A Brief History of TASER Products and Self Defense Devices

TASER® devices have come a long way in the last 4 decades. The 1^st generation of projectile firing stun guns was created in the late 1960’s by a NASA scientist named Jack Cover. He created a small hand held cylindrical device that used gunpowder to explosively propel 2 projectiles about 15 feet. These projectiles looked like darts connected to thin insulated wires shot out of a flashlight, and the whole contraption was called the TF-76. This prototype, and the next few that followed it, were simply used to shock someone into submission by delivering a jolt large enough to achieve “pain compliance”. So Jack Cover started a company to produce these devices, and it is rumored that that T.A.S.E.R. was an acronym inspired from the childhood novel Tom Swift and his Electric Rifle. The TF-76 with it’s cylindrical shape was not created to look like a firearm, but because it was powered by an explosive gunpowder charge, it had to be classified by the ATF. After much debate, the ATF lumped it in with sawed-off shotguns as a Title 2 weapon only available to law enforcement. This made marketing to the average consumer impossible and the first few models and manufacturing efforts soon died out.

Then in 1993, two brothers set out to make a electronic self defense device, that would be legal to carry. They contacted Jack Cover who revealed an idea he had, to use compressed air or nitrogen deploy the darts. They quickly brought Jack Cover on as an employee, and began to work together on the 2^nd generation electronic weapon. This model was called the Air TASER 34000 and was basically the same as the old TF-76, except for 2 important factors: it used compressed air to propel the projectiles, and when deployed, the 34000 dispersed Anti Felon ID “confetti” marked with serial numbers for easy tracing by law enforcement agents.

As word spread though the law enforcement community, the folks at the Air TASER Company received an invitation by the Czech police to test and demo the devices in Prague. The presentation turned out to be a total failure as repeated police officers were able “fight through the pain” and lay hands on the person deploying the Air TASER 34000. After returning home defeated and embarrassed, the team began to develop a more effective technology. They realized that the stun gun effects of the 34000 did not neuromuscularly incapacitate an assailant, especially if that assailant was determined. They worked on a new waveform and pattern of electrical disbursement, that would deliver uncontrollable muscle spasm and render even the most aggressive, drug crazed attacker completely helpless. Thus the TASER M18 and M26 were born. Thousands of law enforcement agencies readily accepted this new technology and implemented the non-lethal tool as an alternative to using a deadly firearm. In additin to the AFID confetti, a computer dataport that time stamped TASER device usage, was added to increase accountability. The TASER X26 was introduced in 2003 and was the first model to feature the patented “shaped pulse technology.” Even thought the TASER X26 is 60% smaller and lighter than the TASER M26, it packs a 5% greater wallop! As popularity grew, demand for more non-intimidating consumer friendly models led to the TASER C2 which looks more like a shaver, than a weapon. Recent developments in TASER® technology include a wireless missile that can be shot from a shotgun, up to 100 feet away!!

TASER® is a registered trademark of TASER International, Inc