I have wanted to try this also. I have a Rem .41 mag that I would like to use, should be enough. I wouldn't use my 9mm but I think 40 cal and up for average black bears would probably work with the right loads. Good luck

Have you ever hunted with a hand gun and do you own one?  All the magnum calibers from .357 up to the .500 have been used to harvest black bears and quite a few Alaskan Brown bears.  The minimum that I would recommend would be a .44 however learning how to shoot one with the heavy loads needed to drop a bear is not fun.  If you do go with it I would suggest light loads or even to learn to shoot it with .44 special ammo just so that you do not develope a flinch.  If I was in the market for a new pistole just to hunt bears I would look at either the .480 Ruger or the .500 S&W.  But then you really need to reload to be able to get the lighter loads in them for practice.   

Thanks for the information. I own two handguns- a .357 revolver I keep for home defense/ concealed carry, and a Sig P229 in .40. For bear hunting, I was looking at the .500 Smith or either the Ruger or Taurus chambered in .454 Casull.

Bundy

I register bear kills for the MDNRE and last year had three that were taken with the .460. I have hunted them with a hot loaded 45 long Colt but did not get a shot. I currently shoot a .41 Mag and Grizzly Cartridges 265 gr hard cast long wide lead buillet. Heavy recoil and I practice with standard loads but would not hesitate to use the Grizzly load on bear.

I forgot about the 454 Casull round, it would be a great bear round also, and if you wanted a light round for practace you can shoot .45 Long Colts through it. 

I think you could use anything from .357 and up. You put the shot in the right place any of those will do the job just fine

Thanks fire5179. It gives me a little more to think about.

Bundy