ORIGINAL: eldeguello
ORIGINAL: Mr. Longbeard
Do you think a 45 ACP is enough to stop a 300-400 pound black bear???
Depends on what you mean by "stop". I would never shoot a black bear, or any other bear, with a .45 ACP unless I had nothing else to defend myself with, and was about to get bit, or worse! This goes for ANY OTHER HANDGUN, as well, although there are admittedly a few rounds that are enough better that it would be less of a problem. I for one would not shoot any bear that was not menacing me with any handgun. If you want to hunt bear, use a high-intensity rifle round with a bullet heavy enough for the job!
OTOH, I have proven to myself that the .45 ACP GI hardball 230-grain load has sufficient penetration to go through the head of a black bear and several inches into the dirt beneath that head. I did this by shooting my Colt Gold Cupusing .45 ACPball ammo into the top of a black bear's skull from a distance of about three feet, then digging up the bullet after moving the bear. However, in order to defend yourself against a bear with a handgun,
you have to place the bullet on the end of the bear's nose as he is approaching you so that the bullet travels up the nasal passage into the brain. This is the ONLY hit that you can depend on to stop the bear instantly, and if he is charging you fast enough, he might just land on you when he falls. This is a tricky shot, because if it goes high it can glance over the bear's forehead doing little damage. If it goes low into the front of the chest, it might eventually result in a dead bear, but not soon enough to save your bacon!
Your .44 Maggie is a much better choice for bear protection, AND I recommend that you use HARD-CAST Keith-type semiwadcutter or LBT style flatnose bullets in it, NOT jacketed hollowpoints that make big holes but don't penetrate sufficiently