Bear protection

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no good at all for a brown bear, the 10mm for instance. As far as a revolver, nothing less than a 475 Linebaugh should be considered. And our 500 GNR, 501 GNR, 510 GNR or the 500 Linebaugh would be even better. A 460 or 500 S&W has more power but the downside of that is you are carrying an anvil on your hip.

I have danced with 3 bears thru the years and in none of the instances did my round of choice put it down real quick. Any bear when pissed off can be almost impossible to put down cleanly. And a pissed off brown bear, almost twice the size of a Grizzly, can be even harder to put down.

Shot placement is paramount in taking something that can eat you. The only problem with that is seldom do you have time to accurately place your bullet in the right spot. So you have to rely on brute power to break the bear down. That brings us back to the calibers. Start with a 475 Linebaugh and work up from there.

DA or SA? Which one are you better with? In 2 of my bear dances I had DA revolvers, one in 44 Magnum and the other 41 GNR. I was puckered up so tight I have no idea if I shot DA or SA. So go with whichever you are more comfortable with.

Single action conversion from a Ruger Super Blackhawk. For the 6 years I carried it in Alaska I never felt undergunned. Bullet placement is critical like Gary said below. IF and ONLY IF you have time to aim, hit it in the frame, preferably in the shoulder. That will stop them, if you do not hit the frame it will pass through them and they will still come after you. Witness the guy in the Denali area that was charged by a Brown Bear in 2008, he shot the charging bear with a .338 win mag and the bullet went right through and did not even slow the bear down. The bullet went through the heart according to the game warden I talked with and that was the only thing that saved the guy. A bears heart beats about 8 times per minute so even after a heart shot they can still go a long ways before they lay down and die. Remember a bear is down on all fours when charging so think of the angle the guy had to have shot him and still missed hitting the frame. When it comes to bears you can't have enough gun.......JMHO for what its worth dept!

What I DID carry in AK was my Reeder Custom #6 in .510 GNR. Doug carried a DA 5-shot Reeder Redhawk Custom using the same ammo. I think Sean had a .475 or .500 cal. DA, can't remember. Andy had the sissy gun, a .455 GNR SA. lol.

After I saw 2-3 Grizzlies in the wild about 25-30 ft. from me. I carried the .510 to take a pee outside, and slept with it under my pillow. Many say that phrase but I ACTUALLY DID IT, accidentally fingering it in the night was safe being a SA. I wanted something that would penetrate that thick wet rug of a hide they have and any energy absorbing fat or bone too. This was serious business to me. If there had be a .520 GNR I would have desired it. I just knew it would eat me anyway, the stories of George, and guys getting off ONE fast shot with a .375 H&H. He killed the bear with that shot, but after it broke the guy's neck with a paw slap. George said he kind of liked that guy. AK folks are a different breed.

Doug has a camo flap holster under his left arm.

That's Denali in the background, our morning view out the cabin window.