77gr .223 for Bear?

[Midnight Rider]

223 was never intended as a bear hunting round. There is a chance that with a cal. that small , you may end up wounding the animal ; and then you have a wounded bear running around . An ethical hunter would never use a 223 for hunting bear ; and I have never seen or heard of anyone using a 223 round for bear hunting unless they were poaching , and did not care about a clean kill .

 

[TheCoachZed]

223 was never intended as a bear hunting round. There is a chance that with a cal. that small , you may end up wounding the animal ; and then you have a wounded bear running around . An ethical hunter would never use a 223 for hunting bear ; and I have never seen or heard of anyone using a 223 round for bear hunting unless they were poaching , and did not care about a clean kill .

 

[saskcop]

I had to shoot a nuisance bear with a 69 grain 5.56 and hit the bear straight on at about 75-80 paces or so. DRT. He bounced he hit the ground so hard. Bullet penetrated almost right to his rump and left a huge wound channel. I would do it again if I had to, but like the old adage says, "there is no replacement for displacement".

 

[hoytcanon]

Right. You’d rather be shot with a TSX than a bow?

I am not the one being shot... but I have shot a couple hundred big game animals with archery gear and the only people who doubt the lethality of a razor sharp broadhead tipped arrow properly placed in the lungs are those who have never seen it done... which I suspect is you. Just because you can't wrap your head around it, does not mean that it isn't so.

 

[Clay00019]

I have read that Inuit have taken Polar Bear using a 22 magnum with heart shots, takes about 15 minutes for them to drop, no hide damage...pretty big balls!

 

[rommelrommel]

I am not the one being shot... but I have shot a couple hundred big game animals with archery gear and the only people who doubt the lethality of a razor sharp broadhead tipped arrow properly placed in the lungs are those who have never seen it done... which I suspect is you. Just because you can't wrap your head around it, does not mean that it isn't so.

You say this like a properly placed premium 22 caliber bullet isn't lethal.

 

[flashman2]

You say this like a properly placed premium 22 caliber bullet isn't lethal.

"Is lethal" is a long ways from "Is reliably and quickly lethal, allowing for unexpected variables like imperfect shot placement and unexpected bullet performance with a comfortable margin of error."

 

[hoytcanon]

You say this like a properly placed premium 22 caliber bullet isn't lethal.

Have you shot anything through the lungs with archery gear?

My point is that a legal bow launching a broadhead tipped arrow within its effective range is more akin to a .338 WM than it is a .223... although that is taking some licence, as the physics at work is entirely different... but the general principle is true.

 

[flashman2]

It’s a pretty new phenomenon to ask that question because you want to bust the cherry on your fancy new NR poodle shooter.

Only because all the natives that use them up north for everything don't get on here much, and don't need to ask.

 

[medvedqc]

You say this like a properly placed premium 22 caliber bullet isn't lethal.

you cant compare an heavy blade to a little tiny bullet that may not even go after meeting the first part of a muscle leaving apart the fat ....

 

[Runningfool]

Only because all the natives that use them up north for everything don't get on here much, and don't need to ask.

Indigenous peoples use a lot of non-restricted ar-style rifles to hunt? News to me.

 

[Clay00019]

Indigenous peoples use a lot of non-restricted ar-style rifles to hunt? News to me.

Mini 14/30 very popular, work well in extreme cold conditions.

 

[Runningfool]

Mini 14/30 very popular, work well in extreme cold conditions.

True enough. Though I always expected most used old lee enfields/30 cal.

 

[flashman2]

True enough. Though I always expected most used old lee enfields/30 cal.

Probably - surely - true. But using a .223 way up north for hunting isn't a new phenomenon, that was all I was getting at. "All' is a stylistic exaggeration.

 

[medvedqc]

Mini 14/30 very popular, work well in extreme cold conditions.

sks too...

 

[0357]

For what it's worth i have seen video of Inuit killing a large polar bear with one round of 223.
Very close range with dogs distracting the beast.
Also read accounts of native people back in the day considering 22lr as overkill for deer hunting as they felt 22shorts were more then adiquit.