? for you black bear experts.

[Eddie C]

I'm suppose to be going on a black bear hunt this fall. is my whitetail deer setup adequate for black bear?

55# recurve, snuffers with a 575gr total arrow weight.

thanks, eddie

[sticks]

yup will work fine

[Eddie C]

i guess my biggest concern (other than shoot placement) is broadhead choice, 3 blade vs. 2 blade.

eddie

[Chad Edgar]

Eddie, have never hunted bear so take my answer with a grain of salt.  From what I have read you want a 3 blade for better blood trail.  Thick hair on bears and they like thick cover as well were the reasons given.  Bears are supposed to have pretty thin skin but a tough shoulder.  Hopefully someone with experience can comment.

[JIMMY ROGERS]

Eddie-I have killed two black bears with almost the exact set-up you are using. The first was a broadside shot and the big snuffer passed thru the chest and down the opposite leg to exit at the elbow. The bear went 20yds. The second was quarting away and the snuffer lodged in the opposite shoulder.

[Eddie C]

glad to hear those answers. thanks, guys.

[Rick McGowan]

You'll be fine. Don't expect a great blood trail, fall bears have a lot of fat and hair, they just don't bleed well, but if you double lung them, they fold up FAST. I would only take a broadside shot personally and I have shot quite a few bears.

[sticks]

ive taken a few myself, put the arrow where it should be, through the lungs, you'll have a dead bear blood trail or not. its important to freeze after you make your shot till the bear it out of sight, or down. everyone ive taken has turned and either tried to chew at the entrance hole or bite out the arrow. if it sees you might not be to fun. just take high percentage shots like rick said and you'll be fine.

[Eddie C]

thanks guys.

[willie1]

I've taken a four bears with a 50# recurve and 2 blade broadheads. Two have been around the three hundred pound mark. I've shot through all of them using Zephyr Sasquatch heads. WIDER is better!!!

Like everyone here has said, shot placement is the key.  Broadside is good, but I personally think a quartering away shot is best.

Good luck!
DW

[Rick McGowan]

I'll tell you why I prefer the broadside shot. Bears don't have very big lungs and like humans they can survive on one lung very well, its just a bit easier to insure taking out both lungs with a broadside bear AND get an exit hole.

[tippit]

My set up has been 47-50# 2 bladed magnus 125 gr. no problem shooting pass thru.  I agree with broadside to quartering away but I wait until that front leg closest to me has moved forward.  They have a realatively small chest and that front leg can deflect/protect them...Jeff

[willie1]

My preference is quartering away. I say that because I haven't had a bear go any further than 50 yards with any quartering away shot. Even though you might only get one lung, you sometimes punch a hole through the liver, and most always punch a hole through the diaphram, getting one lung and the arrow usually blows out the other side, underneath the front leg (arm pit).

I heard a theory about why they expire so quickly with an arrow. When bears go to sleep for the winter, their blood pressure and heart rate drops drastically. When they take an arrow, their blood pressure drops probably even more so and they lay down as if they're going to hinernate and expire immediately. It's just a theory though.

DW

[Eddie C]

thanks, guys. i appreciate all the comments and suggestions.

eddie