Hi Sproles. I could write a book on OC sprays! First, you might try a search. I know there has been a lot on them in Practical Tactical.
I carry a Punch II fogger unit on my belt, just to the right of my buckle, attached with a 2" length of mountain bike inner tube. The range would be about 8-12 ft, and it is a 5% formula with 2 million SHU (.675%). I would consider this a minimum for OC concentration, although I've heard good things about Fox Lab's OC (2% with 5.3 million SHU). Also, a recent post somewhere on BF had an LEO commenting very favorably on Freeze +P, which I believe is a combo of OC and CS (military tear gas--orthochlorobenzomolononitrile).
I've been sprayed with OC five times. The last two times were with what I carry. OC will NOT stop someone who is really motivated to hurt you, but it MAY serve as a decent "beyond arm's reach" distraction if you train with it and use it properly. Since I've been sprayed a few times, I'm not afraid of it, and it would probably just piss me off if someone used it on me. But if they got my eyes right away, it could certainly effect my ability to find them if I haven't already grabbed them.
Some observations:
Do not store OC in your car in the summer. Max temp is about 120 degrees F. It may burst or leak and contaminate your vehicle for a few hours or more. J&L Self Defense Products does sell a "car unit" made by Bodyguard (which is supposed to be a good company) that you may be interested in. See
www.selfdefenseproducts.com .
Training is essential. In our last live OC tests, both instructors who were firing real units for their first times did not push far enough down on the actuator and this delayed their spray reactions. Practice taking off any safeties and also deploying your units from wherever they may be. Lack of this will probably trip you up in an actual incident, just like it did one of our S-D students: she was accosted in a parking lot by an ex boyfriend. She took out her spray (Punch II fogger) and promptly dropped it! Fortunately, she then punched him in his nose when he got close, and he took off. That's the only reason we sell OC to our students--they have the H2H to fall back on and they are warned that OC may not work as often advertised.
Do a search for lots more info and other opinions, and feel free to email me with any specific questions. Also, go to Modern Warrior's website for some articles on OC training and "goal oriented" experiments with live OC.
Karl
