"Trail" gun suggestions

[grumpyMSG]

Lots of people keep suggesting a 357, and frankly the 357 is not up to the bear defense part of the request.

If it was up to ME, and I was expecting bears, then a 44mag would be the MINIMUM I'd be walking around with.

The Alaskan's are marginal in .44 and IMO a waste having such a short barrel for a 454.

If I'm going to haul the 45oz load of the alaskan, I might as well have a 6" bbl .44mag. It will have similar velocity from the same weight projectile.

You folks must not spend too much time in VA's woods, bears around these parts don't get to the huge sizes they get to out west and Alaska. 300+ pound Bears here in VA are pretty uncommon and 400+ pounders downright rare.

[gunderwood]

Lots of people keep suggesting a 357, and frankly the 357 is not up to the bear defense part of the request.

If it was up to ME, and I was expecting bears, then a 44mag would be the MINIMUM I'd be walking around with.

The Alaskan's are marginal in .44 and IMO a waste having such a short barrel for a 454.

If I'm going to haul the 45oz load of the alaskan, I might as well have a 6" bbl .44mag. It will have similar velocity from the same weight projectile.

You folks must not spend too much time in VA's woods, bears around these parts don't get to the huge sizes they get to out west and Alaska. 300+ pound Bears here in VA are pretty uncommon and 400+ pounders downright rare.

I guess you never leave VA?

Size
Black bear weight tends to vary according to age, sex, health, and season. Seasonal variation in weight is very pronounced: in autumn, their pre-den weight tends to be 30% higher than in spring, when black bears emerge from their dens. Black bears on the East Coast tend to be heavier on average than those on the West Coast. Adult males typically weigh between 57–250 kg (125 and 550 lb), while females weigh 33% less at 41–109 kg (90–275 lb).[33] Although they are the smallest species in North America, extremely large males may reach a weight of 300 kg (660 lb), 1.1 m (3.5 ft) in shoulder height and 2.2 m (7 ft) in length[34] which does exceed the size of all other bears except the brown and polar bears. The largest subspecies on average is U. americanus carlottae of the Queen Charlotte Islands and Alaska.[35] The biggest wild American black bear ever recorded was a male from North Carolina, shot in 1998, that weighed 400 kg (880 lb) and measured 2.4 m (7.95 ft) long.[33] Adults have a typical size range of 120–200 cm (47–79 in) in length, and 70–105 cm (28–42 in) in shoulder height. The tail is 7.7–17.7 cm (3–7 in) long.[30][36][37][38] The North American Bear Center, located in Ely, Minnesota, is home to the world's largest captive male and female black bears. Ted, the male, weighed 950–1,000 lb (430–450 kg) in the fall of 2006.[39] Honey, the female, weighed 555.5 lb (252.0 kg) in the fall of 2007.[40]

Brown bears are a different story.

[Reverenddel]

Back to the Revolver selection.

The only reason I would suggest to stay with Ruger is the fact that the revolver can be FIELD STRIPPED! Yes... FIELD...STRIPPED!

You can clean up the weapon if it's submerged, and just blow out the gunk.

As to the trigger? I cannot advocate amatuer gunsmithing, but I have polished the hammer with flitz on my GP100, and SP101, and did some cleaning up in the trigger section, and it improves GREATLY!

A 4" .357 in stainless with hogue grips cannot be beaten by ANYONE! That is the "General Purpose" in GP!

[jdonovan]

You folks must not spend too much time in VA's woods, bears around these parts don't get to the huge sizes they get to out west and Alaska. 300+ pound Bears here in VA are pretty uncommon and 400+ pounders downright rare.

Where did the OP say he was staying exclusively in VA?

[newdovo]

Bear_Warning2.jpg (217.44 KiB) Viewed 3578 times

[BW1911]

Love the sign!

[Chasbo00]

Love the sign!

Me too!

[OleMan]

Never hunted bear, but I grew up in black bear territory, and have relatives and friends who have hunted black bear, and hunted deer and elk in grizzly territory. In brief, I think they would tell you to carry all the handgun you can in bear territory. These days, that would tend to be .44 mag and larger. Second, use ammo with a high sectional density bullet and good penetration. A close family friend was a professional bear-hunting guide (big bear dogs and all) back in the '60s and '70s (in the in remote NC mountains). He carried both a big bore revolver and a big bore carbine - & probably saved the lives of a few of his dogs.

On revolvers, gunsmiths have told me that S&W's are smoother and more accurate from the factory than Ruger, but more prone to problems. Rugers, they say, are more rugged, simpler, and a little less natural accuracy than S&W. When I complained about the trigger pull on my new .357 Ruger Service Six, the gunsmith told me I didn't need a trigger job - just to run a few hundred rounds thru it firing double action - he was right, amazing how much it smoothed out. I like both Rugers and S&W pattern revolvers.

[Jakeiscrazy]

These days, that would tend to be .44 mag and larger. Second, use ammo with a high sectional density bullet and good penetration. .

Definitively true go for the hardest bullet you can find.

This article is gear towards hunters but can be useful for those concerned with protection.
http://www.foggymountain.com/handgunnin ... unt3.shtml

[CCFan]

These days, that would tend to be .44 mag and larger. Second, use ammo with a high sectional density bullet and good penetration. .

Definitively true go for the hardest bullet you can find.

This article is gear towards hunters but can be useful for those concerned with protection.
http://www.foggymountain.com/handgunnin ... unt3.shtml

You'll have to make your own specific choice. After all, that's part of the fun of dreaming about and getting ready for a hunt. And if you use a minimum .40 caliber, a minimum 200-grain solid deformable bullet, and a minimum 1000-fps velocity from your chosen gun, you'll have a load that will anchor any black bear that stands in your sights.

Direct from the article you posted...

I guess the 10mm (.40 cal) 200 gr @ 1250-1300 fps fits that requirement handily... In revolver or autoloader, take your pick. I frequent some woods in SW VA that are heavily populated by black bear, and I'm not rushing out to pick up a .500 S&W....

[m4a1mustang]

Thanks for all the info and discussion, guys. I think my problem is that I really want that damn GP100, and I think I'll get it.

But I might also get something a little bit bigger.

[Diomed]

Try some of the top-shelf .357 mag loads if you're concerned about bears, or see if you can find a revolversmith to rechamber your GP100 to .357 Maximum.

[jdonovan]

Thanks for all the info and discussion, guys. I think my problem is that I really want that damn GP100, and I think I'll get it.
But I might also get something a little bit bigger.

The GP100 is a very nice gun, have a few. Also the Super Redhawk is very similar in many ways, and feels like a scaled up GP100.

[rybu0305]

+1 on The Ruger Alaskan in 44 Mag in terms of revolver. The bottom feeder option would be a 45ACp or 10MM Glock. They come in the "SF" option as well with a slightly shorter frame if you have normal sized hands like me.