I have always found Bear & Son somewhat fascinating. Probably because I am a sucker for heavy polished stainless steel...or possibly because Swiss Army Knife owned them for a period of time...which quite possibly could explain why the Swiss Tool and Swiss Tool Spirit exudes that heavy stainless steel construction loveliness.
Here is a bit of Bear & Son history, mostly focused on their knives...
https://www.chuckhawks.com/bear_cutlery.htmlI do not own a Bear & Son knife. I did a bit of research and it appears that quite a few folks are non too happy about the quality of their Bear & Son knives. I cannot comment other than the fact that their multi-tools appear to be for the most part, good. I have found a simple tightening or loosening of the handle retention screws fixed most overly loose or tight fold out tools and handles.
I would also like to take this time to state that Bear & Son's official website appears to be no longer amongst the living.
Here is my little Bear & Son collection that fits into a single drawer.
20210424_204058A by
Chako, on Flickr
I have a little bit of everything, and this goes for Bear & Son.
1. Super Bear Jaws.20210425_173232A by
Chako, on Flickr
In case you might be wondering, those odd levers are your unlocking levers. I am not a big fan of these as they tend to stick out of the handles and get caught in all sorts of things.
2. ToolZall Pro XL by Crescent.20210425_173511A by
Chako, on Flickr
Your rebranded Super Bear Jaws for Crescent. I like this variant better because it lacks those levers.
3. Super Bear Jaws Gardner.20210425_173654A by
Chako, on Flickr
A Super Bear Jaws designed for those with green thumbs.
4. Remington Sportsman Series Bird Hunters Tool.20210425_173757A by
Chako, on Flickr
Not sure if Bear & Son made this one, or it is based off of the Bear & Son Bird Shear. Either way, it is a neat shotgunners Birding tool to have out in the field. Note that there is a bone notch on the shears of this model that the Super Bear Jaws Bird Shears lacks.
5. Super Bear jaws Bird Shears.20210425_173911A by
Chako, on Flickr
Sorry for the out of focus photo. I am having a bit of issue getting the Samsung S21 to focus in a consistent way. The Bird Shear is aimed much like the Remington mentioned above, to the field bird hunter. Note that this one does not feature a very handy shotgun shock tube wrench.
6. ToolZall Pro Electrician by Crescent.20210425_174151A by
Chako, on Flickr
A cool tool for electrical work. The saw could have been improved with a sharper point to punch through dry wall.
7. ToolZall Pro by Crescent.20210425_174519A by
Chako, on Flickr
A rebranded Bear Jaws for Crescent.
8. Bear Jaws.20210425_174755A by
Chako, on Flickr
9. Bear Jaws Sportsman.20210425_174910A by
Chako, on Flickr
A more outdoorsy variant of the Bear Jaws. Ditches the file and dedicated serrated knife for an awl, saw, and partial serrated knife.
10. ToolZall Pro by Crescent.20210425_175105A by
Chako, on Flickr
Another copy with different handle stampings from the one listed above.
11. Bear Jaws with lever locking mechanism.20210425_175258A by
Chako, on Flickr
Just as the title states, a Bear Jaw with added annoying lever locking mechanism.
12. Bear Jaws Electrician.20210425_175426A by
Chako, on Flickr
Much like the ToolZall Electrician, except no saw is offered. You get the serrated sheepsfoot blade instead.
13. Craftsman branded with locking levers.20210425_175652A by
Chako, on Flickr
A mix of the Bear Jaws with the Bear Jaws Sportsman for Sears. This one also features those annoying locking levers.
14. ToolZall by Crescent.20210425_175845A by
Chako, on Flickr
This is a bit of an oddity. I post it here simply because I like to keep all of my ToolZall tools together. This one appears to be a PST clone but with USA on the handles.
15. ToolZall Electrician by Crescent.20210425_180022A by
Chako, on Flickr
Another oddity. More related to the above posted tool than to Bear & Son. Interesting Electrician shaped pliers.
16. Mini Bear Jaws and ToolZall Pocket Pro.20210425_180255A by
Chako, on Flickr
I thought i had two of the same Stainless steel, and only include the one in this photo. Either way, these are Bear Jaws and ToolZalls shrunk to keychain friendly sizes. They come in a variety of colours as well...black, green, blue, and red not shown here.
17. Bear & Son Bit kit.20210425_180522A by
Chako, on Flickr
18. Victorinox/Bear Cutlery Gift kit.20210425_180603A by
Chako, on Flickr
These gift tins are always interesting because they highlight that Victorinox once owned Bear Cutlery. This gift tin contains a red Mini Bear Jaws with a keychain and LED keychain light.
19. Victorinox/Bear Cutlery Gift kit.20210425_180642A by
Chako, on Flickr
The nicer of the two sets I have, this one features a stainless steel mini Bear jaws along with a Victorinox Classic.
In conclusion, I do like Bear & Son multi-tools because of their history more than anything else. They are hard to get up here in Canada, and most of what I have is in thanks to Sazabi, another forum member.