Ruger revolver for Bear hunting?

[contender]

Test Engineer,, I wasn't chuckling at his post,, but the fact that I'm VERY familiar with Buffalo Bore & other ammo as well as the firearms.


Paul,, I seem to recall you posting this story before. Good lessons there.

However,, I'm SURE it's typo,,, I don't think it happened in 1915.

 

[larry8]

It is difficult to find "reasonably priced" 45LC rounds. The ones that are low cost are, most often, Cowboy Load rounds.

Same for the 44mag.

 

[Webster1967]

Why would you need more energy than a 300gr full power 44mag?

I guess the same reason my Hemi truck needs 200hp more?

 

[BearBiologist]

Paul B.:

I think your memory is a little fuzzy, Old-timer. The 38/44 didn't come out until 1930, so it wasn't around in 1915 (108 years ago).

 

[Paul B]

Paul B.:

I think your memory is a little fuzzy, Old-timer. The 38/44 didn't come out until 1930, so it wasn't around in 1915 (108 years ago).

Not fuzzy memory. I just can't type worth spit. It should have been 1959 and I fixed it. I also till have an S&W 38/44 Outdoorsman on hand, albeit not the one used to take down the bear. I made the mistake of selling to get money for some silly reason. I'm keeping the one I have now.
Paul B.

 

[BearBiologist]

Not fuzzy memory. I just can't type worth spit. It should have been 1959 and I fixed it. I also till have an S&W 38/44 Outdoorsman on hand, albeit not the one used to take down the bear. I made the mistake of selling to get money for some silly reason. I'm keeping the one I have now.
Paul B.

Understand completely!!!! My fingers don't work as well with the arthritis and a steel plate, either!

 

[thinckley]

As long as I can remember (and no, I am not as old as some of the fine folks on this site), .357 and .44 have always been the "recommended caliber" for back country protection. Even though we do not have a ton of bears in Utah, I carry my OM SBH in .44 and my son carries the OM .357 for whatever we might run into.

 

[vlavalle]

Why would you need more energy than a 300gr full power 44mag?

The term 'full power' is pretty meaningless. If you said 'with the max .44 SAMI load, then it would refer to the Buffalo Bore round that delivers 1,544 ft. lbs. of ME, which is quite powerful, but no where near the max of the other .45 and above calibers. Also, if you are shooting at an attacking big grizzly (1,000 lbs. or more), then the .44 Mag may not be enough!

 

[vlavalle]

It is difficult to find "reasonably priced" 45LC rounds. The ones that are low cost are, most often, Cowboy Load rounds.

Check out my ballistics file and you may find some .45LC ammo at lower costs. I also do not purchase 'Cowboy' rounds, and they often have more flash as well as a lot less power. I am currently working on updating my file, with lots of current availability and pricing. I get 10-15 emails daily from gun/ammo retailers, so I have a very good input to my file. Message me here with your email address and I will send you the latest release. It is a PDF file, and not really usable on smart phones. It is too long ad too wide, with over 3,500 entries, where each entry is a link to the online retailer for that specific ammo. But there are not many .45 LC updates in this version, so if interested, let me know and I will wait until I make the next rel;ease with more up-to-date info.

 

[jmca]

It is difficult to find "reasonably priced" 45LC rounds. The ones that are low cost are, most often, Cowboy Load rounds.

Wish they were less expensive around here! Same price if not a little higher than some of the Stock ammo.

As far as the 38/44, I saw one once and made the mistake of not buying it! Regretted it ever since!
Maybe someday I will find one "reasonably" priced but S&W's seem to bring ridiculous prices!

As far as Buffalo Bore ammo, I have a box of 20, shot one round to know what to expect if I ever get crossed up in a Bear situation while hiking. Only time I load them in my 45LC Blackhawk is in Bear country.

 

[contender]

As I've mentioned,, I've shot some Buffalo Bore ammo, and I'm also very familiar with them. Top end loads in general for sure.

I live in an area with an abundance of black bears. And here in NC we do have some really big ones. 500lbs+ are around. Yet,, even with all that,, I don't feel the need for BB ammo. I do cast my own,, powder coat them myself,, and use a 280 grn SWC design by MP molds. The load I use is very accurate,, and carries enough punch to put a big bear down if necessary. I have no doubts there.
Accuracy trumps power. You need to be accurate,, before the power can do anything. But you also need enough power to do the intended job.
Cowboy loads aren't the best choice,, but they too have a decades long history of use. Remember,, the 45 Colt was developed in the 1800's and used on all kinds of critters long before smokeless powder came along.

