We used to have a good bunch of guys here in our bear hunting party. We did pretty good too for PA. In 8 seasons of hunting together, we harvested 6 bear. From a little one of 175 lbs, to the biggest one weighing in at 425 lbs. I had that particular bruin in my sights for an instant, but didn't drop the hammer on it. All I had was a hind side to shot, and waited for it to turn. It didn't,lol. But, one of our party got the sucker and he was a beauty. I am planning to hunt them again next fall with the Knight .50. My B-In-Law goes up to Potter county to hunt them and they usually get into bear a couple times a season. I will be using either the No Excuses or Bull Shops .460gr conical over 115 gr of BH209. Grouse and I ran a couple over the crony a week or so ago and the No Excuses was stepping out at a little over 1700 fps. I figure the extra bullet weight will be nice on a raking shot or encounter with a shoulder bone. What the heck, I am going to take that load Elk hunting, I may as well field test it a bit. The 250 Shockwave is shooting great for me, but I like big hunks of lead. If I were going to be using a .45, I would go with the hottest Barnes bullet load I could shoot well with to 100 yds. Then limit my shots to that distance. A wounded bear can put a bunch of real estate behind him in a very short time. They can be a real pain in the butt to track too without a good exit hole. Hit them hard,forward of where you would a deer, and bust some running gear in the process. Practice reloading without looking at what you are doing too :wink:.