and buy a 10mm cartridge Glock 20 and TRAIN… next open carry in an easily deployable fashion in addition to carrying a can of bear spray.

You probably won't like the invite graphic that I made, for my going away party, before I moved to America.

58FADA22-DB95-4F32-B394-B5454BA5664A.jpeg

That said, I was being facetious in my original post; one may want a gun, because shooting them is fun, but that is orthogonal to them being a good tool for a given purpose.
 
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Man, there is so much misinformation in this thread I don't know where to start! No wolves in the lower 48, really? Black bears are harmless, really? Go to YouTube and search black bear attacks in Canada at rest stop or google black bear attacks in New Mexico. 1" groups with a 44 mag @ 50 meters, I'd have to see that.
Hard cast bullets from Buffalo Bore or Underwood is the most sensible thing I read in this thread.

I just watched a video from Autumns Armory on YouTube about 9mm Extreme penetration ammo and it was impressive. Went through a ton of Kevlar vest layers, more than any ammo they tested. I would look into that.
I personally carry a Rowland 460 in a 1911 frame with Underwood ammo hard cast or my XD Sub 45 with 45 super hard cast from Underwood, same as BB but a lot cheaper.
Heres a video of the harmless black bears deeds, just one.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02lSPlS5aSo&t=24s&ab_channel=RichardVernadeau
 
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