Quote:
Originally Posted by Locke
Okay, I'll bite.
What...is a 'Bear Banger?'
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It's a bear deterrent the size of a large pen or Hi-Liter.
Essentially it 'shoots' a projectile that explodes with a really loud noise. Kind of like a reusable bottle rocket. How much it works is debatable and generally heavily dependent on the bear itself and/or how used to/sensitive they are to loud noises/bear banger noises in particular.
How to use them is often up for debate. Some folks use them to 'clear' a trail before hiking on it. This is generally considered a waste of a banger, as the noise is rarely close enough to affect the bear and may only serve to get them used to the sound/noise of a banger, defeating the entire purpose of a banger when it's really needed.
Some folks feel that if you are hiking and can SEE a bear, especially if it's not seen you yet, you set one off skyward, and the noise should be close enough to startle the bear and send it off in the opposite direction of the noise (you).
Some folks feel that they are best used when the bear is close by/clearly aggressive towards you. Then they are aimed 'near' the bear, so you get the most loudest explosion right by it to scare it off. There are several problems with that school of thought, as most folks, when faced with an angry bear, would have problems aiming a bear banger and setting it off in an effective manner. They also aren't a precise science, so it's not like the noise maker part is going exactly 20' and exploding. It's going a random distance, and could bounce off of things, ending up who knows where before it goes off, scaring the bear towards you.
Like all things, they have their pros and cons, but that's a quick overview.