Pistol for bears?

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Tom's Thumb

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A short barrelled pump shotgun is out of the question? If you need to defend yourself against a bear then that means he's already running at you. Your target is bouncing around not really giving you much to shoot at.

Good options so far and I know that, usually, bigger is better, but do you think .44 mag isn't enough?

They make bear loads that are enough. But shot placement is critical. As I said, he's already running at you and that's a tough shot to make with a handgun.
 

ignerntbend

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If you're just hiking and you've got .44 magnum, just carry what you've got.
In the unlikely event that you get charged by a bear, you might be best served by a double gun in .458 Winchester Magnum.
You could even get hooked up to nuke a bear from space. Use what you've got. Take a hike and don't worry about it.
 

saddlebum

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in Colorado your 357 will be just fine. in fact i once spent a week hiking and camping in Colorado with just a .22 and nothing ate me
 

Honey Badger

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in Colorado your 357 will be just fine. in fact i once spent a week hiking and camping in Colorado with just a .22 and nothing ate me

I have to agree with that. I believe the majority of the bear populace in Colorado is made up of black bears, so a well placed shot with a .357 should be more than enouph to take care of your needs. Now Grizzly or Kodiak I would want a bigger round, but for a black bear you are well covered.
 

sesh

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I have to agree with that. I believe the majority of the bear populace in Colorado is made up of black bears, so a well placed shot with a .357 should be more than enouph to take care of your needs. Now Grizzly or Kodiak I would want a bigger round, but for a black bear you are well covered.

Colorado has it's fair share of griz, but I have to agree, I think your .357 is good enough. Unless you're wanting something else. I carry a Taurus 2" 44mag in a chest holster when I'm backpacking and fishing in grizzly country. It's really not as bad on recoil as you'd expect. I haven't shot any of the Ruger Super Redhawk Alaskan models but I wouldn't mind trying one out, and they do come in 454 casull http://www.ruger.com/products/superRedhawkAlaskan/models.html
I know a few guys that live(d) in Alaska and most were/are comfortable with 44mag for bear protection.
 

1mathom1

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A short barrelled pump shotgun is out of the question? If you need to defend yourself against a bear then that means he's already running at you. Your target is bouncing around not really giving you much to shoot at.



They make bear loads that are enough. But shot placement is critical. As I said, he's already running at you and that's a tough shot to make with a handgun.



Beat me to the question. 12 ga 870 slugger.
 

EFsDad

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awww.truthorfiction.com_images_bear.jpg



A .22 should work...
 

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