I say use a 375. Good calibers for large black bear in the 350-600 pound class, in addition to the previously mentioned.308 and.30-06, include the.338 Marlin Express,.338 Federal,.338-06,.348 Winchester,.356 Winchester,.358 … You want to reach the command and control center. How far will the 30.06 travel if it goes through a bear… Fortunately, he doesn’t have to if he forgets about the cartridge and concentrates on the bullet. Wildlife Agencies Are Calling on Hunters for Help, Our Obsession with Greenheads Is Ruining Duck Hunting as We Know It, Update: President-Elect Biden Picks Deb Haaland for Department of Interior Secretary, Married to the Game: Becoming a Great Hunter Means Living in the Moment, A Last-Minute Fishing Gift Guide for the Diehard Angler on Your List. I once knew a game warden who tried to euthanize a bull bison by applying a 180-grain .30-06 hunting bullet to its forehead from a few yards out. The .30-06 saw action in both World Wars. At bear-baiting distances, the Wilson Combat 300 HAM’R will do anything the.30/30 Winchester will, and from a lighter package that holds more ammunition. If you have had experience with small calibers, heavy-for-caliber bullets, and charging bears, please let us know about it in the comment section. Once a heavy bullet gets rolling, it doesn’t want to stop until an external force acts upon it. of .246. You don’t care what your bullet might do inside lungs and heart and guts. There is no comparison in muzzle energy; the ’06 has almost 2.5 times … For black bears, in country where there is no grizzly presence, the popular deer and elk cartridges will certainly work very well; a.308 Winchester or.30-06 Springfield loaded with a 165- or 180 … "Anyone who says the.30-06 is not effective on brown bears or grizzlies either has never used one or is unwittingly commenting on their marksmanship." And that meant they had high Sectional densities. But really, it's not the bullet that kills bear but your shot placement. with a 300- to 350-grain bullet for bear protection. .334) 2,600 fps churns up 2,700 f-p at the muzzle. I once knew a game warden who tried to euthanize a bull bison by applying a 180-grain 30-06 hunting bullet to its forehead from a few yards out. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Bear Ammo is manufactured by the Barnaul Cartridge Plant in Russia. A quandary for many “wanna be” Alaska sheep, goat, and caribou hunters is what to do about stopping grizzly and brown bear attacks. I think that is a very foolish choice that could cost your life. There are similar options in .277, .284 and .308. What rifle round would you take on your next grizzly or brown bear hunt? Or less if your nerves hold. A 150-grain in 270 Win., a 180 or 190 in 30-06, a 140-grain in 6.5×55 Swede or 6.5 Creedmoor, etc. The author has never had to stop a charging bear, but he likes to think he could if the challenge arose. Heavy-for-caliber bullets used to be popular in the early 20th century when hunters weren’t convinced speed could make up for mass. Mere feet away, head first, coming. If you are going to hunt brown bear on the Alaska Peninsula or Kodiak Island, a .30-06 loaded with 200- or 220-grain Nosler® or similar premium bullet will do the job with good shot placement. Air friction as it flies, tissue friction after it starts burrowing. JMHOs, I hunt PA Black bear with my 12 … Thick jacket, hardened lead or bonded core, maybe an internal wall. It did for me. Shotguns were actually not … Ruger is one… Bear Ammo is known for providing ammunition that is both affordable and high quality. Cutting Edge bullets has a nice option in its ESP Raptor line. A round or flat-nose is what you want. In comparison, a 6.5x55 Swede tossing a 160-grain Woodleigh at 2,300 fps puts out 2,220 f-p energy. But it must retain enough mass in its shank to keep driving forward. is .238. So did the bison, la tee da. Only consider … But most likely the bear will be shy and reclusive and shot unawares. .30-30 for Bears May 26, 2011 By Joseph von Benedikt I just returned from a black bear hunt in northern Alberta, where I tested Hornady 's new 140-grain MonoFlex .30-30 bullet out of a … At best you can carry a rifle capable of throwing a bullet just hard enough to scare you into flinching while making your shoulder a bit sore. A Bonnier Corporation Company. If it were that easy I would of pulled the trigger. There’s a chance that extra long bullets won’t stabilize perfectly with your barrel’s twist rate. bullet with minimum expansion and a long shank penetrates like a stake, burrowing through the frontal mass of a 1,000-pound brown bear to reach his brain or spine. At 100 yards that 270 bullet is still carrying 2,527 f-p (more than the 45-70 at the muzzle.) That’s more energy than the 45-70. A bear’s skull is one thick, tough, well-protected shell for Mr. Bear’s hard drive. The higher its SD, the more likely it is to penetrate well. You can’t carry a Mac truck in the Alaska Range. Both brown bears and grizzlies are thick-hided, heavily muscled, and prodigiously strong. Still, I would put one of these up against a massive, charging bear sooner than most lead core bullets of similar weight and shape. spitting a 180-grain Woodleigh (S.D. You can always replace them when you’re closing for a shot at a goat, caribou or sheep. I wouldn't feel under-gunned if I were taking on a grizzly with a 270 Winchester stuffed with 150-grain Barnes TSX loads. In the hunting world, the .30-06 Springfield is one of those cartridges that has probably been used to kill every species of huntable game on the planet — with varying degrees of