Best .45 ACP round for black bear protection

[Probono]

tons of black bear where i live. I’m partial to 1911’s , the only handguns I own. Black bear here doesn’t get too big but what would you all think to be the best round just to keep chambered when out in the woods for black bear? We have cougar too but don’t See em. I lived in Alaska and have seen 45 ACPs piss brown bear off, just want a round where if it comes to it I know I’m shooting the 45Acp round with most stopping power. I’m would never shoot a bear unless my life depended on it and I’m familiar with brown bears charging, so I know how to stand my ground , but in Alaska at least, black bear were more unpredictable then Brown . I don’t know if these black bear here are same way ?
Id lug my 450 Marlin but she’s heavy

 

[YancyW]

If carrying a solid 1911, you can go 45 super. Buffalo bore makes a couple rounds I would look at. Something hard cast for sure.

This is what I would carry in a 1911: https://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l=product_detail&p=397

 

[ChrisG]

Depending on the 1911 setup.i would go with .45 super rounds. It is what I carry when bear hunting in a chest holster. I have a Springfield XD modified to take a steady diet of them.

.45 super can be fired in limited quantities from an unmodified 1911 with a FULLY SUPPORTED CHAMBER. Buffalo bore makes a 250 grain load at 1,000fps. I personally handload a 200 grain cast WFN to around 1,225-1,250fps from my 5.75" barrel. This is the original gun. It now sports a ported EFK firedragon barrel to slow the slide down. I can still shoott .45 acp for practice then load up some supers for hunting.

 

[C.W. Richter]

'Live amongst some of the biggest black bear in the country. 'In the yard regularly. Never an issue (other than the occasional cranky male wanting something from the grill or other food item in my pack-even while sitting in treestands.) You'll never have to draw that .45 on a bear, but if you do, any expanding bullet will do the trick. They are not hard to kill, and certainly not with a head shot at close range. 'More likely you'll be using it on the Chinese Army. I think NATO says FMJ for that? I tell people to think of black bear as big racoons. Sure, they very occasionally kill some defenseless person, but it's quite the rarity. They are NOT brown/grizzly/polar bears that want to eat you! Blackies are largely herbivores.

 

[ChrisG]

Also, I personally only carry my super when hunting in case I wound a black bear and have to go finish it off in the honeysuckle. I worry about charging black bear about as much as I worry about being killed by a perfectly placed badminton shuttlecock.

tons of black bear where i live. I’m partial to 1911’s , the only handguns I own. Black bear here doesn’t get too big but what would you all think to be the best round just to keep chambered when out in the woods for black bear? We have cougar too but don’t See em. I lived in Alaska and have seen 45 ACPs piss brown bear off, just want a round where if it comes to it I know I’m shooting the 45Acp round with most stopping power. I’m would never shoot a bear unless my life depended on it and I’m familiar with brown bears charging, so I know how to stand my ground , but in Alaska at least, black bear were more unpredictable then Brown . I don’t know if these black bear here are same way ?
Id lug my 450 Marlin but she’s heavy

 

[mdwest]

Black bear protection is about as important and equal to the need for whitetail protection..

Anything you can load into a .45acp pistol will work…

I generally just carry the same load that I use for personal defense if/when I take my .45 to the woods..

Speer 230gr gold dots..

But I’d be equally confident with cheap s&b 230gr ball ammo if black bear was some sort of concern..

FWIW I am more concerned with 2 legged a-hole animals in the woods than I am 4 legged a-hole animals in most of North America…

 

[Randy F]

I carried my .45 when I was refurbishing bait prior to season opener mostly because I had sow with 3 cubs hitting it along with several others and really didn't need to surprise her on the trail. That said, at the speed they can move at that range, I'd maybe get it half way out of the holster anyway.

Make some noise and they're gone. The likelihood of a black bear getting aggressive is awfully slim especially if you're making any noise whatsoever.

Case in point, I had a very big boar come into the bait the on third day of the season. I was in a stand 25 yards away, tiny breeze in my face. He heard the safety click off on my gun and backed away slowly.

He spend the next three hours circling me in the brush and finally showed himself when he was only 8 yards directly behind me. Mistake for him.

The point is that they're so skittish about any foreign sound, or no sound for that matter (absence of bird and squirrel sounds) that they just avoid the area completely. Plenty of black bears where I live and I never worry about them or carry for that purpose.

