hypothetical knife ?

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scouter27

Joined
May 27, 2000
Messages
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If you were in the backcountry of a western state, what knife would you want to defend your self from a large bear, either griz or brown, and why?

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"Dream as if you'll live forever, Live as if you'll die today"
-- James Dean
 
My choice for this hypothetical knife would be double-edged, have a socket, and mate with a loooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong shaft to make a spear.

Even better if I had launcher.

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Thank you,
Marion David Poff aka Eye, Cd'A ID, USA mdpoff@hotmail.com

Review of the World Survival Institute, Chris Janowsky survival knife, the Ranger.

Talonite Resource Page, nearly exhaustive!!

Fire Page, metal match sources and index of information.

"Many are blinded by name and reputation, few see the truth" Lao Tzu
 
sorry that I confused you, but I meant a hypothetical question about knives, not a hypothetical knife. also, the you have no time to prepair a spear shaft, the attack is a surprise and you're out of bear mace.

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"Dream as if you'll live forever, Live as if you'll die today"
-- James Dean

[This message has been edited by scouter27 (edited 09-20-2000).]
 
If it were a grizzly, I would try my darnest not to move or cry out, even as it chewed on my person! I believe that recent attacks here in Alberta have only ended when the attackee stopped moving and the bear realized that there really wasn't any threat from that bad tasting piece of Goretex wrapped hiker.

However, should it be a black bear, I'd fight as much as possible and would want a heavy machete type knife with which I could do damage to the bears head (namely it's nose and eyes).

My two cents,
 
Do they make a knife that fires .378 Weatherby catridges? That would be the one. Bet it would kick like hell, though.

Guess if I were stuck with a knife or nothing, I would want a Bowie w/ a 9-10" blade. Doesn't really matter, if it comes down to H2H w/ a griz, you're probably going to be bear crap tomorrow, regardless of what kind of knife you have
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I guess if it was that touch and go, I'd do my level best to stick my Anaconda 9" down his throat before he got to the rest of me. I have seen browns up close (fortunately in a zoo) and I don't believe that I want to tangle with one as ABC Sports put it, "up close and personal". I have also seen black bears up close in the wild, and ususally they run if you put up a fuss.

Makes more sense to have a firearm though, even a 22 would be preferable to grappling with a bruin. At least it might make him reevaluate his dinner.
 
I live in one of those backcountry western states and keep a 12ga with 00 Buck close at hand, and either a 45 ACP or a 44 mag on my person at all times when out and about camping/4 wheeling. All you'd do with a blade is give the griz somthing else to cut you up with. In camp I've got a Livesey Air Asualt and/or a Buese Basic #9 for most camp chores.

However, I also carry a Randall #14 every now and again as it gives the out of state folks somthing to gawk at
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SAS RKBA freedom Scottsbluff Cowboy Shooters Cheyenne Regulators
 
Marion,

Don't you have some quote or other on your website, about how the best knife for a bear attack is the dullest possible one?

(That way it'll hurt less when the bear shoves it up your ***)

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Glen
 
A Himalayan Imports kukri, a 18'' World War II or an Ang Khola. There is a story in that forum about a nepalese villager killing a bear with a kukri, so I guess it works for that kind of a thing.
 
KUKRI, no doubt about it.smash that bear across the face then skin it alive,and EAT!!!
 
I think a combination of JB and Shawn's answers would be optimal; a Hossom Espada in 3V would at least let me get one good stab in before I became a grizzly Power Bar.

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Semper Fi

-Bill
 
If you come up here, I'll show you some grizzlies and you can make up your own mind.
 
Lets hope its a really small (i.e midget variety, pigmy, half-pint size) and elderly brown bear, about to die from a fatal desease within 60 seconds. Otherwise, that pretty little knife is just going to be left to rust in the woods.
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A fairly thin, long blade, razor sharp.

There was a guy in Colorado quite a few years ago that killed a Griz by hand with a broadhead-tipped arrow. He was a guide and he evidently had just gotten his clients in place and was attacked by a Griz. Evidently the grizzly were thought to be extinct in that area.

The bear mauled him and he managed to grab an arrow, which he shoved into the bear's neck. He was lucky and cut the carotid artery which immediately cut the oxygen to the bear's brain.

He nearly died on the mountain from his wounds while waiting for a helicopter to lift him out.

Once he was in the hospital, he was accused of poaching the bear by animal rightests. There was an extensive investigation and he was exonorated.

I'm telling you this story from my memory banks which ain't what they used to be so if you know the details better than I, let 'er rip.

I seem to recall some story about Davy Crockett killing a bear with a knife. He waited until the bear stood up just as it was about it attack and stuck a knife in its throat, then ran up a tree.

Now that story is really one I only vaguely remember and it could just as easily have been Daniel Boone or Jim Bowie. I really can't remember and don't have a clue whether it is true.


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Hoodoo

I get some pleasure from finding a relentlessly peaceful use for a combative looking knife.
JKM
 
A SAK taped to a .375 H&H magnum... no, maybe a .416 Rigby. I've SEEN Kitimat grizzlies from the air, and they eyed the Jet Ranger as if it were a largish MRE.
 
I'm planning a backpacking trip to the Absaroka Range in Wyoming and have been brushing up on my bear "etiquette". It seems to me that the protocol for becoming bear poop has changed a bit over the years.

Most authorities on the matter will tell you the quickest way to end a grizzly attack is to sit there and take it like a man/woman. In most cases the bear sees you as a probable threat and is just trying to convey a message. Once the bear no longer perceives you as a threat, it will move on.

One author (I wish I could remember who) stated that submitting to the bear will result in injuries that can be treated on an outpatient basis. If you fight, expect some nasty vascular damage that will require some pretty extensive surgery.

Regarding charges, most are bluffs and you should stand your ground; no running, no tree climbing, no playing dead before physical contact because all three will trigger a predatory response and make things much, much worse.

All this of course goes out the window if you think the bear is settling down for a nice meal. That's when you start swinging that custom Grizzlimatic you had made for just such an occasion.

Here are a few interesting sights I've run across. http://members.nbci.com/keithrogan/ http://www.wyoming.com/~ygf/ResProg.html

[This message has been edited by switchback (edited 09-26-2000).]

[This message has been edited by switchback (edited 09-26-2000).]
 
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