Best Trailside Bear Medicine: Revolvers Vs. Semi-Autos
Bears are basically the Juggernauts of the animal world, and they’re waking up hungry everywhere.
Ah, springtime, when a young man’s fancy turns to thoughts of love, and not winding up in little piles of bear dung. All over the country, skinny bears are working hard to become fat bears–and some of them aren’t too terribly worried about where they source their protein. Even those bears that aren’t interested in human hors d’oeuvres are liable to be cranky about both their winter naps, and wondering where all these idiots came from. Personally, I don’t like hiking, camping, or backpacking this time of year without a sidearm….but the question of which one I’m going to use comes up fresh each spring just like the daisies. Will it be a revolver, or a semi-auto?
The Revolver School of Thought
As with any defensive firearm scenario, one of your first criteria has to be whether you are capable of rapidly and effectively deploying your firearm under what is sure to be extreme stress. Revolvers have some significant advantages here. Although, yes, some revolvers do have transfer-bar safeties, most of them just rely on a long, heavy trigger pull to keep the firearm from discharging inadvertently. Not having to worry about a safety mechanism is definitely a huge plus in a high-stress situation.
Furthermore, because revolvers don’t rely on recoil to advance the next round, they’re not particularly picky about ammunition. Whatever type of round you choose, as long as it’s the right caliber for the gun, that gun will go “bang” every time you pull the trigger…and that’s the best kind of comfort you can get when there’s 400 pounds of Mama Grizzly popping its jaw at you from 30 yards away.
Finally, there’s the fact that revolvers have been used as hunting handguns for much longer than semi-automatics. For that reason, you’ll find lots of revolvers on the market chambered in some very serious, bear-specific, heavy-hitting rounds like .454 Casull. Although those rounds are pure punishment to shoot from a revolver, I don’t imagine that anyone complains about a sore wrist after having dropped a charging grizzly.
Unless, that is, you have just fired five times and the bear is still coming. This brings us to…
The Semi-Auto School of Thought
The most important part of surviving any armed encounter is this: Have a gun. Therefore, the most important advantage semi-automatic handguns have as trailside companions is that because of their popularity as EDC and CCW guns, people are more likely to carry them. They’re just more convenient to pack along with you for so many reasons–they’re slimmer and easier to work into your on-body carry strategy than revolvers, for starters. There are also more and better holster rigs to keep them convenient.
However, the spot where semi-automatics really shine is that they can simply put more rounds on your target than a revolver. Most big-bore wheelguns don’t carry more than six rounds, usually five. And that long, heavy trigger pull that keeps your revolver from firing when you don’t want it to can absolutely cause an inexperienced shooter to pull the muzzle off-target…meaning a potential miss. A .454 Casull round that goes over the bear’s head is far less valuable than a 9mm that makes contact. (Especially if it makes contact 17 times.) What’s more, that whole manual safety vs. no manual safety debate is moot when you’re talking about a sidearm like a Glock or Springfield XD, since they use an intuitive grip safety.
The fact of the matter is that, semi-auto or revolver, the key to surviving an encounter with a charging bear is going to be your ability to place rounds on a moving target while under stress. There is no one gun that can give you that; that is something that is built through hours upon hours of repetitive practice until the motions of drawing, aiming, and firing are muscle memory. That way, your body will essentially have you 3/4 of the way there before your brain even finishes the phrase “OHHH SHIIII…”
Of course, I’d be remiss not to remind our readers that we’re currently running our Stay Home, Stay Safe 4.5K Guns & Gear Giveaway! It stars two of my top picks for trailside protection: the Taurus Judge and the Steyr Scout. The giveaway runs through May 8, so don’t miss out! Click on the photo below to enter!
I remember reading a few years ago about a hiker killed in Alaska who’d shot a bear several times with a .38 special snubbie. Obviously a poor choice. As I remember this bruin was brought down by a state worker with a 7mm Mag semiauto rifle. The bear fell on the last round fired at the man’s feet.
I do pack a .40 S&W semiauto daily but if I go backpacking I take my Remington TAC 13 12 gauge shortie loaded with slugs.
The best bear gun is a 12 gauge shotgun with quality rifled slugs, I carry a .44 mag but if you are serious about bears it is only for backup. I suggest a .45-70 or similar caliber if the shotgun doesn’t appeal to you. These revolver vs. pistol articles regarding bear guns are an argument for natural selection. Just my.02 cents.
I love the .45 LC/.410 GA revolvers, too! I have a Public Defender Judge and a Smith & Wesson Governor. The Judge is more concealable, so I take it with me when I travel. The Governor is my “Home Defender”, right next to the bed as I sleep each night. Winchester, Remington and Hornady make great .410 GA defensive rounds. I also picked up some 300 grain .45 LC “Bear Loads”.
.454 Alaskan would be my choice and won’t apologize for that to anyone.
that’s why you need a FNX 45 acp 16 rounds OF PURE LOVE
My EDC and Woods gun are one and the same. It’s a highly customized Commander in .45 super. 230gr gold dots at 1160 fps for edc and 255gr hardcast at either side of 1100 for woods carry. This gun has proven itself reliable to a fault without a malfunction in well over 2500 rounds and with 8+1 I never feel under armed….
My 5″ Raging Bull in .480 Ruger with a hard-cast 410-grain WFN travelling at a lazy 970 fps is all I’ll ever need or want in a pistol to deal with a bear when my 105 mm recoil-less rifle is back in camp.
