338 Federal for Grizzly?
- Thread starter Weatherby2
- Start date
Someone killed a grizz with a .22 .... yah, right. A .338 federal would do the job. A bonded 200 grainer would more than likely be fine, but grizz hunting is just an excuse to buy a bigger gun. I guess I ask myself, if a grizz was almost on top of me, how much gun would I want at that point? I don't think a person should plan for the perfect shot, but for the desperate one.
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Claton mack who is one of the best known grizzly guides/ hunters in the bc talks about it in his book "grizzlies and white guys"
But you are correct that Bella twin did shoot a world record grizzly with a Stevens single shot 22.
''Bella Twin, an Indian girl, and her friend Dave Auger were hunting grouse near Lesser Slave Lake in northern Alberta. The only gun they had was Bella’s single-shot bolt-action .22 Rimfire rifle. They were walking a cutline that had been made for oil exploration when they saw a large grizzly following the same survey line toward them. If they ran, the bear would probably notice them and might chase, so they quietly sat down on a brush pile and hoped that the bear would pass by without trouble. But the bear came much too close, and when the big boar was only a few yards away, Bella Twin shot him in the side of the head with a .22 Long cartridge. The bear dropped, kicked and then lay still. Taking no chances, Bella went up close and fired all of the cartridges she had, seven or eight .22 Longs, into the bear’s head. That bear, killed in 1953, was the world-record grizzly for several years and is still high in the records today.''
my point is that a grizzly can be taken with a 22lr. and there many cases it has been done.
well if you would hunt them with a bow and arrow there is no reason a 338 fed would not do the job.I would us a 270 out to 200 yards again a big bear still only has hide fat and ribs to get threw before you get to the goodys inside ,it is not armor plating ,so if you have a bullet that will penetrate 24 inches and still hold together you will be fine ,D
If you have a 375 ruger I would use that, rather pack a heavier rifle with more power than a lighter one, trust me you want to do everything you can to drop the bear with one shot. If you wound him and he runs off into cover or charges you it's not a pleasant situation. Yes the bears arent armor plated but they are very thick boned. My rifle with a 250gr partition is putting out around 5000lbs of energy at the muzzle, at 153 yards the bullet entered his arm pit and took out everything including the opposite shoulder and stopped in his hide on the far side. I saw the bottom of all 4 paws on the impact and figured he was done, he got up started roaring and swinging his paws around looking for anything, the only thing between me and him was one dead tree that I was laying under. He ran 30 yards towards some thick willows and fell over. These are very powerful animals and not to be under estimated.
This is the sensible approach.........There is a big difference between heading out after grizzly and encountering one while sheep hunting and taking it unawares with your favorite sheep rifle. I have taken 6 grizzlies in my life and have turned down many more......the last was with my 9.3X300 WM and was at under 30 mtrs with the bear being fully aware of my presence, I would not have wanted a smaller or less powerful cartridge at that point. Things can go astray when you least expect them to and it is always better to have a little too much gun than a little too light.
Grizzlies are very strange animals, one will succumb to 120 gn 25-06 in seconds and the next will soak up 1/2 dozen well placed .375 bullets before expiring. One thing you can count on is that older bears don't give up near as quickly as younger bears and will take an astronomical beating before cashing in their chips. There is also no comparison between a grizzly shot unawares from a distance, to one shot up close that knows you are there, this one will almost certainly put up a fight if not hammered well enough or hard enough. The distant bear will run as he/she has no idea WTF is happening, but the up close one has already decided against flight or they wouldn't be standing there at 30 mtrs, knowing what and where you are.
I have never used a 338 Fed but it would certainly not be my CHOICE for hunting grizzly, my choice is unequivocally my 340 Wby or larger now a days. I have taken 2 smallish ones with a 7mm RM with 160 Parts, 1 with a 300 WM and 180 Part, 1 with my 300 Wby and 200 gn Part, 1 with my 375 and 270 A-frame IIRC and the last with my 9.3X300 WM and a 270 gn Matrix..........This is in chronological order so as you can see my choices have gradually gotten bigger as I shoot more bears and observe more bears. There is a good reason for this..........
Bigfoot 870
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Nova Scotia
W2, .375 all the way!!
He said he would post the pics last year, but never did. Probably it was a little tiny grizzly, he felt it was embarrassing to post it. Unless he shows us the photos, I will stand by my comment: a tiny grizzly.
actually yeah, partitions would be better suited then accubonds, good suggestion.
It was Bella Twin out of Alberta that shot the largest griz taken in the province, and yes with a .22, it came after her apparently when she was out looking for a grouse for dinner:
https://www.google.ca/search?q=bell...57.3911j0j1&sourceid=chrome&es_sm=93&ie=UTF-8
Can't kill a bear with 22lr.
She used the mythical 22long, which kills by it's sheer awesomeness. Sheesh.
I remember last year a guy posted about the black bear he shot. It was at close range with a 458Lott, and the bear ran like 70 yards before collapsing, with a shattered front leg no less i think.
Point being bigger is always better when it comes to something that can eat you... until it's too big to shoot accurately - but you already own a 375 so i doubt that's an issue.
She used the mythical 22long, which kills by it's sheer awesomeness. Sheesh.
I remember last year a guy posted about the black bear he shot. It was at close range with a 458Lott, and the bear ran like 70 yards before collapsing, with a shattered front leg no less i think.
Point being bigger is always better when it comes to something that can eat you... until it's too big to shoot accurately - but you already own a 375 so i doubt that's an issue.
Then there's that lady who killed a few trophy grizz's back in the 40's/50's with the 22savage ......east of quesnel I think she was from if I remember from the other thread.
Here is a cut n paste, posted by someone else in the other thread:
In the 30's & 40's, a Mrs. Betty Wendle of Barkerville was well known for her forte of hunting Grizzly and her choice for the task was a 99 Savage, in .22 Savage High Power. Visiting their home in the mid 50's, she had four trophy Grizzly mounts hanging in the stairwell to the upstairs in their house.
Here is a cut n paste, posted by someone else in the other thread:
In the 30's & 40's, a Mrs. Betty Wendle of Barkerville was well known for her forte of hunting Grizzly and her choice for the task was a 99 Savage, in .22 Savage High Power. Visiting their home in the mid 50's, she had four trophy Grizzly mounts hanging in the stairwell to the upstairs in their house.
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lol ... when a guy can go on grizzly or polar bear with a bow and he s telling about the caliber i may have a little ear to listen tiny or not lol .... 6 grizzlys in those days starting to count especially all taken in Canada ...
Bella Bella is a place on the coast of BC
do they have nice huge bears there? like bella coola?
exactly...her name was Bella Twin,....happened in about 1953 near Slave Lake Alberta.
The hide and a pic of her holding a Marlin single shot .22 used to hang in the old Reynold's Museum in Wetaskiwin.
Her and her cousin or brother were out looking for grouse when they spotted the bear coming toward them. Story goes they hid behind a brush pile and she shot it in the side of the head as it walked past.
..and it was a 22 short , not the powerful 22LR...
Tabacco Brook
Regular
- Location
- Nova Scotia
Every year around this time - the grizz / calibre debate begins on most of the forums - every year when I see the threads pop up I think of this poster....
Nice model 8 35rem ,.....that picture with the cigar kinda takes ya back to the Bonnie and Clyde days, lol.
