Smart move Ruger, Glock 20 this, Glock 40 that, I went with the Super Redhawk Alaskan 44 magnum for my hunting backup after countless hours of internet research. On my first Montana black bear hunt I carried a 300 Winchester Short Magnum slung on my shoulder and bear spray on a chest rig, good enough I thought. While walking up the side of a mountain wash I was focused on the climb with my rifle slung while breathing quite heavily, I momentarily looked to my left and on the other side of the wash was a bear. Cunningly and jokerlike the bear was walking step by step with me. Being a novice the first thing I did was activate my head mounted camera, I wasted 10 seconds with that move and by time I brought my rifle to my shoulder the bear had retreated into the treeline. Three lessons learned:
1 - The heck with my video equiptment when a photo after the conquest will do.
2 - Bears are highly inteligent animals.
3 - If my rifle were slung during an out of the blue bear charge I would not have enough time to get a shot off. A cross draw back up gun is needed while hunting.
At a different location on the same hunt I had just left my truck and was walking up a dirt road in the national forest with my rifle slung, it would look looney to have my rifle at the ready with vehicles driving by, plus the fact it is against the law to hunt from a road. I heard loggers cutting down trees in the distance and just my luck they scared a big ol' black bear right into my path on the road and we met face to face at about 20 yards. He paused and just stared me down, then luckily for me he took a left off the road but stopped on the side of the road and paused again. There was my trophy, a 300 pound plus bear I could easily identify as a black bear. It stood there sideways with a flat nose profile and no back hump, being a $8,000 fine for shooting a grizzly I unslung my rifle and wanted to reverify it was a black bear. The bear was so close all I saw in my 3x9 scope was brown fur and was not able to find a proper shot before he finally bolted into the brush. So much for a 3x9 scope hunting the forest.
Two Lessons learned:
1 - When hunting in the forest a 3x9 scope is not optimal. Iron sites or a 1x4 scope are best. Very few shots will be long range.
2 - I needed a crossdraw back up gun.
Returning home from the hunt I started doing my homework on a handy to reach backup gun I could carry crossdraw so it would not rub my rifle when slung on my shoulder or at the ready while walking. Also to justify the purchase the gun had to be a valid self defense tool for my nightstand, open carry in public, and concealable inside the waistband. The Ruger Super Redhawk Alaskan in 44 magnum was my choice. With the right hot loads it will down big dangerous game with proper shot placement, and the realization a few hundred practice rounds at the range will be required to become adequate with the 2.5 inch barrel.
While researching for a backup hunting gun the forums were full of 10mm stories telling of big grizzly kills in Alaska and the round capacity of a Glock 20 plus all its reliability. That very well maybe the case and hats off to Gaston Glock, but by time you purchase a glock 20, a quality aftermarket rifled 6 inch barrel that lets you shoot lead bullets at a higher velocity, plus a heavy duty recoil spring to handle hot loads, you are in the price range of quality big bore revolvers. I say at the end of the day if you want a Glock by a Glock, but Ruger has just opened up a whole new playing field with the Super Redhawk in 10mm.
Ruger has a 10mm revolver with a 6.5 inch barrel as its initial offering and at first glance I thought what a great hunting gun. The Super Redhawk with its overbuilt tank frame and hogue rubber grip could certainly handle the hottest 10mm loads out there. The plus to this is the reliability of a revolver capable of scope mounting. With my backup gun train of thought I wondered why they did not go with the standard Redhawk model and make it available in 4.2 and 5 inch barrel lengths. But I must say I chose the Super Redhawk model due to the better user friendly grip and seperate trigger and hammer springs.
The 10mm SRH revolver with the strength of the stainless steel frame is going to open up a whole new chapter in bullet weight and powder loadings, awesome. Also, due to a whole lotta cylinder room a new cartridge is hopefully coming our way. There is a 10mm magnum cartridge floating around out there but the current SRH is stamped 10mm Auto.
The next thing to look for are the distributor special offerings for the SRH 10mm, here is my list.
1 - A non-fluted cylinder with 7 or 8 round capacity?
2 - A standard Redhawk 10mm model with 4.2 and 5 inch barrel, the hotter heavy loads are coming. All around woods gun.
3 - If a shorter barrel SRH is made in 10mm please have it come with custom sights fitted for barrel length.
This is exciting stuff, thanks Ruger.
Two other lessons I learned on my first hunt.
1 - Never chase a bear up a mountain unless you are in great shape.
2 - Never try to pee uphill. Lol.
Video of myself practicing with the Super Redhawk Alaskan 44.
Here is a great article on how to "SPOT" game while hunting.
This post was edited with parts of my bear encounters removed pertaining to binoculars versus the rifle scope. I was uncomfortably close to two bears while on a bear hunt with my rifle slung. The first encounter I grabbed my binoculars, then realized clearly seeing it was a bear I should of unslung my rifle for my own safety. The second bear encounter I did just that, unslung my rifle and put my scope on the bear. Distinguishing a grizzly from black bear is important, but for my own safety I did it with my rifle scope as opposed to binoculars. Where I have hunted the last three times is dense forest, the grizzlies roam carefree with no natual enemies, and the moose don't spook, they stand there and growl. A few plateaus on the mountains provide maybe 50 yards of open view. When in the thick of it during a hunt I walk with my rifle at the ready, safety on of course. At times there are hikers around that are very bear aware, they wear bells, put bells on their dogs, bang pots and pan together as they walk, yodel and yell. This is effective and acceptable but may spook animals into the path of others, similar to the chainsaw sending a bear up the road I was walking on with my rifle slung, as mentioned in the post. It is against the law to hunt from the road or shoot across a road in Montana. Some hikers even wear hunter orange during hunting season. Be safe and considerate of others but the goal is to hunt.
