I Can't Believe I'm Starting a Gun Thread

[Terra Nova]

Originally Posted by quahauq

Helicopter pilot I met in Alaska carried twin Uzi's so lots of bullets might work!

9mm Parabellum--completely inadequate.

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by Terra Nova

9mm Parabellum--completely inadequate.

A 9mm might not even penetrate the fur much less the fat.

[ArmyDaveNY]

Originally Posted by Terra Nova

9mm Parabellum--completely inadequate.

It's inadequate against people let alone bears!

Even the government model M1911 .45 caliber won't cut it against a polar bear. Come to think of it, I don't want to use it against a black bear.

[meatservo]

You can kill a bear with a .22. Shot placement is everything...


meatservo

[ArmyDaveNY]

Originally Posted by meatservo

You can kill a bear with a .22. Shot placement is everything...


meatservo

Shot placement is correct, assuming one has the luxury of time to place the shot correctly!

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by meatservo

You can kill a bear with a .22. Shot placement is everything...


meatservo

Good luck. Who are you shooting a wife a friend, hired help? The bear might opt for them. Shooting the bear is somewhat ridiculous with a 22. even a mag. or a Hornet..

[quahauq]

Bowhunting for grizzly works but the last time I was in Wrangell- St. Elias, AK a hunter killed a cub (side shot), but Mama started circling and in about a minute found the archer and his shotgun toting partner who dropped the gun and ran, hence my comment on the Desert Eagle that killed Mama but not before a broken arm in the bears mouth so other hand fired the shot and promptly jammed. Then the hunter drove the truck out by himself to get his arm fixed. Head-on shots to charging bears have dicey outcomes ;-)

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by Cadence

A 9mm might not even penetrate the fur much less the fat.

If the plywood targets were wet the rounds would bounce off at 100m

[DeborahLee]

.444 Marlin Like a freight train.

[Jdege]

Four bore, anyone?

[jtsailjt]

Originally Posted by meatservo

You can kill a bear with a .22. Shot placement is everything...


meatservo

Technically you're probably right, but persuading a bear to get in just the right position to provide you with clear access to that perfect spot for your shot placement, and then holding still long enough for you to shoot is the hard part. Then, of course, with your life on the line you have to assume your accuracy will be completely unaffected so you can actually hit exactly where you are trying to aim.....maybe better get a (much!) bigger gun!

[Tetepare]

I wouldn’t use a 22 against a bear in a zoo.

Seems like after the banter the right solution has been identified. Of course as with all armed encounters the best solution is avoidance. If you see a polar bear get away! Keep in mind they are smarter than you think and can be crafty. They crawl and use concealment intentionally and effectively. Don’t expect the movie style bear sauntering up to you standing on hind legs.

[Kita]

Originally Posted by Pete7

If the plywood targets were wet the rounds would bounce off at 100m

I seen a video of a police officer put 9 rounds of a 9mm out of a Glock into a large fellow and he never even knocked the guy off his feet. That guy ran away and was later caught at the hospital. A 9mm just is not enough to get the job done with a human unless placement is absolutely perfect and In the Heat of the Moment that's highly unlikely or maybe just lucky.

[Kita]

Originally Posted by jtsailjt

Technically you're probably right, but persuading a bear to get in just the right position to provide you with clear access to that perfect spot for your shot placement, and then holding still long enough for you to shoot is the hard part. Then, of course, with your life on the line you have to assume your accuracy will be completely unaffected so you can actually hit exactly where you are trying to aim.....maybe better get a (much!) bigger gun!

One day when I was in my teens hunting we came across a bear routing under a tree, we were driving down the dirt road when we seen it. We stop we get out and keep in mind this is bow season. My step father and my older brother draw down on what we thought was a pig rooting. they both let go at almost the same moment. The bear looks up at the sound just in time for both arrows to strike. One hit right between the eyes and the bounces off and the arrow goes straight up. Keep in mind these are quality broadheads hunting arrows. The second Arrow strikes just about his shoulder blade and it also bounces off! Obviously that bear is very unhappy! Thankfully he ran away. Lesson learned. Bears are extremely durable! to kill one with a 22 is absolutely ludicrous I'm not sure that would penetrate the skull even at point-blank range, it could be possible. But I sure as hell wouldn't want to stake my life on that! Where bears are concerned bigger is better! And a bunch of rounds also, don't hold back with that dude! Unless you want to wind up poo

[Gone2long]

Originally Posted by Pelagic

In Alaska we carried 12 gauge with slug...... It is a last resort thing, but if you are around bears and cubs, the risk is real.

When I was up there in the '80s, the standard recommendation for Grizzlies was a .44 mag pistol, and/or an 18 inch barreled (back pack friendly) , 12 gauge w. a single buckshot round and a couple of slugs. The buckshot round is fired at the bear's face, and that would supposedly stun him at close range, hopefully impacting his eyes, and, perhaps more important, his most sensitive organ - the nose.

The slug(s) are then aimed at just below the chin, which would supposedly stop the bear as they penetrate its heart at close range. Could the bear still have enough momentum to seriously maul you. Seems likely but, hopefully, the rest of your party is also armed.

Thankfully, I have never had to apply this theory, and, it seems that the preferred weaponry has changed quite a bit over the years.

The idea back then was, "you don't need to kill the bear if he is further away than you could depend on these arms/rounds to protect you". There was no advice on "polar bears" as, I guess that it was recognized that they are essentially, ice-bound Grizzlies, and that nobody in their right mind might want to get too close to them. But, once again, times seem to have changed.

On a vaguely related note, I understand that no hunter is allowed to kill an Alaskan Grizzly at more than 300 yards. At that range, you need a high-powered rifle, but you are not exactly protecting yourself.

Just my 2 cents.

G2L