Opinions on 10mm in Grizzly country?

[Dunning Kruger]

My thought is that youll be lucky to get 1 shot off at all, so better make it count. If grizz are a concern id go .44mag or better. That being said, like 99.9% of the people giving their opinions on threads like these, ive never shot a grizz so my opinion is pretty much worthless. I have however killed a black bear with my sidearm point blank when i woke from a nap to one sneaking up on me, so thats something i guess.

 

[geetar]

My thought is that youll be lucky to get 1 shot off at all, so better make it count. If grizz are a concern id go .44mag or better. That being said, like 99.9% of the people giving their opinions on threads like these, ive never shot a grizz so my opinion is pretty much worthless. I have however killed a black bear with my sidearm point blank when i woke from a nap to one sneaking up on me, so thats something i guess.

That’s definitely something. What gun were you using. Just curious

 

[mtmuley]

I would pick any 357 revolver over the 10mm.

I tend to believe this guy. mtmuley

 

[Dunning Kruger]

That’s definitely something. What gun were you using. Just curious

.44 mag taurus. Buffalo bore hardcast.

 

[GlockZ]

I've taken a 9mm and a 357 in grizzly country, both with "bear loads", but I was hunting, so I always had my rifle with me. This last September is the only time I actually ran into a grizzly. Got within 50 feet of a 3 year old boar, ( guessing at the age). He showed no fear, but kept his distance and followed us for a mile and a half keeping 75-100 yards away, before he headed up and over the ridge. He was a smart one, he stayed where he had the high ground the entire time, and he never showed any type of aggression towards me and my partner. I had my 357 with me that day, and maybe I'm being a bit naive, but I took comfort knowing I had it, if I needed to use it.

 

[Mako]

I wouldn’t feel undergunned with a .357 magnum unless we were talking brown bear, and more specifically, coastal brown bear like you’d find in Alaska. That said, have you considered the original 10mm, .41 mag?

 

[brockel]

I’d pick the smaller framed pistol so it doesn’t hurt as much when that grizzly shoves it where the sun don’t shine

 

[geetar]

I wouldn’t feel undergunned with a .357 magnum unless we were talking brown bear, and more specifically, coastal brown bear like you’d find in Alaska. That said, have you considered the original 10mm, .41 mag?

I don’t know much about the .41 mag

 

[HandgunHunter]

I don’t know much about the .41 mag

The 10mm and the 41 mag do not compare.

Full power load vs full power load the 41 mag is way above the 10.

 

[HandgunHunter]

When I’m just out scouting this is my pick. 629 4” 44.
Otherwise I’m handgun hunting and generally have a larger handgun.

I’m betting between this and the 10mm fully loaded they weigh close to the same. You are talking about a 3” moving target for a one shot stop.....spray and pray mag dumps are not going to be the best method.

 

[Panda Bear]

My gut reaction is a pistol you are comfortable shooting and are committed to carry loaded and in proximity for immediate access is better than a thunderstick you rarely shoot, and is too big to actually carry comfortably (meaning most won't). Hopefully, I am never asked to prove the efficacy of my 10mm Sig or my .357Mag Ruger, but if I am, my guess is that the cartridge choice will not be the decider - it will be if I had time to get the gun out of the holster and fired accurately in time to make a difference.

This

Like Salmonchaser I deal with the Grizzly and Polar all the time and when one of them is determined to ruin your day, it doesn't matter what you have, you wish you had a Taurus RJ or S & M 460, but if whatever you have, deters them, you won! There are very strict handgun laws up here but I am able to carry via a Wilderness permit. I am not arguing against bear spray but the wind may not always be your friend when you need to use it. As many others have said, take what your comfortable using. The one thing you can not practice is the charge. And no matter how many times your exposed to it, it is scary as hell. I have not seen anyone deal with as many bears in such a short period of time each year as Salmonchaser does, and he is still above ground. He uses handguns, spray and common sense

 

[geetar]

When I’m just out scouting this is my pick. 629 4” 44.
Otherwise I’m handgun hunting and generally have a larger handgun.

I’m betting between this and the 10mm fully loaded they weigh close to the same. You are talking about a 3” moving target for a one shot stop.....spray and pray mag dumps are not going to be the best method.

Thanks for your input. I’ve noticed you are quite experienced in handgun hunting.

 

[runningmt]

As prior LE....1 range day a year hardly counts as training.

as prior usmc infantry....there are a whole lot of different jobs in the service...and all different levels of training.

neither of these comments made above have any merit in this discussion.

if you feel unsafe with a handgun....you are more than likely unsafe with a rifle and should have neither.

Feeling safe with a handgun and being able to safely shoot while a griz is in your personal space are two vastly different situations.