Hunt definition-
Pursue and kill (a wild animal) for sport or food:
1 - The heck with my video equiptment when a photo after the conquest will do.
2 - Bears are highly inteligent animals.
3 - If my rifle were slung during an out of the blue bear charge I would not have enough time to get a shot off. A cross draw back up gun is needed while hunting.
At a different location on the same hunt I had just left my truck and was walking up a dirt road in the national forest with my rifle slung, it would look looney to have my rifle at the ready with vehicles driving by, plus the fact it is against the law to hunt from a road. I heard loggers cutting down trees in the distance and just my luck they scared a big ol' black bear right into my path on the road and we met face to face at about 20 yards. He paused and just stared me down, then luckily for me he took a left off the road but stopped on the side of the road and paused again. There was my trophy, a 300 pound plus bear I could easily identify as a black bear. It stood there sideways with a flat nose profile and no back hump, being a $8,000 fine for shooting a grizzly I unslung my rifle and wanted to reverify it was a black bear. The bear was so close all I saw in my 3x9 scope was brown fur and was not able to find a proper shot before he finally bolted into the brush. So much for a 3x9 scope hunting the forest.
Two Lessons learned:
1 - When hunting in the forest a 3x9 scope is not optimal. Iron sites or a 1x4 scope are best. Very few shots will be long range.
2 - I needed a crossdraw back up gun.
Returning home from the hunt I started doing my homework on a handy to reach backup gun I could carry crossdraw so it would not rub my rifle when slung on my shoulder or at the ready while walking. Also to justify the purchase the gun had to be a valid self defense tool for my nightstand, open carry in public, and concealable inside the waistband. The Ruger Super Redhawk Alaskan in 44 magnum was my choice. With the right hot loads it will down big dangerous game with proper shot placement, and the realization a few hundred practice rounds at the range will be required to become adequate with the 2.5 inch barrel.
While researching for a backup hunting gun the forums were full of 10mm stories telling of big grizzly kills in Alaska and the round capacity of a Glock 20 plus all its reliability. That very well maybe the case and hats off to Gaston Glock, but by time you purchase a glock 20, a quality aftermarket rifled 6 inch barrel that lets you shoot lead bullets at a higher velocity, plus a heavy duty recoil spring to handle hot loads, you are in the price range of quality big bore revolvers. I say at the end of the day if you want a Glock by a Glock, but Ruger has just opened up a whole new playing field with the Super Redhawk in 10mm.
Ruger has a 10mm revolver with a 6.5 inch barrel as its initial offering and at first glance I thought what a great hunting gun. The Super Redhawk with its overbuilt tank frame and hogue rubber grip could certainly handle the hottest 10mm loads out there. The plus to this is the reliability of a revolver capable of scope mounting. With my backup gun train of thought I wondered why they did not go with the standard Redhawk model and make it available in 4.2 and 5 inch barrel lengths. But I must say I chose the Super Redhawk model due to the better user friendly grip and seperate trigger and hammer springs.
The 10mm SRH revolver with the strength of the stainless steel frame is going to open up a whole new chapter in bullet weight and powder loadings, awesome. Also, due to a whole lotta cylinder room a new cartridge is hopefully coming our way. There is a 10mm magnum cartridge floating around out there but the current SRH is stamped 10mm Auto.
The next thing to look for are the distributor special offerings for the SRH 10mm, here is my list.
1 - A non-fluted cylinder with 7 or 8 round capacity?
2 - A standard Redhawk 10mm model with 4.2 and 5 inch barrel, the hotter heavy loads are coming. All around woods gun.
3 - If a shorter barrel SRH is made in 10mm please have it come with custom sights fitted for barrel length.
This is exciting stuff, thanks Ruger.
Two other lessons I learned on my first hunt.
1 - Never chase a bear up a mountain unless you are in great shape.
2 - Never try to pee uphill. Lol.
Video of myself practicing with the Super Redhawk Alaskan 44.
Here is a great article on how to "SPOT" game while hunting.
This post was edited with parts of my bear encounters removed pertaining to binoculars versus the rifle scope. I was uncomfortably close to two bears while on a bear hunt with my rifle slung. The first encounter I grabbed my binoculars, then realized clearly seeing it was a bear I should of unslung my rifle for my own safety. The second bear encounter I did just that, unslung my rifle and put my scope on the bear. Distinguishing a grizzly from black bear is important, but for my own safety I did it with my rifle scope as opposed to binoculars. Where I have hunted the last three times is dense forest, the grizzlies roam carefree with no natual enemies, and the moose don't spook, they stand there and growl. A few plateaus on the mountains provide maybe 50 yards of open view. When in the thick of it during a hunt I walk with my rifle at the ready, safety on of course. At times there are hikers around that are very bear aware, they wear bells, put bells on their dogs, bang pots and pan together as they walk, yodel and yell. This is effective and acceptable but may spook animals into the path of others, similar to the chainsaw sending a bear up the road I was walking on with my rifle slung, as mentioned in the post. It is against the law to hunt from the road or shoot across a road in Montana. Some hikers even wear hunter orange during hunting season. Be safe and considerate of others but the goal is to hunt.
Hunt definition-
Pursue and kill (a wild animal) for sport or food:
