what bullets can kill a grizzily bear. Serious question.?

.357 magnum when it was first brought to market late 30s was used to take dangerous game- is a bear noted in S&W history. The .223 and 7.62x39 rounds have also been used on a couple bears in Alaska by military and ranger on dangerous /pest bears- the gun was a service weapon available at time of attack and wouldn't have been first choice but it could put 5-10 rounds in critter quickly and worked. .44 mag is game guide standard side arm for guides in bear country, they are concerned with bear attacks in camps when rifle is not in reach while doing camp chores, .44 known to work good enough past 30 years, couple trophy sized bears known taken with the .44. 45 from 1911- Military has some info on .45 used on critters by camp gaurds and transport troopers during manuveurs- 50s had New York State bear- not grizzly- taken , national parks service and USDA has the park ranger control /pest kill incidents noting 1911 service pistol used as well as .357, .41, .44 mags as well as .45 long colts and a couple 9mm as well as 7.62x25 users. Bear, mountain lion, moose, elk- whatever they needed to kill because it was dangerous to public and the ranger had pistol at time of emergency. .308 and 30-06 have been used on bears, grizzly included . 7mm and 8mm- the old mauser x57 cartridges with heavy bullets will work about like .308. the 7 and 8 mm mags with punch a little harder. For serious hunting of grizzly in close area the .375 H&H is a good basic, the other rounds have been used over years but some people have been hurt by the less than emmidiate kills.

Well,

any bullet would kill one, placed correctly.

I don't know why every one hates the .223

It could easily kill a bear if you shoot it in the head.

Yeah, wrap the grenade in bacon grease and throw it at him. That'll kill it!

Seriously, at the turn of the Twentieth Century a Grizzly was terrorizing the Wyoming Territory. The Territorial Government posted a $10,000 in gold reward on this bear. Many hunters went after it . They never came back. Years later a rusted out rifle or belt buckel would be found. Finally a hunter trained a dozen dogs to hunt bear and prepared a custom .30-40 Krag rifle to kill this bear. His dogs found the bear and he started shooting at it as the bear methodically killed his dogs one by one. The bear didn't even pay attention to the slugs slamming into him until the hunter started loading his second magazine. Then the bear stopped and looked at the hunter with a 'wait until I'm through with your dogs, then you're next' stare. When the last dog was dead the bear started casually strolling toward the hunter. He didn't have time to reload his magazine so he dropped one in the chamber and took careful aim between the bear's ears. The bear dropped dead resting his huge right paw on the hunter's boot as it died. Here is the amazing thing:

More than a 100 rifle bullets were found in the bear's body, all diverse calibers. Some high velocity rounds had shredded vertabras but the wounds had healed. One of the bear's eyes was gone as a bullet entered the eye and exited taking out the opposite jaw hinge. Its jaw was just hinged on one side. This too had healed. The real surprise was when they looked at the brain. Five revolver bullets, again diverse calibers were lodged in the bear's brain. These had been fired up from the bottom of the bear's head. I'll let you guess what the fate was of those firing these handgun rounds.

So, what rifle can kill a Grizzly? Of what you've listed I think only the .30-06 &/or the .308 Winchester with proper hunting ammo would be a marginal, viable option. Forget all the rest except for the .500 S&W as backup & last resort. If I would just happen to be in Grizzly country I would like to have at least a .458 Winchester Magnum and a .454 Casull handy. This just in case a freaky Grizzly like this one happened to find me and decided I looked like a meal to him.

H

.357 magnum You'd better save the last shot for yourself.

seven shots of .45 from a 1911 Again, better save the last shot for yourself cause you gonna make that bear real mad.

.44 magnum Not my pick, but it has been done.

.500 (handgun) Again, not my pick, but it has been done.

30-06 Marginal. Some big bear have been killed with the old '06, but I would not go after one on purpose with an '06 if a larger bore were available.

.308 Even more marginal than the '06, I'd not go after a big bear on purpose with a .308, and it is one of my favorite rifle calibers.

.223 Forget it and just use it to blow your brains out, it will be less painful.

7.62 mm (isn't this the ak 47 round) Really lousy choice, not much better than a .223 for this use.

7mm If it is a 7x57mm Mauser, it is very marginal, a 7 mm RemMag would get the job done but it is too light in my opinion for going after a big bear on purpose.

8mm I'd rather have a .30-'06.

Forget grenades because you won't have one. They are destructive devises and hard to come by legally. Besides, what makes you think that a bear is going to be standing in one spot and not charging you at 30 mph? Do you think you can figure lead to throw a grenade to the right spot to do any good? I doubt it.

My idea of grizzly bear cartridges start with a .338 WinMag, and I'd rather have a .375 H&H Magnum, or a Marlin M-1895 .45-70 loaded with Garrett Cartridge Company's 540 gr. Hammerheads.

If you are moving to Montana, get yourself a Marlin M-1895 in .45-70, and purchase some +P ammo from Garrett, or Buffalo Bore.

Doc

I would stay away from the .223 and 7mm, even if you shoot them in the face, I think (not 100% sure) it is likely to just ricochet off it's skull. I would also be hazy on the 30-06, 308 and the 7.62. They would work, but not very well. Everything else would kill a grizzly reliably. You may want to just skip a .50 handgun, the recoil would probably make it too hard to handle in an emergency. Generally, I think you should be shooting for the chest-area vitals because of the skull ricochet thing. The grenade idea is more or less just stupid, a gun is better if you are that scared of being attacked by bears.

A grizzly is a big and tough bear. I would not shoot one with the pistols you list here, except a .500 S&W or Linebaugh. Of the ri9fles, the .30-06 is best, but I prefer at least a .300 magnum, and a .338 is better yet for such large and dangerous animals. If you must use a .30-06, use 220 grain bullets.

30-06 and bigger will work. the .44 and bigger in pistol will work. Expect to need more than one shot with the .44.

Of course, range always has to be considered. A bullet looses a lot of energy (ie, becomes less lethal) as it goes out 100 yrds, 200 yards, etc.

Also, shot placement is just as important as caliber. Heart of course is ideal. Close to it in the lungs would work.

But here's my question. If you are hunting a bear, wouldn't you shoot it whether he was about to maul you or not?

assuming its legal, and you're not going out to mow down bears for fun, they are protected.

any cartridge will work, its not only placement but also how much and how fast. if you had a 1022, your out of luck. But a cartridge like the .223 or 7.62x39mm will take a bear on, given that you can throw enough lead before it gets to you.

The head is obviously the most vulnerable place- its also a small target. The chest /torso is a bigger target and easier to hit, but using an AK/M4 you're also out of luck.

I've never seen a real bear, but I can tell you a handful of 12ga slugs to the torso will take a bear down. Use like a Saiga 12 gauge. 10 rounds of 12 ga slug will take down almost any existing land animal.

a 480 in my opinion is a great gun for bear the .500 handgun is great 2 and the only way you will need to shoot a grizzly is if you are in serious danger they are protected and i think greande hunting is illegal and if you want a lot of bullets quick a desert eagel in .50AE would be a great gun if hes on you tryin to eat your face off

Preferably a 45-70 or 30-06 or 12 gauge using slugs.*