TV and Handgun advice...

[IMTHDUKE]

Perhaps some saw this TV show about an "off the grid" family was trying to rescue a newbe family off grid in wilderness in Colorado.

At their homestead they have a bear problem, so one of the guys takes the woman of the homestead to the LGS to buy something to protect herself against bears...black bear I think. The woman had never fired a handgun and the guy recommended the .357mag wheel gun with a 4in barrel. Looked like a SW.

Now, my question to you and what I thought about, is that what I would recommend? She handled a .44Mag, she could not reach the trigger. I thought get the girl a 12gage with slugs. I would consider a .357mag a marginal weapon going up against a charging bear. Surprising was that the man helping the woman with the gun choice was an Alaskan who's father that was with them was a hunter guide in Alaska. What would you weapon other than a 155 self propelled howitzer going against a bear. Almost forget...yes shot placement is king and if you stab the bear with a sharp stick in the heart...all that ceded.

 

[newfalguy101]

I didn't see it but here is my take:

A 357 she can hit with beats a 44 she can't hit with.

 

[X-Rap]

The family already had a shotgun, she needed a gun to carry every day.
The danger was minimal but hyped about the same way as it is in this forum. It's television, there will be drama or else the show will fail.

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[jmorris]

No bears here but my Sister has them in her backyard all the time. They just go inside, don't put trash out until it is going to be picked up, and various sprays.

Personally, I'd take a 4" 357 over a spray can but as I said no bears here.

Still will never forget eating outside there and my niece (child) calmly said, "ok, time to eat inside." As she grabbed her plate and headed for the door. I turn around to see the bear walking down a trail behind me.

 

[medalguy]

Bears generally will avoid humans unless there's food involved. If she really wants a weapon I think she needs to start out with a smaller caliber and work her way up to a .357. The first shot out of that thing will probably be her only one unless she practices and works her way up to it. That can be a real cannon for a woman to shoot without experience. A can of bear spray might be more appropriate.

Hell I don't even like to shoot my .357 very much any more. Arthritis has done its work on my hands.

 

[bassdogs]

It was for black bears. A 357 is probably the best pistol caliber for anything but a brown bear. The size is much easier to grip than a 44Mag and she can practice with 38 specials. Like someone said it was for a carry around gun because she was scared to go outside to do anything. It was a bit of a stretch to expect a rookie non shooter to handle a large caliber or hi power handgun.

That show is all about drama and if you like it you better watch it because I doubt it will make it into season II.

 

[Good Ol' Boy]

There's good bear discussion going on in the "General Handgun" section right now.

Apparently there are reports of folks stopping a bear with .38 snub's and even the lowly 9mm.

As for recommending a new shooter to .357 or larger to start off with, that's just silly.

 

[il.bill]

"Hyped" and "drama"?

They are talking about BEARS!

 

[Swing]

The danger was minimal but hyped about the same way as it is in this forum.

^. This. And I live on rural acreage on which I've seen plenty of black bear and used to, when I was younger, hunt and hike all over. Their general behavior is to go in the opposite direction of humans once encountered, must like we go in the opposite direction when encountering them. I can only recall one event in which they got really close to the house and, like the others, Mr Ursidae opted to go back into the woods once he figured out their were people around.

Yes, I generally carry a large frame revolver whilst working my property and occasionally pack a shoulder arm (e.g., various shotguns, self-loading carbines, etc.) on my Kawasaki MULE when taking care of business or driving around. But in all seriousness, I don't really consider black bear a major problem.

 

[RavenTai]

My wife did not have much shooting experience when we met, our first outing was all 22lr but our second outing I pulled out the revolvers, 22 to 38 and at the end of the day .357,

she did not like the recoil it was definitely not pleasant or fun for her like the lesser calibers but she was able to put them on target.

12ga slugs were my preferred for Alaska, we were fishing and hiking out with gutted fish, is a dangerous thing there. Black bear are much easier to dispatch than brown bear. But 12ga slugs would be a steep learning curve for any new shooter, especially a lower mass woman.



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[Sergei Mosin]

In the unlikely event it's necessary to shoot a black bear, a four-inch .357 is plenty of gun.

 

[AZAndy]

"Hyped" and "drama"?

They are talking about BEARS!

I'm with ya. No such thing as being too afraid of BEARS. I'm also scared of horses, on account of they got big teeth.

 

[MedWheeler]

So, forget the TV show part and all, this is just another "gun for bears" thread. As mentioned in post 7, there's one already running..

 

[Sergei Mosin]

There's always a bear thread running...

 

[splattergun]

In Alaska they are dealing with black bears that are bigger than those in CO, as well as huge brown bears. In Colorado, there are no grizzlies that I am aware of, and though the blacks get pretty big, not as big as Alaska's. I think .357 mag is at the lower end of black bear defense power, but is acceptable. Especially since she can't shoot a bigger revolver. Carry what you can shoot.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

Phil Shoemaker, who is a licensed bear guide in Alaska and lives in grizzly territory, recommends a .357 with a heavy, hard cast bullet. His reasoning is to stop a charging grizzly, you need a brain shot, and a .357 may allow you a second chance if your first shot misses.

He also says the MOST important thing about having a gun is CONFIDENCE -- the bear can sense confidence, and will tend to avoid confrontation.

 

[dwjwin50]

Yes, black bears avoid people. Our local forest rangers have never had to shoot a black bear even though they routinely take week-long back country hikes.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

If my wife needed a gun to protect herself against bears I would suggest she use a 20ga shotgun.

 

[brutus51]

I would recommend a good .44 special, less recoil, less noise, bigger bullet.

 

[Predator55]

This show hypes up everything. The guy acted like a black bear is as dangerous as a grizzly,chances are if she even saw a black bear she would see the ass end of it. In the same show they had a trail camera video of a cougar walking by and they actuall said that if they all were down there they would have been attacked ,really? A 357 is better than a 44 that she can't shoot and I would have no problem with a 357 for black bear.

 

[FL-NC]

When I was hunting in Maine last year (first bear hunt) I saw a guide put down a wounded black bear with a rusty star 9mm. He was a former state fish & game officer. Most of the other guides carried 45 autos of some type- I carried a Glock 21. One guide carried a 12 gauge riot gun cause full of 00 cause he said he can't hit s--- with a handgun. Since these guides are all licensed and experienced, seems to me they know what's needed better than most.

 

[Dani_Roberts]

I found a really cool site that I think might be able to help you out. It covers a very wide range of different gun topics, so I think you'll be able to find the answers that you're looking for.

Here it is!

 

[Realist]

I agree with Mark Twain on this one:
" Horses are dangerous at each end and uncomfortable in the middle."