imho, dex bear is not interesting until about level 45. From 15 to 30, str bear with board and nail club rocks. And from 30 to 44, I like iceberg armor with frosty hatchet. No dex weapons will out damage these. The only reason birds can do more damage is because of skills. The bear weapons are better than bird weapons, unless you want to run in a circle and kite. But, both board-n-nail and frosty hatchet will kill faster than any bow until level 40s.

At about 31 you can dual spec your bear to do either bow or iceberg. After dying often with the bow, it's nice to put on the iceberg and get some payback.