The Bear Topic

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Originally Posted By: Johnny2Bad
Black Bears are attracted to anything that smells, regardless of what that is. They eat boat cushions because they smell of your butt,
That's exactly what I was thinking while she was wailing on about why it was eating her 'kayak'.

Obviously wasn't at all interested in a poly-E boat. Completely interested in the cushion though where a female's butt had been....
 
Originally Posted By: Astro14
Didn’t this woman provide the definitive method for dealing with black bear attacks?



This would be my luck.
 
WRT firearms, certainly they offer the best defence against any aggressive animal. But do not let your reaction be to "get out the gun" (you certainly should get any responsible adult to ready it for you) as your immediate aggressive response is the most effective.

I have been in a situation in camp where another person fumbling with a gun delayed our response, and it could have been dangerous as there were "civilians" nearby whom were in the most dangerous position relative to the bear. From that point on I never bothered with firearms as my first response, even when available, and it always worked out fine.

Those were always situations where we had chased the bear previously (remember the part about returning to previous locations) and had secured permission to shoot from the Conservation Officer. We only occasionally did, and there were multiple encounters ... maybe even more than I had ... many with camp staff (including young women). Properly advised the people in camp always reacted appropriately and we never had a serious encounter.

Just as with my own experience, they were sometimes within spitting distance apart.

I once hit a bear on the head with a frying pan, as he surprised us while cooking lunch out in the bush. He ran away.

Another time we were waiting to be picked up from the aircraft, and we had a persistent bear, and he was a nice sized boar. There was a hill that crested about 20 yards away. The bear would come over the hill, and start down somewhat to our left, we'd chase it, it would go behind the hill and then approach from the right, we'd chase it, and it would come again from the left. (Very typical behaviour).

At one point it stood at the crest of the hill (well, not stood, on all fours). Another person (not me) picked up a potato-sized rock and nailed him right on the nose. You would have thought he was wailing at a funeral, he yelled so loud, and we had a quiet half hour or so with no more encounters until the floatplane arrived.

So, hit him on the nose.

If you do feel it necessary to shoot, do not aim for the head; most bullets will not penetrate that skull. I would not count on a 9mm doing so, for example. Aim for the body, lungs and heart, as usual with animals.
 
Originally Posted By: Astro14
Didn’t this woman provide the definitive method for dealing with black bear attacks?



Her voice was irritating, I would've chewed her kayak too.
 
Originally Posted By: Astro14
Didn’t this woman provide the definitive method for dealing with black bear attacks?



Oh good lord, what an embarrassment to humanity.
 
Only time a bear got in our ice chest, wife ran it off with an ax handle while I slept
thumbsup2.gif
 
A couple of things.

Contrary to popular belief, black bears are actually responsible for more deaths in North America than brown bears to humans. So they can be dangerous.

And to the OP, critical defense 9MM is a terrible round. Its a terrible round for humans, and even worse for bears. It penetrates 11 inches. NOT what you want for a bear. AT least load it with a round that will penetrate deeper. 9mm Hornady XTP 124 is known to penetrate deep. A flat nose .40 round would be better though.
 
Originally Posted By: Astro14
Didn’t this woman provide the definitive method for dealing with black bear attacks?



I've always wanted to see (but not necessarily hear) the second half of that video. Is it available anywhere?
 
If I were to choose a handgun/ammo combination for effect against bears (recognizing that shooting is a last resort and that there are many precautions and actions to be taken before exercise of that last resort) - I would choose my Glock 20 (10mm) with Buffalo Bore 220gr Hardcast ammo.

That's what I carry in bear country. .44 mag and up is recommended for big bears, and while the 10mm isn't nearly a .44 mag, the 10mm does have roughly double the muzzle energy of the 9mm and the hard cast is designed for deep penetration. Having 15+1 rounds available in the G20 doesn't hurt.

I'm not certain what other calibers are available to you, the OP, but 9mm wouldn't be among my preferences. It's small and weak against a powerfully built animal like a bear. JHP works well on thin-skinned, slender animals, but as has been said, not a great choice against a bear.
 
Originally Posted By: bubbatime
A flat nose .40 round would be better though.




It's true that a flat-nose solid bullet would be more effective on a bear, but a lot of handguns have problems feeding flat-nosed rounds. That's why I suggested standard FMJ. He'd need to shoot several magazines to verify proper feeding/function before relying on flat-nosed rounds for defense.

Concur with Astro about the Glock 20 or other high-capacity 10mm being a great choice.
 
Also, it should be noted that the heavy hard-cast lead bullets aren't stabilized well out of the stock Glock barrels with the polygonal rifling, leading to inaccuracy and keyholing. So, it's best to use an aftermarket barrel with standard land & groove rifling, such as the Lone Wolf, or other. Of course, as with different ammo or other aftermarket gun parts, function should be verified before using for defense.
 
Originally Posted By: john_pifer
Originally Posted By: bubbatime
A flat nose .40 round would be better though.




It's true that a flat-nose solid bullet would be more effective on a bear, but a lot of handguns have problems feeding flat-nosed rounds. That's why I suggested standard FMJ. He'd need to shoot several magazines to verify proper feeding/function before relying on flat-nosed rounds for defense.

Concur with Astro about the Glock 20 or other high-capacity 10mm being a great choice.
.40 ball is typically truncated cone. It wouldn't be a bad choice.
 
Well given the facts about black bears I’m comfortable with my usual 9mm carry and we added bear spray just in case. We are NOT a quiet camp with the dogs and all, plus like I said car camping makes food storage simpler. Worst case, if the bear zombies attack I have my MSR with a variety of m193 and m855 loads.
 
Originally Posted By: hatt
Originally Posted By: john_pifer
Originally Posted By: bubbatime
A flat nose .40 round would be better though.




It's true that a flat-nose solid bullet would be more effective on a bear, but a lot of handguns have problems feeding flat-nosed rounds. That's why I suggested standard FMJ. He'd need to shoot several magazines to verify proper feeding/function before relying on flat-nosed rounds for defense.

Concur with Astro about the Glock 20 or other high-capacity 10mm being a great choice.
.40 ball is typically truncated cone. It wouldn't be a bad choice.


Oh that's right. Good point.
 
have the forty next to house, active daily feed station w/trail cams..wolf, cougar and plenty black bear, trap the coons..I open carry a '71 45 long Colt loaded with Georgia Arms 200gr. 'Deer Stopper' 1100 fps. Never had a problem but wouldn't go in without it.


 
Originally Posted By: dblshock
have the forty next to house, active daily feed station w/trail cams..wolf, cougar and plenty black bear, trap the coons..I open carry a '71 45 long Colt loaded with Georgia Arms 200gr. 'Deer Stopper' 1100 fps. Never had a problem but wouldn't go in without it.





And unlike a canister of bear spray you can reload it!
 
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