What would be the best Busse kin knife to carry to protect yourself from large predators ? ( cougars/ bears - not people ) I have been having this discussion with a good friend and told him I would ask you folks . I hope I posted this on the correct board. Any opinions much appreciated !! Thank You

Hmmm... that's a really interesting question. I would think in most cases you would have a gun or some sort of firearm.

However, if you do happen to get mauled down by a cougar or deer your best bet is not the largest knife on you, but the smallest.

If you're not being overtaken by an animal but there is one 10 ft away from you then the best thing is to scare it off (i.e. with cougars, make noise and throw stuff at it). If it's a bear and you go into the fetal position and it starts gnawing on your arm then pulling a small little blade could be a handy.

In that case, something that is quick access and tough.

I'd say a Mean Street or a Street Scrapper 4. The HRLM is good, but I think it's a little too big. No actually, the larger handles give a really good purchase so yea the HRLM as well. All of these would be in good kydex sheath in carried on neck, belt, IWB, some where were you could naturally grab the knife.

There are a bunch of smaller Busse Kin knife that would fit the bill. Honestly, I hope you don't get into a situation like that. If there are viscous animals in the vicinity the best thing is to get out and leave them alone.

But you did post in the correct area and this is an interesting question. I'm sure other dawgs, who are more adept at answering this question, hunters, etc., will help.

I wouldn't go into bear county without at least a .44 mag. I don't think you want to use a knife, any knife, against a full sized bear. With that said, bears usually don't attack people. The main reason why you see bear attacks are when you get between her little baby bears. They are very protective animals, and will do anything to keep their offsprings safe.

My group came across one some years ago in NJ. We just slowly walk away from her while keeping an eye on the general direction. My friend said he will have to do something if she starts to walk closer. She didn't, which I'm glad because he's got a 30-06 aimming at her... We spotted her around 75 yards or so. The key is not let them get too close. Always know what is around you. If by any chance they get within 25 yards or less, best thing to do is probably make alot of sound like SHARP mention but also try to make yourself seen bigger than you are. hold your hands up high and scream yell, whatever.

I don't know how fast of a runner you are but I don't think I can out run an angry bear....so running wouldn't be an option... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

KENKEN makes some good points here.
I asked this same question about 3-4 months ago, and the best solution I could
think of was to go and buy a shotgun and run slugs in it. While he says that
bears usually don't attack people, they ARE wild animals and by their very
nature are unpredictable. We've had 6 attacks in our area of the world since
the late summer.

I don't know the details of all cases, but in 3 of them it was because the
person got between the sow and her cubs. One was because he got too close to a
grizzly den where momma and cubs were residing.
2 of the attacks were because the bear had developed a taste for "human flesh".
These 2 attacks were from the same animal.

I can't see how a small blade would help you very much against a bear. Maybe a
5 inch blade or something like that, but I don't see how much smaller would be
able to penetrate the fur and fat on a bear to be able to hit anything vital.
On a cougar, you'd probably have a decent chance, using a smaller blade. One
fellow killed a cougar this summer with a Buck Stockman folder, but it cost him
about 50 stiches in his scalp if I remember the story properly. I wouldn't put
all my faith in a small blade like that.

At minimum, I would carry a walking stick (always helpful when hiking in the
bush), a can of bear spray (would work great on a cougar too), and a 5 inch
knife.

Best case scenario would be some kind of firearm with enough stopping power to
drop a bear. A lot of the old timers that I've talked with carry a 12 gauge
with slugs when they go out (when not hunting that is). That'll even stop a
moose in rut (which is probably more dangerous than a bear or cougar <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> )


Good question. I'm looking forward to reading all of the comments that come up.
Cheers DotD

These guys have posted some very good and well thought out answers, and in truth I hope I never face a large attacking wild animal with only a knife... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/sad.gif" alt="" /> But if I could pick the Busse blade for the job, the one that came to mind immediately for me was the AK47. Although it's not very practical in some ways, it sure would be nice to have between me and some crazy beast! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

My turn!

Yard Hook. The 7 inches of SR-77 with a wicked re-curve that will enter and eviscerate arteries and organs would be my first choice.
Light enough to carry all day and God forbid a mountain cat attacks instead of pissing it off I'd opt to drive my Yard Hook into
its chest in three lightning fast plunges. That should stop his attack rather fast. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif" alt="" />

The re-curve is a natural slicer as the blade is designed to draw in the blade. Hence I vote for The Hook! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bowdown.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />






Peace.

Nice knife PoP <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" />

Just a note. Big cats tend to stalk and take their prey from behind. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eek.gif" alt="" />

I guess to be a little more realistic, I'd probably Have my DFLE or S6 along if I was going to be in the back 40. Around here wild dogs are more of a concern than and big predators, and if I think that's going to be an issue I'd probably carry a little firepower too, although it's not a regular carry item most of the time. And with wide dogs you usually here them before you see them, so they can be avoided if necessary. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

They kill for a living... Understand even if you did win, you'd probably still have massive injuries. Ranged weapons. Even something as primative as a spear would be vastly superior to a knife.

well, I'm pretty sure most people that have fought off cougars with a knife have already been in it's jaws, and I believe in that case, around a 4-5 inch blade would give nice control, and still be efficient, because in that situation, you CAN even defend yourself with a pocketknife.

I good walking stick would also be great if you ended up face to face with a big cat.

yall are crazy <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> but I guess you'd use whatever you had, and that would most likely be a 4" blade

Best knife for protection against dangerous game is on thats attatched to the end of a gun.