I someday want to hunt bear. I Hunt whitetail with a 308 and really like the gun. (never done me wrong). I really dont have the money to by a bigger gun and really like this gun so i was wondering peoples opinons on hunting bear with a 308.

 

It will work on black bear with good shot placement, use a good bonded solid bullet.

 

Grimmsniper has it covered. Black bear only and with proper ammo. The big bears farther north require more power than a .308.

 

like said before only black bear. my buddy owns a ranch and he took out a black bear with a 270. but he is a really good shot. anyways. if you value your life i dont suggest hunting anything bigger with a 308. hope it helps

 

In MN I used my .308 to hunt black bear. Now up here we have some of the worlds largest brown/grizzly bears. I use a .300. However, I love the .308, it is a nice gun. When my wife goes bear hunting with me she will use that, however she is always by my side. There are stories of people shooting a bear with a 30-06 and having the bullet bounce off it's skull and sturdem (sp?). Dang tuff bears!!!! Even the guys up here that use .338's will sometimes need a lot of shots to drop them. Oh, I only use Winchest Supream Fail Safe's though, Nosler Partitions would be another good choice. But ya, I would just be sure to get some premium bullets. No need to spend money on another gun. Although that is always fun![img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

 

Yamaha,

You can hunt just about anything with a .308 as long as you practice and know your shot placement. For the guys who think it will not work on the bigger bears up north might just want to talk to a few natives. They have been using 30-30 and .223 for bears and the reason why is the ammo is cheap and readily availble. I read a story about Canada where it is still legal to hunt Polar Bear and this guide who has used his 30-30 winchester for his whole life, he said it was just a part of him and why should he buy a "Magnum" when this one does the trick.

Catterman, anytime I hear stories about a bullet bouncing of the skull it just makes me chuckle. If you are shooting them directly in the head you should not be in the woods to begin with as that is the worst place to shoot a bear in the first place and if it is because they are charging then the same goes about being in the woods, if you can't put the rounds where they count go back to the range. I have shot bears(albeit blacks) and have killed moose with a single shot from a .308 and would not have a problem stalking a Brownie with it again. I guess I should read the info about this premium ammo's as the only stuff I use is the cheap stuff from the bins or whatever is on sale at the store. Whatever ammo I use I shoot with it to find out where it hits first and my freezer is always full with caribou, moose, blackbear so I guess I do something right.

I have to admit I did use a .338 for my honeymoon Brown Bear, it was either that or my .357 and I am not stupid and it is a great reminder of my wedding. So the moral of this story is know your gun and what its limits are and know where to place the shot and you can use just about anything, of course you have to know your limits too.

Practice,practice and then some more practice. You should be one with your rifle while hunting with it. My nickels worth and I can not wait to hear the naysayers. AlaskaBoy.

 

Nay

 

The 308 will take anything down on the north American Continent! moose, bear, you name it. a 150grain bullet will drop moose. My father has dropped em with the 150 grain round for the last 20 years! The 180 grain will do the job as well if you desire.

Im with AlaskaBoy on this one. my 30-06 will do the same.


Any other Canadians care to comment on this???

 

I live in southern Wyoming between Cheyenne and Laramie. I bought a Remington 700 adl .300 Win. Mag. for black bear, Mule Deer, and elk. I also think shot placement is the most important aspect. And feeling comfortable with your rifle is just as important. You can kill anything with a .223 if your shot placement is good. I like my 300. I have shot around 20 rounds out of it and have a nice mark between my eyes from the scope. I have adjusted it so it don't do that again. So, if you have a decent rifle and know how to shoot it, you should be fine.

 

A .308 is more than enough gun for Black bears. We drop about 8 bears a year where I hunt and they have fallen from 12 gauge slugs,30-30 win, .270 win, .308 win, 30-06 , .300 mag , .50 cal muzzleloader and a .450. None of the bears went more than 15 yards and most dropped in there tracks. The key is shot placement no matter what caliber you choose. There isn't an animal in North America that won't or hasn't fallen with a proper shot from a .308. I wouldn't hesitate to use a .308 all the way up to and including moose except if you hunt elk or something that reqires long shots. If I was going to hunt the big bears I would choose something bigger, But it still boils down to shot placement. There have been elephants downed with a 30-06 with the right bullet and shot placement. Bottom line is your .308 is an excellant bear rifle and anyone that thinks it is only marginal is full of it. It is the same bullet as the 30-06 and packs nearly the same punch. Don't hesitate to use it !!!