458Win

Thanks for the reply.

Rusty Gunn, I was just asked to submit a piece to Successful Hunter on the subject of Bear rifles. I'll tell you what I basically said. Caliber choice is of a lot less importance than bullet selection and most of all bullet placemant. I know successful bear hunters who chose the .270 and were pleased with it but I consider that power level minimal. I consider the 30-06 with premium 200 and 220 gr. bullets an adequate bear rifle and by adequate I mean fully capable of handling any bear in any situation as long as the hunter can shoot. I have killed a dozen large wounded bears with mine so know for a fact it works. The .338 Win. with 250 and 300 grain bullets is a better round and certainly the most popular. It is what I recommend. The .375 H&H is superb of course but not everyone can shoot them well and a good shot with a 30-06 will beat a poor one with a .375 every time.
I have not had a handgun hunter for bear but am certain they would work. I would list a .44 mag with hard cast 240 bullets as minimun and prefer a 300 grain bullet for a hunter.

458 you mention the 30/06 what do you think of a 300 win mag with 220 Partitions for a killing/stopping gun in the hands of someone that can shoot it well? Also if a bear is on the charge comming straight at you were do you aim? I was told by another guide to put the hairs under the chin of the bear do you agree with this?

Mr Shoemaker... Thank you for the responce. Your comments reflect what other guides say, which is what I sort of expected, not because you all "say" the same thing, but because of the actual experience you all have individually.
I I shot my griz with a 270 Winchester, tossing 150 grain Partitions and 160 grain Originals, simply because it was the rifle I could shoot well. The 338 Winchester Magnum I ordered arrived a week before the hunt, not giving me any serious time to get familiar with it. I used the same rifle to "finish off" a wounded black bear in the thickets. A scarey moment for sure!
Although I've hunted for bears many times since I've yet to take another one.

Question... Do you have any hunting videos/dvds available? Thank you for your time. ~~~Suluuq

Any of the 300's with 220 partitions work well on virtually any big game, anywhere. My 30-06 load is honestly pushing 200 gr. partitions at 2700 fps so is not much different from the 300's. If a bear is coming right at you, and you have time, kneeling and putting the first round directly under the chin if probably your best bet. The 220 partition will rake the full length of the bear and should put them down on the spot.

Thank you 458 for taking the time to answer our questions. It is nice to have someone with a lot of real life hunting experiance to answer questions. Thank You again!

.458 Win.
regarding the kneeling and putting the bullet under the chin into the chest.
In my carreer as a biologist in Arctic Canada, I was exposed only once to a serious polar bear charge.
The polar bear attacked at dazzling speed like a cat, low crouched to the ground.
It reminds me very much of watching kitty stalk a sparrow, low to the ground until within striking range and then races, in this low crouched to the ground position, at full speed up to the bird. I am not sure whether I could have slipped a bullet under that low profile into that chest, since polarbears head/neck/chest profile is rather streamlined with very little apparent definition where one part starts and the other part ends. I guess an adaptation to its frequent diving into seal dens through the snow to get the pups. However it happened about 18 years ago, and my memmory is not exactly fresh.
I always planned in such fast, low head-on crouched attacks to shoot for the large head. If that be missed due to not enough lead, the bullet would plough into the neck or into its back, hopefully cutting or impacting close to the spine killing or temporarily paralysing the bear, giving enough time for a finisher if needed. What is your view on this?
I also was exposed to a fair number of bluff charges, where the bears ran at me rather stiff legged, but when I stood my ground veered off. One tried to intimidate me by humping stiff legged towards me diagonally, almost like a side winder. Bizarre sight, but when done by one of those 800lbs+ bears, at the time not amusing at all, and enough to make the heart jump into the throat and the rectal portion of your body twitch. Even if you realize at that time that it is "probably" a bluff charge in progress.

You deal a lot more with charges, since you at times have to root out enraged wounded bears, while I dealt just with scared/harassed or insufficiently drugged bears. Even then,
there were some tight moments I was scared.

Knowing how to read a bears mood and intent by the signals he sends out, can be a usefull tool I always thought in the professions and past-times, dealing with bears. Unfortunately, there are some bears who neglected reading the protocol how to properly signal hostile intent towards humans. And...............the worst part being that you never know which one it is. This one or the next one? The one that attacked me was one of those.
I develloped through the years great respect for bears after witnessing their unpredictability and propensity for incredible speed and strength.
And....................may be too, that were some of the reasons that attracted me to that work.
I am sure readers here would like to hear your perspective on aspects of confrontational bear behaviour, unless you are presently writing a book on your experiences, in which case we like to know when we can buy a copy.

i went b.b. hunting with a guide who was recently mauled and would not allow hunters to use .30-06. as i shot that with precision. so i got a deal on a .300 wthby and use 220 gr. he said no .30 cals. then i bought a .340 wthby and did the job, although ot handily, despite awesome placement. i had to see it to beleive it. or i never would have believed it. the 10'+ bears are like tanks.

big guns/ big bullets are a good idea.

still love my .30-06, holds more bullets too.

I think Shrike's experiences with polar bears is very interesting. I deal with Brown Bears almost daily during the summer and fall and on only two occasions have actually had them show the same stalking behavior. Most charges are bluff charges, especially un-wounded ones, and from my experiences Brown and Grizzly bears tend to come straight up at you but from body language , ears back, head lower, and a more meaningful walk/run, you can tell the serious ones. He is also right about fast, close charges typically only presenting a quick shot at the head/neck area and often that is the only best shot avaliable. I have had bears charge from a distance, one was chasing a caribou and the caribou headed directly toward me and veered off at the last second - leaving me to face the bear. In that case I had time to kneel and aim at the bear's chest from his level. I still hold this is the best angle, and African cape buffalo cullers have told me it is their favorite as well, but it is not always avaliable.
In reguards to the 30-06 - I have killed a dozen large bears with mine (using 200 gr Nosler partitions at 2700 fps) and anyone who claims it is not effective on bears has either not tried it or is unwittingly commenting on their marksmanship. There are better rounds for stopping charges but don't under estimate the 30-06.

facinating thread, thanks to both 458win and Shrike.......DJ