I'm not a Texan (thank god)...so I'll skip that one.
But, regarding an anti-bear pistol....
Okay, before I start, let me tell you where this is
coming from so that you don't think that I'm spouting
nonsense. While I've never been fishing in Alaska,
I've been hunting deer and elk in the woods of Wyoming
since I was 12. The areas that I hunt (especially for
elk) are known bear areas and have been the sites of
numerous attacks on hikers and hunters over the years.
When I go into these areas, in addition to my 7mm
rifle, I carry a can of OC Pepper Spray in the maximum
legal strength.
Anyhow, here goes. The problem with pistols is that
they don't really do much. They fire a relatively
large bullet with a comparatively small powder charge
through a very short barrel that doesn't allow enough
compression to build up to fling the bullet out of the
barrel with any velocity.
The problem with bears is that they're very large and
they have very thick skin; long, thick hair; and very,
VERY hard bones. Okay, now, keeping in mind the above
discussion of low barrel velocity. In order to
convince an angry bear that leaving you alone is a
good idea, your only real option with a pistol is
shooting for the skull. Center body mass shots on big
bears just leave too many unknowns...and will probably
just piss the bear off.
So, we're assuming that you're shooting at the bear's
head. You'll need to fling a big bullet fast enough,
so that it will actually penetrate the extraordinairly
hard bone that makes up the bear's skull. This means
the biggest, most powerful handgun that you can
legitimately shoot. This means, at the very least, a
.44 magnum revolver. Perhaps even a .454 Cassul
revolver. Or, if you're more of a magazine-fed,
semi-automatic pistol fan...a .50 Desert Eagle. These
guns are really heavy, really big, really hard to
carry comfortably, and, most importantly, really hard
to shoot accurately. But, assuming that you actually
hit a bear with a bullet flung from one of these
pistols, you've got at least a 10% chance of
convincing that bear that you're, in fact, not
stealing his salmon.
Conterary to what the movies show, pistols are highly
ineffective weapons. More that 98% of the PEOPLE shot
with pistols survive...and of those that DO die after
being shot with a pistol, 95% of those have shot
themselves. Now, bears have much more rugged anatomy
than people and are quite a bit more tempermental than
people when something 1/3 their size tries to steal
their dinner. So, if you must carry a pistol to deal
with potential bears, carry the biggest one you can,
and practice with it until you can actually hit what
you're aiming at. Remember, if you fire at Smokey and
miss him, you are now the proud owner of whatever your
bullet lands on. This includes your buddy who's
fishing around the bend.
Forget the pistol. My suggestion is to bring a rifle
and have one member of your party on contstant bear
patrol. Rifles are much better at stopping bears and
much easier to shoot accurately. Bring at least a
scoped 7mm mag, and rotate bear patrol duties. Also,
every member of your party should carry canisters of
high concentration Oleoresin Capsicum pepper spray.
Do an internet search for "OC Bear Spray". There are
those out there who know a hell of alot about bears
that say that this stuff is better than any firearm at
stopping a bear.
Keep in mind that you've also got to alter your
fishing patterns a bit. If you're one of those who
can't stand seeing other people while you're on the
water; get over that now. You're going to have to
stay within sight of all members of your party at all
times so that they can be of help in the event a bear
decides to take a chunk out of your leg...AND so that
you can help them. Of course, going out alone is out
of the question, and it's prudent to be in groups of
at least four.
Okay. That's enough preaching about bears and pistols
for one day. I hope all of this helps. Be careful
and have fun.
Rix Benson
--- [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> I need to know how many native Texans are out
> there. I also need your
> E-Mail addys. I got a pic sent to me that I HAVE to
> share with you . Please,
> Texans only, were the only ones that would
> understand.
> Also, I need to know what would be a good
> pistol to carry to Alaska and
> the back country for protection against bears. Wife
> has becomed terrified of
> them and wont go fishing with me unless I carry a
> gun now. Darn Discovery
> Channel !
>
> Regards,
>
> Del
>
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