The trio eventually designed and developed a newer version, the Air Taser 34000.

Unlike the TF1, ATFE couldn’t classify the Air Taser 34000 as a firearm because it didn’t need gunpowder to propel its dual projectiles. Instead, it only used compressed air.

They established a new company they called Air Taser Inc. and started selling the new product in 1994, launched in partnership with The Sharper Image, a company that sells advanced consumer electronic devices.

Five years after, Air Taser Inc. had its corporate name changed to Taser International. A year after, the Taser M26 was launched internationally. Taser International would become a publicly traded company on the NASDAQ market with the ticker TASR.

The Taser device has had numerous designs and revisions. Today, these are being used in around 44 countries all over the world by police, some units in the military and civilians.

On average, a Taser device can generate up to ~50,000 volts, which is roughly 500,000 times the maximum amount of electricity the human body can generate.  If this amount is applied to the human body, this will cause an interference between neurons which will make them stop working as a result.

Voluntary muscle control will then be lost. This results to the target being incapacitated.

Once interference in the communication channels between brain and muscles stops, the person regains control of their body. But their brain can’t readily process new information.

This is why after someone is hit by a Taser device, they appear to be in a state of stunned confusion and look dazed.

DIFFERENCES

The most obvious difference between the two is in their names. A stun gun, by my loose definition, is any hand-held battery-powered device that delivers electric shock and is intended for self defense.

A “Taser” on the other hand  is a registered trademark for a specific type of stun gun, not a common name for just any electronic control device. People in the know refer to it as a Taser device.

Taser devices are different from stun guns because:

• Taser devices are shaped like a handgun;

• They point like a handgun;

• They have a trigger that works like that of a handgun’s,

• Taser devices can be used over significantly longer distances (up to 15 feet away for civilian models and up to 30 feet away for law enforcement models) because they can shoot their dual spear-shaped contact pins, or darts/probes, as projectiles. These are connected to the device via insulated wires.

• If the darts are shot and they didn’t hit the target, a Taser device can be used like any close range stun gun.

• They cycle from 5 to 30 seconds depending on the model (civilian models deliver a pulse once every second for 30 seconds).

• They work on neuro-muscular incapacitation to immobilize a target. No amount of pain tolerance or willpower can overcome this effect.

• Taser devices lock up the target’s body involuntarily to where muscles can’t be moved at all.

• They’re way more expensive than stun guns, especially when factoring in cartridge cost

And most “stun guns” are different from Taser devices because:

• Stun guns have varying shapes and sizes (some models are made to look like they’re an entirely different device, e.g. cell phones, flash lights, even lip sticks);

• They have to be used up close because their contact pins, or prongs, are usually fixed and cannot be propelled the way a Taser device’s can;

• They don’t have a switch that resembles a gun’s trigger;

• Stun guns allow the target to voluntarily move their body while they’re getting zapped;

• They work every second the button is held, unlike taser devices that have to cycle every few seconds.

• Unlike Taser devices, stun guns utilize pain to be effective. This means that if the target is high on drugs or has a very high natural pain tolerance, stun guns won’t work.

• Stun guns allow the target to move their body voluntarily (with supreme conscious effort/willpower) while they’re getting zapped.

• They’re typically a lot cheaper compared to even the cheapest Taser device model.

PRICING

We have come up with a list of some of the best stun guns on the market today, check it out if you want more detailed info. For the purposes of this comparison though, the cheapest generic stun guns can be had for as low as ~$20.

Those $20 stun guns typically advertise a voltage rating well within the millions range (5 million volts isn’t uncommon), but as was mentioned earlier, it isn’t so much the voltage that matters as it is the amperage.

Further research shows that the consensus among enthusiasts is these million-voltage stun guns aren’t really capable of delivering such amounts of voltage because of the tiny distance between the prongs.

We will not get into too much technical detail about why these voltage ratings are misleading because it’ll be a very broad topic altogether, but suffice it to say that a voltage rating on electronic control device advertised to be in the millions should not be used as a basis when shopping for a stun gun for self defense.

By comparison, the cheapest Taser device can cost around ~$400. Typical civilian Taser devices have an advertised voltage rating of 50,000 volts with a current rating of 4.9 amperes and is effective at distances of up to 15 feet.

RECOMMENDATION

Aside from differences in effective distance, price and method of incapacitation, Taser devices work pretty much the same as any stun gun.

If I were to make a recommendation to a friend who’s trying to decide which electroshock weapon platform to get, I’d recommend going for a Taser device that they can afford.

But being an advocate of firearms, I’d try to talk that friend into getting a concealed carry handgun with the necessary permit instead, because of the following reasons:

• There are a ton of handguns chambered in .380 ACP and 9×19 Parabellum that cost around the same or even cheaper than the lowest priced Taser device.

• A Taser device typically only allows for one shot. If that doesn’t hit the bad guy, the user will have to get up close and use the device like any normal stun gun.

• Granted, there’s a Taser model called X2 that provides a second shot, but even the lowest capacity .380 ACP ultracompacts can carry six rounds in the mag. I feel more confident that I can defend myself better if I had six shots vs. only two.

• Further on the number of shots argument, if I would have to face three attackers, even the Taser X2 would be useless.

• The notion of stopping an armed bad guy intent on hurting me or a loved one using only a non-lethal weapon is just plain silly in my opinion. I go by common sense and subscribe to the adage that the only thing that can stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.

• I think Taser devices are only suitable for law enforcement use. The police always have handcuffs on their person, and their duty entails incapacitating a bad guy to put them to prison afterward. I’m not in law enforcement, I don’t carry handcuffs and it isn’t my job to put criminals behind bars. I just want to stay out of trouble.

CONCLUSION

For all the reasons specified above, I personally wouldn’t want a Taser device. If I really wanted to carry an electroshock weapon I’d rather just get a generic stun gun as backup carry, with my main self defense weapon being an easily concealable semi-auto compact handgun or a snub-nose revolver.

All things considered, a Taser device is infinitely better than any common stun gun. But I don’t think I would recommend any non-lethal weapon for primary carry. Anyone serious about getting a CCW for self defense should really have a handgun.

This article by Mike Ramientas originally appeared at Gun News Daily in 2018.

Image: Pinterest.