Over the past two years, I have fired more 22 ARCs than any other rifle cartridge. This is followed by 22 and 6.5 Creedmoor. Between factory and hand-loaded ammo, I’ve fired over 6,000 rounds of 22 ARC – half of it through one barrel. I became attracted to shooting heavier bullets on these modern 22s after seeing how well they behaved in the air at 1,000 yards. This, combined with positive – and reliable – early reports on terminal performance from my friends Tom Beckstrand guns and ammo, and Colton Bagnoli North American Whitetail, I theorized that the 22 ARC, and others firing these modern bullets, could be an ideal choice for medium-sized game such as deer, antelope and black bear. To make sure my theory was correct, I went and killed a moose.
Since then I have continued shooting and testing the modern 22, killed a few black bears, an antelope, and compiled much more range data. But I also have it in my mind to kill a grizzly. That’s not because I think it’s the ideal Grizzly cartridge. Rather, using it for what some consider North America’s most formidable sport will provide a valuable and interesting data point. After all, if it works well on moose and grizzly bears, it will obviously be good enough for deer, too.
Moose Hunting with .22 ARC
rifle
The 22 ARC that I shoot and hunt the most is a build I screwed together around a Zermatt Arms Origin action. It features a 20-inch barrel chambered by Eric Hoover at Hoover Precision Rifles, and it is the most accurate, confidence-inspiring rifle I have ever owned. I’ve got over 3,000 rounds through the barrel and it’s still a hammer. I have used this rifle extensively with the MDT CRBN stock, but for this hunt it was configured with the Manners PPF.
Rifle Specifications:
- Action: Zermatt Arms Origin SA
- Barrel: Proof Research 1:7 Twist, 20-Inch
- Stock: Courtesy PPF
- Optic: Steiner H6Xi 2-12x FFP MIL
- Suppressor: Airlock Industries Zero Gravity Nano
Gun Shot
Bullet construction is a big component of how effective any cartridge is. Some people will plant their flag in that statement to advocate their favorite particular type of bullet, but there are many different .224 slugs that will produce impressive results on larger game. The 80-grain Hornady ELD-X is one with which I have seen decisive penetration and wound cavities. This bullet has a long lead core and very thick jacket, which helps to move the material away faster and keep the lead column from being depleted as quickly as a match bullet. This results in a slightly smaller wound channel, but better penetration. In fact, I have found the 80-grain .224 ELD-X to penetrate the 90-grain .243 ELDX with nearly identical wound cavities.
22 ARC vs 243 Winchester: This Ballistic Gel Test Will Surprise You
While I have shot the 80-grain ELD-X extensively, I chose to use the McGuire Ballistics 71-grain Copper Rose for this bear. These are monolithic copper bullets that look like solid, but have an internal cavity in the nose which causes violent expansion after which the petals of the bullet break and radiate. I have photographed many bears and large pigs with them and am always impressed.
I loaded these bullets with the Vargate into my 22 ARC at a muzzle velocity of about 3,100 fps. From this rifle, these will print 20-shot aggregate groups at about an inch at 100 yards, and the bullets will top out at an effective range of 2,000 fps at about 600 yards. Most of my bear hunting is at very close range, but the shooting ability and reps I get from this system give me a lot of confidence at any practical distance.
Bear
Hunting grizzly bears for bait in the interior of Alaska has been one of my favorite things to do for many years. What appears to be, and can sometimes be, a straightforward hunting strategy usually ends up being an exercise in patience, persistence, and frustration. With the appropriate time and effort applied, I have been fortunate enough to usually get one shot at a mature grizzly per season. Usually time, weather, and the grizzly’s nose give them the advantage – and I go home empty-handed.
But this night was different. When I went in to check the bait, I stinks Grizzlies This is always a good sign. The air was moist and musty due to the torrential storm. I climbed over a large pile of trash to get the SD card out of my camera. There had been at least six different grizzlies near the bait within the previous 24 hours and, with some food left, I was sure a bear would return.
It didn’t take long for a small brown creature to appear. It was possibly a 3-year-old child who had recently been eviscerated. Then around 10 pm, I heard the unmistakable sound of a bear’s paws tapping on muskeg, as if it got scared and ran away from me. It had either seen my boat or cut off my tracks. Like a mature whitetail, grizzly bears will spook away as soon as they smell your tracks.
