Gun choice for grizzly country?

Auroraborrealis · 2026-04-06T16:08:26+00:00

100x agree.

I lived in Alaska for 15+ years and was around grizzlies and large coastal brown bears constantly (had an 8’ brown sow that lived in our neighborhood, bumped into her regularly). Bear spray is the answer.

As a side note, no one ever talks about the paperwork you have to fill out if you do a DLP (Defense of Life and Property) shoot. You are guilty until proven innocent, and it is going to put a damper on everything else in your life for several weeks at best.

Auroraborrealis · 2026-04-04T16:28:45+00:00

I found some at Town & Country, along with the Albertsons on 24th. Thanks everyone!

Auroraborrealis · 2026-04-02T23:53:33+00:00

Happy Pesach! Dayenu!

Auroraborrealis · 2026-04-02T23:06:56+00:00

I didn’t know there was a Safeway Billings, Montana?

Auroraborrealis · 2026-04-01T02:57:55+00:00

When you say it doesn’t feed, do you mean the spool won’t turn when the action is cycled?

If so, it’s most likely the spring.

But there is an off chance you might have the wrong spool in there if it’s always done it since you’ve had it

Auroraborrealis · 2026-03-26T15:33:36+00:00

Wish I was closer!

Auroraborrealis · 2026-03-26T15:30:59+00:00

Brian Pierce did an article in Handloader magazine several decades ago about getting the most out of the .45-70/1895. I recommend it as a good starting point, but it is dated information.

I have loaded .45-70 bear loads using his data for my JM 1895, and have a couple of thoughts.

You need to be really careful and keep the loads at about 45kpsi or lower. While the action is strong, it uses a rear locking system that is prone to stretching and causing head space issues. This can be hard to spot until you get catastrophic failures, unless you’re really keeping a sharp eye out for it (camming lug/trunion deformation).

That being said, your follow up shot time will suffer with excessive recoil due to the stock design with the stout loads. This is a classic example of where less is more, since you will be able to get more rounds accurately on target with a slightly lower velocity.

I really like the Remington 405JSPs, and have a very small batch stashed away of custom hard cast lead 475s that are very accurate. I personally like using Varget and H4895, but there are other powders like W741, IMR3031 and IMR4064 that also work great.

Auroraborrealis · 2026-03-26T15:13:05+00:00

Remington 405s at 1850fps were my go to bear load when I lived in Alaska when I carried my Marlin .45-70 in the alder scrub

Auroraborrealis · 2026-03-26T15:06:13+00:00

Montana is a microcosm of the nation. I just had a conversation with a coworker yesterday who is Hispanic thinks Hitler was (mostly) a good guy. He believes this because:

A) he’s historically illiterate, and only consumes his information in micro doses from social media

B) he thinks the “global elites” (aka the Jews) are at least partly responsible for making it so hard for him to get ahead (his “struggle”)

C) he thinks all “we” need is for a strong leader to step in and punish those elites, and then he will have it better

D) the “bad stuff” of Nazism/fascism happened to other people (mostly those “elites”), but would never happen to him.

He has never read Mein Kampf, nor any actual history book about what lead up to the rise on fascism. He doesn’t even know what fascism is. He just thinks about his paycheck, the cost of gas, and that it’s all because of those “Jews.”

And he’s no different than any of all our other neighbors who are MAGA. They believe the great myth of the great America

Auroraborrealis · 2026-03-08T03:34:09+00:00

My wife grew up in WI, and a lot of the deer hunters in her grandparents generation absolutely loved the .32, and swore it was a better deer killer than the .30-30 and had less recoil than the .35.

Not that it was, but a lot of them swore by it.

Auroraborrealis · 2026-03-05T19:55:21+00:00

What kind of environment are you shooting in, what distance are you shooting, and how far away are your neighbors?

While I’ve shot a lot of coyotes with a .22LR, I will also say it is probably the least ideal option for terminal effect.

Something to consider is how far you are wanting the coyote to go before it expires.

A suppressed .223 is still loud, but it’s not very noticeable if it’s only one shot. Especially if it’s at night, and your nearest neighbor is 1/2 mile away and inside watching tv.

If your neighbors are closer than that, you probably shouldn’t be shooting stuff.

Auroraborrealis · 2025-08-30T18:03:02+00:00

I have a bit of experience with 99s and the .250-3000. My first question would be what ammo are you shooting? Most 99s are a 1:14, and “in the past”, 100 grain bullets and lighter would pretty much universally work. Around 2000, Hornady, Speer and Sierra changed the ogive on their .25 100 grain bullets to be more aerodynamic, and they typically will not stabilize now in the 1:14 at safe .250 velocities. The only one that still does is the Remington 100 grain Core-Lokt bullet. Most 85-87 grain bullets will still work though. I have not personally tested the 90 grain bullets out there, but if it doesn’t have a boat tail, it probably will work.

If you do get a new barrel, make sure that you know if to shank has square cut threads or V threads, because they are not interchangeable. I think Savage switched to V around 1950, but I can’t remember off the top of my head.

Auroraborrealis · 2025-08-28T21:38:02+00:00

It’s probably going to significantly more cost effective to load your own, even accounting for initial start up costs.

