Welcome to MO. Your friend is right wou will find A bunch of helpfull guys on here.
IMO Garrett may be overkill for blackies.
Someone with more bear experiance than I will be along soon.

Why are you angry? ;D

 

Welcome to MO from central Florida. I wouldn't think you need Garrett ammo for a black bear hunt. Now I might consider it if the bear was brown, big and grizzly.

Enjoy the rifle and the hunt.....

 

I use Randy's ammo for bear hunting . For the blackies I use his 420 gr load , it is very powerful and holds a good trajectory out past 200 yards and will still knock the stuffing out of that bear at distance . I have shot a few smaller bears in my day but prefer to look for the big ones and yes black bear do get pretty big and can be very dangerous . For hunting the browns in Alaska I use his 540 gr load . Still have some of his older 415 gr loads and they work great on blacks too. Since using his ammo I have never had to take a follow up shot but always ready if need be .

 

I would not bother with the garrett ammo, did you look at the price list? For black bear the 405 grain Remington factory ammo will work just fine.

 

I like Garrett's ammo with which you cannot go wrong and carry it in my .44 Magnum but you can also consider Buffalo Bore ammo. http://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l=product_list&c=35

 

I would not bother with the garrett ammo, did you look at the price list? For black bear the 405 grain Remington factory ammo will work just fine.

i completely understand where you're coming from, but adversely, i'm paying a lot of money (for me anyway) for a hunt that a flatlander like myself will probably only get to do once or twice in a lifetime, so a box of semi-overkill and maybe overpriced ammo is little more than trip insurance...it's about the peace of mind for me, knowing that bear will drop in it's tracks. i appreciate the input from everyone.

 

I would be a tad upset if on a trip of a lifetime you skimped on the ammo and lost a bear. Go with the best you can afford and have no regrets. The few bucks extra ensure fond memories and a bear.

My two cents worth.

 

The last two bears I shot were shot with 30-30's. Factory rem's will get it done.

 

i live in new york and i'm going bear hunting this fall... i got a box of buffalo bores 405 grains at 2000fps.. should do the trick. Bears are massive but they don't have any hide or massive layers of muscle thick like cinder block walls to bust through... seems to be what the buffalo breo website recommends

 

Welcome Dave, Now don't get angry but: No doubt, there is no better ammo out there but many here will confess they are capable of producing the same quality ammo by reloading and spend a whole lot less. With the 45-70 pretty much any commercial hunting ammo will kill black bear. The odds of the ammo you choose spoiling your hunt is far less than the odds of spoiling your hunt by not being throughly attuned to the function and shooting characteristic of your new 45-70. In other words you need to put a lot of rounds down range before the hunt. At $60+ a box that desire will significantly be compromised. Post this statement and see what responses you get: Who knows of a hunter that missed his kill of a lifetime because of lack of proficiency or unfamiliarly with his weapon? I am confident you will find this much more significant than round selection for a big bore.

 

i completely understand where you're coming from, but adversely, i'm paying a lot of money (for me anyway) for a hunt that a flatlander like myself will probably only get to do once or twice in a lifetime, so a box of semi-overkill and maybe overpriced ammo is little more than trip insurance...it's about the peace of mind for me, knowing that bear will drop in it's tracks. i appreciate the input from everyone.

Sound reasoning kinda, so good luck with your hunt as that pricey ammo sure as heck will not hurt a thing...except the bear.

 

Welcome Dave, Now don't get angry but: No doubt, there is no better ammo out there but many here will confess they are capable of producing the same quality ammo by reloading and spend a whole lot less. With the 45-70 pretty much any commercial hunting ammo will kill black bear. The odds of the ammo you choose spoiling your hunt is far less than the odds of spoiling your hunt by not being throughly attuned to the function and shooting characteristic of your new 45-70. In other words you need to put a lot of rounds down range before the hunt. At $60+ a box that desire will significantly be compromised. Post this statement and see what responses you get: Who knows of a hunter that missed his kill of a lifetime because of lack of proficiency or unfamiliarly with his weapon? I am confident you will find this much more significant than round selection for a big bore.

