I can tell by your statement (that you'd feel better with a handgun) that you haven't hunted a bear yet. Lots of beginning bear hunters think the same thing, but the truth is, unless you're extremely well-trained and use a hg regularly (such as law enforcement) you're just asking for trouble. First, a 30-06 has three times the horsepower of any handgun on earth, so make it your complete defense system. Second, your adrenalin level will "hide the needle" if you're like any other new bear hunter and picture yourself trying to unlimber a handgun and then have presence of mind to actually shoot it good enough to stop a running (maybe at YOU) animal. Practice snap shooting & shooting a 2nd shot quickly before you go, and you'll be good without the pistola. Also, if you're black bear hunting, stay in the U.S. - you eliminate 99% of your issue right there. Be safe and good luck!