.223 for blackbear?

[Atroxus]

I'd use a Barnes rather than a Partition, but I'm sure it would kill a bear just fine. Definitely not the caliber I would choose for bear, but if it's what I had when an opportunity at a bear came up, I'd use it (not in this state though, it's not legal).

But really, people hunt bears with archery gear, I think a 223 would be more effective than an arrow.
 

Apples and oranges Bobcat. The arrow kills by cutting, and more often than not leaves an ample blood trail. Bear are notorious for not leaving much of a blood trail when shot with a small cartridge such as the 223 Rem. For bear, in my opinion, The 223 Rem also is a bit in short supply of  penetration and energy .
 To the OP, in a hunting situation, absolutely not. In a survival scenario, absolutely yes.

I agree completely.
A bear, properly hit with a .223 will not leave as good of a blood trail as one properly hit with a broadhead.

If you want a blood trail .223 is not a viable option. If on the other hand you can *consistently* make a spine or brain shot a .223 should be plenty effective. I couldn't/wouldn't do it, but I am sure there are people who could. Course in this state this debate is purely academic since it's not legal.

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[inchtowntracking]

We have killed a lot of bear with a .223 and I wouldn't hesitate to do it again. But we are taught to only use head shots for every animal we kill.

[mountainman]

I'd use a Barnes rather than a Partition, but I'm sure it would kill a bear just fine. Definitely not the caliber I would choose for bear, but if it's what I had when an opportunity at a bear came up, I'd use it (not in this state though, it's not legal).

But really, people hunt bears with archery gear, I think a 223 would be more effective than an arrow.
 

Apples and oranges Bobcat. The arrow kills by cutting, and more often than not leaves an ample blood trail. Bear are notorious for not leaving much of a blood trail when shot with a small cartridge such as the 223 Rem. For bear, in my opinion, The 223 Rem also is a bit in short supply of  penetration and energy .
 To the OP, in a hunting situation, absolutely not. In a survival scenario, absolutely yes.

I agree completely.
A bear, properly hit with a .223 will not leave as good of a blood trail as one properly hit with a broadhead.

Best bloodtrails ive seen on bear have been broadhead shots!

[C-Money]

I really don't see a black bear going very far with a well placed lung/heart shot using a 60gr Nosler Partition from a .223. It sure would not be my first choice to do that, but I feel it would be effective at respectable ranges. I am a fan of the current law making .243 cal bullets the minimum.

[bobcat]

I think I read somewhere that Eskimos kill Polar Bears with the 223.

Or maybe the 22 mag (rim fire)?   

[ICEMAN]

Best bloodtrails ive seen on bear have been broadhead shots!

Better than this?

[Mike450r]

Black bear are thin skinned but have some fairly heavy bones.  Good shooting is essentail with every caliber but moreso with the smaller ones.  Bear can also seal up a small wound with fat so the blood trail issue comes into play.

That being said,  a .223 with 60 grn partition would kill a black bear just fine, shot and seen a lot of em get shot,  most of them in the old days while up in a tree and in my opinion they aren't as tough as people think,  but they do have a will to survive it seems and unless its a drop em right there shot those little furballs will jump spin and run pretty darn for so bloodtrailing after shooting a bear with the .223 would be my concern way more than it actually killing it.

[Seabass]

I shot my first black bear with a .243 but I was 18 and didn't think about very much beyond what I was doing at that exact second. My wife shot one with a .243 a couple of years ago. Both were not ideal situations but they happened, both bears died and were recovered. They were both also small and shot at very close range with perfect placement.The last 6 bears I shot were with some sort of .30 bullet from a 30-06 to a .300 Weatherby.

I guess I just don't really understand why a person would choose to hunt bear with a .223 if they had a choice. My dad used to always use this line when a discussion like this came up. You can chop down a tree with the claw of hammer but why would you if you had a chainsaw.

[Kowsrule30]

With correct shot placement and that bullet the 223 will kill a black bear... Wouldn't be my choice of calibers... My first bear dropped in it's tracks with a heart/lung shot from my 243 at 140 yards....

[Jonathan_S]

It's pretty easy to tell that nobody who cares about bear hunting is actually bear hunting   

Since THIS thread is the most active under bear hunting.

I doubt we'll see it at the top next August 

[Deep Forks]

Best bloodtrails ive seen on bear have been broadhead shots!

Better than this?

  Iceman, bet I know what that bear was shot with and it is a very good choice.  

[ICEMAN]

Best bloodtrails ive seen on bear have been broadhead shots!

Better than this?

  Iceman, bet I know what that bear was shot with and it is a very good choice.  

.300 Ultramagnum.....  Didn't go very far...

[mountainman]

Best bloodtrails ive seen on bear have been broadhead shots!

Better than this?

  Iceman, bet I know what that bear was shot with and it is a very good choice.  

:)Now thats a nice bloodtrail!!