What type of handgun rounds are good for various things?

Your Dad must not love you too much if he's recommending a .22lr pistol as your bear gun. Whatever you did to make your Dad feel this way, apologize first, then... Go buy a sling for your rifle. A sling will help you to carry your rifle while hiking.

http://www.cabelas.com/gun-slings-safari... Another option would be the rifle scabbard/backpack combo. You would probably need a good backpack anyway. Might as well kill two birds with one stone.

http://www.eberlestock.com/Just%20One.ht... Remember 1. You are already proficient with your rifle 2. It's much harder to hit a charging bear with a pistol than a rifle.

3. Your rifle has already proven to you that it can do the job. I would much rather have a rifle against bears than a pistol but if you insist on using a pistol, don't get anything less than 44magnum.

Sorry Mark, but your Dad either knows not what he is talking about, or he was talking from the bottom of a whiskey jug. The only place a .22 has in bear defense is as a way to commit suicide as a bear munches on your nether parts. A few months ago, a fellow in Alaska used a .45 ACP to kill a brown bear that was mauling his wife.

Trouble is it took eleven shots to get the job done, and the guy's wife took quite a mauling. Therefore I'd say a .45 ACP is not a good choice for bear repellent. I do not claim to be a great bear hunter.

But I've been studying critters, guns and stopping power for over forty years. IMO, a heavy loaded .45 Long Colt revolver will get the job done, but I specify heavy handloads, or +P loads from the likes of Garrett Cartridge Company or Buffalo Bore Ammunition. Cowboy loads won't be much if any more effective than .45 ACP loads.

If it were me hiking in big bear country, I'd have either a Ruger Super Blackhawk .44 RemMag, or an S&W Model 29 .44 RemMag on my hip. If you are very experienced with large bore handguns, you might consider a .454 Casull or a .480 Ruger, but I won't recommend them. Why?

Because I do not know how much experience you have shooting large bore handguns. For most average shooters, the .44 RemMag or heavy loaded .45 Long Colt revolvers are just about at the upper limit of recoil tolerance. Speaking personally the .454 Casull is the biggest I can handle with any degree of comfort.

Now I'm going make another suggestion for a much more effective weapon, and carry method. If I were going to do lots of hiking in big bear country, I'd carry a Marlin Model 1895 Guide Gun in .45-70. I'd buy or make a scabbard that I could attach to my backpack and draw over my shoulder with either hand.

I'd probably carry the rifle loaded with Garrett Cartridge Company 540 grain Hammerheads. A Marlin Guide Gun weighs about 6.75 pounds and is short and handy. It was designed for bear defense.

As good as a .44 RemMag is, a .45-70 levergun is much better for bear defense. Doc Hudson.

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