I have a friend who owns a fair amount of woodland. In these areas there has been an explosions in the population of coyotes and black bear. He is no hunter and really has no interest in hunting. What he wants is a rifle to carry for protection when he's out checking lines and such. I'm thinking 22mag, .223 or 22-250. I'm leaning toward the .223 It seems it would be easy to carry and has enough punch to stop a Black Bear if it gets to close. What would you suggest and why?
Light rifle, which cal?
- Thread starter Cagunman
- Start date
If something gets close and you need to stop it, you need something more then a varmint gun, and I would select a light, short, levergun, in any of the levergun cals. from 30/30 up to 45/70 including the .44 and .45 Colt's. They are light, portable and work well without a scope, and are the kind of guns trappers have relied on for years.
Sadly here in New brunswick its .23 caliber or less and no lead shot larger then 2, unless theres an open season for big game. So heres a little advice make lots of noise if your afraid Yogi and Booboo are gunna try and take yer picanic basket. As far as coyotes go, shotgun loaded with steel atleast BBB will fix any coyote once he's close enough for it to be self defence.
Agreed. I'm with ben hunchak on this one. I have a short little Mossberg 472 Lever action in .30-30 and for the purposes you give, I wouldn't dare trade it for anything lesser than .30cal. The Marlin 336 in .35 Remington may be just the ticket if he's more worried about the bear problem rather than the coyote one.
One of the Remington pump actions in .308 or .30-06 may be just about right as well. It's been said before, and I'll say it again, a larger caliber is not necessarily a substitute for proper shot placement.
One of the Remington pump actions in .308 or .30-06 may be just about right as well. It's been said before, and I'll say it again, a larger caliber is not necessarily a substitute for proper shot placement.
sir_springer
Regular
- Location
- East Kootenays
In your country, a Marlin 30-30 would be perfect. Handle anything he might run into a close range, it's light, fast, and easy to shoot. Few rifles ever made shoulder as quickly and properly as a Marlin lever!
Or, if wants to slum it a tad, a Win. 94 or Mossberg 472 will work okay, too.
Heh!
Or, if wants to slum it a tad, a Win. 94 or Mossberg 472 will work okay, too.
Heh!
i know nothing about NB's laws, but can it really be illegal to carry any non-restricted gun on land you OWN?
if i had to live with these rules my choice would be a remington 7615 with a LAR 10 mag loaded with 60 grain nosler partitions.
if i had to live with these rules my choice would be a remington 7615 with a LAR 10 mag loaded with 60 grain nosler partitions.
- Location
- Dah Soo,ON
Are you not allowed to shoot/carry any non-restricted firearm you want anywhere you want (we're talking crown bush land)? If I wanted to carry my M14 on a July afternoon sunday walk so I could stop at an area with a safe backstop to plink a couple round's I don't beleive anyone has the right to stop you. Am I wrong or?
You are only allowed 22 cal or smaller year round. If you belong to a range you can shoot your rifle bigger than .22 there. The only time your allowed 22 and over is for big game hunting seasons... moose, deer, bear ect...
That being said I would recommend either a .223 or 22-250 in Tikka T3 lite stainless
{Ghey} I would say mini-14
What sort of idiot legislators put up rules like that? I have never heard of such an asinine law. Darn glad I live in BC when I hear crap like that. I feel sorry for you guy having to put up with such stupidity. Regards, Eagleye.
If it is for defense and a .22 cal center fire, Make sure you use monolithic bullets like Barnes TSX, GS Custom HV. Hopefully, Hornady will get some GMX bullets in .22 cal and that could be another option.
Should be semi-auto, 10 rnd mags would be handy so I would get a Bennelli MR1 (Expensive) or a XCR (REALLY Expensive) if you have to buy NOW or wait a couple o' months and see what the CSA VZ58 Sporters (Slightly more $ than a mini14) in .223 are like with the mag well kit.
Just my 2 cents
Aim for the head.
Should be semi-auto, 10 rnd mags would be handy so I would get a Bennelli MR1 (Expensive) or a XCR (REALLY Expensive) if you have to buy NOW or wait a couple o' months and see what the CSA VZ58 Sporters (Slightly more $ than a mini14) in .223 are like with the mag well kit.
Just my 2 cents
Aim for the head.
I am currently shooting both a Savage 250-3000 and my sweetie 223 bolt CZ. I have a lot of faith in the 223 and it is potent yote medecine. Not so for bear maybe but the 12ga whatever it packs is nasty close up regardless of size. AS well I reload so my 223 is fairly snappy and it dont matter much what you throw at a yote its gonna hurt big time. Predators usually lose interest when they are bleeding profusely.
If you have to stop a bear, I would start at .270 & work my way up the food chain. Mini-14 or any other .223 would be adequate if they allowed normal capacity (30 rnd) mags. I wouldn't want to depend on 5 X .223. I say maybe a 12 gauge.
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- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
Because your pal is not actively hunting, and simply wishes to carry a rifle on his own property, where presumably it is legal to discharge a firearm, the bore size shouldn't make any difference. Should he have to shoot, he is shooting to protect himself which trumps any and all other concerns. A lever action carbine of large caliber would do nicely.
A 22.250 does take a bear down. A new shooter definitely shoots better with a no-kick gun. Scopes last longer - no eye bruising - no squint and jerk - the thought is all of the target. A .223 or 22.250 single shot would be my first choice just because it is more likely to be there because it is light and simple.
Under these circumstances, in the eyes of a NB CO, you are poaching. Basically, you are only allowed to carry or discharge a firearm bigger than .23 during a big game season. All other times are not legal.
I'm not saying its reasonable, just that its their law.
