12 guage slug= bear stopper?
- Thread starter mike shickele
- Start date
- Status
HobbyShooter
Regular
- Location
- Eastern Québec (Matapédia valley)
Anybody tried to remove the bullet from sabot slug ammo and replace it
with a solid bullet like on the african calibers? Should be good for big bears?
BTW in which provinces are solid bullets legal to hunt with?
Jocelyn.
with a solid bullet like on the african calibers? Should be good for big bears?
BTW in which provinces are solid bullets legal to hunt with?
Jocelyn.
I have found them (12 guage foster style slugs) to be a poor choice for the stopping of an adrenalized bear, other than a brain shot. As impressive as they look, they seem to lack the shocking power of a large, high velocity centerfire rifle cartridge.
I live on an acerage and I had a couple year old black bear in my yard 2 years ago,and he was on my deck so I ran downstairs and grabed the 308 and the 12 guage with slugs (I wasn't sure how far he would be when I got back). I was pretty sure he was the one that had been visiting off and on. The one night I was watching t.v. and I seen this face looking at me through the picture window, I thought to myself who's got a black lab around here? Then the paws came up onto the window frame...
he took off with all the commotion We called the neighbors to tell them a bear was wandering over to thier place they said it was already there on thier deck so I got my rifle but when I found him in the lights of the quad he was leaning against my nieghbors propane tank. I opted not to take the shot.... Anyways back to the story. My dog had him standing on his back paws with his front paws against the tree standing about 5 feet from the hood of my truck. While the bear was watching the dog I went to the back of the truck and shot him with the 12 guage. maybe 25 feet away . I hit him just behind the front shoulders and when I shot he climbed the tree incredibly fast. I shot him again about 20 seconds later behind the head to put him down for good. He took every branch he could reach down with him as he fell about 30 ft to the ground.
On my limited experiance with slugs and bear I would be a bit nervous to shoot a bigger bear with one, unless it was all I had and I had to take the shot.
he took off with all the commotion We called the neighbors to tell them a bear was wandering over to thier place they said it was already there on thier deck so I got my rifle but when I found him in the lights of the quad he was leaning against my nieghbors propane tank. I opted not to take the shot.... Anyways back to the story. My dog had him standing on his back paws with his front paws against the tree standing about 5 feet from the hood of my truck. While the bear was watching the dog I went to the back of the truck and shot him with the 12 guage. maybe 25 feet away . I hit him just behind the front shoulders and when I shot he climbed the tree incredibly fast. I shot him again about 20 seconds later behind the head to put him down for good. He took every branch he could reach down with him as he fell about 30 ft to the ground. On my limited experiance with slugs and bear I would be a bit nervous to shoot a bigger bear with one, unless it was all I had and I had to take the shot.
- Location
- Edmonton, Alberta
I always thought of a 12 gauge slug to be similar to a small cannon.
If it won't always drop a large bear in it's tracks, I'll take my M14S/.308 camping in the bush instead. 4-5 warning shots right in the head should slow it down.
x 2
But, in the spirit of entertainment, I will say that I gave up on 12g, and have gone to a .45/70 instead. It is also my back up moose rifle, so it's one less piece of hardware to pack into camp.
mike shickele
Regular
Well............now that a few have responded, and to spice things up a bit, IMO (personally watching one large griz,and seeing the aftermath of a smaller griz) they shurely do work; both bears where dropped in their tracks. Both bears shot with brenneke-style slugs. Other people will have different experiences I'm sure, but even if you do hit them with a 50BMG, you still have to hit them right.
Mike
Mike
Effective detterent
I don't know how quickly a slug would drop a charging bear. I have carried 12 gauge Brenneke's when canoeing in Grizzly and Polar bear territory.
It's just for show, though. You see, the bears know I have it, and it intimidates them. I suppose they go running when they see that sleek synthetic stock, and smell me having not showered for a week or more.
I've considered rifles, but most are some combination of more expensive, more delicate, heavier/longer, and slower to take a second shot. With a cheap pump gun, one can send a considerable mass of lead downrange really quickly.
I don't know how quickly a slug would drop a charging bear. I have carried 12 gauge Brenneke's when canoeing in Grizzly and Polar bear territory.
It's just for show, though. You see, the bears know I have it, and it intimidates them. I suppose they go running when they see that sleek synthetic stock, and smell me having not showered for a week or more.
I've considered rifles, but most are some combination of more expensive, more delicate, heavier/longer, and slower to take a second shot. With a cheap pump gun, one can send a considerable mass of lead downrange really quickly.
I'm with manitoba on this one. Nothing beats a pump gun. If I'm in position to shoot at a charging bear with my 870, then I can have 2 or 3 or 4 more slugs on their way in very short order. I don't care how angry a bear is, he'll reconsider after getting a few slugs in him.
you get a can or bear spray and wrap it with bacon,the wrap the bacon and the can with wire, well he?she will lick and fondle it for a while then the bite it, and as soon as the can breaks,and all old hell breaks loose.