Solid reasoning. I've been accused of going a little overboard in the past...baby steps though. I had originally wanted to take my .416 rigby. I'm going to kill some pigs with it this weekend, so I'll feed some different loads from different manufacturers and see what's what. I've got a Cabelas 5 minutes from my house that surprisingly carries a lot of options for the 45-70.

 

If your going to go with Garretts ammo, (and I see no reason why not), I'd recommend his 350gr Woodleigh @ 2000fps, that should give you what your looking for.

Where abouts are you going black bear hunting?

And welcome to the Site!

 

the first bear was taken in Alaska with a standard Marlin 1895 in 45-70.Bullet enterd the laeft front shoulder and was recovered in the right rear ham just below the skin.The second was with my 1895MR in 450 Marlin.She just rolled forward without even a moan.The bullet was not recovered.Both rounds use the 325 grain ftx bullet.I believe in the LE ammo.If you are more comfortable using the Garret........by all means ...use them.But dont feel under powered using the Hornaday factory loads on Blackies.It is really not about the ammo you use..........but where you put the ammo you use.

 

Welcome Dave, Now don't get angry but: No doubt, there is no better ammo out there but many here will confess they are capable of producing the same quality ammo by reloading and spend a whole lot less. With the 45-70 pretty much any commercial hunting ammo will kill black bear. The odds of the ammo you choose spoiling your hunt is far less than the odds of spoiling your hunt by not being throughly attuned to the function and shooting characteristic of your new 45-70. In other words you need to put a lot of rounds down range before the hunt. At $60+ a box that desire will significantly be compromised. Post this statement and see what responses you get: Who knows of a hunter that missed his kill of a lifetime because of lack of proficiency or unfamiliarly with his weapon? I am confident you will find this much more significant than round selection for a big bore.

Granted some good ammo can be made reloading, but same quality?? Garrett ammo is good for a reason and he commands the price he does for a reason. His ammo is accurate, the performance is repeatable, and it delivers. It's one thing to kill a deer with a reload, quite another to go after dangerous game. Only experienced reloaders will do that, and sometimes they would rather get some of Randy's stuff. For the hunt of a lifetime and one where your life is on the line, maybe the money is worth it. We have also had some members here go to Africa on safari with reloads and did great, but then they were experienced reloaders too. I don't think they would say their ammo is the equal of Randy's products.

Just another opinion...

 

If you decide to go with Garretts, don''t go with the reall heavies. Overkill for Blackies and not particularly enjoyable to shoot.
300Gr (ish) will definitely do the job on a Black bear. As many have said, the Hornaday LE, or 300Gr/405Gr factory loads will also do the job. But in a once in a lifetime hunt, what is $80 on 20rds of ammo - well quite a bit when you want to get 60-100 of them down range to ensure you are really comfortable with the gun - $400 before you have even left town!
If it were me, I would buy a bunch of 405Gr Rems or similar and practice plenty. Actually if it were me I would reload something suitable.
You say you have a 416 Rigby, if you have had that a while and are comfortable with it, why not use that. Blasphemy I know, but do you have time to get comfortable with the Marlin?

 

Garrett makes the highest quality ammo on the market in my opinion. I use his ammo for elk but for black bear, I would think anything more than his standard 420 grain load would be a bit much.
Good luck.

 

I'm going to have to disagree with T-bone's opinion.

Randy's ammunition may be accurate indeed, but by nature of his business, he must manufacture ammunition that will chamber and fire in every firearm suitable for use with his ammo.

When I handload for my 45-70, I only neck size the brass so that it centers properly in the chamber, the bullet is loaded to a specific length that my guide gun will feed, and leaves the bullet very close to the rifling to reduce freebore.

The fact is handloads can be tailored to Your specific rifle and need not chamber in other rifles.

