Does 10mm work on bears?
If you body-shoot an attacking bear front-on, those 10mm bullets must be chosen for extremely deep, straight-line penetration to compromise as many vital organs as possible, and they must shrug off any bone—no matter how massive and dense—encountered along the way.
- Glock 20. If you're used to toting around a 9mm Glock 19, you might be more comfortable with that. ...
- Ruger Super Redhawk Alaskan. The Ruger Superhawk Alaskan is a relatively small wheel gun, but it's chambered in . ...
- Marlin 1895 SBL. ...
- CZ 550 American Safari Magnum. ...
- Remington 870 SPS SuperSlug. ...
- Mossberg 500.
Simply put, the 10mm is an excellent cartridge for any kind of defensive duties. While the most powerful 10mm ammo will kick a little more than a 9mm, it is not scary or painful to shoot.
The . 45 Auto may have won a World War, but for hunting and bear defense, the 10mm is the better option.
44 Magnum is the minimum for charging bears, many others have opted for a Glock 20 in 10mm Auto and, interestingly enough, passed right by the . 357 S&W Magnum. Several folks have even successfully killed bears with a 9mm. While a well-placed shot from a 10mm can no doubt do the trick, the .
The 10mm is a bit more powerful than the . 45 ACP and it also has a higher capacity. However, the . 45 ACP is a bit more reliable and it has been around for longer.
357 Magnum or other similar-caliber load, a well-placed shot with a good bullet will certainly kill a bear, but it's not recommended.
44 magnum revolvers were used. The grizzly bear was killed. In total, there were 8 defenses against black bears and 27 defenses against grizzly bears. One pistol failure out of 35 cases translates to a 97% success rate for the use of handguns against bears.
The 10mm is short enough to be able to load in a semi-automatic pistol. This caliber of pistol can have the option of holding more rounds compared to hunting revolvers. If you're in dangerous conditions with large animals, such as bears, moose, or boars charging you, 10mm is the way to go.
357 Magnum is a powerful cartridge, but in this case it takes a narrow 2nd place to the 10mm Auto. 10mm generally packs higher muzzle energies thanks in large part to the larger bullets. Even with similar bullets, however, it appears the 10mm does slightly better.
Why is a 10mm so powerful?
Stopping Power
45 and the high velocity, low weight of the 10mm both make for powerful shots. If you're looking for speed, 10mm will have you covered. The 10mm has a faster velocity and energy than the . 45ACP.
The larger and faster 10mm will give 624 foot-pounds of muzzle energy when sending a 180-grain bullet at 1,250 fps, while the . 40 S&W drops that figure to 400 foot-pounds with its 1,000 fps velocity, making for a rather significant difference.
10mm is a very flat shooting cartridge that has minimal drop out to 100 yards. It has almost no drop with a good 180-grain load.
Right at the muzzle, the 10mm Auto rounds are carrying anywhere from 300-400 more ft. lbs of energy than the 9mm rounds. A lot of shooters might consider this overkill, and for the range or maybe even intruders, it may well be overkill.
30-06 is the bare minimum caliber that you should consider for brown bear hunting. Most people would agree that while it is still a little bit light. A deep-penetrating 200 to 220 grain bullet travelling at 2,600 to 2,700 fps put in the boiler room will always be effective.
The specific choice is yours, but if you use a minimum . 40 caliber, a minimum 200-grain solid deformable bullet and a minimum of 1,000 fps velocity from your chosen gun, you'll have a handgun load that will take any bear that shows itself. If you can stop shaking long enough to shoot.
Ideal Heavy Rifles for Bear Protection
Look for the biggest caliber you can shoot well in a rifle with a controlled-feed action like the Winchester Model 70 Safari Express, or the Ruger Guide Gun. While big bore rifles are ideal, even a . 308 will work.
Firearms are not recommended for stopping an attack.
It's also harder to hit a charging bear with a firearm rather than bear spray, and a firearm can be dangerous to any hiking partners. While firearms have been effective at stopping an attack, they aren't recommended.
The 9mm can kill bears but is considered underpowered by many. The 9mm has 350 to 450 ft/lbs. of energy, while 1,000 ft/lbs is considered the minimum for a bear hunting gun. Proper 9mm bullets yield sufficient penetration in soft tissue, but it may not stop a bear quickly enough to avoid being mauled.
10mm vs 44 Magnum: Stopping Power
The 44 Mag's 240 grain bullet consistently outpaces the 10mm's 180 grain bullet, even at 100 yards. And because it is so much heavier, it carries significantly more energy at all distances as well.
Why is 10mm more powerful than 9mm?
After looking at the ballistics of both calibers, we see that the 10mm has more kick. They have faster muzzle velocity, muzzle energy and a faster velocity. Because of the faster velocity, 10mm is going to give you better long-distance shooting.
