If You HAVE To Shoot A Bear, Where Would You Aim?

[BigBill]

If we’re going bare hunting what temp is it? I seen the weather midday go from a sunny warm day to a snow sqawl around 4:00 pm. I had a long john top with a flannel shirt all my warm clothes were at the camp. I been bear hunting since ‘73. I had close calls many times it never scared me. We

 

[Skeet 028]

I can tell you if you have a bear at very close range like the picture of the Alaska G&F target...you are going to have a a lot of fear helping to ruin your shooting. When a grizz is PO'd they are savage and you have to put lead where it matters. And according to a Tlinglit I knew even black bears are hard to stop when they want to kill you. I think he had a bit of experience with bears. My camp and overwatch gun is a M-1 Super 90 Benelli with extended mag tube length of the bbl with a stock like an AR. By overwatch I mean while we are field dressing an elk or deer up on the mountain...one of us stands guard. Grizz think the dead animals belong to them...but they have no real fear of man here. Not as much trouble in places they are hunted I think

 

[RobertJ.]

What would be your first move if you woke up in your tent to this:

Uh, my first move wouldn't be waiting until I was seated in the outhouse!

 

[dmar]

.380 ACP, placement doesn’t matter...

 

[Rustyt1953]

[ame]https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Dt-dA5gJaHU[/ame]

 

[doublesharp]

I've been known to shoot a beer or two back in my wilder days but not enough money to get me to do a flaming hooker!

 

[glowe]

Does anybody know where Hugh Glass shot the bear? I would like to know in order not to shoot there if confronted. Also, I want to shoot it where it does not die on top of me!!

 

[crazyphil]

Sixty some years ago I had to shoot a big old black bear. Rendering plant
estimated his live weight at 550# and extra large in Boone & Crocket.
He had killed a cow and torn the bag of another cow. The rancher bribed
me to take care of his problem. I was shooting a Winchester Model 70
with Winchester's 180-Gr. silver tips. The bear was retreating so I hit him
right in the rear end. That immobilized him, so he was dragging himself
along by his front claws. The Coup de grace shot was right under his ear.

 

[Onomea]

Does anybody know where Hugh Glass shot the bear? I would like to know in order not to shoot there if confronted. Also, I want to shoot it where it does not die on top of me!!..

I'd like to know what Glass shot the bear with. I assume a flintlock or a percussion cap rifle, but what was the load? And how does it compare to the ballistics of a modern rifle?

I'm guessing the rifle and load he used was a pretty weak performer compared to a modern rifle and ammo.

 

[mtgianni]

50 caliber round ball is easily pushed about 900 fps from a muzzle loader, Flinter or Percussion. RB penetrate in a straight line unless deflected as they do not tumble. It isn't that Hugh Glasses load wasn't strong enough to kill the bear it was the damage the bear inflicted before realizing it was dead.

 

[Kurusu]

Having read this thread. And all things considered. I'm sure glad we have no bears around since the XVIIth century.

 

[Greyman50]

IIRC, the book “ Give your Heart to the Hawk” has lots about Glass and others. Those guys were really Tough. Gave my Grandson my .375 H&H so at my age not interested in bears. Kinda Hot here in Florida to hunt anything, maybe some tree rats?

 

[glowe]

50 caliber round ball is easily pushed about 900 fps from a muzzle loader, Flinter or Percussion. RB penetrate in a straight line unless deflected as they do not tumble. It isn't that Hugh Glasses load wasn't strong enough to kill the bear it was the damage the bear inflicted before realizing it was dead.

You can easily shoot round ball flintlocks muzzleloaders at 1500 fps. Back in the days of Hugh Glass, a .54" round ball was considered a bear gun.

An old Lyman Blackpowder Handbook lists a .54 caliber rifle loaded with 90 grains of GOEX FFFg, shot from a 32" barrel , as having a muzzle velocity of 1591 feet per second. The muzzle energy is 1235 foot pounds with 500 foot pounds remaining at 100 yards. A typical flint lock of the late 1700s was 42", so energy would be higher still. That is definitely adequate to kill a bear at 50 yards if the aim was good.

Compare that to the highest power 357 load listed in Cartridges of the World and the best one can do with factory loads is near 1000 ft lbs. 44 Magnum gets one up to around 1300 ft lbs.

 

[Llance]

Have to shoot a bear? If i have to shoot a bear I'm hoping I can do it from the next county over!!!


No. Really I'd take out the front shoulder(s) which slows him/her and prevents them from rising up to attack. After that it's game on for any location which will cause it to begin assuming air temperature in the fastest possible time.

 

[mark brewer]

i would pitch him or her a couple of Honeybuns.

 

[Rustyt1953]

i would pitch him or her a couple of Honeybuns.

I would have to think on that one as Honeybuns are in the top tier of my most prized pastries.

 

[7shooter]

A surgeon I worked with hunted in Alaska in grizzly areas said that locals told him that a charging grizzly should be shot in the shoulder which will cause it to veer off. They told him a chargeing grizzly is unlikely to be killed with one shot.

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

I would aim at the bear.

Drop Mike. Walk away. Close thread.

Actually the one sure fire way to stop a charging bear is to take away his credit card

 

[9mmPatriot]

Rimshot emoji in 5...4...3...

 

[Protocall_Design]

Drop Mike. Walk away. Close thread.

Actually the one sure fire way to stop a charging bear is to take away his credit card

Kind of like putting a bell on the cat. Which mouse is man enough to be the one to do it?