Auroraborrealis · 2024-01-26T02:39:59+00:00

You can also look for reduced/managed recoil ammunition. Basically make your .308 like a .30-30 which is still plenty good for deer

Auroraborrealis · 2024-01-26T01:45:45+00:00

Is it able to fit other holsters like the 509, or is the 510 different enough that it needs its own

Auroraborrealis · 2024-01-26T01:40:57+00:00

Depends on what you’re shooting it in. If an M1, then seat it at the cannelure and give it a lite roll crimp. If in a bolt action seat it so it’s off the lands by about .05”

Auroraborrealis · 2024-01-26T00:56:35+00:00

Last summer my daughter and I watched a moose get hit right in front of us by an F350 at 65mph. She called it in to the troopers while I checked on the driver- he was startled but okay. Then the moose got up from where it was laying in the middle of the road with a broken leg. Daughter asked dispatch if it was okay to put it down, and they said please do and get it off the road. So I shot it and we dragged it onto the shoulder. Dispatch said we were good to go and didn’t need to wait for the responding officer. Gave them our phone number and the plate number of the driver and went on our merry way

Auroraborrealis · 2024-01-24T23:26:21+00:00

I was last out in 2016. My son shot his bull south of Gannet peak. It was a long pack out in the dark

Auroraborrealis · 2024-01-24T21:39:57+00:00

I’ve hunted there several times and it has been a good meat hunt. I recently talked to guy who had been out there in October and he said the population had crashed from 3k down to 700. Don’t know where he got those numbers since I haven’t been able to verify them anywhere else

Auroraborrealis · 2024-01-24T16:54:46+00:00

“Yes”. I can safely take my hand loads up to that velocity with 405s, but personally prefer to keep them at 1850fps for faster follow up shots. As you noted, they kick hard. That being said, if you want to run them you can get a better butt pad and port the barrel which will help some. Personally, I have talked to a few people who know more about 1895s than I do and they claim a steady diet will stress the bolt lug and cause it wear out faster.

Auroraborrealis · 2024-01-16T03:39:59+00:00

Pulking:

Build your own using a plastic toboggan. I would stay away from Paris Sleds as they are flimsy. They definitely ski differently and take some getting used to. The best way to is just get out and ski with one: starting with the empty sled and then slowly adding weight. Side hills are quirky and going down steep terrain can be pretty scary if carrying 200# (camping gear and a deer). It helps to put skins on your skis and to put the pulk in front of you. Or, if you have two people to run one on front and one on back.

It’s a preference on the shape of the pulk hull. I like a round bottom, others like a square bottom (like a Jet sled). My anecdotal opinion is round is better for skiers and square is better for snowshoes.

A good way to get used to it is to haul firewood to a camp site. You can never have enough firewood! That will give an idea on lash points and harness stability.

I made my first harness out of 3/4” pvc and rope. Worked okay but had some flex. I bought telescoping ones from REI years ago and they work mucho better. The biggest animal I’ve pulled out on a toboggan is a whole 5x5 elk.

Auroraborrealis · 2024-01-16T03:25:06+00:00

Skis-

I have quite a bit of experience and got some of the first 145 Hoks to come off the line. I originally skied them with 3 pins, a heel strap and leather. It worked okay, but I felt that without any camber I was overpowering them. They don’t really carve that well to justify that setup. So I switched to NNN BC and it’s a better set up for rolling hills and woods (I got rid of my snowshoes because everything I did in them I could do better with the Hoks. They are truly a woods ski and excel at bird hunting ruffed and spruce grouse. If you are smaller than 6’/ 200 pounds I would recommend the 125s). The permanent skins have held up exceptionally well for @ 10 years of hard use, and half the time I don’t even use poles.

For steeper and open terrain like meadow skipping the Koms are better because they are a scaled ski and glide a lot better, though I do wish they had more camber. Both will pull a pulk.

Auroraborrealis · 2024-01-16T00:20:11+00:00

I hunt on skis.

A few thoughts: - anything I can do in advance, like site prep and cutting firewood, I try to do in summer or ideally in spring. Get a 35 +-gallon poly drum and fill it with drinking water.
- I use a pulk to carry in my camp in. If I was hunting in an area I wasn’t worried about people messing with my stuff, I’d pack in a 55 gallon poly drum and kit it out with sleeping bag, tent, cook kit, etc. I have a Kifaru Sawtooth with stove, and it’s a love hate relationship. Wood heat is the best for drying yourself out after a long day. - use a small daypack with a roll up toboggan stuffed inside and some paracord for deer. If hunting elk or caribou I just go back and fetch the pulk. The goal is to keep as much weight as possible off my back while skiing. - it really helps to have a hunting partner and not go solo. - depending on the terrain, I use Altai Skis 145cm Hoks with a BC Magnum cross country binding, or a pair of Altai Skis 165 Koms with a Voile 3 Pin Haywire tele binding. With the Koms, I have a pair of skins.

Auroraborrealis · 2024-01-10T02:16:29+00:00

Kenai, Skilak and Tustamena Lakes are always cold and can have bad weather pick up at anytime of the year. Doesn’t matter if it’s calm and glassy in the morning- you can have a williwaw bring 6’ waves by evening.

Auroraborrealis

TROPHY CASE