[SAMMY D]

ANY ONE OUT THERE HAVE ANY EXPERIANCES HUNTING WITH A 45 SUPER ? I ÿWILL BE GOING TO MAINE IN MID OCTOBER TO HUNT BLACK BEAR WITH HOUNDS . THE GUIDE SAYS MOST SHOTS ARE AT 25 YARDS OR LESS. THE LOAD I HAVE IN MIND IS THE HORNADY 230 GRAIN F.M.J. FLAT POINT LOADED TO 1200 F.P. S. THIS LOAD SHOOTS 1-2 INCH GROUPS AT 25 YARDS OUT OF MY CONVERTED COLT 1911,is this load enough medicine for close in black bear ?

(Edited by SAMMY D at 8:13 am on Sep. 24, 2001)

 

[RugerNo3]

SammyD, it appears you aren't getting results with your question.  I only have a slim knowledge of the 45Super, but you gave enough info in your post to make me reccommend you to go to the ballisticians corner on this website and use the info to calculate the permanent wound channel and the penetration calculation. You didn't post the Meplat (Flat nose dia) of your bullet. but measure it and plug the data into the formulae. It would appear to that you have the power in the 45super to get the job done. Bear (no pun intended) in mind that it is the meplat that does the damage and not the total diameter of the bullet. Good luck and let us know how the 45super performs for you. Goold Luck.

 

[SAMMY D]

Thanks to ruger no. 3 for the feedback on my question. I called hornady, and they said that the 230 gr fmjfp should work fine,but not to expect any expansion with this bullet.I plugged in the numbers you recomended and came up with a perm. wound channel of 0.976 and  a penetration calculation of 31.24  I also came up with a taylor ko value of 20, I am not sure what all these numbers mean, hopefully someone out there can  respond as whether the load is suitable for close in bear hunting?

 

[chrisf]

I've never shot a 45 Super but I have shot and hunted with a 45 ACP quite a bit.  I've killed two hogs using Mid-Kansas 225 gr FP loaded around 900 fps.  Both hogs were about 200 lbs., 25 yards and broadside.  Complete penetration was achieved on both, one required a second shot which entered in front of the left shoulder and stopped in the right hind quarter.

I would not hestitate to shoot a black bear with the 45 Super as long as I was with in 25 yards and was using a bullet designed to penetrate and provide a wide wound channel.

Good luck.

 

[Marshall Stanton]

Your combination should work fine on black bears, but in my opinion, I would prefer a bullet with a wider meplat than the Hornady you are using, as you'll get a bigger permanant wound channel.  In the event that you have to track a wounded bear, that larger wound channel is a welcomed asses when looking for a blood trail, especially with the way a bear's fat will seal off a bullet wound in a relatively short period of time.  I prefer a larger wound channel.

Just an opinion of course, one that is very biased!

God Bless,

Marshall

 

[RugerNo3]

To further add, you may wish to try to break a front shoulder and follow up with a second shot. The dogs will aid in tracking, but it's best to dispatch Brer Bear before he disspatches any dogs. again, good luck on your venture.