What is your favorite black bear rifle for hunting over bait?

ixNuA7L.jpg[img]


45-70 make them stop pretty quick
 
Bears over bait (northern Alberta) are usually shot at around 50 yards, so no need for super long range, but a big hole is always good for tracking if needed. Bears dont bleed worth a damn due to the thick hair and underlying fat, so a large exit hole helps.
Two fun calibers and guns that I used for the last four bears taken:
-577/500 no.2. An old SXS hammergun using cast bullets and black powder. The first bear was taken at 60 yards while walking into a bait site. Good pass through of the bullet, and it went a meager 40 yards into the bush. The adrenaline is always hammering after the shot, but luckily no follow-up shot or tracking was needed as the death moan led me right to his position.
Bear no.2 with this old cannon was also taken while walking into the bait site. As I walked in to 30 yards of the site, I saw what I originally took as a small bear eating at the site. Turns out he was laying in a depression and he jumped up as he saw me. BIG bear! He wandered to the edge of the heavy willows on the off side of the bait and turned back to look at me over his shoulder. This was my one and only Texas heart shot I have ever taken, and consequently the only animal I have ever shot with this gun where the bullet did not make a pass through. Hind-site has me regretting not autopsying the bear to see where the bullet ended up.
- 450 3-1/4" I stumbled across this old SXS hammergun and had to have it. Having had so much fun and satisfaction in resurrecting the previous SXS, I knew this gun would be a great choice for bear. With this old sweetheart, I was able to make up a load with modern .458 jacketed bullets and a low pressure smokeless powder.
Bear no.1 with this beauty was from a ground blind, placed fifty yards from a bait site at the edge of a clearing. My focus was steady at that bait during an evening sit, and I was taken totally off guard when I saw this huge bear wandering through high grass, just five yards from my ground blind! The shot was placed into the white V of the chest, just below the chin, and the bear dropped in it's tracks.
Bear no.2 was taken the next day (we are allowed supplemental tags in many areas) from the same blind. I did a slow sneak into the stand and got comfortable in the blind. I spent a fair bit of time getting comfortable for a long sit and adjusted my tripod to be ready for anything coming into the bait. Somewhere between sipping at my coffee and adjusting the tripod, a large black boar magically appeared over the bait. I glanced up and there he was standing perfect broadside at fifty yards. A clean pass through with the 350 grain jacketed bullet and he ran off like a scalded cat! This time no death moans and little to no blood. I took my time tracking, not knowing if he was actually dead or laid up somewhere close. I almost stepped on him while crossing a dead fall, 70 yards into the bush.
 
Something to keep in mind when deciding if you have a shooter bear or not especially if shooting from an enclosed ground blind (I forgot this year) Small ears = big bear. Big ears = small bear. Sometimes when shooting from and enclosed blind, and the in heat of the moment, small bears can look pretty big when standing there.
 
We call it “ground shrinkage”’up here, and I have experienced it several times. Walk up and discover you just shot a dink. Well, not a dink, but sure not what I thought it was

Bears can look much bigger than they really are, especially in tall grass or somewhat dense willows. It’s amazing how small they are when they walk out of it.

