LAW and ORDER

UP-CLOSE PHAZZER ENFORCER ECD
SUMMARY
PhaZZer® Electronics is the new
Sheriff in town when it comes to
less-lethal devices. Their Enforcer is a
new alternative to the TASER®. Their
EqualiZZer is a new alternative to the
PepperBall® launchers. Both lesslethal devices are simple, effective and
economical options. Here is the info on
the Enforcer ECD.
MORE INFORMATION
www.phazzer.com
www.phazzerstore.com
One of the big advantages of the PhaZZer
p
Enforcer is a brilliant, 160-lumen light. This
is plenty of light to clear a room of any size.
The white LED is turned on separately from
the ECD itself.
PHAZZER
ENFORCER ECD
THIS NEW LESS-LETHAL
DEVICE IS DEFINITELY
WORTH A LOOK.
44 LAW and ORDER I January 2014
By LAW and ORDER Staff
P
haZZer® Electronics
has aggressively entered the less-lethal
market with two carefully developed, beta-site tested devices. These
PhaZZer devices are clearly superior to the earlier attempts by other
companies, and in fact are direct,
feature-by-feature competitors to the
existing products. The Enforcer ECD
cartridges are interchangeable with
the TASER® cartridges. The EqualiZZer ball projectiles are interchangeable with PepperBall® projectiles.
(More on the EqualiZZer launcher in
a future issue.)
The PhaZZer Enforcer comes with a selection of cartridges, a battery charger
and software on a thumb-drive for the Wireless Data Port.
The PhaZZer devices are fully as effective as the current options; they have some
unique features but are essentially simple
and no-frills devices. That makes them
the low cost alternatives—the only such
alternatives in this market—at between 25
and 40 percent less expensive than their
competitors.
PhaZZer Enforcer
t u The PhaZZer
Enforcer is available
with either a black frame
or a yellow frame. The
thin neoprene grip
is a clear ergonomic
advantage, and so is
the larger handle with a
three-finger groove grip.
The PhaZZer Enforcer is a less-lethal
Conductive Energy Weapon (CEW), also
called an Electronic Control Device (ECD).
It is a direct competitor to the TASER series of ECDs, specifically devices like the
X26. In fact, the PhaZZer fires standard
TASER X26 cartridges.
Like the TASER, the peak open circuit
voltage is between 55,000 and 65,000 volts,
and the voltage immediately drops when
the circuit is closed. The wave form is the
The patrol officer training for the PhaZZer Enforcer
p
is identical to the TASER X26 training. Except for a few
controls, the two ECDs are essentially the same.
www.lawandordermag.com 45
UP-CLOSE PHAZZER ENFORCER ECD
traditional-shaped pulse delivered at between 18 and 20 pulses per second.
The Enforcer uses nitrogen as a propellant like the TASER. As such, the PhaZZer
in not considered by the BATF as a “firearm.” Recall that some ECD false-starts
by other companies in the past have used
primers as the propellant, which indeed
did classify those as a firearm.
Plenty of Battery
The Enforcer uses a 7.4-volt, 700-milliamphour (mAh) rechargeable lithium-ion
battery capable of delivering 3,000 fivesecond deployments. The Enforcer battery
is also replaceable—a significant feature.
The non-proprietary replacement battery
is readily available and fairly inexpensive.
The ready replacement of the battery encourages officers to test fire the device, to
check it for level of charge prior to going
on each day.
The PhaZZer Enforcer has an LED
battery light indicator on the rear of the
weapon, just below the safety activation
switch, which performs two functions.
When the unit is charged, the light is
green. The Enforcer is capable of 50 fivesecond (full) deployments before requiring a recharge.
When the unit requires a charge, the
small LED will change to red notifying
the user to charge the weapon. When this
notification takes place, i.e., when the light
switches from green to red, the Enforcer
still has 70 percent of the charge left. At
this level, the battery still allows dozens
of deployments and plenty of time to recharge the Enforcer in the next few days.
The PhaZZer Enforcer shoots both PhaZZer cartridges and TASER cartridges
p
interchangeably. The probe/dart designs are slightly different but function the same
way. The PhaZZer Enforcer cartridges definitely allow for a drive-stun.
p
The PhaZZer Enforcer uses a number of unique cartridges: Rubber Bullet
(black), Dart Pro 15 Foot (yellow), PepperBall 30 Foot (red), Paintball Marking 30
Foot (green) and Pepper Powder 8 Foot (pink). A Dart Pro 21 Foot is also available.
The cost of the PhaZZer cartridges matches the TASER cartridges.
Ergonomics
It is almost exactly the same overall size as
the TASER X26 with one major advantage.
The X26 has a two-finger groove grip,
while the Enforcer has a larger, three-finger groove grip. Compared to the popular
handguns, the TASER X26 is just smaller
(grip-wise) than a Glock 26/27, while the
PhaZZer is midway between the Glock
26/27 and the Glock 19/23.