About an hour later, a branch broke, sending a bear charging through the alder bushes next to my bait site. Then another. I silently raised my rifle to my shoulder and got ready for the shot. While grizzly bears will often come to bait and offer a shot, I have missed opportunities on bears who saw something they didn’t like and either got scared or simply walked away. Now I take the first proper shot on offer.
The bear’s head appeared from the screen of brush about 15 yards away and I could tell it was mature. After taking a few more steps it stopped and I rapidly fired a shot into both lungs. The bear sat down and began to turn around to run in the direction I had come cycling. Bear gained momentum with his first two boundaries, and I hit him again. The big bear fell into a hole in the bank of alder. The immediate sound of air through the chest cavity indicated the effectiveness of my first shot and the bear died sooner than I had seen. He had walked less than ten yards.
post mortem
The bear was an old pig whose molars were worn out almost to the gums. The first shot, placed about six inches behind the front shoulder, angled downwards and passed over the brisket. The bullet’s travel from entry to exit was approximately 20 inches. Based on my experience shooting a group of other grizzlies with everything from stone arrows to .338 and .375, I expect this bear to have run 25 to 75 yards before being finished.
The follow-up shot was equally interesting and represents a less ideal effect that small-caliber critics often use in their criticisms. Like the femur-exploding shot on my moose, this was a good representation of a shot where I couldn’t choose the angle or shot placement, I just had to shoot. The bullet hit the bear at the base, or thick part, of the scapula – what some people call the shoulder blade. Due to this, the three inch thick bone was completely shattered and the bullet entered the bear’s body, due to which it fell. With lung trauma from the first shot, the bear died faster than any other grizzly I had killed—including one I had shot twice at close range with a .338 Win. Mag.
Highlights from Shooting a Grizzly with the 22 ARC
Using a piss-ant cartridge like the 22 ARC to kill a grizzly bear certainly goes against conventional wisdom, and it evokes a lot of emotions and reactions. Some people will write this off as stunt shooting and others will interpret it as an argument that the 22 is best for everything. Both are not correct. Conventional wisdom has its value, but if you’re not afraid to question it, and investigate for yourself, you’ll find that not all of it is particularly true. Ultimately, shooting this bear is just a small part of a years-long effort to find out the effectiveness of this cartridge. This is a single data point, but the Bullet worked as expected. Having shot this cartridge extensively, the end result of this hunt was not surprising to me at all.
what doesn’t it mean
Like the 6.5 Creedmoor, I don’t think that one example of cleanly killing a Grizzly with the 22 ARC means that it is the ideal Grizzly cartridge for most people. I am an experienced bear hunter, and choosing the proper shot angle while maintaining my composure is not a problem. If you are booking a once in a lifetime grizzly or brown bear hunt, this is not the one you should choose. But I would recommend bringing a rifle you are very comfortable and experienced with – even if your booking agent tries to talk you into abandoning the .30/06 or .270 for the .338 Win. Mag. A rifle that you can shoot accurately under stress will perform much better than a larger rifle that you can’t shoot well.
I think the 22 ARC is a far more reasonable choice for bears (especially on bait) than most people think, but going something larger won’t hurt – even if the benefits are mostly in your mind.
what does it indicate
As another data point in my collection, killing this bear reinforces my opinion that many modern .224 bullets are extremely effective. For many hunters, they are also a capable and ideal choice for deer-sized game. Considering the performance of moose, big black bears, and this grizzly, it seems a bit silly to argue otherwise.
Another thing this experience reinforced for me is the value of a low-recoiling cartridge that allows you to shoot well and fire your rifle fast – and it doesn’t matter what it is. Most of us grew up in a place where it was normal for us to move away from the visual picture. Can you still kill shooting that way? Yes. Is this ideal? No, those who come to the defense of their beloved noblemen regard tolerance of retreat as a sacrament of manhood. They miss the forest for the trees. The appeal of modern .224s is their combination of accuracy, marksmanship, and lethality. As I’ve matured in my hunting career, I’ve come to prioritize shot placement – and making good decisions about when to shoot or not – above everything else. I have yet to be disappointed by it. In the coming season I and other hunters will continue to demonstrate that there is no substitute for good shooting and developing your skills.