Ted
 
browning525 said:
Bears over bait (northern Alberta) are usually shot at around 50 yards, so no need for super long range, but a big hole is always good for tracking if needed. Bears dont bleed worth a damn due to the thick hair and underlying fat, so a large exit hole helps.
Two fun calibers and guns that I used for the last four bears taken:
-577/500 no.2. An old SXS hammergun using cast bullets and black powder. The first bear was taken at 60 yards while walking into a bait site. Good pass through of the bullet, and it went a meager 40 yards into the bush. The adrenaline is always hammering after the shot, but luckily no follow-up shot or tracking was needed as the death moan led me right to his position.
Bear no.2 with this old cannon was also taken while walking into the bait site. As I walked in to 30 yards of the site, I saw what I originally took as a small bear eating at the site. Turns out he was laying in a depression and he jumped up as he saw me. BIG bear! He wandered to the edge of the heavy willows on the off side of the bait and turned back to look at me over his shoulder. This was my one and only Texas heart shot I have ever taken, and consequently the only animal I have ever shot with this gun where the bullet did not make a pass through. Hind-site has me regretting not autopsying the bear to see where the bullet ended up.
- 450 3-1/4" I stumbled across this old SXS hammergun and had to have it. Having had so much fun and satisfaction in resurrecting the previous SXS, I knew this gun would be a great choice for bear. With this old sweetheart, I was able to make up a load with modern .458 jacketed bullets and a low pressure smokeless powder.
Bear no.1 with this beauty was from a ground blind, placed fifty yards from a bait site at the edge of a clearing. My focus was steady at that bait during an evening sit, and I was taken totally off guard when I saw this huge bear wandering through high grass, just five yards from my ground blind! The shot was placed into the white V of the chest, just below the chin, and the bear dropped in it's tracks.
Bear no.2 was taken the next day (we are allowed supplemental tags in many areas) from the same blind. I did a slow sneak into the stand and got comfortable in the blind. I spent a fair bit of time getting comfortable for a long sit and adjusted my tripod to be ready for anything coming into the bait. Somewhere between sipping at my coffee and adjusting the tripod, a large black boar magically appeared over the bait. I glanced up and there he was standing perfect broadside at fifty yards. A clean pass through with the 350 grain jacketed bullet and he ran off like a scalded cat! This time no death moans and little to no blood. I took my time tracking, not knowing if he was actually dead or laid up somewhere close. I almost stepped on him while crossing a dead fall, 70 yards into the bush.
Click to expand...

I lost interest in shooting bears over bait many years ago...my first spot and stalk bear cured me of the desire to bait...but baiting sure was a wonderful way to get to use specialty rifles that might not be versatile enough for general all-around hunting.


Why not? said:
We call it “ground shrinkage”’up here, and I have experienced several times.

Bears can look much bigger than they really are, especially in tall grass or somewhat dense willows. It’s amazing how small they are when they walk out of it.

Ted
Click to expand...

My very first bear was at eye level with the bag of bait that I had hung on the side of a tree trunk. I thought I was so clever, putting it at a known height so that I could use that to gauge the size of any bear at the bait.

A single shot from my .45-70 dropped the bear on the spot. And I do mean "dropped"...he died so fast that he just froze...and then a moment later his muscles relaxed and he fell off the trunk he had been clinging to and hit the ground a couple feet below. :redface:

I dragged him out of the bush to a logging road, drove up to him with my Jeep and just picked him up and placed him in the back; I was excited but also pretty embarrassed. One of the much-more-experienced guys with whom I shared camp said later "Well, look at the bright side: you'll never shoot a smaller bear than this one!" :)
 
I never hunted bears over a bait, but have killed more than a few in past years with a .58 Fraser River Hawken .
If I was hunting in the spring for close range stalking I used 100 grains of FFG and two round balls, 280 grains each. POI at 25 yards was spot on and and 1" apart .
Killed three with it and each one didn't take one step after the shot.
Cat
 
Last edited:
Bella-Twin-is-shown-with-the-hide-from-the-world-record-grizzly-bear.jpg
Nothing shows how easy a bear can be to kill, like this former world record, taken with a Cooey Ace, and the old anemic 22 Long cartridge.
Most of my bears have all fallen to 30-30, or 45-70. But I have seen them taken cleanly with buckshot. (decidedly not a great choice) Pellets and deep fat could mean trouble.
Bears have teeth and claws, I'd prefer nothing less than the 30-30 myself. But I have done it with the 44-40.

(edit) I forgot, I did kill one while moose hunting with the 338WM.
 

Attachments

  • Bella-Twin-is-shown-with-the-hide-from-the-world-record-grizzly-bear.jpg
    Bella-Twin-is-shown-with-the-hide-from-the-world-record-grizzly-bear.jpg
    19.5 KB · Views: 61
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom