The basic idea of a stun gun is to disrupt this
communication system. Stun guns generate a high-voltage, low-amperage
electrical charge. In simple terms, this means that the charge has a lot of
pressure behind it, but not that much intensity. When you press the stun gun
against an attacker and hold the trigger, the charge passes into the
attacker's body. Since it has a fairly high voltage, the charge will pass
through heavy clothing and skin. But at around 3 milliamps, the charge is not
intense enough to damage the attacker's body unless it is applied for extended
periods of time. It does dump a lot of confusing information into the
attacker's nervous system, however. This causes a couple of things to happen:
The charge combines with the electrical signals from the attacker's brain.
This is like running an outside current into a phone line: The original signal
is mixed in with random noise, making it very difficult to decipher any
messages.
When these lines of communication go down, the
attacker has a very hard time telling his muscles to move, and he may become
confused and unbalanced. He is partially paralyzed, temporarily. The current
may be generated with a pulse frequency that mimics the body's own electrical
signals. In this case, the current will tell the attacker's muscles to do a
great deal of work in a short amount of time. But the signal doesn't direct
the work toward any particular movement. The work doesn't do anything but
deplete the attacker's energy reserves, leaving him too weak to move
(ideally). At its most basic, this is all there is to incapacitating a person
with a stun gun -- you apply electricity to a person's muscles and nerves. And
since there are muscles and nerves all over the body, it doesn't particularly
matter where you hit an attacker.
Down for the Count! Stun-gun effectiveness varies
depending on the particular gun model, the attacker's body size and his
determination. It also depends on how long you keep the gun on the attacker.
If you use the gun for half a second, a painful jolt will startle the
attacker. If you zap him for one or two seconds, he should experience muscle
spasms and become dazed. And if you zap him for more than three seconds, he
will become unbalanced and disoriented and may lose muscle control. Determined
attackers with a certain physiology may keep coming despite any shock.
Stun Guns - What are They
Stun guns are becoming popular because
they are seen as a self-defense quick fix. If you haven't heard of them, or
don't really understand what they are, you are about to find out. We will look
at appearance, size, and the different designs available.
Appearance
Stun guns have external plastic
casing. Some have finger grips, and or, straps that go around the operator's
wrist. Both the grips and strap have been included in the design, to make it
more difficult to take the stun gun away from the person holding it.
On the top (pointy end)
of stun guns are two metal probes. Some of the more expensive guns have gold
plated probs. Gold is one of (if not) the best conductor of electricity. So it
only makes sense to use gold to improve performance, which is what they did.
The probes are roughly
2-inches (50mm) a part and they are what makes a stun gun work. Think of them
as being equivalent to a bullet in a gun or the sharp, pointy part of a knife.
Like a bullet or knife blade, the probes must make contact with someone in
order for the stun gun to be affective.
Size
Stun guns have been designed so they
can be held in an average size hand. In most cases, the more volts a stun gun
is capable of producing, the longer and heavier it will be. But this is not
always true (bigger is not necessarily better). They range in length from
4-inches (100 mm) to almost 8-inches (200 mm).
Different designs
Designers of stun guns are coming up
with more powerful guns (625,000 volts) purely to satisfy public demand -
that's what people want. While higher voltage sounds pretty impressive, the
truth is, it's not the volts, but the number of amps that make a stun gun more
powerful.
Designers have changed
the appearance of some stun guns, so they look like an ordinary call phone.
This idea could give the operator, the element of surprise, and the attacker
an unexpected shock. An unexpected shock will be more effective.
It's a bit like walking
up behind someone and loudly saying, "BOO" - they'll jump with shock and
surprise! If you walked up in front of someone and did the same thing, they
would probably just call you an idiot. The element of surprise is very
powerful! The phones can not be used to call anyone, they are just stun guns.
Designers are also adding
more features to stun guns. You can get stun batons, stun alarms with
flashlights, and what in my opinion, is the best thing they have come up with…
a two-in-one stun gun and pepper sprayer.
Conclusion
A stun gun is a small, mostly plastic,
hand-held device, that may, or may not stop an attacker from hurting the
operator (you). They come in different sizes, and levels of shocking power.
Remember that amps make them more powerful, not so much the volts. They are
now being made to look like cell phones. You can also get stun guns with
lights and alarms, or pepper spray.
When you Buy Stun Gun - Know How to
Use It
Why you should read your instructions
before you play with your new toy. About heart conditions and stun guns.
Information on how to stun an attacker, and how much zapping it takes to stop
him.
Read the instructions first
If you decide to buy a stun gun, read
the instructions BEFORE you play with it. It is possible to break your new
toy, simply by zapping the air. Most electrical appliances need to be earthed,
so they don't blow up. Stun guns need to be touching someone for them to be
earthed. That someone should only be an attacker.
If it is touching
someone, it will keep working until it runs out of battery power. If it is
zapping the air, it may stop working in a couple of seconds. So read your
instructions first and you won't break it.
Heart attack
I have read that a stun gun will not
cause a person to have a heart attack. After reading that, I wondered why that
could be so when it is possible to scare a person to death, just by sneaking
up from behind them, and loudly saying, "BOO!"
Obviously the person must
have a problem with their heart for this to work. But then, who's to say that
your attacker won't have a heart condition and drop dead when you zap him.
Remember that if you kill
your attacker, you may end up going to jail. Your stun gun should come with
some tips on how to use it. Some of the more expensive models come with videos.
How to stun an attacker
The first thing you need to understand
about using a stun gun is that the two prongs, must touch the person you want
to zap. So, you have to stab at the attacker, as you would if you were holding
a knife. The prongs on the stun gun take the place of the blade on a knife.
Hold both prongs on the
attacker, with the button pressed, for as long as you are able. He will try to
move out of range -- wouldn't you? Or he will become more aggressive, and is
likely to grab the arm that is holding it (close to the wrist). He will then
attempt to take your stun gun from you.
Try to touch him with the
prongs, on an area that is harder and slower to move, like the body. Not the
arms or hands, they can be moved away too quickly.
Remember: If the prongs
are not touching your attacker, release the trigger or your stun gun may stop
working.
How long do you need to zap
The following is a very basic
guideline for how long you will need to zap your attacker.
One second (one cat and
dog) will give him the shock of his life. If however, he has been zapped
before, he will not be as startled, because he will be somewhat used to the
feeling. He will however, be VERY upset with you for zapping him.
A two or three second zap
(one cat and dog, two cat and dog, three cat and dog) will cause his muscles
to start going into workout overload. They will be doing far more exercise
than they were designed for, and therefore, start to fatigue. He will also
feel a little dizzy.
At the four or five
second mark, you should start to see a downward turn in your attacker's
well-being. Five seconds is a long time in an attack situation (one cat and
dog, two cat and dog, three cat and dog, four cat and dog, five cat and dog).
If your attacker has
selected his victim correctly, you probably won't be able to keep it on him
for the 5 seconds, or more, needed to cause him to go down to the ground.
It will take between 3
and 30 minutes for the attacker to recover, leaving no permanent damage. If
the attacker doesn't have a heart attack, there will be no long-term physical
problems.
Conclusion
There are a lot of variables or things
that can go wrong when an untrained person tries to use a weapon for
self-defense. Remember that five seconds is a long time to be standing there
zapping an attacker. He won't like it and will do something about it!