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View Full Version : Bear mace "friendly fire" incident.



Bryan Berguson
06-23-2008, 10:36 PM
Two weeks ago I call home after a round of golf to see if LOML would like me to pick up anything at the store. Well, she couldn't talk, had a "crisis" to take care of. So I pushed her a little to find out what was going on that she obviously didn't want to discuss at the moment.

Living in "bear country" like we do and having kids, my wife carries a can of bear mace when she goes outside with the kids (I carry a gun :cool: ). It's like dog mace but in a 12 or 16 ounce can. Big Bertha! Anyways, somehow the trigger gaurd was removed so she was carrying in "Condition One". You know, one in the pipe, hammer back and on safe. She sits down in a chair on the porch and has an accidental discharge from the mace. Luckily, it only hit her in the side, missed the kids but sprayed all over our white, all weather railing.

She's convinced we'll have to replace the railing because of the bright orange stain that is now on it. When I get home, she's busy scrubbing and hosing the porch. The orange stain is on a large portion of the railing and won't come off with anything. I try a "Wet One" brand towelette (which I have found to remove just about everything including permanent marker) and that won't touch it. The only way that stain is coming off is to replace the railing.

So, next morning I go out on the porch and take a look at our nice white railing that was orange the night before. I'm stunned. There isn't a trace of orange. Nothing, nada. You can't even tell where the mace was. No discoloration at all. The new white shirt she was wearing did not come clean. It still had a 4" bullseye on the side. I'm happy of course but could someone please explain this "disappearing ink" to me please.

Bryan

Leigh Costello
06-24-2008, 12:24 AM
LOL Take it from me, do not ever mention that you posted here. She will get even. We women are like that. Besides, no stained railing = no spray mishap. And what shirt are you referring to? I have no idea what you are talking about. That is what I would say, after I trashed the shirt and I was sure it was picked up by the trash service.

And I thought I was the only lucky lady to do stuff like this....

Dewey Torres
06-24-2008, 1:20 AM
Well, that still doesn't get to the bottom of the disappearing act. Hmmm ... did you read the can?

Maybe one of the protection agencies somehow designed it so that the bear (if sprayed) would not have to walk around forever orange.

Just a guess:confused:

Dewey

Joe Chritz
06-24-2008, 11:40 AM
The orange is most likely a dye added along with the natural color of the capsicum used to produce the spray. It most likely absorbed into the fabric of the shirt but the carrier couldn't absorb into the railing.

Just a guess but I have a fair amount of experience with pepper spray.

The stuff that is fortified with 1% CS gas is even worse but you do get used to it after a few sprays.

Once I leaned inside a car and the can on my belt "exploded" and continued to spray until empty. Funny now, not so funny then.

Joe

Lee Schierer
06-24-2008, 12:30 PM
If the dye was iodine based, the UV from the sun will eliminate the color pretty quickly. Place the shirt out in the sun and see if the color goes away on it as well.

Lee DeRaud
06-24-2008, 12:38 PM
The thread title made me think a bit: a bear-mace incident would just about have to be "friendly fire"...
unless the bears in your area have started carrying it. :eek::cool:

Bryan Berguson
06-25-2008, 9:04 PM
LOL Take it from me, do not ever mention that you posted here. She will get even. We women are like that. Besides, no stained railing = no spray mishap. And what shirt are you referring to? I have no idea what you are talking about. That is what I would say, after I trashed the shirt and I was sure it was picked up by the trash service.

And I thought I was the only lucky lady to do stuff like this....

Ha ha! Then I shouldn't tell you about the time she vacuumed out our wood stove and got a hot coal in the bag of our Kirby! :) Can you say instant fire! Granted the stove had been out for 3 or 4 days but there was this one little hot coal way down deep in the ashes. It happened about 14 years ago but I still pick on her about it once in a while. :D

Bryan

Bryan Berguson
06-25-2008, 9:07 PM
Well, that still doesn't get to the bottom of the disappearing act. Hmmm ... did you read the can?

Maybe one of the protection agencies somehow designed it so that the bear (if sprayed) would not have to walk around forever orange.

Just a guess:confused:

Dewey


I checked the can after it was suggested here. No mention of staining at all and of course, no mention of it going away. I may have to contact the company just out of curiosity.

Bryan

Bryan Berguson
06-25-2008, 9:11 PM
The orange is most likely a dye added along with the natural color of the capsicum used to produce the spray. It most likely absorbed into the fabric of the shirt but the carrier couldn't absorb into the railing.

Just a guess but I have a fair amount of experience with pepper spray.

The stuff that is fortified with 1% CS gas is even worse but you do get used to it after a few sprays.

Once I leaned inside a car and the can on my belt "exploded" and continued to spray until empty. Funny now, not so funny then.

Joe

I don't know why it didn't leave a stain and really thankful that it didn't. I have enough expenses to go around and didn't another one like that!

I have zero experience with pepper spray and don't want any. How long before you get in the car?

Bryan

Bryan Berguson
06-25-2008, 9:13 PM
If the dye was iodine based, the UV from the sun will eliminate the color pretty quickly. Place the shirt out in the sun and see if the color goes away on it as well.

The can doesn't say. My wife still has the shirt and I told her about this post. She's going to try a little sunshine to see if that works. I'll report back on the results. Thanks!

Bryan

Bryan Berguson
06-25-2008, 9:19 PM
The thread title made me think a bit: a bear-mace incident would just about have to be "friendly fire"...
unless the bears in your area have started carrying it. :eek::cool:

No, if the bears were carrying it and they sprayed us, it would be enemy fire. A "friendly" firing on themselves or other members of their allies would be friendly fire. But in reality, I've never thought friendly fire was very friendly but the news media loves a silly play on words.:rolleyes:

Come to think of it, we had a bear in the back yard last week sometime. He didn't look all that friendly either. I think from the way he was acting that he was hunting for a whitetail fawn. We seen one of those jumping around in the back weeds. I'm sure the fawn didn't think the bear was friendly!:eek:

Bryan

mark page
06-25-2008, 10:00 PM
I just can't resist......no pics didn't happen:D:D:D:D:D:Dlol.

Bryan Berguson
06-26-2008, 6:24 AM
I just can't resist......no pics didn't happen:D:D:D:D:D:Dlol.

Exactly! (according to my wife!) :D

Bryan

Joe Chritz
06-27-2008, 7:20 AM
I don't know why it didn't leave a stain and really thankful that it didn't. I have enough expenses to go around and didn't another one like that!

I have zero experience with pepper spray and don't want any. How long before you get in the car?

Bryan

It wasn't my car and the person who it belonged to got a county funded vacation for a while so I don't know how it was after. Probably not bad since I was leaning in a window and got rid of the offensive canister pretty fast.

It did take me a while to air myself out though.

Joe

Bryan Berguson
06-28-2008, 7:26 AM
It wasn't my car and the person who it belonged to got a county funded vacation for a while so I don't know how it was after. Probably not bad since I was leaning in a window and got rid of the offensive canister pretty fast.

It did take me a while to air myself out though.

Joe

Was she good looking? :D

Bryan

Lee DeRaud
06-28-2008, 9:04 AM
Was she good looking? :D

BryanOr as the old joke goes:
"Did your pepper spray just explode, or are you really glad to see me?"
:D:eek: