If you carry a firearm and you’re serious about self-defense, you need to carry some form of less-lethal alternative. The easiest and arguably most effective less-lethal tool is some form of chemical irritant, also known as pepper spray (OC spray). My favorite brand, and the one I always suggest, is POM.
The fact is that not all situations warrant deadly force, and pepper spray provides a powerful alternative to a firearm. If you carry a firearm for self-defense or professionally, you should be familiar with the concept of a Use of Force Continuum. Between verbal commands and your firearm sits a less-lethal alternative.
POM is decisive, immediate, and extremely painful. I’ve been Tasered, I’ve been put through an O.C. gas chamber more times than I can count, and I’ve been pepper-sprayed. I would rather go through a gas chamber while being Tasered than be pepper-sprayed again.
Pepper spray, and POM, is more than just a last resort. It’s a tool you put in your EDC box with numerous applications we’ll discuss today. We’ll also discuss why POM is the superior choice for everyday carry.
Why Less-Lethal?
A less-lethal tool fills a role in your force continuum to resist an attacker without the need for lethal force. That’s likely the main reason why it’s a valuable tool for everyone. However, these tools offer other advantages.
This includes having an option where lethal force might be justified, but not optimal. Using a firearm in an extremely crowded area can present a danger to other innocent people. Deploying pepper spray can help halt an attack while mitigating collateral damage.
In my life as an everyday civilian, I’ve used pepper spray to defend myself more than a firearm, namely against dogs. If I go for a run, I take pepper spray because it’s highly effective on attacking dogs, and it’s honestly easier to hit a dog with a stream of pepper spray than a gun due to how fast they can move.
Pepper spray can also help you create distance from an attacker. Distance is time, and time is decisional currency. You can spray someone, retreat, and call for help, deploy a firearm, or take any other option to end the fight.
The big reason to carry a less-lethal agent like pepper spray is to help create a layered defense against various threats in various situations.
Why POM?
There are lots of great pepper spray options out there. I come back to POM for numerous reasons.
It’s Easy to Carry and Discreet
First, it’s compact and easy to carry. The best tool is the one you’ll carry daily without complaint. POM offers multiple sizes, from micro-sized designs to moderate-sized models like the MK-3. Depending on your attire or your needs, you can find the right option for you.
These days, I carry the basic EDC 1/2-ounce variant. It’s small, easy to carry, and disappears in my daily wear. The design is sleek and simple, and blends in perfectly with modern phones, wallets, etc. It’s just black or white and provides a low-profile, discreet tool.
POM produces models with a belt clip, which I tend to carry in my pocket a bit like a pocket knife. There is a key ring model and a Runner’s model with an integrated glove-like device to keep the spray in your hand and positioned with ease.
There was a time when I worked in repossession and carried the larger MK-3 for its higher 3-ounce capacity and longer effective range. The MK-3 isn’t as discreet, but still small enough to be carried with relative ease as a concealed carry tool.
Simple Deployment
The POM features a flip-top safety mechanism. This is a POM patent, and it’s super easy to use under stress. The cap stays secure until you shove a thumb under it, pop it up, and start spraying. It can be used with one hand, so you can occupy the other with another task.
Since the top only pops up one way, you can’t accidentally deploy the system backward. The POM containers are designed to allow you to feel the proper orientation of the device. A small lip beneath the nozzle gives you a tactile hand position to allow you to engage without blocking the nozzle with your hand.
With that said, like anything, training is necessary.
The biggest reason why I like POM is that they produce training modules. These are filled with water. POM Inert Units are bright blue and spray water. They offer an identical design and spray water in the same pattern and range as they spray OC.
This gives you a safe training solution at half the cost of a POM pepper spray unit. You can even safely live-fire practice, so to speak, on living, breathing simulated attackers and get high-quality training that’s realistic. It’s force-on-force, but for your less-lethal agent.
The Pattern
POM uses a stream pattern, which is my preferred EDC choice. Other options are a fog or a cone. These offer a shotgun-like effect, which can be helpful for immediate, close-range use. However, they have a limited range compared to a stream.
Additionally, the cone or fog can spray backward with any wind. This includes an A/C unit or a fan. The stream has enough pressure to push through light winds and hit the target without blowback.
The stream allows you to adjust the aim if you hit low or high and need to steer it into the eyes. POM offers a max range of 12 feet, but that’s the absolute max range of the stream. It’s running out of pressure at that point. Realistically, the effective range is about 8 feet for the standard-size unit.
The Formula
The POM formula consists of 10% oleoresin capsaicin, O.C., (words I can’t pronounce). POM doesn’t B.S. you with the rating; they use the Major Capsaicinoids (MC) rating, which is a true measure of pain and the ability to incapacitate. A lot of companies will sell you on Scoville Heat Units, which is not an accurate means to measure effectiveness.
The recommended potency of MC should be between .7% to 2%. POM gives 1.4% MC. That can be disbursed in 20 bursts or up to 10 seconds of continuous spray. It’s brutal; it causes instant pain, blindness, and can even make you choke and cough.
Going Less-Lethal
Less-Lethal is a tool that anyone serious about self-defense should consider carrying. It’s just another option, and options are always nice to have. I prefer POM, but there are certainly other quality options.
Shop smart, train hard, and stay safe.
