Will 12ga f-up a black bear?

[buzzzyy]

My little brother is gonna be doing some camping up north (east side) and is a little worried about black bears, so he wants to take a weapon up there with him.

It seems to me a 12ga with some slugs or even 00buck will be plenty good for 200 lb bear up close,
or I can give him a Mosin M44 and he can stick it with a bayo if the bears goes for his tent.

I have a .357 too, but no .44

 

[wilcam47]

if not it will piss it off and you wont be able to tell us if it worked or not

 

[MikeTF]

Loud noises tend to work, as well as putting your food in a tree away from the campsite.

 

[angler]

Loud noises tend to work, as well as putting your food in a tree away from the campsite.

This. 12ga is plenty loud, just don't shoot it at the animal because you'll just wound the beast. Nobody gets mauled by black bears.........

 

[wilcam47]

This. 12ga is plenty loud, just don't shoot it at the animal because you'll just wound the beast. Nobody gets mauled by black bears.........

are you joking?

 

[Jimbob2.0]

Scare it away with round one, if that doesnt work buckshot-slug-buckshot-slug and you will be fine as long as you hit the bear.

 

[molonlabe]

12 ga slug is adequate for blackbear. The point is prevention. Don't camp where they travel, ususlly path of least resistance like dry creek beds. Don't bring food into your tent keep it locked up. I have camped all over the country and never found a need to shoot a bear and they have crossed my path. I was always well armed 44 mag or rifled slugs.

 

[angler]

are you joking?

About which? A 12ga being pretty ineffective at stopping a bear or the mauling part?

There have only been somewhere between 22 and 43 known mauling deaths by black bear in all of the US and Canada in all of recorded history. Most of those were "problem" bears exposed to "problem" people, if you want my opinion (ie people not respecting the bear buy leaving food in close proximity to feeding areas or violating a bear's space). I grew up in areas with a MUCH higher black bear density than anywhere on the East Coast. We used to encounter them all the time in the woods and in camp. They are to be respected for sure, but are no big deal.

 

[mikec]

12 gauge is what folks hunt black bears with in many parts of NY. The slugs made today should be better than the old slugs of 25 years ago. A Marlin .45/70 with stout modern ammo would also work, provided the shooter has used them.

buzzzyy, your brother has shot a 12 gauge before, right? He knows the rules? BTW, what are the rules for guns where he is going?

BTW, in some areas, if you kill a bear, expect to be investigated for poaching. Much like shooting someone in self defense, expect to get grilled.

 

[Inigoes]

Normally, shoo-ing it away works.


Unless it's a garbage dump bear, then you're just going to piss it off.

 

[BenL]

A pack of fire crackers will be just as effective, and you won't have to hurt the bear.

 

[Huckleberry]

There's something different!

A gun picture with 3 paws instead of 2 feet.

BTW, I would be more worried about 2 legged varmits or stepping on "Jake Noshoulders" than worrying about bears.

 

[BeltBuckle]

About which? A 12ga being pretty ineffective at stopping a bear or the mauling part?

There have only been somewhere between 22 and 43 known mauling deaths by black bear in all of the US and Canada in all of recorded history. Most of those were "problem" bears exposed to "problem" people, if you want my opinion (ie people not respecting the bear buy leaving food in close proximity to feeding areas or violating a bear's space). I grew up in areas with a MUCH higher black bear density than anywhere on the East Coast. We used to encounter them all the time in the woods and in camp. They are to be respected for sure, but are no big deal.

angler is spot on here. it is very unusual to have a problem with a black bear, and those that arise are usually in places like Yellowstone or Yosemite where bears have become habituated to humans who do such stupid stuff that they should be coated in honey and FED to bears.

Griz are another matter entirely. Joe McInnes writes in "Going to Extremes" about a cheechako asking an old timer if a .44 magnum would offer any protection against a griz. The response: "Maybe. If'n you put it in his mouth before you pull the trigger."

Folks who worked on the pipeline carried 12ga shotguns loaded with slugs to control griz. even there, though, smart behaviour aimed at avoiding a confrontation is wisest. but black bears in MD -- not a big worry. It would be a big shame to shoot one of them, IMHO.

 

[SamW]

The 12ga with 00buck or slugs would work just fine if it came down to the point where you absolutely had to defend yourself. Most of the time Black Bear will steer clear of you as long as they know where you are.

 

[h2u]

I can't believe no one has mentioned that taking punchabearinamouf camping with him is all he needs

 

[BlueHeeler]

About which? A 12ga being pretty ineffective at stopping a bear or the mauling part?

There have only been somewhere between 22 and 43 known mauling deaths by black bear in all of the US and Canada in all of recorded history. Most of those were "problem" bears exposed to "problem" people, if you want my opinion (ie people not respecting the bear buy leaving food in close proximity to feeding areas or violating a bear's space). I grew up in areas with a MUCH higher black bear density than anywhere on the East Coast. We used to encounter them all the time in the woods and in camp. They are to be respected for sure, but are no big deal.

+2
I have had a few meeting with black bears on the Appalachian Trail. Unless you slather yourself in peanut butter, they want little to do with you.

 

[Lex Armarum]

I was hiking the Shenandoah a couple weeks ago with my wife and we ran across a full grown male blackie; about 50 or so yds away from us on the trail where we were hiking. We just stopped and watched, the bear watched us for a few, then stumbled off into the woods. Waited until I was sure the coast was clear and then continued on our journey. Later, on our drive back down the valley, we noticed a group of folks crowded around the side of the road, they were eyeing a cub that had wandered up to the roadside (less then 10ft between the crowd and the cub). All in all, plenty of bears, no problems.

As for solving the intrusive bear problem, you have several choices many of which were already covered. Banging pots together usually works and does anything that makes a loud sudden noise. Field & Stream recently highlighted a portable electric fence for campers to keep griz and other intruders out of the campsite (topic was fishing out west). For killing bear, 12 ga. w/ slugs is sufficient; but, if you're in a federal park, you likely gonna face a possible "discharging" beef (recent incident where this happened out west). If you're in a MD park, not really sure what they would say but seeing as this is MD, well, you can only guess. Still, why kill the bear unless he is attempting to make supper out of your brother?

 

[Punchabearinnamouf]

I can't believe no one has mentioned that taking punchabearinamouf camping with him is all he needs

I was waiting for that

 

[FrankOceanXray]

Polyshok.

A 300 + lb. black bear was harassing an urban neighborhood. As the bear faced them, wildlife officers shot the bear in the chest and killed it with a single shot. Again, no exit wound.

 

[montoya32]

I was camping in Va on the A. trail and was sleeping next to our campfire one night. In the middle of the night I was woken up by my friends in the tents surrounding the fire. I lifted my head to a set of eyes roughly 24"-30" off of the ground 2'-3' from me. I grabbed my 3 or 4 cell mag light and rustled the leaves next to me. That was enough to send the bear strolling away. We woke the next morning to find our cooking stove next to the stream we camped by with little teeth marks all over the canvas bag it was in. Ranger later told us hikers had seen a ma' black bear w/ 2-3 cubs raoming around. My guess is mama was the one next to me and the kiddos were playing with the stove pack. Kinda cool. Also almost stepped on a rattler the next day running down the trail next to the waterfalls. My point being that it doesn't take much to spook off a black bear and the only way you're gonna get attacked is if you mess with the cubs or do something directed at the bear itself. If you wanna take a firearm, a Taurus Judge may be a nice choice, small and you can load .45 and .410 shells.