success on the truly large and dangerous stuff. I’m probably not the best to ask about this because, during dozens of hunts in grizzly country, I’ve never had to stop a charge. close range bear:45/70 or 30/06:better choi It actually doesn't take much to kill a black bear. It doesn’t require a truckload of energy for a tiny projectile to do that, but it does require a tough bullet designed to stay in one piece and travel in a straight line. It needs, in a word, momentum, and “heavy-for-caliber” bullets can carry that. Custom loaders like Superior Ammunition and Massaro Ballistic Labs can advise you as to suitable heavy-for-caliber bullets and create custom ammo for your rifles. What must a bullet do to stop a bear? That suggests its going to smack hard, but not necessarily penetrate all that far. Carry five or six during your hunts in bear country, and keep two or three ready at the top of your magazine stack. of .328. The US Forest Service did a study awhile back. The short bullet’s S.D. They wanted the new ones to, too. is the ratio of bullet weight to the square of its diameter. Maybe you can find an old stash. A gun capable of stopping a 400-to 1,000-pound mountain of teeth, claws and bad attitude could play a huge role in the subsequent enjoyment of your sheep hunt. The wider it frontal surface area, the higher the friction and lower the penetration. My buddy used his 30-06 for black bear hunting in Maine this past season. Order your Silver or Brown Bear … A bear’s skull is one thick, tough, well-protected shell for Mr. Bear’s hard drive. bullet in your pet mountain rifle made it the perfect bear stopping rifle. Deep, deep, and deeper still through all the mass a brownie shoves in your face when he comes hard. While it’s true he used a .270 for most of his wild sheep, … A 30-30 will work on bear. Half of a Gun, and a Life Lesson, On Christmas Morning, Worth the Wait: It Took 10 Years, but a Mother-Daughter Team Finally Killed Two Massive Colorado Mule Deer, 10 Early Ice Fishing Walleye Tactics That Will Put You on the Bite, The Ultimate Guide to Tanning Wild Game Pelts and Hides, Tomahawks Are Back: These American Relics Have Seen a Resurgence in Military and Survival Situations, Drilling for Oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: Two Perspectives from Alaskan Outdoorsmen, How to Wax-Pluck a Wild Goose for Christmas Dinner, Hunting Giant Alaska Black Bears with Old-School Recurve Bows and Sidelocks, A Deadly Virus Is Spreading Among Wild Rabbits and Hares. Neither are Swift A-Frames or Federal Trophy Bonded Bear Claws. — were usually offered with a 160-grain round nose on the heavy end. It is popular there largely in part due to the fact it was widely available in very inexpensive surplus rifles. For bear country where fast follow up shots can be needed, this is the go-to .30-06 in our opinion, where you can reliably expect performance in a fast, time restrictive environment like when an … Mag. More important than downrange accuracy or energy may be straight-line penetration. A sheep hunter doesn’t want to give up his ultralight sheep rifle on the outside chance a bear might decide to eat him. These brass bullets come with polymer tips that can be removed to create a flat-nose hollow point. If we forget our bear stopping rifle fixation and concentrate on bear stopping bullets, our pet mountain rifles have a fighting chance. But a better destination is it’s brain or spinal column. I once knew a game warden who tried to euthanize a bull bison by applying a 180-grain 30-06 hunting bullet to its forehead from a few yards out. In 7mms — from 7x57 Mauser through 7mm Wby. All Rights Reserved, But here’s the thing: that sexy, snazzy, sleek, sub-six-pound, laser-flat, sub-30-caliber, extreme-range sheep rifle of yours isn’t going to be chambered in 411 KDF. The best route is plowed by a bullet engineered to penetrate hide, hair, muscle and bones. If your answer is “hit it like a Mac Truck hauling a load of steel at highway speed,” go to the back of the class. A bear… Any sort of … It's not a bear stopping rifle so much as bear stopping bullet we're after. Another option is a Cutting Edge 155-grain Copper Safari Solid in .264, an incredibly long bullet. At K-Var, we carry both Brown and Silver Bear Ammo for all your target shooting and hunting needs. Of course, you’re not going to be engaging any charging bears at 100 yards. I think that any 180 grain load will work just fine. This is close-up, last-resort, self-defense work for which you’ll likely unleash only one to three rounds from a bolt action. Not a big problem. A bear’s skull is one thick, tough, well-protected shell for Mr. Bear’s hard drive. The moral of that story is, when you need one, you need one! I wouldn't go with say 150 grain bullets though. Hornady’s 120-grain .264” GMX has an S.D. My carry handguns for bear protection are 10mm's or 45 Colt's and I don't feel under gunned with either of them when it comes to black bears. Mag. In comparison, a 6.5x55 Swede tossing a 160-grain Woodleigh at 2,300 fps puts out 2,220 f-p energy. Many products featured on this site were editorially chosen. But here’s the thing: that sexy, snazzy, sleek, sub-six-pound, laser-flat, sub-30-caliber, extreme-range sheep rifle of yours isn’t going to be chambered in 411 KDF. But it must retain enough mass in its shank to keep driving forward. The little 6.5 Creedmoor, for instance, should push a 160-grain bullet 2,500 fps. On my last trip to AK, with hunting partner Tom Claycomb stalking bears every day, I was armed with two cameras. 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