Elmer Keith shot many bears with 44 Spec and 45 LC. I choose best of both worlds of Auto/Revolver…. 45ACP with 255 grain hard cast Underwood or Double Tap. 950 ft/sec 8 shots. The M&P Shield 45 is easy to pack but is limited to 7 shots of 255 grain muscle!
So tell us, just how many bears did Elmer actually kill?
Yes E.K.. did kill critters with a .44 Special revolver. His loads were a hard cast lead 255 gr semi wadcutter of his own design pushed to 1200 fps. Pressure was over the SAAMI limit for 44 special. Much more energy than factory loaded .44 Special. That load was the inspiration for the .44 magnum. His 45 colt loads were equal to what you will find in reloading manuals listed as “Ruger only” data. Meaning over SAAMI pressures for 45 colt.
44 mag S&W model 329 Night Guard in a chest rig
I even sleep with it on when camping. I don’t want to be reaching around in the dark for the very thing I need “right now”. Being groggy and scared at the same time is no fun.
I’m never likely to be in grizzly country but do live in heavily populated black bear habitat. My first choice – considering weight, convenience and power – is/are my Ruger .45 Colt BlackHawks (4.5″ & 7.5″) with my handloads comprised of a 265 grn cast swc at 1060 fps & 1250 fps respectively.
Jeeze!!!!! Keep yer sidearms! When it comes to Spring in BEAR Country, I’ll keep my Mossberg 500 cuddled up close with slugs and ASSURANCE!
454 Alaskan packs a punch, I Carry that revolver in a chest holster as primary defense weapon. I practice shooting the 454 regularly, costly, however, if it hits the fan I don’t want to experience shock in a realtime attack.
7 P’s right? 357 snub nose back up and a 6″ Arvensis Benchmade knife. Wheel guns work every time you pull the trigger and semi-autos are great and I have a few but when Mr. bear wants to fight I have to have a sure shot.
10mm all the way for a woods gun. With the Glock 20 or Springfield you’ll have 15+1 rounds of near 41 mag power. The best thing is that your not carrying a pretty $1k S&W that could get scratched. The Glock is so ugly you won’t care. It’s amazing the old 10mm doesn’t get more respect.
For some reason people always say that but it is clear they have not looked. .41 Magnum rounds have 300 to 400 ft./s more velocity for the same bullet weight when comparing Max loads for both calibers in my reloading manuals. 10 mm is great for what it is but it’s no .41 Magnum.
I carry a S&W 500 in a shoulder holster loaded with Hornady 350 grain HP-XTP. I have found it very effective.
They do make a .458 Lott pistol folks. It’s NOT a reasonable bear gun if it’s pissed and charging though.
I’ll stick with my .41 mag thank you.
I noticed no mention of the tried and true .44 Remington magnum. My S&W 629 has saved me a couple of times.
Here’s something I propose to people that ask me what I carry in the woods of SW PA when I hike & hunt with my dogs. Most bear attacks I have read of happen very quickly & the bear is on the person before they realize there even is a bear. Even the grizzly attacking the game commission official releasing it from the trap in 2008 had the bear on the official before he knew what was happening & he knew the bear was coming out of the trap angry. To continue. Now, taking for granted that you may have to deploy that sidearm with a bear on top of you I would think that you’re most likely to be stuffing the muzzle of whatever firearm you have in to the belly of that bear. Try that with a semi auto. The slide will most definitely be pushed reward taking the semi auto out of battery therefore rendering that semi auto unable to fire & useless. If I ever go to grizzly country I may change my mind but for me here in SW PA while I’m hiking, hunting & fishing, my .357 2 1/4″ barreled revolver is always on my hip in the exact same place as my EDC when I’m not in the woods. Just a little food for thought. To each his own.
The guy that got it while letting the bear out of the culvert trap was not taking all the precautions he should have. The trap should also have been designed to open with operator in a safe location.
I live in Homer and run a chest holstered 460 Mag up front a compensated G20 10mm on my side and am usually slinging a custom Sporterized M70 .338 winmag when I travel up to the head of the bay to hunt or fish. 460 is my go to up close.
When afield or of pavement, or even (Walmart ) these days, I carry my Judge. First round chambered to fire is a simple 7-1/2 bird shot. Simply just to add pain to back it off , or killing that snake . Yes, it’s a great snake gun . Keeps me and my dog safe. After that 45LC and 410 slugs . Little hard to conceal, at 6-3 290 lbs, a light over coat with a pancake holster seem to work for me. Love my Judge.
Glock does not have a grip safety. .458 Lott is a dangerous game rifle cartridge. Don’t think it’s been chambered in a handgun. Recoil would be intolerable. Very limited to who can handle the recoil in a proper rifle.
When I go in the backwoods fishing or hunting I always carry my Glock 20 loaded with 170 or 180 hard cast bullets loaded to max I carry in a cross- draw holster right in the center of my chest with 2 extra 15 round mags.
Either Mr. Munson or the editor has a serious lack of knowledge about revolvers.
Transfer bar safeties are operated by pulling the trigger.
I quit reading after the .458 Lott comment. That’s a rifle cartridge, kids.
Might as well go to CNN for an informative firearms article.
Actually Thompson center makes a 458 lott pistol . Wouldn’t be my choice as I have 458 win and a 458 Lott (they were my dad’s) while they’re not something I would hunt with regularly in a pistol now! A magnum research 45-70 would be a better choice.