"Similarly anecdotes and stories about using bear spray are similar.

In fact videos exist showing it having zero effect. "

But that's a false comparison. Which is more likely to be effective if charged in the brush from short range: the spray dangling on your finger or the revolver you don't have time to unholster at all?

I owned 49 acres of forest in BC abutting West Arm Provincial Park, which is known for grizzlies. My property was very densely wooded and a loud creek cascaded down the middle of the property. I saw bear scat everywhere when I walked paths. Because of the noisy creek, a bear would be much less likely to hear me coming. A confrontation would probably have happened at too close range to draw a revolver or unshoulder a slinged long gun. I have carried revolvers and can draw them as well as the next guy. A revolver would have been near useless on most of my property, unless I sprayed first.

I'm American and in BC I couldn't carry a revolver anyway. But with a revolver I still would have had a can of spray dangling on my finger. Because odds are good it would give me a chance to draw the revolver.

In AK I carried a shotgun, that was long ago.

The advantage of spray is not necessarily that it is more effective. The advantage is that spray is *faster* when speed counts, if you carry it like I did. It would be nearly instant. And you basically can't miss. There's no advantage if the spray is strapped to your chest with velcro. Then it's even slower than a revolver.

Spray weighs nothing and has a ring handle. It carries like car keys on your finger. A Redhawk weighs over three pounds, you can't carry that in your hand all day.

If you have the spray and a gun, and a bear materializes at 30 yards, a bullseye pinned to his nose, wagging his head and snapping his jaws, there's no reason you can't drop the spray and do what you've always wanted to do anyway.