Now before we take a look at particular models and calibers, lets get one basic premise out of the way: when the excrement hits the oscillator, any gun is better than no gun. What did you have I asked, he said he had a .454 Casull in a shoulder harness. Perfect gun to have, I dont own one to date but I would love to have a monster K frame, you could practice with 45 long Colts. Yes. Even if it is based upon a reasonable extrapolation from current self defense doctrine. My rule of thumb is the minimum is 4-3-1. What about a Judge or Governor, that can shoot .45 Long Colt or .410 shotgun shells? I can shoot 100rds of 480 in a day, that equals two loads of .44 mag or one shot of casull and none of the 500. The result was a dead dog with one of the bears and almost a dead friend with one of the hogs. I can say the 41 is probably my minimum for the big bears. Theyll put down vermin, but small may not put down dangerous game. After a comment like that, Im certain that youre an expert in the art of defensive purse swinging. If we didnt carry our primary hunting rifle, we carried a shotgun. I took a 29 S&W 6 .44 mag. As an Army veteran, I had no problem with my shot placement just my faith in loads. I have never had a chance to stop a bear yet buy was close to one in Yellow Stone park a few years ago when the bear came For actual hunting a big bear, 375 H&H; I guess I love the classics. However, please dont cast aspersions toward those who have done their own homework and made their own best choices. I have a CZ52 that shoots the old PPsH Tokarev LMG round. can a 38 special kill a mountain lion. Great point with the Redhawk recommendation! Now that we have hogs in the area, I want to upgrade to either an AR pistol in .50beo, a revolver in 500SW / 454Casull. The way I see it there exists no substitute for accuracy, proper shot placement, and Or even for butchering livestock. Ive reached out for three gentlemen all of whom I call a friend for advice and a few experiences regarding their encounters. If you are confronted by a bear, leave the deer or food and do not run as this triggers the predators instinct to charge after you as prey. And if he could run too fast, any caliber will work for knee caps!!!! Do you have a rare 5-shot model, or just down to your last five cartridges for the photo shoot? Hollow points are better for stopping large game if you are pushing a fairly large bullet, 250 grain and larger, at fairly high velocity 1400 fps +the larger bullet with the higher velocity will give you enough penetration for the hollow point to do its job. When I asked him for his thoughts on carry guns for bear country, Phil related the following: Phil, I have always said that carrying any handgun for bear protection is similar to wearing a life jacket in a boat, or parachute in a plane. The Interior Grizzlies are not like your fat on salmon Brownies. While attempting to release the Grizzly an accident occurred with the bear on top of Great Man, and he never told a fib while I grew up At 75 I will never know. In that vein, and considering the real vs. imaginary threat posed by bears, a familiar 9mm loaded with non-expanding bullets is a lot better than a heavy .44 or .500 you left at home or are not completely proficient with. From one Phil to another, sage advice. But these loads would likely destroy an old Peacemaker, or other similar guns. With speed loaders in the hands of a competent shooter, the revolver can be reloaded almost as quickly as a pistol. just my 2 cents. (altho I make and sell them) I want straight line complete penetration best offered by a hard LBT. 9mm is acceptable against two legged foes, but with an angry mountain lion you want something with some real punch to it. Both are excellent sidearms but leave something to be desired when confronting big game in the boonies. Hard cast bullet are the best for bear defense, they will penetrate like nothing else out there. COME AND GET IT! Shot placement . In my penetration testing I also included a 30 Tokarev as from my experiences in Vietnam I knew they were great penetrators. A mountain lion would win a fight against a wolf. Related Tags: Then it rolled over and started walking. do revolvers. If there is any wind at all, the fog will only travel about 3 feet before it turns and drifts in the direction of the wind. LOL. WLN LBT even at long ranges with factory twists. After feeding on its kill, the lion will cache the prey, or bury it in a secluded spot. Texas Teens Getting Carry Licenses! Fifty-four mountain lions in Alberta were tracked with GPS collars during a three-year study of . The entire time I was a patrol officer, 5 years, I carried a revolver. i think a .38 would tickle the bear more than anything. Mountain lions have a size advantage, a power advantage, and more weapons in their arsenal to kill a wolf. The +P shoots a bit higher than the standard 44mag rounds. You are on the Alaskan highways lets get that straight. wild boars For self defense/house protection/ But Garrett makes a round called hammer head. In this case, fortunately, the uncle had time to retrieve the handgun from a vehicle. Can you shoot while on your back or while youre being chewed on? Owing to circumstances at their place, I wasnt able to go. The Freedom Arms Model 83, in .454 Casull, in a serious piece of gear. The 357 mag is much better then the 40S&W as well. 1400+ fpm with a 140-grain FMJ bullet out of a 4.5-inch barrel. Bear spray is actually bear fogger and comes out in a finely atomized mist with absolutely no chance of moving against even the faintest of breezes. They are not a pleasant round to shoot but manageable for me, I have been shooting the 44mag pistol for almost 50 years and have lived in Interior Alaska for 38 years now. Mountain lions are normally very secretive and cautious. Weve got them here in the Central Mountains of Utah. He put his mouth directly on top of his head, and I think if the head had been smaller, hed have been picked up.. While Snap decisions in day to day life are a bad idea.. and the 45 colts are equal if used in modern stout pistols. 