Bear leather

[Zutt-man]

The old man and I are headed to Colorado on a deer/bear hunt this week. We’re both pretty excited as it’ll be a 6 day backcountry camp trip.

As I was pondering what I may do with a bear hide if so lucky to get one, it got me to thinking: Can you use bear leather?

Bear rugs are cool and I WANT one. Most Colorado bears aren’t giants (think North Carolina, Wisconsin, Minnesota 500 lber) and I’d like to get a big bear for a rug. The meat will obviously be consumed, but would bear leather be useful in certain applications? Clothing, accoutrements, bags, etc

 

[Frontier's]

Hunting bags, coat.. I use mine for a blanket

 

[Cruzatte]

Blanket is a good idea. You could also use scraps to cover pommel holsters for your martial flintlock pistols, too.

 

[Zutt-man]

Is it comparable to other leathers as far as texture and durability go?

 

[rich pierce]

I’ve not seen it prepared as leather with the hair off.

 

[Frontier's]

My hide is nice and soft. Hair on, but it's thick skin.

 

[Smokey Plainsman]

I've seen plenty of hair on.

 

[Leadbottom45]

I knew a guy in Alaska that made a coat from black bear hides. It was pretty awesome and warm according to him.

 

[Terry Lightle]

Made a hunting bag with part of one of mine,made a rug out of the other.Killed both with a longbow and wood arrow.First one was with a selfbow I made.Strap on the bag is a piece of hide off my bull moose.also with a longbow and wood arrow.

 

[jtkerk]

Nice! Impressive. I’m hoping to make a self bow next year. I have several staves drying and collected gray dogwoods for shafts. Going to fletch with turkey feathers from birds I shot and hopefully with stone points. I’m getting up in age but you have to have something to keep you going.

 

[Phil Coffins]

Just felt a bear hide and it’s as I remembered, not very thick. I would think it best suited to light use if tanned hair off. It feels rather coarse but limber. Here’s a picture of a thin spot on this old hide, the bear not mine.
IMG_0670 by Oliver Sudden, on Flickr

 

[AwwNaww]

My limited experience with bearskin (Ak coastal brown) is that it is similar in thickness to horsehide, but I do not think it has the abrasion resistance of horse or goat.

 

[Omahkapi'si]

Perhaps a pair of winter mitts.

 

[Mad L]

We have a guy in our club that uses a bear hide for a blanket - it was Cold last spring!

I have seen a photo of an old Rifle Bag that had just a bit of hair left on the flap - description said it appeared to be Bear Hide (fur on).

And don't forget to Render that bear fat down into some clear Bear Oil!! It's the modern version of whale oil...and the Indians clain it has good medicine powers too!

 

[Omahkapi'si]

These are my buffalo mitts. Don’t look too hard to make.


A bear pair would be warm too.

 

[Mad L]

These are my buffalo mitts. Don’t look too hard to make.


A bear pair would be warm too.

View attachment 348548

I forgot that one!
There is a pair of Bear Hide mittens in a museum here said to have belonged to Snowshoe Thompson.
A very famous pioneer here in Genoa, Nevada.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snowshoe_Thompson

 

[bud in pa]

I recently talked to a fellow who loves bear hunting. He said that a full body mount is about $5,000.