This 1-inch extra grip length and heft
simply make the Enforcer easier to hold,
point, and accurately shoot. On the other
hand, it makes the Enforcer a bit larger to
carry on the duty belt. The Enforcer has a
non-slip textured grip surface. Over the
grip, the Enforcer has one extremely nice
feature—the Enforcer comes with a rubber
46 LAW and ORDER I January 2014
p
The PhaZZer Enforcer is available with a training cartridge. It can be hardwired
with alligator clips for exposure during training or fire probes with non-conductive
fishing line for accuracy training.
“The Enforcer felt well made, felt more substantial in the hand. The PhaZZer Enforcer
is equal to and in a few respects better in a
side-by-side comparison.”
— Sgt. Dale Halcomb, Cumberland, KY Police
This automatic three-cycle shutdown technology is used to limit
liability that may attach due to too many energy applications. This
safety circuit can be manually overridden in the case that additional force is reasonable and necessary.
160-Lumen Light Plus Laser
The PhaZZer Enforcer can fire impact munitions—including
p
OC Pepper, Rubber Ball and Paintball Marking.
grip sleeve, which gives it an excellent feel. The PhaZZer Enforcer
comes in Black and in Yellow.
The Enforcer also has an integral Picatinny rail at the top of
the frame. This allows the mounting of lights or sights, but it especially allows the Enforcer itself to be mounted to a less-lethal
launcher or patrol rifle.
Limiting Less-Lethal Liability
With each trigger pull, the PhaZZer delivers a five-second application of energy. This can be shortened by mechanically turning the device off. The PhaZZer will deliver three such full-cycle
applications. Then safety shutdown circuit technology activates,
in compliance with current American Academy of Emergency
Medicine, Department of Justice, and American Heart Association studies and guidelines.
The PhaZZer Enforcer uses a 160-lumen white light. It could easily be used to clear a room. Not too long ago, a mere 70 lumens
was considered a “tactical” level of light. The Enforcer LED white
light is very bright, and has plenty of reach—up to 45 yards. The
powerful light, which rivals a belt-carried flashlight, is one of the
Enforcer’s biggest competitive advantages.
Importantly, the LED white light is activated by its own, ambidextrous switches. The switches are located on either side of the
frame, right above the trigger. One is in easy reach of the shooting
hand index finger, while the other is in easy reach of the support
hand thumb. Unlike the competition, the white light operates independently of the main power switch—you do not have to activate
the energy deployment feature in order to activate the white light.
Activate the Enforcer
The activating—arming—safety switch is located at the rear of the
frame, just below where a rear sight would be. This is a different
location from the competition, but was easy to get used to. The
TASER switch works like a safety on many auto pistols. However,
the Enforcer switch works like the safety on the venerable Mossberg 500 police shotgun. No one had trouble sliding the Mossberg
safety off come game day.
When the Enforcer switch is turned on, the red laser emanates
from the top of the frame to serve as a laser pointer. The white
PHAZZER CARTRIDGES
• Dart Pro 15 Foot – uses nitrogen to launch two probes connected to insulated wires. When the two probes connect to the subject
and close the circuit, electro-muscular disruptive energy is deployed. This is an optional police cartridge.
• Dart Pro 21 Foot – uses nitrogen to launch two probes connected to insulated wires. When the two probes connect to the subject
and close the circuit, electro-muscular disruptive energy is deployed. This is the primary police cartridge.
• PepperBall 30 Foot – launches a single PepperBall projectile to a maximum effective range of 30 feet. On impact, the projectile
ruptures, releasing oleoresin capsicum (OC pepper).
• Rubber Bullet 30 Foot – launches a single .68-caliber rubber ball to an effective accurate range of 30 feet. This is intended to
distract or confuse the subject, but it will not incapacitate like a traditional impact munition.
• Paintball Mark 30 Foot – launches a single .68-caliber paintball to an effective accurate range of 30 feet. On impact, the projectile
ruptures and marks the subject, but it can also be used to distract or confuse the subject.
• Multi-Target Pepper Powder 8 Foot – blast deploys OC pepper powder with an effective range of 2 to 12 feet, obviously wind
direction dependent. The OC powder impairs the sight and breathing of subjects.
• Dart Pro Training Cartridge 15 Foot and 25 Foot - uses nitrogen to launch two probes connected to non-conductive, nylon fishing
line. The point of impact and dart spread of the Training probes is the same as the duty probes on the 15-foot and 25-foot cartridges.
www.lawandordermag.com 47
UP-CLOSE PHAZZER ENFORCER ECD
The ambidextrous sliding switches on the side of
the frame control the LED white light. The Mossbergstyle sliding switch at the rear of the frame below the
sight turns on and off the ECD. When the PhaZZer
Enforcer is turned on, a red laser pointer emanates
from the top of the frame.
light does not come on unless separately
activated.
Without a cartridge in place, the unit
can be spark-tested. One pull of the trigger
results in a five-second deployment cycle.
That cycle can be immediately stopped,
just like the TASER, by turning the device
off. The Enforcer can also be used as a
drive-stun on the same subject, or another
subject, after the cartridge has been fired.