 

[ChrisG]

I carried my .45 when I was refurbishing bait prior to season opener mostly because I had sow with 3 cubs hitting it along with several others and really didn't need to surprise her on the trail. That said, at the speed they can move at that range, I'd maybe get it half way out of the holster anyway.

Make some noise and they're gone. The likelihood of a black bear getting aggressive is awfully slim especially if you're making any noise whatsoever.

Case in point, I had a very big boar come into the bait the on third day of the season. I was in a stand 25 yards away, tiny breeze in my face. He heard the safety click off on my gun and backed away slowly.

He spend the next three hours circling me in the brush and finally showed himself when he was only 8 yards directly behind me. Mistake for him.

The point is that they're so skittish about any foreign sound, or no sound for that matter (absence of bird and squirrel sounds) that they just avoid the area completely. Plenty of black bears where I live and I never worry about them or carry for that purpose.

I can't agree more. I used to carry when I was going to relure my bear hunting spot (not allowed to bait in NYS but we can use lures and predator calls and they work very well)... but realized that the huge cacophony I was making on my way to the bear stand made sure bears were long gone by the time I got there. Even if they were to hang around, bears, like most wild animals have a personal space that they dont like invaded and triggers their fight or flight mode. With a black bear, you will likely never sniff that bubble even if you tried to sneak up on one. Stay away from them and they will saunter off. If you see a cub without a mama, just back away slowly and youll be fine. In reality, that situation doesnt occur with anything like the frequency online armchair gunwriters would have you believe.

Especially for people wanting legitimate wildlife expertise, then steer clear of the myraid of "handgun self defense" writers who don't hunt and rarely step foot out of their urban Minneapolis neighborhood except to check the box of "having been outdoors"... once a year. These guys are usually about 22 and have read and memorized every wildlife attack story for the last 20 years while sipping their soy latte. Then write authoritatively about being prepared, that is, every hiking/camping trip begins with dressing up like a Delta operator... but with a plaid shirt on.

 

[YancyW]

Black bear protection is about as important and equal to the need for whitetail protection..

Anything you can load into a .45acp pistol will work…

I generally just carry the same load that I use for personal defense if/when I take my .45 to the woods..

Speer 230gr gold dots..

But I’d be equally confident with cheap s&b 230gr ball ammo if black bear was some sort of concern..

FWIW I am more concerned with 2 legged a-hole animals in the woods than I am 4 legged a-hole animals in most of North America…

That is me too, the two legged predators are far more dangerous.

 

[colorado]

I've been shooting 45 Super since the Springfield V16 in 45 Super first came out (I bought one). It's a great round and I do use the Buffalo Bore 255g hardcast in 45 Super at 1100 fps (out of my 6" barrel) for a woods gun. That being said if I had a normal 1911 I wouldn't shoot 45 Super out of it. I would shoot these and with a good shot no black bear will know the difference.

45 ACP +P OUTDOORSMAN Pistol & Handgun Ammunition

45 ACP +P OUTDOORSMAN Field Proven pistol and handgun ammo. Maximum firepower bullets. Best ammunition for pistols and handguns for sale. Buffalo Bore. Strictly big bore. Strictly Business.

www.buffalobore.com

Here's my old V16 in 45 Super with the ammo I shoot, but it was made for it. It kicks less with the Buffalo Bore 255g hardcast at 1100 fps then my Springfield Pro with 230g regular hardball.

 

[ChrisG]

I've been shooting 45 Super since the Springfield V16 in 45 Super first came out (I bought one). It's a great round and I do use the Buffalo Bore 255g hardcast in 45 Super at 1100 fps (out of my 6" barrel) for a woods gun. That being said if I had a normal 1911 I wouldn't shoot 45 Super out of it. I would shoot these and with a good shot no black bear will know the difference.

45 ACP +P OUTDOORSMAN Pistol & Handgun Ammunition

45 ACP +P OUTDOORSMAN Field Proven pistol and handgun ammo. Maximum firepower bullets. Best ammunition for pistols and handguns for sale. Buffalo Bore. Strictly big bore. Strictly Business.

www.buffalobore.com

Here's my old V16 in 45 Super with the ammo I shoot, but it was made for it. It kicks less with the Buffalo Bore 255g hardcast at 1100 fps then my Springfield Pro with 230g regular hardball.

