What is the Highest Voltage For a Stun Gun?

Stun guns and tasers are non-lethal weapons that can incapacitate an assailant and allow you to get away. But if you’re shopping for one, the voltage claims of some models can be confusing.

Voltage alone doesn’t tell the whole story — current and duration also make an impact on stun gun strength. In order to compare models effectively, you need to understand how these two factors are measured.

Maximum Voltage

Stun guns use high voltage to create an electrical charge that causes the assailant to experience pain and disorientation, giving you a chance to escape. They typically have a jolting shock that lasts up to 3 seconds.

They are about the size of a flashlight and operate on batteries like 9-volts. The battery power is used to supply electricity to a circuit that includes multiple transformers and other components to boost the voltage. Then, the voltage is fed to electrodes that connect to the stun gun prongs.

The highest voltage stun guns are the ones that produce a million volts or more. This is the level that police officers use to subdue uncooperative or dangerous suspects. Those volts are enough to cause muscle spasms and deplete the attacker’s sugar level, so you can escape the scene and get help. They also create a loud crackling sound to scare off the assailant and deter them from attacking you again.

Amperage

Most stun guns, and the Taser that police officers use, work by sending a high voltage to the person being tased. This is enough to cause pain and temporary muscle contractions, but not enough to cause serious injuries or even unconsciousness.

Voltage is just one of the factors that determines how strong a stun gun is. Another is the amperage. The amperage is how much electricity the stun gun is actually able to deliver, and how quickly it can deliver that shock.

While many manufacturers claim that their stun guns are capable of delivering millions of volts, this is simply not true. A stun gun can only produce a maximum of about 30,000 volts with contacts that are spaced just a centimeter apart. Anything above this would violate the laws of physics.

Discharge Current

Stun guns are designed to discharge a high voltage electrical charge and it is the current that determines how effective they are. Voltage alone isn’t enough, the current must be intense enough to cause a painful shock and the pulse duration must be long enough for depolarization to occur in heart tissue.

Many stun guns advertise volts in the millions, but most are not powerful enough to cause a lethal blow. The voltage is produced by a circuit that converts the power of ten AA batteries into an astonishing amount of electricity. The voltage is then passed through a transformer to greatly amplify it. The current is what will disable an attacker by causing muscle spasms and destroying the body’s glucose supply, leaving them unable to take in oxygen or communicate with others for help. The crackling sound that is produced as the contacts are pressed against an attacker also helps deter them from continuing the attack.

Safety

Unlike pepper spray, stun guns must make contact with an attacker to deliver the electrical charge. Stun gun prongs are designed to pierce through thick clothing and skin, which allows them to incapacitate an assailant even when they’re grabbing you or trying to pull you away from safety.

The best stun guns for women are small and compact, yet still pack a powerful punch. Technology has made it possible for stun guns to be as small as a USB flash drive or garage door opener without sacrificing voltage.

It’s important to note that many stun gun companies claim their products have millions of volts, but this is false advertising since it is physically impossible for this to occur. The highest voltage a stun gun can have is 30,000 volts when the contacts are spaced one centimeter apart. The maximum amperage is also regulated at 5 milliamps because any more would overload the circuitry. The higher the voltage, the shorter the shock will be.