No replacement for placement - 9mm compact kills angry brown bear

[The Heretic]

Why Shot Placement Is Critical (aka How To Kill a Raging Grizzly With a 9mm) | Prepared Gun Owners



And don't ask me why an outfitter was only carrying a 9mm, the article doesn't say.

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[The Heretic]

More info:

Alaska Outfitter Defends Fishermen from Raging Grizzly with 9mm Pistol

 

[rubberband]

Bear protection: 9mm, 40 S&W, 45 ACP? | General Big Game | 24hourcampfire

read 458win's posts in that thread. I saw this linked somewhere else on the web and it's pretty incredible.

 

[The Heretic]

The thing that got me is although the outfitter is supposed to have a good rep, and has experience, he chose a single stack 9mm to go to an area where he knew there were bears. Also, he seemed to have chosen to try for the face/head, when anyone who has ever skinned a bear, especially a brown bear, knows they have fairly thick skulls - I remember the report of a fishing partner in Alaska or west coastal Canada who shot a brown bear six times in the back of the head while it was attacking his partner and the bullets reportedly bounced off - with a .44 Magnum.

IMO, this outfitter was lucky.

That said, the bear is dead and the humans are not, humans 1, bear 0.

Yes, a 9mm hot load with 147 grains of a good bullet, can do the job, maybe barely (he did have to shoot 6 times and still the bear wasn't dead). The 9mm+P is about the same as a .357 mag from the same barrel, up to about 150 grains, but where the .357 mag does better is when you go larger, 160 to 200 grain heavy loads, then it outshines the 9mm.

Plus, this guy was shooting a compact 9mm - not a full sized pistol with a longer barrel. I kind of doubt that load was doing the 1100 fps from that pistol he claimed it was.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

I do agree with the topic title , there is no replacement for bullet placement.
That said I also agree with The Heretic I feel the guide and client were very lucky.

When you are needing to choose a gun to defend your life , I would suggest choosing the biggest one that you can shoot the best with the least amount of effort or thought on your part in the shooting process.

For me if I was in grizzly country that would be my 03A3 loaded with 220 grain bullets or 180's at the least.
Don't get me wrong I still love my muzzleloaders , but we all know the story about Hugh Glass.
Andy

 

[U8395279]

Don't get me wrong I still love my muzzleloaders , but we all know the story about Hugh Glass.
Andy

Don't forget what happened to animal lover Timothy Treadwell and his girlfriend Amie Huguenard. There is a photo of his disemboweled body on the Internet, if anyone wants to see what a hungry Grizzly can do to you. He managed to illegally live with Grizzlies for a dozen summers, successfully evading Katmai National Park rangers, until he eventually encountered one that was emaciated and starving.

 

[The Heretic]

Don't forget what happened to animal lover Timothy Treadwell and his girlfriend Amie Huguenard. There is a photo of his disemboweled body on the Internet, if anyone wants to see what a hungry Grizzly can do to you. He managed to illegally live with Grizzlies for a dozen summers, successfully evading Katmai National Park rangers, until he eventually encountered one that was emaciated and starving.



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It just goes to show that regardless of the animal, one that is starving will do anything to survive. It is a simple survival instinct and expecting any animal, even humans, to go against their base survival instincts is just ignoring basic science, not to mention stupid and naive.

I am all for leaving wildlife alone, especially predators that play an very important part in their ecosystem, but I have no illusions that they are not dangerous - I just won't shoot them for simply existing like some people will.

 

[308]

The Buffalo Bore 9mm hardcast is a very impressive load, but he was fortunate the bear turned and ran after a few shots.

 

[Stomper]

Bear protection: 9mm, 40 S&W, 45 ACP? | General Big Game | 24hourcampfire

read 458win's posts in that thread. I saw this linked somewhere else on the web and it's pretty incredible.

HOLY BUBBLEGUM!!! Did you see the SIZE of that bear skin in his avatar?!!!!

 

[The Heretic]

It is kind of funny to watch people put down the effectiveness of the 9mm and laud the lethality of the .357 mag at the same time, when the former is just 0.001 to 0.003" smaller in diameter and maybe 100 fps slower in comparable sized handguns (a revolver of the same length generally having a shorter barrel than a semi).

Where the .357 starts to make a difference is when you get into the 160+ grain heavy loads, not the 115 to 150 grain loads.

 

[Certaindeaf]

Yeabut what about a hungry hungry hippo?

 

[Certaindeaf]

I think Capstick used to brain elephants with his 9mm Hi-Power.

 

[The Heretic]

Yeabut what about a hungry hungry hippo?

Next time you see one around here let me know and we can try it out, but I think I would have a .50 BMG with Raufoss ammo as a backup.

 

[Certaindeaf]

Next time you see one around here let me know and we can try it out, but I think I would have a .50 BMG with Raufoss ammo as a backup.

No kidding. Those monsters kill more people than all others combined.. save for the mosquito of course.

 

[The Heretic]

Moose kill more people in the northern hemisphere than all bears combined.

What people don't know can literally kill them.

 

[The Courier]

I just read the Treadwell story and with that kind of carnage I would only feel somewhat safe with underwoods extreme penetrator in 9mm. There are alot of ways to go in this world and being eaten alive is probably the #1 way I don't want to go, 2nd would be boiled. I think my comfort level would be better with 357 sig if I had to choose a .35 caliber sidearm.

 

[bbbass]

I carried a 12ga pump shotgun with slugs.

 

[Certaindeaf]

I carried a 12ga pump shotgun with slugs.

I just show them the size of my hands.
Game over.
lol

 

[bbbass]

I just show them the size of my hands.
Game over.
lol

I thought it was feet.

 

[Stomper]

Yeabut what about a hungry hungry hippo?

The shear NOISE that game makes will drive away a grizz that's within 1/4 mile of you!