Frontiersman 7.9 fl oz. Bear Spray, Maximum Strength 2.0% Major Capsaicinoids, Powerful 30 ft. Range Bear Deterrent, Outdoor Camping & Hiking Protection

Very potent spray. It is easy (in a good way) to get the safety off very quickly with just a little motion of your thumb, if you happen to be in an emergency situation. The holster is a bit loose, but I suppose we are not so worried about retention as we are about a quick draw (for example, if you held the can in holster upside down and give it a little shake, it would fall out). You have to be wearing a belt to put the holster on, and in order to put the holster on your belt, you have to undo your belt. The spray size is big enough that you don't have to be so precise. I would estimate the approximate diameter of the spray area at 10-15 feet or so would be the size of a volleyball or size 3 soccer ball. Be sure to give it a test spray, but be sure to do it outside and away from people/creatures/civilization if possible. If you are considering buying this product, you probably frequent places where there might be bears - those places are probably the best to test this, considering they are probably wooded and somewhat secluded locations. When my wife wanted to test spray this one evening at home, I had her go out to the sidewalk in front of our house and spray toward the cul-de-sac. This spray is potent enough that it will linger for a long time, and even a small amount of "second-hand" or glancing exposure to it will have you coughing, so you probably should not test-fire into your backyard, *especially* if you have dogs or especially if it's a small backyard.

FANTASTIC protection. Easy to use. Allows quick response time. Does not kill the animal sprayed. Gives you time to quickly get away & out of danger. Two vicious off leash dogs - totally unprovoked - attacked any gardener. The police suggested more drastic measures for future protection but I decided to use this. It sprays over 25 feet away and if it stops a bear it will definitely stop an attacking dog. Mace does NOT work for dogs attempting to maul you, and mace does not spray a long distance. I don't want a vicious dog that is clearly trying to maul me within 10 feet. Research your options, especially mace. I also do a lot of hiking in the mountains and carrying this gives me peace of mind. I'm an experienced hiker, camper, outdoors person and this is my #1 choice for protection. The product does not kill the animal that gets sprayed. It knocks them out long enough to get away and into a safe place (I recommend running as far away as possible and calling for back up protection). A huge advantage of bear spray over either mace or a gun is that it can be sprayed without removing it from the holder. This gives you the advantage to quickly react to the threat. Just release the safety, point, and spray. If you can see the bear, or bobcat, or whatever you will be able to hit it...unless you are truly inept in which case you shouldn't put yourself in a situation where you would need it. Check to be sure it is legal in the geographic area where you plan to use it. If bear spray is not allowed you should rethink hiking in mountains in the spring & summer if there is a population of bears in the area - that's a very dangerous time to be around bears. Always seek professional advice before using any deterrent and before putting yourself in an area you don't know. Be informed to be safe.

I bought this spray for my trip to the Tetons last fall. I fortunately didn't have to use it, so I can't testify to the effectiveness. However, I liked the holster it came in, so it was right there hooked to my backpack belt where it was immediately accessible. No bear spray is 100% foolproof. You have to know how to use it correctly. I watched several videos by park rangers and hunters on the proper way to use this product. I would highly suggest that anyone going into bear country not only buys bear spray, but then also learn how to use it. It could save your life.

I will preface this review by saying that I would not have bought this product except for the fact that I was required to. I prefer to exercise sound practices to minimize risk of aggressive bear encounters in the first place, and I have never encountered an aggressive bear situation in my experience backpacking in bear country before, nor have I actually deployed this product against a bear. That is not to say I have not encountered bears, but rather that I believe the best defense against hostile bears is to arm oneself with good knowledge of bear behaviors prior to venturing into their territory and to use good sense to reduce your risk of encountering aggressive bears and also to minimize your risk of escalating encounters with improper responses from your own lack of knowledge or fears. That all said, I participated in a field school in Alaska where each individual was required to carried to carry bear spray. And I have no problem with carrying this product as a backup defense for peace of mind. We did an initial training/test run to make sure everyone was comfortable deploying their spray. This product was relatively easy to deploy in the training scenario, and I think it is a good idea that if you choose to rely on spray that you should keep it in an accessible location while on the move (it won't do you any good stuffed down in your pack when you encounter an aggressive bear). Also, do practice pulling it out now and then so it is a smooth, muscle memory action so you can deploy the spray when the bear is at the proper distance for maximum effectiveness. You don't want to be fumbling with it and trying to figure it out should you need to defend yourself from an aggressive bear. Another tip: try to make a habit of judging wind during your practice runs so you will have presence of mind to consider wind in the heat of an actual bear encounter. Spraying against the wind can blow spray back into your face as well. My rating for this canister is mostly based on the fact that my practice deployments were relatively smooth so the design is good. Also, the price point seems fair and competitive based of my comparative shopping. If I ever actually deploy the product for real and find it to be effective in action I will upgrade the review to 5 stars. Hopefully I never have to, of course. That said, for the information of customers who may be inexperienced, this product is intended for DEFENSE against AGGRESSIVE bears only. It is not a spray you need to deploy on EVERY bear you may encounter. Most bears will avoid you in the first place, or will clear off on their own if you handle the encounter calmly. Learn about bear behaviors, how to minimize risk of encounters, how to act if encounters do occur, how to recognize aggressive bear signs vs. non-aggressive bear signs, etc. The spray is a fine second line of defense. Many people prefer firearms instead of spray, or as a 3rd line of defense in addition to spray, because a truly aggressive bear hit by spray MIGHT be deterred or MIGHT be provoked. Something to consider yourself beyond the scope of this review.

