How well does it perform?

The author goes hands-on with the ammo to find out.

The ammunition tested in this review was provided by Hornady Manufacturing.

Hornady Backcountry Defense review

In this Hornady Backcountry Defense review, Wayne van Zwoll tests the bear defense ammunition in a Springfield Armory 1911 Ronin as part of his review. Image: Carson McDaniel/Springfield Armory

Bringing stock from the hills before snow was a routine ride for Two Pony.

Under pregnant skies, he and his partner spun out the day gathering.

Strays remained when the cowboys pulled their saddles at a line camp.

bear defense handgun ammunition

Left to right: .38-40 with 180-gr. .401 bullet, .44-40 with 200-gr. .427, .44 Magnum with 240-gr. .429. Similar in size, the .44 Magnum, unveiled in 1956, is much more powerful than its 19th-century mates.

Snow came that night.

At dawns colorless blush, they followed tracks to a cow.

The soft, deep snow muted the bears rush.

brown bear with cub

Despite how intimidating they are, grizzlies rarely attack people. When they do, it’s often to protect cubs, as shown here, or to defend a kill.

Two Pony turned late, pulled his .38-40 Colt and fired twice.

Struck down by a great paw, his friend lunged for the revolver.

Only by chance would a handgun stop a bear attack.

bear paw

This big paw belongs to a black bear, not a grizzly. It has short claws, the fifth set back from the others.

Two years later, the grizzly was listed and hunting banned there.

In much of its range, the bears numbers have since doubled.

Human activity West-wide, from hunters and hikers as well as stockmen, keeps bear attacks in the news.

Hornady Backcountry Defense 10mm ammo

The protected-point DGH (Dangerous Game Handgun) bullets in the new Backcountry Defense ammo don’t expand — they are designed to drive straight and deep.

Two years ago, a Montana hunter trailing a wounded deer lost part of his face to a grizzly.

Ive ridden pack trails in Wyoming where grizzlies were so plentiful their tracks covered the horse and mule prints.

The bears turned at the last moment, dashing past the hunters on either side.

testing Hornady Backcountry Defense ammunition in Springfield Armory XDM Elite semi-automatic pistol

Hornady’s Backcountry ammo is loaded to hit hard but function smoothly through autos, being shot here in aSpringfield Armory XDM Elite chambered for the 10mm Auto.

Most bears dont want trouble.

For decades, Wyoming outfitter Ron Dube guided hunters where grizzlies abound.

He never had to shoot a bear.

testing the Hornady Backcountry ammunition with Springfield Armory 1911 Ronin pistol

The author tested Hornady’s 10mm Backcountry Defense loads through a Springfield Armory 1911 Ronin, measuring velocity with a Garmin Xero C1 Pro.

When a bear surprised me, I stayed calm and didnt show fear.

But not all bears are so compliant.

Like people, they have moods.

Hornady Backcountry Defense 10mm Auto ammunition review

Over the Garmin chronograph, this 10mm load averaged 1,121 fps from the Ronin’s 5″ barrel.

Once Dube and a client came upon a big grizzly boar on a carcass.

Unaware of us, he paced, growling and bristling.

We backed away quickly.

author shooting Springfield Armory 1911 Ronin to test Hormady Backcountry Defense ammunition

The author found the 10mm Backcountry Defense loads comfortable to fire in the Ronin: “Frisky, not brutal.”

Continent-wide, black bear attacks are less common than those by grizzlies.

They get less media attention too, partly because of the grizzlys fearsome reputation and its protected status.

But black bears pose a different threat.

accuracy testing the Hornady Backcountry Defense ammo

Five-shot, 15-yard groups with Hornady’s Backcountry Defense ammo averaged tight groups on paper, with the best being a tight 1.3″.

In Alaska, only 19 of 170-odd maulings since 1900 were attributed to black bears.

The disparity in data is understandable.

Canada has four times as many black bears as Alaska, but roughly an equal number of grizzlies.

Hornady 10mm Auto 200 gr. DGH Backcountry Defense

A New Option

Handguns have saved hunters from bears since black-powder days.

A couple of generations later, a detachment of U.S. cavalry pestered a lone grizzly.

But despite its fearsome recoil, the big .44 didnt impress all bears.

1911 Ronin® 5"

The outfitter fired his9x19mm Parabellumrepeatedly into the bears chest, from both sides as it turned.

This veteran Alaskan dismisses much of the blather about bear insurance.

Federals CastCore line was dropped and has only recently been replaced by the Solid Core.

Garmin Xero C1 Pro Chronograph

But this year Hornady fills the bear-stopping void with its Backcountry Defense ammunition.

Its of protected-point design.

The jacket is folded into the nose cavity, thus locking core to jacket there.

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A bear coming toward you presents a barrier of thick hide, big bones and dense tissue.

Our Backcountry Defense bullets and loads were developed to breach that barrier.

pistol with a stainless frame.

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Its forged-steel slide, with a contrasting hot-salt blue, houses a 5 hammer-forged barrel.

The tactical rack rear sight has a ledge to assist with one-hand slide operation in an emergency.

Its two-dot square notch pairs up with a red fiber optic front sight.

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My big hand likes the extended grip safety.

The bump at its base assures contact with the hollow of my palm.

trigger pull is exceptionally crisp.

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Springfield supplies an eight-shot magazine with a basepad.

[Dont miss Tom Greshams article on10mm for stopping a bear.]

The Backcountry Defense ammunition functioned without fault in the Ronin.

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Standard deviation: 10.5.

Bottom line: Pistol and ammunition no doubt shoot better than my results indicate.

Rogue last shots reminded me that accuracy with a pistol begs mental discipline!

Go to forum thread

Hornady10mm Auto 200 gr.

DGH Backcountry Defense

1911Ronin 5"

GarminXero C1 Pro Chronograph