The best anti-bear pistol and round..

[Jellymon]

Another vote for the G20, although youre limited to 10rd mags now. Very easy shooting gun and very reliable. A little on the heavy side though. Mine is 2lb 12oz loaded with 15rds of 200g hard casts.

[Cougartail]

Another vote for the G20, although youre limited to 10rd mags now. Very easy shooting gun and very reliable. A little on the heavy side though. Mine is 2lb 12oz loaded with 15rds of 200g hard casts.

XD-M 4.5 10mm. No spray!  Many times you don't have time to switch deterrents. Warning shot and the finger is still on the trigger.

[dwtraut7]

Also a G20 person, I like the Underwood rounds for it

[jrebel]

Ruger 454 casull with 325 grain hard cast lead bullets.  HSM makes some that are great...but I load my own but very similar.  Buffalo Bore makes some good ammo for the casull as well. 

I really think a handloaded solid copper would be pretty awesome for deep penetration.  Hammer Hunters 240 gr Jack Hammer would be a pretty amazing round out of the 454 casull as well. 

[WapitiTalk1]

Ruger 454 casull with 325 grain hard cast lead bullets.  HSM makes some that are great...but I load my own but very similar.  Buffalo Bore makes some good ammo for the casull as well. 

I really think a handloaded solid copper would be pretty awesome for deep penetration.  Hammer Hunters 240 gr Jack Hammer would be a pretty amazing round out of the 454 casull as well.

JR, what does that beast weigh? 

[jrebel]

Ruger 454 casull with 325 grain hard cast lead bullets.  HSM makes some that are great...but I load my own but very similar.  Buffalo Bore makes some good ammo for the casull as well. 

I really think a handloaded solid copper would be pretty awesome for deep penetration.  Hammer Hunters 240 gr Jack Hammer would be a pretty amazing round out of the 454 casull as well.

JR, what does that beast weigh?

According to the internet....it is 49 ounces or 3.06 lbs. unloaded. 

I have the 5" Talo toklat model.  I wear it in a chest holster or a side sling holster depending on what and where I am going. 

[WapitiTalk1]

Copy that, a bit heavy but certainly effective.

[Wetwoodshunter]

I have a S&W 329 pd. I hand loaded Lehigh xtreme defense monolithics. I have never had to shoot it as something with a heartbeat.

[Stein]

If I was going back to a kill site with big bears around, I would absolutely have my 12 gauge semi with the plug out.  Big picture, another 10 pounds in a 250 pound deboned elk project is not a deal breaker.

[HuntNFish]

I love my Glock 20 Gen 4 10mm with 15 round capacity loaded with solid core 200 gr bear rounds. Seems to have plenty of stopping power.

[Dirtnap]

Glock model 40/10 mm. After market recoil spring and 220 grain hard cast ammo. Very reliable and accurate. M.O.S with red dot.Lone wolf after market barrel too.

[C-Money]

Paul Harrel did some testing on this topic. The evidence showed for penetration on a large predator (bears) 230gr FMJ out of a 45acp was not a bad option. The 10mm was a bit better. A lot of the hollow point self defense offerings did not penetrate large preds very well. My favorite pistol didn't come in 10mm, so went with 45acp to fill this chore for me. After my encounter with cougars, I discovered a single action .357 mag would have not been ideal if self defense was needed. Cats are fast. Dealing with 3 of them, if you are on the menu, you'd be in trouble with a single action. I'll probably always carry a semi auto in the woods from now on.

[spin05]

i went from a .357 with buffalo bore rounds to a Springfield 10mm with Underwood 220gr. Flat Nose Black Cherry Coated Hard Cast

[Ingwe]

 I carry a Ruger Alaskan .44 mag with 305 grain HSM bear loads when I am in bear country. It is heavy but carry in a chest holster

[mcrawfordaf]

It's for bear defense, its 10mm...