GAH! Pepper spray! It burns the flesh!


Off-Topic Discussions


So today was pepper spray day in the academy. I think they do it for comical reasons but they say it's to show we can fight through it and that a bad guy can, too. I've been through a CS gas chamber before but...MY GOD! This was so much worse. My eyes closed and I couldn't control them, I felt dizzy, I just wanted the pain to stop.

The obstacle course started with a 400 meter sprint and then in to the pepper spray (I felt like I was hit with a gallon of spray), 20 pushups, hitting some dummies and a few other obstacles. I saw some funny stuff out there...glad its over.

I made the mistake of taking a shower when I got home. Man, I felt like I had just been sprayed again.

Im sure F2K can relate. :]

Contributor

Andrea mentioned it to April today. I was wondering how that went. How are you supposed to deal with it if it has that reaction to water? Man, that sounds awful!

Grand Lodge

CS and its derivatives affect you by reacting with moist surfaces - eyes, oral cavity, nose etc. When we were gas-bombed in the army, we were told to "walk it off". Luckily, I'm almost immune to the stuff; others had serious problems for hours. Most importantly: don't try to rub it off!


I got pepper sprayed during firearms instructor school with the FBI in 1996. I'd rather get tased. I got tased in 2002 when we first got tasers Department wide and I'd rather get tased than pepper sprayed any day, although the taser is a much more effective weapon.

When the taser is turned off, you get a great endorphin rush of relief. Pepper spray just kind of fades away with air just when you wonder how the hell your body could generate so much snot!!!

You can fight through pepper spray--you can't fight through a proper taser deployment. Tasers don't fail when their prongs hit you properly and at a good space apart. Tasers don't work unless both prongs hit you and far enough part to cause sufficient muscle contraction from those lovely 50,000 volts (it's the amps that kill you remember!)


I had heard milk works, so after the shower Andrea (wife) rubbed milk all over my face, neck, ears and arms. Im covered in a crusty white shell :] It did help a little.

My hand still burns like heck, though. It's under some of my finger nails.

F2K, I have heard that from some other officers, that they would prefer being tased to pepper sprayed.

Liberty's Edge

Boy, that old CS gas room will really clear out the old sinuses, I tell you!!!


We have a couple of guys on our Department who are taser addicts. They are Taser Int'l instructors and go to every instructor's conference there is and have dozens of videos of themselves getting tased. That endorphin release is a wonderful thing, let me tell you. Getting tased once is enough for me, though.

The good thing about your Capstun exposure in the Academy is that when you accidentally (notice I said when) get sprayed in the field by one of your fellow officers, you'll know that you will be able to function still.


Savaun Blackhawk wrote:
My hand still burns like heck, though. It's under some of my finger nails.

Try making a paste of baking soda & water. It will neutralize the capsicum.

Silver Crusade

I wish I was allowed to pepper spray customers.

I know those of you in law enforcement will tell me that is not an appropriate use for pepper spray, but you haven't met my customers.

Contributor

M. Balmer wrote:
Savaun Blackhawk wrote:
My hand still burns like heck, though. It's under some of my finger nails.

Try making a paste of baking soda & water. It will neutralize the capsicum.

I don't know if I'd trust a guy who's name is "M. Balmer" for pain relieving home remedies. I mean, look at his avatar, man!

JK ;)
EDIT: Posted this twice. The first one disappeared into the ether :|

Dark Archive Owner - Johnny Scott Comics and Games

I knew a guy in college that was immune to pepper spray. He'd been sprayed so many times by the Columbus PD that it didn't affect him anymore. He was a lunatic.

Liberty's Edge

My Drill Sargent walked around in the CS gas room without a gas mask on for a good long time with no adverse effects. I think you can build up a tolerance.


Larry Lichman wrote:

I knew a guy in college that was immune to pepper spray. He'd been sprayed so many times by the Columbus PD that it didn't affect him anymore. He was a lunatic.

That's a frequent occurrence. We never had pepper spray or tasers when I worked patrol--all we had was a good old fashioned PR-24 and 3-D cell maglites, plus the polyester pile, which worked every time back then.

Polyester Pile = summoning as much back up as can show up and then piling on the guy until he gives up. I don't care how high you are, when you have 6 cops sitting on top of you, it's hard to fight.

"It took six cops to take him down" (That's right, it's because the cops want to go home at the end of the day unhurt and the concept of a "fair fight" is just frikkin' stupid for true professionals--if I could find a way to take someone out non-lethally from 200 yards without ever having to touch them that would be perfect--I want every circumstance modifier I can get my hands on)

One time a guy squared off with me like he wanted to "box" and I got back into my patrol car and pinned him to the wall with my push bumpers. "That's not fair" he yelled. Damn straight--if I could have used a dump truck, I would have. Chivalry, my ass! Workman's comp only pays 60% or something and if anyone thinks that any cop out there is going to go toe to toe with you like they're T.J Hooker, they've been watching way too much TV.


I am pretty much immune to pepper spray. You see when I was a kid, maybe 15 or 16 years ago, we used to "creativly borrow" the mailman's pepper spray and then run around playing peppertag(there was a whole lot wrong with us I am sure), and while it would burn me, everyone else I played with would gag and choke and fall on the floor and stuff. I have never been tasered though. Not sure I want to try it either.


yeah, pepper spray and tear gas only make me mad and yes I know it as a fact. Sure your eyess stream and your nose runs and you feel all kinds of unpleasant, but mostly it takes a calm rational guy like me and makes me a beserker and all kinds of unreasonable.

hmm, course its been 20+ years since I been in the stuff so I would probably just have an allergy attack and sufficate nowadays; aint getting old just grand.

oh; for you not in the know; do not; do not take a hot shower after being hit with an excessive amount of tear gas; like so think you see it settle in the room in a low cloud. A mostly warm or hot shower will open your pores and turn your shower into a gas chamber; be warned; not a good idea.


My bro-in-law works for a supplier for law enforcement officers & they had someone from one of the taser companies come to demonstrate on "a volunteer" salesman. He said all the guys were joking about "you do it, no, you do it" then the only lady salesman walked in & said, "shoot me". He said they just stood there dumbfounded. Needless to say, she was shot with it first and then 2 of the other sales guys did it. (Neither of them by b-i-l)

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