Les Jones: When Handguns are Better Than Long Guns, Part 1

July 25, 2005

Guns > When Handguns are Better Than Long Guns, Part 1

From a discussion on The High Road of guns for the Alaskan wilderness. Posted by cookekdjr.

I'd take the 45-70. I'd also take a handgun (Sorry to open up a whole 'nother can of worms). I've done quite a bit of research on bear attacks in Alaska.
It appears that there are a number of traits common in the successful repulsion of surprise bear attacks with a firearm:

1. The person had a gun. Seriously, the most important factor in surviving the attack was that the person had a gun they could reach instantly, i.e., in a holster, not propped up against a nearby tree, in the truck, in the cabin, etc.

2. The person had a handgun. Some of the attacks were repelled by one buddy with a handgun when the other buddy could not raise his longgun fast enough. This occurs more often than you would think.

3. Smaller calibers are effective. This is the one that shocked me. Although some of the successful folks used .44 mags or .45 LC's, a number of them used 9mm's and .40 cals (and some were using ball ammo). In one account in particular, two buddies were fishing. A brown bear charged one buddy so fast, he couldn't raise his shotgun to fire, so he threw it at the bear and dove into the water. His companion shot the bear with a 9mm pistol (ball ammo), and one of the shots broke the bear's shoulder. Once the bear was disabled, other fishermen joined in with their handguns and killed the bear.

4. The handgun appears to be effective because it is always there. The hunter/fisherman draws and shoots in an instant. The handgun might not kill the bear, but it often disables the bear sufficiently for the hunter/his companion to procure another handgun/long gun and then the bear is killed. Some locals have said "use the handgun to fight your way back to your rifle".

5. One last surprise. Urban legends aside, I found no documented evidence where an outdoorsman was able to shoot the bear (regardless of caliber) but was unable to repel the attack. There were some close calls, but nobody who got off a shot died. Not saying it hasn't happened, just saying I haven't seen it.

6. Final recommendation. If it were me, I'd bring something like a Glock/XD etc that is light enough to carry with me everywhere I go. I'd load something hot and non-hollow point.

Posted by lesjones

Resistance is futile! linked with Carnival of Cordite #25

Comments

When I go, I take a 2 1/2 inch 44 mag.
Load it up with Corbon nasty rounds. Last ones I got were 305 grain softpoints. Painful to shoot much, but in a tight spot I don't think you would notice your hand.

Posted by: GLN Admin at July 25, 2005

One of the things I find unusual about handguns for use in "Bear Country" is the idea that you need something like a 454 Casull, 475 Linebaugh, or 500 Magnum to compete. I think this is nonsense. I have trouble with a .44 mag. If it isn't something you would choose to repel a human (if you miss, the recoil will make the second shot seem like it's an eternity away) then why would you choose it for a bear? The same physiological characteristics (fight or flight) is going to effect you physically, so you might not hit him with the first shot, and I'm sure we all agree that the gun you hit with is best. 5-10 shots (and usually much less) of any serious defensive caliber, even the Europellet, in gonna be enough to dissuade any opponent.
I believe one shot stops with any caliber of any gun can be attributed to two things: Luck and myth. There has never been a gun which could vaporize an aggressor and shots to the central nervous system, even when highly skilled and experienced, on a moving target, under stress is a fair bit of luck. Excepting a shot on the CNS, the attacker CHOOSES to stop, because being shot is often very convincing, even to bears. I carry a .45acp for all defensive applications because I can hit with it and it's sure to work. HPs for two legs and FMJ for 4 legs.

Posted by: Matt Groom at July 25, 2005

Yea, I was basically going to say what Matt said.

I was wonderig if the people who sucessfully repealed a bear with a hand gun, also used that gun as a carry weapon\compeition weapon, and therefore were accurate with it.

Posted by: cube at July 25, 2005

I also tend to think the same way. On some other forums, I always get attacked for even recommending something like a 357Mag or a semi-auto. Everyone says 44Mag minimum, even for Black Bears. I tend to think you should bring the handgun you are most proficient with, as long as it is of decent caliber and makes at least maybe 400ft/lbs of energy or so.

Posted by: Chris at October 12, 2005

A retired government hunter told me that during his career he had shot a lot of black bears to kill them. He said there is a big difference between trying to stop a bear and shooting to kill one. We were discussing the 44 magnum handgun. To STOP a bear he said to use a good 240gr hollowpoint because the bear will be instantly distracted by the wound, and will attack it - while you then shoot as many more rounds as it takes to kill him. adk

Posted by: adk at March 16, 2006