I have done several articles on this subject over the years, however it is on my mind a lot and I thought I would summarize my feelings on this topic. First of all there is a distinction between black bears, and brown or grizzly bears. I KNOW I am over stating the obvious as those differences consist of terrain, distance at which shots are fired, How close the bear is to impenetrable thick cover, the sheer weight and size of the bear, heaviness of bones, thickness of hide etc. of the bear itself.
This article is going to concern itself mainly with black bear hunting over bait. A few words about hunting coastal brown bear, interior grizzly etc. Best advice I can give you is that you need to carry the heaviest caliber rifle with bonded type premium bullets that you can SHOOT WELL. Whatever rifle you choose should be weather resistant with a synthetic or laminated stock and a stainless barrel and action. It does you no good to show up at your destination with a .458 Win Mag or a .375 H and H or one its derivatives or even a .338 Win mag that you have NEVER SHOT, much less became proficient with. I have read about stories of folks showing up with a brand new spit polished .338 Win mag with an expensive variable scope and admit they have never fired the rifle. The guy behind the counter at Bass Pro or Gander Mountain bore sighted the scope, recommended a certain box or two of ammo and the would be hunter is off on his or her great adventure.
The rifle is certainly up to the task, however my recommendation would be to get it sighted in from the bench before your trip so that you know exactly where it is shooting at 50, 100, 150 and 200 plus yards. Then get OFF THE BENCH and see how you do from various field positions. If that .338 mag scares the devil out of you every time you shoot it, you have the wrong gun. Take it back and trade it in for something else .30 cal and above. Better yet, READ everything written about bear hunting and rifles that you can get your hands on, and join the local gun club and see if you can try some friends heavy caliber rifles at the range BEFORE you buy one yourself. The minimum should be in the 30-06 range with premium bonded 180 grain bullets. A properly loaded 30-06 with 180 grain bonded bullets that you shoot well beats the .338 Mag that you are afraid of.
If you are not particularly recoil shy, you could have your choice of anything from the 30-06 and up, including but not limited to the various .300 mags and short mags, the .375 H and H and variations thereof, the 45-70 with Garret Cartridge wide meplat hard cast flat nose loads or special loads from CorBon, Buffalo Bore etc. The 45-70 is going to limit the range you can shoot somewhat, however it is certainly capable of taking the big bears. Whatever rifles you choose you are going to want a load that will break a big bears shoulder and penetrate like no tomorrow after doing so. To my knowledge the largest Alaskan brown bear ever recorded was taken by Roy R. Lindsay with a 30-06 on Kodiak Island back in 1952.
As far as shot placement goes it is pretty well recognized that a broadside double lung shot with an adequate caliber and good premium bullet will result in a DEAD bear whether it be an Alaskan brown bear or a 200 pound black bear at a bait site 25 yards from the shooter. The PROBLEM comes in as to whether or not you will FIND your dead bear and take him home with you. There are a lot of articles out there pro and con on shot placement, however the broadside shoulder shot with a .30 caliber and above with a premium bonded bullet will give better odds than a double lung shot on dropping the bear right where he is right now. It should give you an opportunity to make a QUICK follow up shot if he (the bear) doesn't agree with my last statement. In other words, a bear shot through both shoulders is more likely going to drop within sight of where he was shot than a bear with a double lung shot. Dead is dead, however finding your bear and taking him home with you is part of the reason you hunt in the first place. Tracking a wounded bear in thick cover can be a dangerous pastime and should not be taken lightly OR ALONE. A few years ago, I shot a moose in Newfoundland with a Ruger mdl 77 MKII in .300 Win Mag using 180 grain Speer Grand Slam factory loads. I was VERY impressed with the damage on the shoulder shot I took on that moose. My vote goes for heavy for caliber premium bullets and shoulder shots especially on big bear.
For BLACK BEAR hunting whether hound hunting or over bait, you have a lot more leeway. Black bears on average run 150 pounds. That being said, there are a lot of bears taken every year in the 200-300 pound range and also bears taken that are in the 300-500 and occasionally pushing 600 or above range.
Many of these bears over the years have been taken with the 30-30 with both 150 and 170 grain factory loads. I have read about huge bears taken at close range with the .243 Win etc.
My feeling is that these bears also deserve respect and that if you are using your .270 Win, 7MM, .308. Win etc. you should use heavy for caliber loads and probably premium bullets that will hold together. In the case of the .308 and 30-06, I would use 180 grain premium bullets, although you can probably get by quite well with 180 Grain Remington Core-lokts. You also have the choice in these two calibers of using 165 grain premium bullets ..IF THEY SHOOT WELL in your gun. For baited bear using a 45-70 Tim Sundle's from Buffalo Bore recommends their 405 grain soft point. I did water jug testing on this load and also the 350 grain penetrator load from Buffalo Bore out of my Marlin Mdl 1895 45-70. Look for you tube videos on this blog or simply type bear bullet water jug penetration tests into GOOGLE.
In the .35 Rem I would take a hard look at Buffalo Bore's 220 grain JFP for bear hunting.
I also own a .338 Federal with a 3X9X40 Bushnell Elite 3200 firefly/rain guard scope that shoots the Federal Fusion 200 grain and the Nosler 210 grain partition load well. My .Ruger .350 Mag with both Rem Corelokt 200 grainers and the Nosler Partition 225 grain are both tack drivers.
You do not need a cannon to shoot a black bear, however if you are going to buy a rifle for that type of hunting, I would steer you towards a .30 caliber and UP and use heavy for caliber loads for bear hunting. My .308 Winchester is a tack driver with Winchester 150 grain power points for deer hunting. A recent trip to the range indicated that two shots at 75 yards of the Win PP went into 1/4 of an inch and about 1.5 inches high. That is perfect for the eastern mixed woods and fields deer hunting I do. At the same sight setting, (2) 180 grain Remington round nose corelokts went 13/16 inch and dead center. I could go bear hunting over bait with this rifle with the 180 grain loads WITHOUT changing my scope setting at all. For bear hunting, other acceptable loads would include 165 grain or 180 grain controlled expansion bullets such as the tipped trophy bonded, Swift A-Frame, Hornady GMX, Nosler E-Tip and the Barnes TSX. Unfortunately right now with the most aggressive misguided attack on the 2nd amendment in my lifetime, along with Homeland Security buying over 1.5 BILLION rounds of ammunition, you will find most Internet outlets and local gun shops with severe shortages of any and all rifle ammunition. If you reload your own and have components on hand, you are ahead of the game for now. I do not reload anymore, however I do have enough 180 grain round nose Corelokts to take care of any bear hunts I am likely to be fortunate enough to go on.
Whatever rifle and load you choose, get to the range and run 100 or 150 rounds through you gun from the bench and various field positions before you show up at bear camp. You owe it to your quarry to be proficient with your rifle and to learn BEAR ANATOMY and what your outfitter recommends as to shot placement etc.
Dan
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