Tailoring the ammo to your rifle gives potential accuracy that can far surpass any commercial loadings.

Aside from which, I am willing to bet my QC on my rounds is far stricter than that of most commercial outfits. I reload at the most 50 at a time for my Marlin, and every single bullet is weighed for consistency, as with every powder charge, and every primer is checked to assure it is not high. As well, every single round is also checked for consistent OAL.

I doubt that any commercial ammo manufacturer goes to these lengths.

Though, maybe Randy does, and maybe that is why the price is so high!

 

THX,

Before you write Randy off, you might check out this thread [this topic has gone around several times before.]

http://www.marlinowners.com/forums/index.php/topic,21582.0.html

 

The Garrett ammo seems to do good in most all reviews I have seen but the price is high. I have read the reports that a solid bullet moving 1600 fps will out penetrate the same bullet moving 2100 fps. My Question is what happens to the solid bullet moving 2100 fps (458 Win mag) as it slows down to 1600 fps in the wet news paper or game. I would think from that point it would penetrate the same as the bullet that started out at 1600 fps. Some will say the faster slap of the 2100 fps bullet as it hits slows it down, that would be energy being transferred to the target. Two things are needed to kill game quickly, Shock and penetration. I love my 45-70 but it's no 458 Win Mag and it won't be with Garrett ammo or even my reloads. I have a Ruger no.1 and a Rem 798 safari in 458 so I am ..... typing from experience. I don't see any reason to use $80 to $150 a box ammo for Black bear. Shot placement with a good bullet is all that is needed. A good hunter will shoot many boxes of the ammo before he or she will be using it on a once in a life time hunt and at $80 a box, that will add up. The best ammo that you can use for your gun is the ammo you loaded. . The price for the loading equipment, bullets, powder, BOOKS and primers will quickly save money over any factory ammo in 45-70.

 

"Overpriced ammo is little more than trip insurance...it's about the peace of mind for me, knowing that bear will drop in it's tracks."
"I would be a tad upset if on a trip of a lifetime you skimped on the ammo and lost a bear. Go with the best you can afford and have no regrets. The few bucks extra ensure fond memories and a bear."

IMO these guys have it exactly right.
Sure Garrett's stuff is expensive. But it is supremely powerfull, super accurate, precision handloaded ammo crafted by a guy who knows his trade and knows about big bore hunting.
Hornady Leverevolution is another good choice. Also a bit pricey, but again, very accurate in most rifles, and very powerfull.
Any .45-70 round will kill a black bear with precise shot placement. But when we start talking about really big bears, not always perfect conditions, the realities of slightly misplaced shots, expensive hunting trips, and rifles capable of handling the stouter rounds, premium ammunition makes a lot of sense.
These cartridges really make the .45-70 perform, and get the most from the Marlin 1895 platform.

I took Garrett's 420g +P's at 1850 fps on my "hunt of a lifetime" trip to Alberta this spring, and took two nice bears. The larger of the two was at 160 yards and took three or four, three legged lunges before piling up dead. The smaller one, a beautiful chocolate color phase, was at about 75 yards, and piled up on his nose with his hind end still up in the air, dead without taking a step.
Sitting on the ground next to the big black one, with my hands on that big beautiful pumpkin of a head, I couldn't even remember what that box of shells, (or the one I used to site in), cost!

 

I completely agree with Airwinky.

I know I've spent more than $80 in a pub in a night. $80 for piece of mind and something you'll remember the rest of your life seems like a good investment to me!

 

I completely agree with Airwinky.

I know I've spent more than $80 in a pub in a night. $80 for piece of mind and something you'll remember the rest of your life seems like a good investment to me!

I agree, $80 for hunting insurance is nothing. Buy it, shoot it and have a great time!

 

this whole thread may have been in vein. Randy's site says he's closed for business...anybody have any idea what's going on?

 

this whole thread may have been in vein. Randy's site says he's closed for business...anybody have any idea what's going on?

"temporarily"