what type of handgun should i take backpacking with me for self defense??caliber and type.?

Question

backpacking in the lower 48 states.
i also carry bear repellent ,but lets be reasonable.

Answer 1

If you are concerned about bears, and can't or don't want to carry a rifle, I would suggest either a .44 Magnum revolver loaded with at least 240 grain soft points, or a Glock 20 loaded with 200 grain Hornady XTPs or hunting loads from Cor-Bon, Black Hills, or Pro Load. Aim for the nose, because the front of the skull above the nose is slanted backwards, and bullets sometimes slide along the outside of the skull under the skin instead of penetrating if they hit higher than the nose.
Either handgun should be more than ample for whatever else you might encounter, but the Glock will be a lot lighter, easier to carry, and holds much more ammunition. Make sure to practice sufficiently with whatever you choose. Remember that if a bear attacks you, you will have to hit a relatively small target area that is bobbing up and down on a very large animal that is "bearing" down on you faster than you thought it could. And toss the bear repellent. It is not reliable, and if the wind is blowing from the bear to you, you may be in for a very unpleasant surprise.

Also, make sure that carrying a loaded handgun is legal wherever you plan to be doing this. In many places, if you carry a gun in the woods it must be carried openly. You obviously cannot carry in County, State or National Parks, and many other places as well. Find out ahead of time, because law enforcement officers generally have NO sense of humor about this sort of thing.

Answer 2

I cant even believe that there are people recommending a 9mm or .40 cal for bear, especially gizzly. If you have a 500 lb, pissed off bear running at you, your gonna want something a little bigger. I would carry nothing less than .357. Many bear were taken in the old days with .44 mag, so you cant go wrong there. Or you can get crazy and go huge like .45-70, .454 Casull, .460, .500 S&W. I'm a cop, and see 150 lb humans walk after being shot several times with 9's and 40's. You expect to put a accurate enough shot, being scared out of your mind at a bear weighing 3 times what a man does, and expect to kill it? I don't think so.

Answer 3

It depends on what you percieve the threat to be, like many posters have said. If you're worried about bears, and carrying a weapon is legal where you'll backapck, then go with a .44mag. Personally, I like a glock 19 as a hiking companion, because it's easily concealed, and very reliable, not to mention light weight. But then, I mostly hike in areas where a bear encounter is unlikely.

If you decide on the .44mag, look at a Taurus tracker. I have one in .357, and love it. It's smaller and lighter weigh than most, and has a ported barrel to help tame the recoil. It is, however, VERY LOUD. Another option is a glock 10mm. (Glock 20 or 29).

Answer 4

When I go hiking or primitive camping, I take a .357 magnum. You can fire .38 Specials or .357 mags through the revolver. Additionally, if a revolver doesn't fire, you just keep pulling the trigger whereas with a semi-auto you may need to eject a round or even remove the mag and reload. Go with a 4 to 6 inch barrel, if you must have (or are more comfortable with) a snub nose then do not go below a 3 inch barrel. The Ruger GP100 is a good choice, well built and not expensive when compared to other brands of similar quality.

Answer 5

Pepper spray only adds flavor to the bear's meal of camper ala carte. I've seen a pepper sprayed suspect shoot a cop 5 or 6 times.

Carry an auto-loader for the greater magazine capacity. A Glock 20 holds 16 rounds of full powered 10mm hunting ammo from Black Hills or Pro Load (200 gr. FMJ-FP @ 1200 fps, similar to .41 magnum) with a lot less weight than a .44 revolver. A .44 revolver is now considered marginal for bear hunting, but would be even worse if the bear is hunting or charging you and you have only 6, big recoiling, and slow shots. The extra capacity and speed of delivery of the auto might save you even if you lose a little power. Aim for the nose, not the skull.

If the G20 is too big, you might consider the Glock 29 in 10mm or G22 or G23 in .40 S&W (use full-powered Corbon DPX, CCI Speer, Winchester JSP, FMJ or JHP bullets at 150-155 grains.) Carry the biggest gun you can, shorter barrels cause bullets to lose velocity and energy and increase blast and flash.

Other calibers/bullets might include .45 ACP+P at 200 gr., .357 Sig with 125 gr., 357 magnum @ 158-180 grains.

Forget snake loads. If you see the snake walk away, if you don't, well...

Answer 6

A 357 Magnum with a 4-6" barrel would be a good choice. Gives you the options of 357 Magnum ammunition (Bear),38 Special +P+ (For 2 legged Animals), and 38 Special Shotshells, for Snakes..Or you can go up a notch to a 4-6" 44 Magnum, like a Smith & Wesson 629.

Like any other situation, you need to make sure that you have a CCW Permit if needed to legally carry a handgun or any kind, and as was suggested earlier, you must be careful not to carry any firearms in a Federal/National Parks (And some State Parks as well) Check with the local Police or DNR agencies in the area you will be Backpacking in first.....

Answer 7

For heavens sakes DON'T USE BEAR SPRAY. People pick it up and think they are safe, but it only angers the bear more. It is only useful for small black bears who were going to walk by anyway. Once you get into grizzly bears and such, it wouldn't stop it from attacking even if it was dead to begin with. As for the handgun, try one in a .44 calibre, if you hate recoil then try a .357. Also, buy a revolver, they are extremely unlikely to jam on you and a bad shell can easily just be skipped.

Answer 8

I carry a .45 Long Colt Single Action Revolver with 225 grain winchester superx-self defense ammo. Recoil isn't as heavy as a .44 magnum, but the size and weight of the bullet is good against two and four-legged attackers here in Northern Nevada.

Answer 9

Yes you can go wrong with a Desert Eagle They are JUNK. If you are looking for a good all around pistol to pack I would get a 4" barreled revolver in 44 mag. Get some Hornady 300gr Loads and you should be golden for anything in the lower 48 with 2 or 4 legs.

You could go for a 460 S&W Mag or the power house 500 S&W Mag. IF you want to drop the $$$$ on them. But you can't go wrong with the old 44 mag.

http://www.taurususa.com/products/product-details.cfm?id=227&category=Revolver

http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=11101&storeId=10001&productId=14779&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=15706&isFirearm=Y

Answer 10

If you are more worried about bear and moose than two-legged vermin, I'd say a .44 RemMag or .45 LC revolver would be your best choice. Not that they are the very best bear and moose stoppers, but because a heavy loaded .44 RemMag or a heavy loaded .45 LC is about the most gun that most casual shooter can handle.

If you are more worried about encountering meth-cookers, dope growers or other criminal elements, a double-action .357 Magnum revolver will be the best choice.

Doc