You want to protect yourself or your family in today’s world. There are several ways you can be safe from learning self-defense using weapons both lethal and non-lethal. We want to talk today about how to use pepper spray, when to use it and which pepper sprays on the market will work for what you need.
Why use pepper spray
Pepper spray is a game changer for everyone especially anyone just not capable of fighting off an attacker. Not everyone is built to fight or defend themselves if attacked.
What pepper spray does is it allows you to stop an attacker not with physical force but by using a specially formulated spray.
This spray has chemicals that once they are sprayed into the eyes and face of an attacker their eyes burn. The pepper spray will also make their eyes water so badly they cannot see.
If an attacker can’t see then it will be hard for them to continue an attack. This is why you should carry and use pepper spray to defend yourself.
How painful is pepper spray
I hate to say it but I know first-hand how bad pepper spray hurts and burns.
I was in college at an OSU football game. The Buckeyes had won the game and they had just beaten a better-ranked opponent.
All the students plus other fans stormed the field after the big win. Naturally, I am a student so I ran out on the field with everyone else.
I was not doing anything to anyone, messing with goalposts, or hurting the field by grabbing turf. All of a sudden I came upon a policeman, which I know several police officers, and this policeman just raised his pepper spray up and shot the spray into my eyes.
I did not get arrested he just walked away spraying everyone. If you want to clear the field of anybody who stormed it using pepper spray does not work.
I dropped to the ground in pain and could not leave the field because I could not see.
I think this policeman was just enjoying pepper spraying people on the field. They were not clearing the field by spraying people and they were not arresting you so what was the point.
This was back in 1992 so back then people stormed fields all the time what the universities did not like was people messing up the goal post which seemed to be happening a lot back then.
I was not even near the goal post when I got hit with pepper spray.
I hear you saying well you should not have been on the field and I agree that was not a good idea.
How long does pepper spray last
What do you know I have knowledge of how long it lasts since I got sprayed back in college.
It lasts way too long is what I can tell you. It seemed like 3 hours or more before my eyes quit burning and my vision was not blurred from all the water come out of them. It’s like you are crying for 3 hours straight.
I was able to see a little bit after about 15 to 20 minutes. I still needed my girlfriend at the time to walk me home because I just could not see well and it was still burning.
How long it lasts would also depend on what type of pepper spray you got hit with. This was police-grade so I am sure it is worse then what we recommend below for personal use.
I will tell you any type of pepper spray when sprayed at an attacker’s face and eyes will do the job you need so you can get away from them.
I will say this it may not be as effective with some people as others. Some people can handle the burn and still maybe see enough to grab you.
Just make sure you’re ready with throat punch, eye gouge or groin hit. Keep hitting them until they let go and you can get away.
What if you get pepper spray on you
You will need to be careful with blowback spray. When you discharge the spray at an attacker some of the mist could come back into your face. This will definitely happen if there is a wind and the wind is blowing towards you when you fire the spray.
You can do a few things to help with that so you do not get it into your eyes or face.
1) Buy the pepper spray gel we recommend below because its a gel so it will not blow back into your eyes
2) When spraying move to the side or back up as you spray and then run like hell to get away
Both of these techniques will limit or make it so you do not get any spray or gel into your face.
I would tell you to try not to spray the chemical with the wind to your face but if you are attacked you may be stuck deploying the pepper spray even with the wind in your face.
What is the most effective pepper spray
Pepper spray has similar formulas on what is allowed to use in each canister. The difference is how powerful is what is delivered.
Bear spray is more potent so for general public use I would say bear pepper spray is the strongest you could use. All brands are similar so I know they work it’s just preference and price when looking to get pepper spray.
SABRE 3-in-1 Pepper Spray
This SABRE Pepper spray has the max stopping power you need to stop an attacker where they stand. The product also claims that its failure rate is well below other products that can be 30%.
I have been pepper sprayed once by a police officer in college. I had run onto the field after the Ohio State football team had won a big game. This police officer was just pepper spraying everyone to clear the field.