When we were kids we used to go to the Port Carling dump, and as soon a askunk got close to a bear we'd pop the skunk with our pellet guns , you can get it skunk sprayed the bear , and all you would see is a bear going 5 ft strait up balling,and headin for the bush like a rocket sled, did that every summer for a few years then I found girls, and that was the end of a good life.
Ruger makes a bear protection gun, you would have to look it up but it's basically the same as my model 500 smith but with a 2" barrell,and Ill bet that mother kicks,Cause I did one wheel out of the smith today,and it kicks
When we were kids we used to go to the Port Carling dump, and as soon a askunk got close to a bear we'd pop the skunk with our pellet guns , you can get it skunk sprayed the bear , and all you would see is a bear going 5 ft strait up balling,and headin for the bush like a rocket sled, did that every summer for a few years then I found girls, and that was the end of a good life.
Ruger makes a bear protection gun, you would have to look it up but it's basically the same as my model 500 smith but with a 2" barrell,and Ill bet that mother kicks,Cause I did one wheel out of the smith today,and it kicks
- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
A conventional lead 12 ga slug is a good bear stopper, although it takes a back seat to a powerful rifle. The best examples are the Brenneke and similar flat face designs. If someone suggested that a .72 caliber rifle bullet was not up to the job he would be properly ridiculed, but by comparison the 12 ga slug falls short in 3 important ways. First the lead slugs, particularly most fosters are very soft and easily deform on heavy bone, should you try to break down the bear with a shoulder or hip shot.
Secondly the slug flies straight to its target because it is nose heavy, not because it rotates when fired from a smooth bore. Those rifling vanes have little effect on stability, rather they reduce the surface area should the slug be fired through a tight choke. Precession is the term used when a projectile is forced into a yaw, this happens upon firing when the projectile first leaves the barrel and again at impact when the nose of the projectile becomes slower than its tail. A fast rate of rotation overcomes precession more quickly, thus a fast spinning bullet penetrates deeper than the shotgun slug which has very slow, if any, rotation.
Lastly the shotgun slug is normally light for caliber. In a rifle cartridge choosing a light for caliber bullet results in higher velocity, but shotgun slugs are supersonic for a very short distance from the muzzle. A subsonic projectile disrupts less soft tissue than does a super sonic projectile of equal weight and profile. Light for caliber projectiles penetrate less than heavy for caliber projectiles of similar construction at equal impact velocities.
As to slug performance, I prefer the blunt shape of Brenneke type slugs to the round nose foster styles. Challenger and Federal have the highest velocity of all the slugs I've Chronyed. 3" slugs produce no greater penetration or wound volume than do 23/4" slugs, but they can reduce your magazine capacity by one.
I don't feel the least bit disarmed when I carry a shotgun rather than a powerful rifle. There are times when it is more prudent to carry a firearm whose projectile has less chance of exiting the target. Unless you are responsible for the safety of a group of people, defensive shooting of big game is seldom a long range problem and at short range the slug gun works in an acceptable manner.
Secondly the slug flies straight to its target because it is nose heavy, not because it rotates when fired from a smooth bore. Those rifling vanes have little effect on stability, rather they reduce the surface area should the slug be fired through a tight choke. Precession is the term used when a projectile is forced into a yaw, this happens upon firing when the projectile first leaves the barrel and again at impact when the nose of the projectile becomes slower than its tail. A fast rate of rotation overcomes precession more quickly, thus a fast spinning bullet penetrates deeper than the shotgun slug which has very slow, if any, rotation.
Lastly the shotgun slug is normally light for caliber. In a rifle cartridge choosing a light for caliber bullet results in higher velocity, but shotgun slugs are supersonic for a very short distance from the muzzle. A subsonic projectile disrupts less soft tissue than does a super sonic projectile of equal weight and profile. Light for caliber projectiles penetrate less than heavy for caliber projectiles of similar construction at equal impact velocities.
As to slug performance, I prefer the blunt shape of Brenneke type slugs to the round nose foster styles. Challenger and Federal have the highest velocity of all the slugs I've Chronyed. 3" slugs produce no greater penetration or wound volume than do 23/4" slugs, but they can reduce your magazine capacity by one.
I don't feel the least bit disarmed when I carry a shotgun rather than a powerful rifle. There are times when it is more prudent to carry a firearm whose projectile has less chance of exiting the target. Unless you are responsible for the safety of a group of people, defensive shooting of big game is seldom a long range problem and at short range the slug gun works in an acceptable manner.
canadaman30
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Far from the City
I would not want a grizz charge, no matter what you have, your chances are marginal at best. There was an artical I saw awhile back about a hunter who killed a monsterous size brown bear in Alaska while deer hunting. I can't recall but is seemed to be more than 8 shots were taken to finally kill it with a 7mmrem mag Browning BAR. The bear had a few handgun slugs (38cal.) in it from a hiker it ate days before. The handgun was found not far on a trail. Although a small rifle I think I might have a chance with my Mini 30 with its 30round mag full of metalcase bullits, and a roll of toilet paper and wet wipes.
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