Throwing bear into the mix without saying what type of bear throws a wrench into the mix.

I have 2 classes of guns: whitetail size and elk/moose/brown bear size. Since this will be primarily a bear/elk gun I'd choose a .338 Ultra Mag. I know it's not short action but what the heck. For whitetails the .338 is overkill but if limited to one gun for all species this would be my choice. I use a .270, 30-06 or 7MM on whitetails.

My father uses his .375 on everything now since his trip to Africa 20 years ago. Sure knocks the whitetails down quick!