I tend to feel my .45 Colt is a good solid "comfortable companion" for most things. Trustworthy.

 

[gramps]

Same for the 44mag.

Yep, I have been hand loading since 2004 in the .44 mag, and since 2018 for the .45 Colt. I haven't missed any shooting due to the lack. Good luck!
gramps

 

[gramps]

I took a .44 mag Red Hawk 4.2" barrel to Alaska for bear and moose protection. It was stuffed with 300 gr LWFN over some 2400. It shot good. Never had to use it for its intended reason. The only bear I saw were in the Anchorage zoo. Moose were very common in Anchorage streets. I didn't have to even draw my weapon. It was nice to know I had that option.
gramps

 

[Pál_K]

... When I got out of the tent I saw a Black Bear that was trying to drag a young lady out into the brush and away from camp. I had the only gun in camp, an S&W 38/44 Outdoorsman. ... I took that bear down with two shots. The lady required a bunch of stitched as I recall. ...

Was anyone there thankful you had the wisdom to have a gun? I suppose in 1959 nobody would be surprised or alarmed. If that happened today, however, who knows?

 

[Paul B]

Was anyone there thankful you had the wisdom to have a gun? I suppose in 1959 nobody would be surprised or alarmed. If that happened today, however, who knows?

To be honest, I was the only one who had a firearm along. It was a group of college age kids mostly in their lower 20s and frankly they didn't have much of a clue on camping or anything else. I had to help some of them set up their tents. I didn't tell them I had it with me not knowing how they'd react. There were plenty of anti-gun types in California even way back then, especially in San Francisco.
Paul B.

 

[Pál_K]

To be honest, I was the only one who had a firearm along. It was a group of college age kids mostly in their lower 20s and frankly they didn't have much of a clue on camping or anything else. I had to help some of them set up their tents. I didn't tell them I had it with me not knowing how they'd react. There were plenty of anti-gun types in California even way back then, especially in San Francisco.
Paul B.

Well, I hope your foresight and actions convinced a few there that guns and the people who own them can be pretty good.

 

[contender]

Sadly,,, even when a "good guy with a gun" saves or helps someone who's not a gun person,, it doesn't always change their mind. They just figure; "Someone will be there to help us" or a similar thought process.

Kinda like the many people who fail to keep a fire extinguisher at home or in their car. They just think; (a) It'll never happen to me,, or (b) I'll call 911 & get help!

Then,, there are those of us who live by the BSA motto; "Be Prepared!"

 

[Fujicon]

The term 'full power' is pretty meaningless. If you said 'with the max .44 SAMI load, then it would refer to the Buffalo Bore round that delivers 1,544 ft. lbs. of ME, which is quite powerful, but no where near the max of the other .45 and above calibers. Also, if you are shooting at an attacking big grizzly (1,000 lbs. or more), then the .44 Mag may not be enough!

Yup. "Full power" doesn't resonate. "High power" means even less. Saw on another site where they used the term "standard weapon" in comparison to "high powered rifle." There is a lot of ignorance in this world and the gun world is not immune from it. A gun dictionary would seem to help...

 

[gramps]

Yup. "Full power" doesn't resonate. "High power" means even less. Saw on another site where they used the term "standard weapon" in comparison to "high powered rifle." There is a lot of ignorance in this world and the gun world is not immune from it. A gun dictionary would seem to help...

Yep, but whose definitions will we use? My father was a WWll vet, Master Sergeant, and he called the thing holding bullets in an 1911, a clip. I bet if you are in a gunfight and your partner says I am out of ammo throw me a clip, are you going to argue about the nomenclature used?
gramps

 

[NewRuger41]

To be honest, I was the only one who had a firearm along. It was a group of college age kids mostly in their lower 20s and frankly they didn't have much of a clue on camping or anything else. I had to help some of them set up their tents. I didn't tell them I had it with me not knowing how they'd react. There were plenty of anti-gun types in California even way back then, especially in San Francisco.
Paul B.

I also wondered why you were the only camper with a firearm when you typed your first reply here. I don't understand many humans. Totally unprepared for emergencies across the board. Thank goodness you not only had a firearm, but the skills and confidence to use it, and you likely saved that woman's life that fateful day. Good man.