Is the 7mm Rem Mag overkill for black bear? Not hardly.  Below this large bear is likely a boar and didn’t get this big by being stupid. 

Ursus Americanus Photo Courtesy Wikipedia – Photo taken in Quebec

Many bring the venerable 300 Winchester Magnum with 180g bullets. Yes, you can kill bear with most deer rifle calibers, but I only have three rifles to choose from, (6.5Creedmoor, 7 Rem Mag, .375 Ruger).  On the other hand, my .375 Ruger is my anything rifle and has already taken 2 large moose. 

I have plenty of 7mm 175g AccuBond LR’s left from my moose hunt four-plus months ago, as Canadian Customs would not let me take it. What? Yes,they said, “if you are not going directly to the hunt, you can’t cross the border with it”.

Well, I’m hunting black bear over bait in the USA-Maine and I may use my Browning X-Bolt in 7mm Rem Mag with those 175g ABLR’s, though Crossbow is possible. Rifle distance to bait is about 75 yards. Crossbow distance to bait is 20 yards. 

They are chronoing around 3000 fps at the muzzle. The ABLR is softer thus it will mushroom very well under 100 yards and make a big exit hole for blood trailing. My Browning 7mm below has a Leupold VX-6 on it with optional lighted crosshairs.

I tried shooting black crosshairs on a black target, and in fading light, it was next to impossible to see. I just replaced the battery on the red crosshair light to make sure it was ready for the bear hunt.  The trigger is a crisp Timney set at 3 pounds. 

On my 2024 September bear hunt, the state reports bear numbers are nearly 24,000 to 36,000 bears. My hunt area has about 1 bear per square mile.  I do not know the ratio of boar to sow but am aiming for a sizable representative of the species. 

Good Hunting!

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