50 round box should last a lifetime. Bobcat tracks will be much smallerless than 2 inches wide . having confidence in your weapon. Another survivalist carried a lever action .357 MAG rifle. Methinks your anti-Judge/Governor bias is showing. The big cats are thin skinned and not that hard to kill. Found the bullet in the other ear, Weighed 270 grains. Well there is some in one instance provided no less by the original fellow who created sells Bear Spray Now you find a lot of mumbo jumbo to suggest bear spray is no less effective that a firearms.. then the predictable firearms in parks concerns.. Firearms safety To sum up when you do read the common information .. I would rather lug a 12 gauge or Marlin guide gun in 45/70 for bear protection. closer than 35 feet heading in your direction should be engaged? I for one have never been bear hunting, always wanted and dreamed of going some day. Ivy. They were relocating a Grizzly to a remote wilderness area. Honestly for a Mountain Lion a human does not have a good chance when it comes down to human w/ knife vs mountain lion, but I do recommend he has a knife in case he would be knocked to the ground or a last resort. Take it from someone who has been nose to nose with many big bears by accident if youre going into bear country willingly take as big a double action revolver as you can keep all rounds in the target black. of course be loaded and kept down loaded with .38 Special ammo (modern). A moose attacked me on my property when I first moved here, but it was because I was trying to get close enough for a good picture really DUMB! 1st Bullet passed completely through the animal head to rump. He put his paw on his shoulder. Do you have an animal or nature story to share with Newsweek? The species are abundant in the state, numbering around 4,000 to 6,000 estimated creatures. Last I heard the Judge and Governor are chambered in .45 Colt and shoot the exact same rounds as your Redhawk does. The bear was hurt so it couldnt run thank God abd CVA. Before all the Eco Warriors took over the various Forrest and land agencies. After I put it down with my .357 magnum, we found both 9mm rounds stuck in the skull. Its also probably a one or two shot deal, so firepower is irrelevant. This has way more energy and velocity ahah a standard loading and the judge and governor probably would not safely shoot those loads. Sounds like you have everything covered. I call those DGUs as easily as a person on person. FMJ. Phil, I cant locate that corner; theres a ******bear down there! Now, as surveyors, we carry machetes to cut the brush in between our survey stations, and we are rather proficient with them. The mountain lion, also called a cougar, is the largest wildcat in North America north of Mexico. Browning on your sail boat, that will keep you happy ! My advice would be take the largest caliber you can comfortably handle. In Alaska, we not only have to deal with the common two-legged variety of vermin found in every place in the world, but also the large, four-legged beasts that can either kill and trample you with their hooves, or rip you apart with their claws and teeth; its the latter which draw hunters to the Last Frontier with high-power, large caliber rifles. That accounted for its lethargic behavior when it quietly approached they boy and his cousin near a river in Arizonas Tonto National Forest. There was a Professor who during the 50s and 60s working with the US Forrest Service..spent a great deal of time studying bears and bear attacks. During the same period, persons defending themselves with pepper spray escaped injury most of the time, and those that were injured experienced shorter duration attacks and less severe injuries. In the springtime, when the streams are populated with fishermen, the bears are coming out of hibernation and are ravenous. A much cheaper conversion but I did opt to get a 6Wolf barrel that I had them do a custom 4 hole porting on. I hope that you had a good camera and a long lens to shoot it. Keith by Buffalo Bore . They dont respond the same way as healthy animals. Id never seen tracks that huge. Seeing the bull moose charging froze me. Dont immediately dismiss bear spray from consideration. Stupidity has no limits ! A Sacramento Bee investigation revealed in 2017 that thanks to that language, Californians have killed far more mountain lions since Proposition 117 passed then they did before.. False economy at that point. Just as with dangerous game rifles, using a cartridge that is too big to allow for proper shot placement isnt a wise idea; shot placement is everything. No bear or cubs life is worth a human life. The lion can then be shot and removed, or tranquilized and transplanted at least 300 miles (480 km) away. Inside the house, condo, apartment, or indoors such should Between 3- and 3.5-inch-wide tracks. Not totally true. Always do your homework before entering any unfamiliar land, especially bear infested areas so you will be acquainted with these and other survival techniques including escape routes should you encounter an emergency situation. Mountain lions, also known as pumas or cougars, interact with hundreds of species and play a direct role in balancing various habitats across the state and other parts of the U.S. It is all filled with a bias against firearms.. Yes, the first round was the fatal round but it didnt stop the bear. Its much harder to retrieve spent brass fired from a semi-auto Between travel & the country this gun was never more than arms reach away all that time!! I remember clearly, back in 2002, while surveying in the foothills of the Berkshires a young employee came running up from the point he was supposed to locate, toward the survey instrument I was running. 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