View attachment 410827View attachment 410826View attachment 410825

Everytime you post a picture of your V16, I find myself on gunbroker looking for one. I do like my XD .45 super for the fact that I don't really worry about scuffing it up... but that is a sweet 1911.

 

[Wyatt Smith]

Everytime you post a picture of your V16, I find myself on gunbroker looking for one. I do like my XD .45 super for the fact that I don't really worry about scuffing it up... but that is a sweet 1911.

I know what you mean. I watched one sell at gun auction two years ago for $800. That was stupid.

 

[colorado]

If carrying a solid 1911, you can go 45 super. Buffalo bore makes a couple rounds I would look at. Something hard cast for sure.

This is what I would carry in a 1911: https://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l=product_detail&p=397

Everytime you post a picture of your V16, I find myself on gunbroker looking for one. I do like my XD .45 super for the fact that I don't really worry about scuffing it up... but that is a sweet 1911.

Thanks I need to do more hunting and less posting

 

[Gatorhunter1313]

I carry a 250gr hard cast in my 45 any time I’m wandering the woods in Georgia. My reloads aren’t as fast as Buffalo bore but they will still hit really hard

 

[CoElkHunter]

I've been shooting 45 Super since the Springfield V16 in 45 Super first came out (I bought one). It's a great round and I do use the Buffalo Bore 255g hardcast in 45 Super at 1100 fps (out of my 6" barrel) for a woods gun. That being said if I had a normal 1911 I wouldn't shoot 45 Super out of it. I would shoot these and with a good shot no black bear will know the difference.

45 ACP +P OUTDOORSMAN Pistol & Handgun Ammunition

45 ACP +P OUTDOORSMAN Field Proven pistol and handgun ammo. Maximum firepower bullets. Best ammunition for pistols and handguns for sale. Buffalo Bore. Strictly big bore. Strictly Business.

www.buffalobore.com

Here's my old V16 in 45 Super with the ammo I shoot, but it was made for it. It kicks less with the Buffalo Bore 255g hardcast at 1100 fps then my Springfield Pro with 230g regular hardball.

View attachment 410827View attachment 410826View attachment 410825

+1 for Buffalo Bore's 255gr. hardcast.

 

[flatwater bill]

Members of this site helped me make this same decision a couple of years ago. I chose a Kimber pistol and shot various recommended ammo. I had a difficult time handling the 255 grain BB, but then, I am not a real handgunner. The Underwood 200 grain Xtreme Penetrator recoiled a bit less, and is what I chose. It has stopped all of the bear charges I have encountered since my purchase..........FWB

 

[Gatorhunter1313]

Members of this site helped me make this same decision a couple of years ago. I chose a Kimber pistol and shot various recommended ammo. I had a difficult time handling the 255 grain BB, but then, I am not a real handgunner. The Underwood 200 grain Xtreme Penetrator recoiled a bit less, and is what I chose. It has stopped all of the bear charges I have encountered since my purchase..........FWB

I love the Underwood 200gr as well. Once I found a 250gr mold I started using that and it’s perfect in my xd45. My xds loves the Underwood 200 though

 

[colorado]

If you like 1911s and you find a V16 in 45 Super (they all are whether they say 45 cal or 45 Super) at a good price buy it!. My V16 kicks less with the Buffalo Bore 45 Super load mentioned above than my full size all steel Springfield Pro does with normal (not +P) 45 hardball.

 

[ducmarc]

I carry black talons if I carry my 1911 I think they are called something else now if u don't reload.up on the farm if on surprise predator patrol it's a carry handle ultra lite ar 15. And in my pocket 24 7 is a high standard 101 derringer in 22mag. It's fast and accurate makes loud noise too.i do take the grips off though.

 

[Tgood1]

I've lived in the heart of Appalachian bear country for 20 years , bear on porch, in yard, in back of truck messing with empty beer bottles etc, . Only potential danger is when I'm filling feeders but I carry a Smith n Wesson 686 with hollow point .357 mag, have never shot in self defense but shot to wake up a bear sleeping under feeder, rather entertaining. I would recommend just making a lot of noise In bear country, they really don't want to meet you