Side arm for grizzlies

The .460 the .45 Win Mag are not equal to the .44 mag. I also would not use a semi auto for this type of protection. You want something that doesn't rely on magazines (which can fail)and feeding/eject issues. I've seen plenty of semi-autos have problems, but very few revolvers.
 
I kinda forgot about this thread. I ended up finding a Taurus Tracker in 44mag that was a steal. I'd been eyeing a short barrel Ruger for a while, but the Taurus ended up being too good a deal to pass up. Now to find a left handed holster that doesn't suck.
 
I flyfish in grizz country all the time.I carry a EAA witness in 10mm.On the other holster(2gun sholder)I carry a 41 mag stuffed with 265 grnhard cast bullets.Last fall I had a big boar enter the creek on the other side(25 yds)Stomped his feet and cracked his teeth.I almost soiled my britches.No trees nothing.On the way home I bought both of The pistols.and the holster.Also bought 2 large cans of bear spray.I have been back to that creek a few times and with my precautions feel a bit safer.
I have a friend who was mauled by a grizzly, and he believes as the mountain men did " you better see them first


Randy
 
a reliable Beretta Jetfire .22 Short pistol is a personal favorite of mine and I am never without it. It saved my life a few years ago when attacked by a Grizzly while hiking in the mountains with a family member. I was able to escape, walking at a brisk pace, after I shot my brother-in-law in the knee.

hahhahha
22 short all the way j/k i dont hunt in bear country.
rman
 
Originally Posted By: rmana reliable Beretta Jetfire .22 Short pistol is a personal favorite of mine and I am never without it. It saved my life a few years ago when attacked by a Grizzly while hiking in the mountains with a family member. I was able to escape, walking at a brisk pace, after I shot my brother-in-law in the knee.

hahhahha
22 short all the way j/k i dont hunt in bear country.
rman
Now that's good stuff! Maybe we need a new 17hmr thread for grizzly protection! LOL.

Dtwee- I suppose a grizzly bear is an American, and thus, should be allowed to carry a firearm... He might run into me in the woods;)
 
Originally Posted By: jumprightinit

Now, consider what sidearm you may want for griz. That would give me the unwanted thrill of a lifetime.

That guy seems pretty relaxed about the whole deal. I had to spray a big sow grizz a few years ago, (and the spray worked like a champ, on both of us. It was super windy and some of it blew back at me). I'm glad I didn't get it on video... no one wants to see a dude hollering like a [beeep] while choking on UDAP, and running away like his [beeep] was on fire. We saw three more bears on that trip. It's not fun walking around in grizz country with nothing but an empty can to throw at em.
 
I worked as a self employed free miner (prospector) for 7 years in British Columbia & Alberta Canada.

I was licensed for handgun carry for defense in remote wilderness areas.

I carried the following guns as I learnt what worked for me.

Colt Delta Elite 10mm
Gen 3 Glock 20 10mm
2 5.5" Ruger Bisley Vaquero's in 45 Colt
2 7.5" Ruger Super Redhawks in 454 Casull I later had one of the barrels shortened to 4.25"

I loaded all of my own top performance loads with Beartooth, Cast Performance or Jae-Bok Young wide nose flat point cast bullets.

Out of these guns my preferred carry for jumping in and out of the truck or on off a quad was the Glock 20 10mm because I could not legally have the firearms loaded when in/on a vehicle.

When in grizzly country my preferred handgun was the 4.25" Ruger SRH loaded with 405gr @ 1330fps I also installed a set of Crimson Trace laser grips to this gun.

As far as I am concerned this Ruger SRH is the ultimate carry/grizzly defense gun I could put together it is crazy accurate and you can carry it all day due to not being so heavy another bonus is I can shoot all of my 45 Colt loads in it for practice or if I wasn't in grizzly country and didn't need 454 Casull power.

As per long guns for defense I first started carrying a 18.5" barreled Rem 870 then switched to rifles I have two specifically set up for defense but double for hunting when I was working during hunting seasons.

18.5" barreled Marlin 1895GS in 45-70 loaded with either 525gr Beartooth Piledrivers @ 1600 and 550gr Jae-Bok Young Crater's @ 1580fps for all round use ie hunting as well as defense I loaded it with 350gr Swift A-Frames @ 2300fps.

I found myself limited for distance during hunting season if shots were beyond 200 yards so I modified a Rem 700 LSS in 375RUM had the barrel shortened to 21" with a NECG banded Masterpiece front sight/tall fiber optic front post.

I mount either a Leupold VX3 4.5-14X40mm B&C reticle scope with QRW rings/bases I load 260gr Accubonds @ 3020fps for long range hunting when I swap out the scope to a XS Sights Tall Weaver ghost ring backup sight I load 350gr Barnes TSX @ 2450fps.
 
My goodness Moki.... good stuff.... you are loaded for bear

When I bowhunted in Alaska for caribou... and on another trip to Sikka Island for Sikka Blacktail deer... I carried a 20 in barreled, pistol grip, 12 ga Mossburg shotgun, loaded with slugs, that slid down into the top of my pack that was easy to reach back with my right hand and pull it out for quick action....easy pezzy.... never used it, but I was ready... and everyone up there said ...sure.... go ahead and take a pistol... then you will get to see how mad a bear can really get.
 
"In a split second, Braun (?sp) instinctively draws his revolver and discharges a round into the water in front of the attack."
Translation: He missed, but it was caught on camera, so we had to come up with something.

"The muzzle blast jolts the bear enough to stop the attack, and sends all four bears retreating into the woods".
Translation: They'd better not miss a day of church for the rest of their lives.
 
Originally Posted By: Kizmo"In a split second, Braun (?sp) instinctively draws his revolver and discharges a round into the water in front of the attack."
Translation: He missed, but it was caught on camera, so we had to come up with something.

"The muzzle blast jolts the bear enough to stop the attack, and sends all four bears retreating into the woods".
Translation: They'd better not miss a day of church for the rest of their lives.

smile.gif
Then Braun discretely went ashore and cleaned up.
 
I carry a Browning Hi Power .40 but always instinctively reach for my Counter Assault spray when I spot (or smell) a grizzly. I really only carry the pistol for wolf protection, or to shoot myself when a griz is chomping my face. There's an old story round these parts of the fella at the gun counter buying a .44 mag for grizzly protection. The clerk says "See that front sight there? The first thing you wanna do is file that sucker right down flat smooth with the barrel." "What on earth for", the customer asks. Clerk replies "That way when that bear is ramming your .44 mag up your @$$ it won't hurt near as bad."
 
Wow, resurrecting an "oldie but a goodie".

Since my post on page 2, I have purchased not one, but two, S&W 329 pd's. It has become my standard sidearm in the woods. So light to carry, you don't even know it's there. It has a sharper recoil than my Ruger Toklat .454, but doesn't recoil as hard-it slaps the hand hard but doesn't have the muzzle flip of the .454. The S&W X-frame grips fit it well and take care of the recoil. I only shoot Winchester White Box 240 JSP's out of it and that's all I plan on shooting. They are a handful, but I can still control them.

And yes, I had one jump crimp out of the first 50 rounds I shot, but that's the only one in 500+ rounds.
 
Originally Posted By: Dewey NYI'm not a grizzly expert, but hunt areas with some black bear,(Adirondack Mountains) and Being the grizzly is larger than black bears, I would lean towards a 44 mag..
Yep, 44 Mag. Shoot the griz 5 times and yourself once.
 
I'd rather shoot the bear 5 times with my .44 mag than none with the rifle slung on my shoulder.
Of course, the rifle would make a nice toothpick for the bear when he's done eating you.
 
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