357 mag at close range for black bear?

cam1936 said:
Not only powder, brass is cheaper and lasts longer with the 357. Pistol primers are usually cheaper. Bulk bullets for practice are easy to find and cheap in 357.

If you want to shoot a lever gun A LOT, a 357 is such a good choice.
Click to expand...
Oh yeah, because cheap 30cal bullets don't exist or anything lol
 
So what would you guys say would be a "good bullet" for penetration for a bear?

I'm still learning a bit about bullet selection and all that. I never thought too much about with rounds i've shot game with. just grab a cheap box and kill whatever I shoot. Reloading is making me think twice, but also that i'm overthinking it?
 
Suther said:
With "decent to good" shot placement? I don't like the sound of "decent" shot placement...

357mag will work if you do your part. For bullets I'd want something designed for high weight retention and deep penetration. You didn't specify a bullet, but if it's a 158gr HP designed for handgun velocities it might be a bit too violent on impact to get the penetration I'd be looking for.
Click to expand...
I normally hunt with the 3030 or bigger at close range. Since i usually on foot and whacking stuff at not perfect broadsides (sometimes only get one lung, or anchor with a shoulder and follow up with a headshot or something) My thought process was if my shot was off at all

(I wish they were all perfect shots like from a blind, but reality deals you what it may and bringing home meat is the most important, if I lose a little bit from shot placement so be it, but I won't take a clearly bad shot of course)

then the larger bullet, bigger caliber etc would allow for a slightly larger margin of error.
 
.357 is great in the Spring but not so great in the fall with all that winter fat getting in the way. A bit confused as why anyone considers cost really... How many bear do you expect to shoot? If you are looking the best you can get to ward off a bear consider throwing a small sport air horn in your pocket. Bear have twice the hearing as humans and that sound is piercing and will always send them running. And yes I have used it. It's always in the UTV and the wife carries one on her walks in the woods. Calibre wise. 45-70 Gov stops the stubborn ones in their tracks but, yes, its an expensive choice.
 
LesPT said:
.357 is great in the Spring but not so great in the fall with all that winter fat getting in the way. A bit confused as why anyone considers cost really... How many bear do you expect to shoot? If you are looking the best you can get to ward off a bear consider throwing a small sport air horn in your pocket. Bear have twice the hearing as humans and that sound is piercing and will always send them running. And yes I have used it. It's always in the UTV and the wife carries one on her walks in the woods. Calibre wise. 45-70 Gov stops the stubborn ones in their tracks but, yes, its an expensive choice.
Click to expand...
The cost factor is in reloading. Essentially for my "need to have" guns for hunting are these 5, and all need to be affordable calibers where possible because I do alot of shooting like most folks on here and even though I make a pretty good paycheck and support a family of 5 on it, I need to operate leaner even in hobbies to save money where I can.

1 - around the house plinking gun for squirrels, skunks coons etc and just fun plinking. Currently a henry 22
2- brush gun, always been a 3030 with a 20" or greater barrel, and although it's kind of perfect for nova scotia I'd like a lighter, shorter barrel to get around with. I hunt really light and compact and i've had a 357 before and loved it, regret getting rid of it. currently using a henry model x in 3030 but also have a pre 64 model 94 and a 336 Marlin all in 3030
3- longer range gun for corn fields and such, or hunting fields in NB. Currently a tikka t3x in 243
4- Hybrid gun for forest/field - have an old beater savage 99F with see through mounts so I can bust brush or jump up to scope for longer shots
5- A shotgun for small game. I don't go after ducks or geese yet, no dog or boat etc plus I like chasing game around the woods looking for new trapping spots. I normally use a break barrel winchester 37A (I can't tell you why, but I love these guns!) but have a lot of shotguns from SXP, to canucks, to cooeys etc.
 
TheCarpenter said:
So what would you guys say would be a "good bullet" for penetration for a bear?

I'm still learning a bit about bullet selection and all that. I never thought too much about with rounds i've shot game with. just grab a cheap box and kill whatever I shoot. Reloading is making me think twice, but also that i'm overthinking it?
Click to expand...
Fer me at least, a hardcast boolit in the 170-180 gr range pushed at 1500 fps is very capable of doing some deep diggin' into big fuzzy critters.
Reloading is a great asset to learning the craft of ammo makin' and rather satisfying to folks that have the knack for it. Casting ones own
projectiles is another rewarding experience.
This is a proper design boolit that gets the job done well inside 80yds.
https://accuratemolds.com/bullet_detail.php?bullet=35-175AG

The main thing though is knowing how to hunt the game and proper shot placement. "Reading the room" when out in the field is my first rule
fer hunting.
 
TheCarpenter said:
I normally hunt with the 3030 or bigger at close range. Since i usually on foot and whacking stuff at not perfect broadsides (sometimes only get one lung, or anchor with a shoulder and follow up with a headshot or something) My thought process was if my shot was off at all

(I wish they were all perfect shots like from a blind, but reality deals you what it may and bringing home meat is the most important, if I lose a little bit from shot placement so be it, but I won't take a clearly bad shot of course)

then the larger bullet, bigger caliber etc would allow for a slightly larger margin of error.
Click to expand...

While in general I would say larger bullet/bigger caliber COULD help, that only goes so far. The energy difference between 30-30 and 357mag is going to be more than enough to make up for any benefits the bigger bullet provides - 30-30 energy at 200yds is higher than 357mag at the muzzle.

There are lots of reasons to use a 357mag. It'll kill better than 30-30 wouldn't be on my list of reasons though.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom