Essential Tools for Field Dressing Black Bear

mosinmaster

mosinmaster

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Hi,

Is there a list out there that I can use to compile gear?

Do most of you do most of the field dressing at home or in the field once the gut pile is removed?
 
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A knife and a knife sharpener and maybe a saw/axe is all you should need.

I'd skin the bear on one side cut the quarters of the back strap and make a small slit where the tenders are, pull them out. Flip the hide back to keep all the forest bits from getting on the insides(it will save you or you taxidermist time if you keep it clean) roll the bear over And repeat on the other side. Search for gutless method of field dressing.

If you want or have to take the ribs use and axe or saw to cut through the rib at the spine. And pull them down and away from the spine. There are some tissue that you have to cut to get the rib cage bent back. You should see where the ribs "hinge" and you can cut through with a knife.

Gloves are ok if you want to keep your hands clean or you are a sissy.

Good luck on your hunt
 
just do all the field dressing in the field the same as you would a deer. I usually drag them close to the truck before field dressing to keep the inside clean. A sharp knife and something to wipe your hands with is about all you need.
Getting them on the truck is the hardest part.
Oh ya...make sure you have some rope....they never die on the road (for me anyway) and bears are the worst thing in world to drag...it's like trying to drag a waterbed mattress full of water, they poor into every little hollow and under every log as you go.
Cheers....good luck, have fun and stay safe.
 
Lots of paper towel, baby wipes and water, I don't find them extremely bloody but they are greasy and clean hands will help with the cutting. I gut in the bush then hang it from an engine crane and get the hide off ASAP. I started skinning towards the spine but leaving a strip of hide attached along the spine from head to tail then once everything else is skinned out 1 swipe of the knife will let the whole hide drop free, I find skinning from head to tail cause a lot of difficulty when getting to the bottom half because of the thickness, weight and greasiness of the hide. Once the hide and most of the fat is off I let it hang for 8-36 hours then the fat has got a little harder and easier to trim off. Point is if you have a set of tools that your comfortable with for other large game it will work fine, just make sure your equipped to drag it out and load it.
 
Learn to skin the bear in the field unless you live close to where you are hunting. The hide holds in a lot of heat. Have someone show you how to make the "rug cuts", so you don't mess up the hide if you are wanting a rug made. Regular deer cleaning kit is good. Many taxidermist want to skin out the head and paws themselves, so a good saw comes in handy for cutting the head and paws off the body.

Diablo7101 has the dragging a bear description down pat. I have an old tarp that I put a bear on, and it makes the dragging easier.
 
I normally get spring bear so don't have to deal with the fat, but I normally just need some twine to tie off the rectum, a knife a light sharp axe like a Fiskers for parting the sternum and rope to load and tie it to the atv. I gut in the field and wait till I get it home to skin it and quarter it. Keeps the meat cleaner that way. But I live in the middle of lots of them, so I have them home an hour or less after shooting them. If you are away and camped then you need to get the skin off them and get them quartered and hung to get them cooled off.
 
All that I've ever used is a knife or knives. Lay them on their back to start and use the starting cuts from jaw to tail and along the legs as shown in most books.Skin one side to the backbone and then roll for the other side. If you are doing a rug with feet & skull attached you can sever the legs at the ankle and the neck between the joints below the skull leaving feet & skull attached to skull. Don't worry about some dirt on the carcass because there is so much fat to remove later and the dirt with it. You can skin out the feet and skull later or freeze the hide to take it to the taxidermist. DO not wait very long to remove excess fat from the hide or cape the skull because a bear is one of the worst animals for hair slippage. either get at it right away or freeze it for the taxidermist. I roll the skin with the hair in so there is not as much insulation on the outside to prevent the hide from freezing quickly. I have completely skinned caped and fleshed the hide and salted it very generously when you are a long way from a freezer. Save the fat and render it down. It is excellent waterproofing for boots and supposedly it makes very good pie crusts. My pastry chef won't try it though.

Neil
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I would say the most essential tool to help skin a black bear would be a young fellow between the ages of 16 and 20,Strong as an ox and full of piss and vinegar.Try to find one who takes direction well and keep the knife sharp for him.
 
Nothing special needed, just a good knife and lots of help to get it out of the woods. I particularly like that bears have little to no smell up close and when you open them, deer are rank by comparison.

Dragging a bear out is a chore like no other. One had to be drug 400 yds to a boat and the other 200 yds up hill. Damn near killed us! The fur is like sandpaper and catches on everything, no sliding like a deer.

On the uphill drag we had 4 guys and a long rope. The guy closest to the bear wrapped the rope around his hand but fell during the drag, he had to yell for us to stop as we didn't even notice dragging him and the bear!
 
I shoot fall bears out of the oat fields and don't bait, when I open them up I find there is no odor at all. People that bait report a bit of odor depending what there baiting with. Bears are one of the easiest animals to gut and one of the hardest to get out of the bush pound for pound.
 
I always try to carry a pair of those disposable gloves, vets use to preg check cows. :) Don't get in the way and keep you a lot cleaner.

Grizz
 
I use the same gear for all my big game. Knife and bone saw.
you are going to want some good rope and access to water to help clean up.

I don't half or quarter black bear so the saw is only used to split the pelvis.
If your good with a knife you can skip that step
 
c-fbmi said:
Rifle to get bear to acquiesce to field dressing.

Knife...........That's it........really !!
Click to expand...


Bear Claw Chris Lapp: Are you sure you can skin grizz?

Jeremiah Johnson: Just as fast as you can catch' em.
[Bear Claw runs into and through the cabin with a huge grizzly bear close behind and jumps out the back window]
Bear Claw Chris Lapp: [as the fight rages inside the cabin] Skin that one, pilgrim, and I'll get you another!
[Shot sounds from inside the cabin]:ar15:


One of the finest movies ever made




[youtube]FcsXC2xFis4[/youtube]
 
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