Best Caliber For Black Bear

huntsonora · May 23, 2004

A friend of mine is going to hunt Black Bear in ID this week and was wondering if a 7MM Mag with 150 grn Noslers or a 338 Win Mag with 225 grn noslers would be better? I thought the 7Mag would be best but thought I woulf get you guys opinions.

Drum

RLH · May 24, 2004

.270 is the best. either of those things will work. black bear don't take a lot o' killin'. they are built wierd tho and it's easy to miss the vitals.

Smiley · May 24, 2004

whichever gun he shoots the best will be his best choice.

Bura Nut · May 24, 2004

Drumm, I personally would use like 165 grain bullets in the 7mm. Blackbear arent real tough to put down like RLH said..... Thanks, Allen Taylor......

Jake_Sorensen · May 26, 2004

jeez I would like to know what your guys secrets are most my family uses 300 win mags and we've shot at least a dozen black bears with well placed shots on old mining roads in Montana that have dropped then pulled themselves of the side of the road and rolled down the hill, which sucks cause there is just an eary feeling going after a wounded black bear in the forest.

Jake

RLH · May 26, 2004

ain't hittin' em right. like i said, they're built wierd. but if you hit em in the lungs, they don't go far. can't. rollin' off a mountain is a different story.

highplainsniper · Jun 6, 2004

I'd opt for the .338 just on the "shorter drag theory".

Not much of a 7-Gamesaver fan here............shoot now-hunt later. A 30-06 or a .280 will do the same job as the 7 Rem. for less noise, kick and money.

BCbucks · Jun 6, 2004

All depends on the hunter doing the shooting !!!!!!!!

BCBOY · Jun 13, 2004

Don't matter the caliber as long as you hammer it in the shoulders and anchor it on the spot. Used to use my 300 Savage on bears. Never had a problem with it. I now use a 300 Win Mag because if I'm going into the thick $hit one on one with a wounded bear that a client had shot, I want a lot of knockdown power in my hands.
I've watched bears take it in the lungs and still go over a hundred yards. That may be nothing in open country, but put that bear in the thick $hit and he's impossible to find. They are very poor bleeders. Their thick hair and fat seal up the wound pretty fast. You don't get much blood to follow even with a well placed shot. To top that off, the brush and forest canopy this time of year is just hard to track in. I find I spend more time following skuff marks in the duff than following blood. Bears also die in the thickest crap they can find. They go into a ball and die under blowdown, rootwads, you name it. They really hide well. You need to almost step on them before you find them.
There is no waiting 5-10 minutes to wait for it to die. I head into the timber right after the shot. I want to hear that sucker taking his last breath so I can pinpoint where he is at. After a client shoots, I tell them to stay at the road or cutblock edge while I head into the timber. When things come at you fast and you are in a think quick situation, last thing I need is someone without experience shooting me in the back. I'll take the full charge wounded bear anyday.

RACKMASTER · Jun 13, 2004

I use MOD 94 BIG BORE WIN .375 lever action, most of the bear hunting here in CA is in the thick $hit(it packs a big time punch
and knock them down hard).
Rackmaster

toddrice · Jun 21, 2004

I few years back, I watched a very large black bear on the San Carlos reservation get shot with a 378WBY!!!!!!! The bear was 150 yards out, and facing straight on. The bear took the 300 grain barnes-x thru the chest, the bullet didn't stop until it lodged in his PELVIC bone!!! The bears was a monster 8 foot 3 inch 21 13/16 PIG, but it still shows that they can take alot of foot pounds.

TCR1 · Jun 22, 2004

How quickly did that big bear go down? seems like that shot angle is horrible since the only vital you can really nail is the heart. Taking out one lung and ripping up the guts won't anchor any animal quickly.

toddrice · Jun 22, 2004

He turned and ran uphill for about 60 yards, crashing into a cedar tree. The bear was dead in less than 10 seconds!

BCBOY · Jun 22, 2004

The best place to hammer a bear if he is facing you in is on his white patch. Drops him like a ton of bricks. Never actually had a bear hit there get up and go anywhere on me. Bears are definately built different than other animals.

chambero · Jun 28, 2004

I killed one in 93 with a 7mm, Hornady 154 gr SP, one shot with him facing me head on, shot him through the white patch. Their vitals lay very low. Another hunter with our guide shot one too high and too far back and we never found blood other than at the shot site. My guide told me he expected the bear to live through it. He said all of their internals lay toward the bottom of their belly compared with most animals.

250lbstealth · Jun 28, 2004

Allen, Who makes a 165 grain 7mm-.284" bullet (160 or 162gr.)
Stealth

ELKMASTER101 · Jun 29, 2004

If you could take the pow out of the gun, the bear would just stand there and die peacefully.
but pow, and they're off like a freight train.
capable of out running a horse for the first 100 yards.
its no wonder they go a hundred yards or so.
a good dubble lung, clip the top of the heart, and smash both front shouldersis a good shot.
Or spine shoot them just at the base of neck and front shoulder,
a tough shot to judge.
300 win mag, w/180 grain gold partitions,