 

[David58]

I carry a rifle when I hike the deep woods with my dogs here in NM. Not because I have to deal with griz, but because if the dogs get in a tangle with coyotes or a bear or cat, I don't trust my marksmanship with a pistol when it gets hairy. And I do consider myself a pretty good pistol shot.

That said, if I were limited to a handgun, I would go with something big, way bigger than a .357. But then I'd have to practice with a hand cannon like that. As much as I love my 1911s and semiautos (that make me look like the aforementioned good shot), I don't know that I would care for the 10mm. I guess I'd still lean toward that 12ga or 45-70 or .444 if I could up there.

Adrenaline and handguns, for me at least, likely don't mix real good.

 

[HandgunHunter]

Feeling safe with a handgun and being able to safely shoot while a griz is in your personal space are two vastly different situations.

Thank you for making your limitations what everyone else’s standard should be...

this statement you made would mean you are uncomfortable with firearms used in any defensive situation....the majority of those situations would be in “personal space”.

the use of a weapon or tool to defend ones self from an attacker or bear are likely to be similar situations/distances....just different environments.

 

[Don Fischer]

(like DA handguns but use an auto loader for carry. When I hunted a lot, I never carried any handgun. In Montana I was stationed in Lakeside and found where I was hunting there were grizzly's. So rather than a handgun I bought a 338 mag to hunt with. Up in Alaska the bears were around, out fishing found a print on a bank, never een any footprint that big before. Got home after that trip and loaded up 200gr bullet's for my 308. Till that I though 180's were enough. Think back and in Montana I thought I needed the 338 mag over the 308 then years later in Alaska figured the 308 was enough just had to reconsider the bullet I was using. All the time I've spent in bear country I've never had a bad encounter and never seen a grizzly while out hiking around. I developed over the years the idea it's better to be cautious in big bear country and avoid contact. I wonder just how many people actually hunting in big bear country for something else have actually even seen one? Grizzly attacks can be very fatal but also very rare. Good book on them I got while in Alaska is Alaska Bear Tales, super book! One more thing I'd asked about a bear handgun while i was up there. Everyone recommended a 44 mag. Then when attacked by a bear shoot the guy with you in the foot!

 

[Mako]

The 10mm and the 41 mag do not compare.

Full power load vs full power load the 41 mag is way above the 10.

100% agree. I was just paying deference to the fact that .41 mag truly is the "original 10mm." The fact that it blows away 10mm auto is just the icing on the cake. Even though I have a model 29, a model 57 has long been one of my "grail" guns. I only wish the 57 had a larger following so there'd be more ammo availability (and cheaper too).

 

[CubSlayer]

The 10mm is the 6.5 creedmore of pistols...lmao

^^^This

The 10mm for grizzly is a self-fulfilling prophecy. It is chosen because it is a big semi-auto for people who want to carry a semi-auto, not because its a good choice. Objectively, it is substantially less powerful than a .44 magnum.

I have no experience with grizzlies, but a bit with black bears. I consider the .44 magnum the absolute minimum for grizzlies. Wouldn't even consider 10mm.

 

[VikingsGuy]

^^^This

The 10mm for grizzly is a self-fulfilling prophecy. It is chosen because it is a big semi-auto for people who want to carry a semi-auto, not because its a good choice. Objectively, it is substantially less powerful than a .44 magnum.

I have no experience with grizzlies, but a bit with black bears. I consider the .44 magnum the absolute minimum for grizzlies. Wouldn't even consider 10mm.

A lot of data in the link in reply #10 tells a different story.

 

[MTGamecock]

As with any defense pistol choice, there is always a balance between 1) what is commonly thought of as "stopping power" and 2) a shooter's ability to get shots on target as quickly as possible. The ideal balance point is going to be different for each shooter, but I believe most people give too much consideration to the former and not enough to the latter. The former is fairly easy to research using ballistics charts and other online resources. The latter is multi-factored and often involves a lot of trial and error drawing and firing on the range, on the trail, with your other gear, without your other gear, from multiple positions (think of all the positions you might be in when you need it), strong hand, off-hand, etc. It can also be somewhat painful on the wallet (I have a bin full of self-defense holsters that didn't work for me). Find a caliber and platform that works for you.

In my case, for trail-carry, I settled on a 10mm Glock on a belt holster that is interchangeable between my pants belt an the hip pads on my pack. This platform most closely mimics my everyday carry situation. I know from experience that I can get more accurate shots down-range in the least amount of time with this platform than any other I have tried.

I would never argue that a single 10mm round to the vitals is as effective as a single .44mag round to the vitals. But I would also never argue that one should expect to stop to a threat, whether human or bear, with one shot. In fact, it's probably best to assume an attack will play out in a way we never expected.

For the record, I also carry Udap bear spray on the trail, within easy reach. But sometimes I hike into a stiff headwind, so . . .