Wondering and wandering

[Frank500]

I’m really happy with a P365 as my carry pistol. Hiking in the mountains I need something bigger when my Scout stays home.
My 4” 500 certainly qualifies as a bear gun but dang it’s heavy even in a chest rig. Evan Hill at Hill People Gear made a compelling argument in favor of an M&P 5” 40. Lighter than 1911, has a safety and I can beat it up and not care.
I live and play in NW Wyoming with gbears and wolves so the extra magazine capacity could certainly be helpful.
Would love to hear experience with the M&P. My load would a 200 grain WFN at a thousand or a bit more. We’ve done this load in P220 and G whatever’s

[claymore504]

All can say is the M&P in 40SW is a great gun. The M&P handles the 40 nicely. I had a 1.0 40 4.25" barrel for a while and it was good, minus the lack of grip texture. Then I got a 5 inch M2.0 40SW and it was excellent. The M2.0s in 40S&W can be had for some low proces as well.

[JTQ]

I see you're new to the forum. Welcome.

This thread may be a worthwhile read for you "HK USP 45 field pistol"

https://pistol-forum.com/showthread....5-field-pistol

[rd62]

I see you're new to the forum. Welcome.

This thread may be a worthwhile read for you "HK USP 45 field pistol"

https://pistol-forum.com/showthread....5-field-pistol

I was going to suggest this thread as well

[Joshmill]

10mm has a lot going for it too. Just throwing that out there.

[deputyG23]

I’m really happy with a P365 as my carry pistol. Hiking in the mountains I need something bigger when my Scout stays home.
My 4” 500 certainly qualifies as a bear gun but dang it’s heavy even in a chest rig. Evan Hill at Hill People Gear made a compelling argument in favor of an M&P 5” 40. Lighter than 1911, has a safety and I can beat it up and not care.
I live and play in NW Wyoming with gbears and wolves so the extra magazine capacity could certainly be helpful.
Would love to hear experience with the M&P. My load would a 200 grain WFN at a thousand or a bit more. We’ve done this load in P220 and G whatever’s

Could you disclose the data for the 200 grain handload? I have a bunch of 200 grain .40 bullets on hand that I got from an estate.

[JAH 3rd]

I have a full-size S&W M&P 45acp 2.0. I also have a 1.0 version of the same pistol. I like the 2.0 better primarily for the better trigger pull and grip surface. The grip area has a more aggressive texture compared to the 1.0. This helps to better secure the pistol in the hand. You also have the option of a thumb safety or not. Both my 1.0 and 2.0 have been 100% reliable with all ammo. Just my experience with them.

[Bigghoss]

In addition to the USP field pistol thread the grizzly bear defense thread is a good read.

https://pistol-forum.com/showthread....y-Bear-Defense

There are a few other good outdoor defensive threads too if you want to search them out but the USP thread and the grizz thread should have you pretty well covered. To sum it up, basically any handgun is statistically shown to keep you alive in a bear attack but for a little more assurance against brown bears a .45 Super or a 10mm loaded with Lehigh extreme penetrators is a good option.

An M&P40 is a good pistol. I sold my 1.0 and got a 2.0, they both seem to kick a little less than a Glock and the police trade-in guns are dirt cheap. Used mags are as little as $10 each too so I grabbed a bunch. You can add a safety to a model that doesn't have one but sometimes you have to hunt down the parts to do it. Aftermarket support is really good too.

[sheepdog]

Personally, if I was in brown bear country, I wouldn't go with anything less powerful than a 10mm (e.g. Glock 20). I'm at best in black bear country, so I prefer .357 SIG.

[PNWTO]

Following with some interest; I thought Evan’s post was pretty sound. Between the USP-45 thread and some other discussions about the Lehigh Penetrators it can be pretty clear where this forum stands.

Living in the NW, I’m pretty content with the Hornady 135gr +P in my 19 for most everything, including the wilderness. But I do have desire every so often to either get a G23 or G30 and “Roland-ize” it with a KKM comp and see how it shakes out. I think 10mm is neat and a G20 is probably the best .40 delivery system out there right now.