I haven't had to use this yet, but have pulled off the safety and ran through how to use it to make sure that I was prepared in the event I did need to use it. It appears to be of high quality and the safety mechanism is pretty easy to operate. The glow in the dark safety is a nice touch, but I'm pretty sure you'd be eaten if you had to examine it closely to operate it in the dark while being charged. It may help in other situations though. One thing to keep in mind, the % active ingredient is fairly low, only about 2.5%. I would've thought it would be higher for a bear, but apparently the small bottles for use against human attackers has a higher percentage of active ingredient (~10% on the high end), although the small ones don't have nearly the reach to dissuade a bear intent on obtaining a human-sized snack charging at you at about 30mph from satisfying that desire. I would test this out on a friend before buying one for the home for personal (and non-lethal) protection against potential intruders. Let the rest of us know how it works if you do!

i just got back from hiking and camping in the outback in Yellowstone National Park, which was the purpose for purchasing 3 cans of this spray. Unfortunately, I never saw a single brown or black bear but tons of bison and elk. On the way back to Texas we stopped in Colorado and I hit a few sections of the Colorado trail. During my hike I was harassed by a skinny (diseased or starved) mountain lion. I tried the usual things to try and shew it away but it was intent on following / stalking me. Never turn your back on a cat acting like this. I finally got tired of walking backwards and trying to shew him so I sprayed him from about 15-20 feet out. It instantly bolted the opposite direction and into the woods off the trail. It couldn't get away from me quick enough. Glad I had this! Worth every penny to have on you when you are out in the woods or anyplace you might have a negative run-in with any animal. I suspect it would work great on human threats but too large for every day carry, IMO, and I'm sure it isn't recommended for human use.

I have a dairy farm and I purchased this item to protect myself from my herd bull. The bull is very aggressive, and he has attacked me before. Fortunately, in each case when I was attacked I was in a position where I could escape easily. So I was never injured. I was lucky, but I clearly needed a better way to defend myself, before my luck would ultimately run out. After doing some research, I decided that Frontiersman Bear Spray was probably the best suited for my needs. So I bought 2 cans. Then two weeks ago I found myself in a position where I needed to put the product to the test. I was working in the pasture when I heard my bull growling at me. I looked up and saw that he was walking toward me. When he was ten feet away, I gave him a good blast directly to the face. He then started bawling and turned around and ran away as fast as he could! Since that time, there have been several times when I have worked in the pasture within close proximity to the bull. Each time he stares at me, pawls the ground, and growls, but he doesn't dare approach me. I always take a can with me whenever I go to the pasture. The only complaint that I have is that the belt loop came unraveled from the holster. This could be a real disaster if the holster falls off without the knowledge of the person carrying it! I would definitely recommend reinforcing the belt loop of the holster, or finding a more reliable way to carry the bear spray.

Had mine 7 years before I got the chance to use it. I decided to write a review for 2 reasons, one to warn people of it's power and 2 to rave to people about it's power. There was a very sweet dog that had been getting into neighbors trash and scaring adults and kids in the neighborhood. I always liked the big fella and if I could have kept him I would. I repeatedly took him home to the neighbors across the street, just for the owner to tell me "You want him?" Any way, I came out of the house one night to see all my trash scattered over half of my 2 acre property. I ran inside, grabbed the bear spray and went to investigate. There he was, the sweetest dog on dog ever but now he has invaded my space and I needed to send him a clear message that he needed to go and never come back. He approached. he was only about 6 feet away from me when I sprayed. He never yelped. Just turned and ran with everything he had back home. That was just under 6 weeks ago. We haven't seen him since. Even though I was up wind and left immediately, changed my cloths and washed, being careful not to touch my face, my eyes burned, had a crazy cough and my lips stung. To my surprise, the three people who were in my house with closed doors and windows, were coughing like crazy too. This stuff is powerful! Even taking precautions and practicing, you will probably get a little bit of it too. I'd just hate to be on the receiving end!!! As for the dog. I feel bad and still wish I could have taken him in. I didn't want to spray him but it sure was better then the what the neighbors all had planned for him.