For handguns, you can't go wrong with a 9mm, a . 40 or a . 45 caliber. Based on ballistic tests, all these rounds are capable of doing more than enough damage to suit your needs.
Aim for the deadliest point you can find. On a close-in, charging bear, this will probably be the face or upper chest. Often full-attack grizzlies lower their heads as they come in, so that's about all you have to aim at.
45 acp is a poor choice for bear defense. The round is slow, fat, and has fairly poor penetration on tough-skinned animals; however, some people carry . 45 acp with modern +P ammo and hardened bullets for bear defense. There are many better options, but it can work.
What is the best rifle to use for brown bear hunting? Most experienced hunters consider a . 30-06 rifle with a 180 grain soft-nosed bullet to be the smallest effective caliber for Kodiak brown bears.
Can you kill a full grown bear with a 7.62x39 based AK47? Yes, you can. There are poachers in a few of the former Soviet states that use AK-47s for bear (and other critters).
45-70 for deer hunting in thick conditions and it's also quite effective on black bear, feral hogs, moose, and grizzly bears. While it can be a very effective cartridge on many species of African game, make sure you read the article below if you're thinking about using the .
Yes, technically speaking a slug-loaded semi-auto shotgun would be enough to kill a grizzly bear.
Inside 100 yards, a 10mm carbine is more than enough for even a big boar hog, provided you put the bullet where it needs to be.
RD: Killing an elk with a 10mm auto is one of the coolest experiences I've had. I've carried and hunting we the 10mm since 1995 and I've killed hogs, feral goats, deer, plus, the 10mm save my life on one occasion.
Can you shoot 40 Cal out of a 10mm?
A revolver in 10mm Auto that utilizes moon clips will allow safely running the . 40 S&W, as the moon clip serves as the rim on straight-walled pistol case. It is advisable when running .
| Name (mm/in) | Bullet diameter | Case length |
|---|---|---|
| .40 S&W | 10.16 (.400) | 21.59 (.850) |
| .40 Super | 10.16 (.400) | 25.20 (.992) |
| 10mm Auto | 10.16 (.400) | 25.20 (.992) |
| 10mm Magnum | 10.16 (.400) | 31.88 (1.255) |
Over a sampling of loads, the 10mm Auto will have around 9 ft-lbs of felt recoil while the 357 Magnum will impart 10 ft-lbs of energy into the shooter's wrists. This is not a huge difference, and most shooters will not be able to discern the difference between the two cartridges.
There is a significant difference in terms of kinetic energy between the 10mm Auto and 9mm Luger, with the 10mm delivering almost double the ft-lbs of energy at the muzzle.
45 ACP and the 9mm. However, others say that the lowly . 22 LR has the best stopping power, since it stays in the target's body and bounces around, shredding arteries and punching holes in internal organs.
The Miami shootout of April 11, 1986, led to bullet penetration and ammo tests for the FBI. The FBI's move to 10mm was short-lived, with incessant problems with the S&W Model 1076. 10mm ammo proved expensive, large-framed handguns difficult to shoot, leading to the development of the . 40 Smith & Wesson cartridge.
For a bear cartridge anything equal to or more powerful than a . 41 Magnum or . 44 Magnum will be fine. Oldtime black bear hunters say that any load that throws at least a 200-grain or bigger solid bullet at 1000 fps or more will take any bear in the woods.
- Glock G20.
- Springfield XD-M Elite 3.8-inch Compact OSP.
- Smith & Wesson M&P 2.0.
- Sig Sauer P320 XTen.
- Colt Python 3-inch.
- Smith & Wesson Model 629.
- Ruger Super Redhawk Alaskan.
Aim for the deadliest point you can find. On a close-in, charging bear, this will probably be the face or upper chest. Often full-attack grizzlies lower their heads as they come in, so that's about all you have to aim at.
A 12-gauge shotgun is one of the most effective close-range bear guns. There are quite a few semi-autos that are typically reliable, but in the field they can be very finnicky at the worst times. You can't go wrong with a pump, though, and the 870 is my favorite.
Why is 10mm so good?
That means that the 10mm, using a real-world pistol and not a pressure barrel, cranks out a full 50 percent more energy that our most popular defensive rounds. That's huge. That energy makes for deeper penetration, better barrier penetration, and more trauma, which generally means stopping the attacker more quickly.
The 10mm is arguably the great all-around handgun round. You can use a light loading for target shooting or carry, as a low-recoil 10mm load is literally a . 40 S&W in a longer case. Both rounds offer distinct capabilities that other pistol cartridges just can't compete with.
Whether you're taking it out on the range or in the field, 10mm will keep you covered with its velocity and stopping power. In the field, 10mm works as a fine round for handgun hunting or as hunting backup. If calamity strikes while you're out hunting, the 10mm can take down almost any game.
While firearms have been effective at stopping an attack, they aren't recommended. Wounded bears can be even more dangerous. If a bear is wounded with a firearm, it can potentially be defensive or aggressive.