I would like to black bear hunt with handguns.  I am completely new to bear hunting.  What kind of handguns would you recommend?  Please let me know caliber, barrel length, gun maufacturer.  Would the kind of gun change depending on whether you are hunting over bait or stalking?  Looking for all the information I can get,  Thanks.

If I am going to hunt bear over bait, I would use nothing less than a 41 magnum. My weapon of choice is a Ruger Blackhawk, Hunter version. If I am stalking, I am going to have a Remington 700 in 35 Whelen in my hands.

I would suggest getting a bear hunting book, the one i got from the club was very informative. But depending on how you are hunting would determine the gun you use. If you are hunting over bait with your shots inside of 40 yards then most any powerful revolver would work from .41mag on up. Same with hunting with dogs where you are goin to be taking shots fairly close in. If you are glassing then you might want to look into something along the lines of a thompson center encore/contender with the rifle caliber barrels and a good optic.

I have never hunted bear, though I am hopin to in the near future. I have hunted with a handgun though and i can tell you this. The most important thing is you need is to practice practice practice. Practice from different field positions. Start Close in and get everything right then slowly work your way out till you reach the maximum range you can keep your shots within a 6inch circle. Whatever you get for bears it would be worth it to get a gun similar to that in .22 caliber. You can shoot for pennies and really hone in your fundamentals. Also you can use that .22 to hunt squirrels or other small critters to hone your skills in the field even further.

This book is very informative and I highly recomend it to anyone looking to get started in handgun hunting. It covers hunting all species of game with a handgun.
http://www.amazon.com/Handgun-Hunti...017&sr=8-1

I would also check out this website. Lots of good articles and the forum is filled with handgun hunters.
http://www.handgunhunt.com/

Best of luck to you, those two sources should get you all the information you need to get started with handgun hunting

I would suggest getting a bear hunting book, the one i got from the club was very informative. But depending on how you are hunting would determine the gun you use. If you are hunting over bait with your shots inside of 40 yards then most any powerful revolver would work from .41mag on up. Same with hunting with dogs where you are goin to be taking shots fairly close in. If you are glassing then you might want to look into something along the lines of a thompson center encore/contender with the rifle caliber barrels and a good optic.

I have never hunted bear, though I am hopin to in the near future. I have hunted with a handgun though and i can tell you this. The most important thing is you need is to practice practice practice. Practice from different field positions. Start Close in and get everything right then slowly work your way out till you reach the maximum range you can keep your shots within a 6inch circle. Whatever you get for bears it would be worth it to get a gun similar to that in .22 caliber. You can shoot for pennies and really hone in your fundamentals. Also you can use that .22 to hunt squirrels or other small critters to hone your skills in the field even further.

This book is very informative and I highly recomend it to anyone looking to get started in handgun hunting. It covers hunting all species of game with a handgun.
http://www.amazon.com/Handgun-Hunti...017&sr=8-1

I would also check out this website. Lots of good articles and the forum is filled with handgun hunters.
http://www.handgunhunt.com/

Best of luck to you, those two sources should get you all the information you need to get started with handgun hunting

Check out the May/June edition of Bear Hunting magazine. Have an article about rifle cartridges for handguns, may help you out...
www.bear-hunting.com.
 

 

Thanks for all the advice.  I truly appreciate it.

I've only shot two black bears with handguns, both were one shot kills. The first was killed with a standard 1911 .45 acp with a 220 gr hard cast (wheel weight) bullet. The second was also killed with a hard cast bullet, but a 250 gr one from a 7 ½” Ruger Superblackhawk .44 mag. Both were DIY spot and stalk hunts as Montana does not allow hunting over bait.

Both were shot at under 40 yds with "tight behind the shoulder" hits and both died within 50 yds of where they were shot.

As with most big game animals, I think bullet placement is more important than bullet diameter. My self-imposed limits on handgun hunting ranges for deer or black bears would be about 50 yds for .357 mag or .45 acp, and about 150 yds for .44 mag and larger handguns.

I don’t have scopes on any of my handguns, so I limit my hunting shots to about 75 yds. I am completely satisfied with the performance of my hard cast lead bullets at this range. For longer range hunting, I would probably use jacket bullets which would allow for greater velocity, and I would use a scoped handgun for more accurate shot placement.

Here's the handgun bullets that I've used on black bears.