Which is hilarious because once you get sprayed you can’t see or move. I had to have a friend lead me out of the stadium because I could not see for two hours. It was the worst thing ever to get pepper spray in my eyes and face.
I know for a fact no attacker will be able to see once you hit their face and eyes with the spray. Even a small dose will cause sight blurring plus burning on the eyes and face.
What does SABRE 3-in-1 pepper spray give you
- The spray can shoot 10 feet.
- You get up to 35 shots with the spray
- I would test it in a yard or secluded area every 3 months just to make sure everything works
- You can use it to repel an attacker or an animal
- Tested and effective in any situation
Frontiersman SABRE Bear Pepper Spray
I know the normal pepper spray will work just fine in any situation where you are attacked by a man or an animal. If you really want the powerful stuff that can shoot the spray a longer distance then bear pepper spray is what you should get.
If it will stop bears what do you think it will do to a guy trying to attack you.
What does Frontiersman bear pepper spray give you
- Maximum stopping strength
- Eliminate 30% of failures with this brand
- The spray can shoot 30 feet not just 10 feet like most pepper spray
- Creates a fog so no chance of you missing target
- This is long lasting with a 3-year shelf life
- Field tested against bears to stop their charging
- You need to test it every 3 months make sure it’s working fine
SABRE Lipstick Pepper Spray
This is smaller and easier to carry then the SABRE 3-in-1. The lipstick pepper spray has the same effect on anyone you spray.
What does SABRE Lipstick pepper spray give you
- You have a distance of 10 feet the spray will shoot
- You only get 12 bursts from this smaller this lipstick canister
- Please test it every 3 months make sure it’s working fine
- Easy to carry and conceal
- Very effective even though it is small
Kimber Pepper Blaster II – Pepper Spray Gun
These are a little bigger to carry so may be harder to conceal. You can carry this in your purse if you have a big bag. You can also just have it in the car so it is easy to get to if you get someone in road rage and comes up to your car.
This is easier to aim at the target and shoot. The gun design will send out the spray at 90 MPH which is good for you because less chance of blowback getting into your eyes.
What does Kimber Blaster give you
- Easy to use gun spray just point and shoot
- 90 MPH spray force to prevent spray blow back into your face
- This will travel 13 feet which is better than handheld SABRE spray but not as good as the bear spray
- No mail-order sales to CA, HI, NY, MA, WI, DC
- You need to test it every 3 months make sure it’s working fine
SABRE Red Pepper Gel
I like the spray but the gel does not have the same risk of the spray blowing back into your face.
What does SABRE red pepper gel give you
- Pepper gel does not atomize so virtually no wind blowback
- This gel will travel 18 feet which would be 8 feet more than the normal SABRE spray
- Has 18 bursts
- This also has a flip-top safety mechanism so no accidental discharges
- Substance sticks to targets face
- 4-year shelf life
- You need to test it every 3 months make sure it’s working fine
Is police pepper spray stronger
The strength of pepper spray is tough to determine because the industry is not regulated. Companies can make claims that may not be true so make sure you buy from a trusted company.
Pepper spray is made from capsaicin and is put through a treatment to produce oleoresin capsaicin.
The content of the product is unreliable because there are 6 different types of capsaicinoids and each has different levels of strength and potency.
The manufacturers do not really tell which level is used so you really do not know for sure what is the strength.
Pepper spray you can buy for your personal use ranges from .18% to as high as 3%.
The question is what does law enforcement use and they have pepper spray that is between 1.3% and 2%.
The government has said that with bear pepper spray it must at least contain 1% but no more than 2% CRC. CRC is the pain component of the spray and is what causes the burning sensation.
Depending on the manufacturer your personal spray may be as strong as what police use and carry.
Conclusion
You really need to carry pepper spray with you wherever you go. It is a great nonlethal weapon that can stop an attacker long enough for you to get away.
You just need to check local city and state law before carrying it with you. Make sure you watch our video on this page of how to use pepper spray or pepper gel. It would also help if you learned self-defense so check out our training program on this site.