The PhaZZer Enforcer and TASER
X26 use virtually the same technology;
for example, both use a programmable
microcontroller. The controls on both
are fully digital microchip-operated.
The high-volt section of the Phazzer Enforcer also combines the latest pulse and
high-volt generation offered by today’s
electronic suppliers of discrete components like the gas discharge tubes.
Wireless Data Port
The PhaZZer Enforcer jumps over old
hard-wired technology to use wireless, Bluetooth-like technology for their
deployment-recordable operation (Data
Port Feature) for witness and court required documentation. The Enforcer’s
wireless digital-information download
feature is well worth noting.
The Enforcer comes with the Wireless
Dataport Unit installed. However, it requires the TC100 Data Port receiver unit,
which is ordered separately. When the
Enforcer is activated and it is within 10
feet of the computer that has the TC100
installed, a detailed weapon activity report will be automatically transmitted
to the TC100. This report shows the unit
identifier, time and date of discharge,
and number and duration of discharge.
Variety of Cartridges
The PhaZZer Enforcer is fully microchip operated
using the latest in programmable microcontroller
technology to produce pulsed energy cycles. The dart
spread from the PhaZZer cartridges is slightly less than
from the TASER cartridges.
48 LAW and ORDER I January 2014
Like the original TASER M26 and the
X26, the Enforcer fires one cartridge
at a time. The Enforcer uses a wide
variety of PhaZZer brand cartridges.
These include Dart Pro 15 Foot (Yellow); Dart Pro 21 Foot (Lime Green);
PepperBall 30 Foot (Red); Rubber Bullet 30 Foot (Black); Paint Ball Marking 30 Foot (Green); Pepper Powder 8
Foot (Pink); and Dart Pro Taining 15
Foot and 25 Foot (Blue). The cost of the
PhaZZer brand cartridges is the same
as the cost of the TASER cartridges.
Heads-up! The colors of the PhaZZer
blast doors are different from the colors
of the TASER blast doors for similar
functions! Yellow means “15 feet” for
both devices and Blue means “training”
for both devices. However, the 21-foot
TASER cartridge has Silver blast doors
while the 21-foot PhaZZer cartridge has
Lime Green doors. On the TASER, Green
“I like the simplicity of
the device. The device
does what it is supposed
to do, immobilize.”
— Sgt. Derick Tyler, Ford
County, KS Sheriff’s Office
means 25-foot Extended cartridges, while
Green means Paint Ball on the PhaZZer.
Neither color-coding is an advantage nor
disadvantage—just be sure you know
what cartridge you have loaded.
Dart Spread
The PhaZZer Dart Pro cartridge has a
probe deployment angle of 3 degrees
above and 3 degrees below the red
laser. This 6-degree total spread is a bit
narrower than the 8-degree spread of
the TASER-brand cartridges. The two
TASER X26 probes spread out to about
24 inches by 14 feet. In comparison, the
Enforcer probes spread out to about 19
inches by 14 feet. There are Pros and
Cons to how quickly the darts spread.
Too little and the neuromuscular effects are lessened. Too much and one
of the darts could either miss the target
or strike an unintended area.
The PhaZZer brand of cartridges
does not have anti-felon identification
tags (AFID). If an agency requires the
The PhaZZer Enforcer has plenty of battery power. It also has
the advantage of low-cost, user-replaceable, rechargeable
batteries. This battery ease encourages weekly spark testing. The
battery can deliver 50 full deployments before needing a recharge.
use of cartridges with AFID encoding confetti, the TASER cartridges can easily be used. Both makes of cartridge load and
unload exactly the same way. For that matter, both cartridges
have drive-stun features built into the cartridges. They are located in slightly different locations—but the perpetrator will
never know the difference!
The PhaZZer Enforcer is available in two different, thumbbreak style holster designs: one with and one without an integral
extra cartridge holder. The holsters are also available in two finishes: plain Black and Black basket weave.
Training Certification
PhaZZer Electronics has developed an 8-hour Operator training certification program for the Enforcer. This course covers
the entire topic of ECD/CEW deployment—the overall effects
of electro-muscular disruption, how to deploy the device, the
various features of the device, significance of distance to target
and dart spread, and post-deployment guidelines. The course
concludes with a written test. PhaZZer requires a two-hour
annual training update and re-certification.
PhaZZer also conducts a 16-hour Instructor training certification program. Their program requires that the officer have prior
instructor training experience. The Instructor course includes
a number of scenario training exercises and the deployment of
more and a wider variety of cartridges. Instructors must re-certify
every two years with an eight-hour update course.
Final Analysis
We fired a few of each of the PhaZZer-specific cartridges, almost a dozen of the Dart Pro 15 Foot cartridges, and we testfired/circuit-checked/spark-tested the PhaZZer more than 500
times. It always fully cycled properly in automatic mode. When
we moved the safety switch by hand, it always shut down the
cycle, and did it immediately. We had the Enforcer for almost
three months, some of that in 15 deg F weather, cold enough
that patrol gloves were worn. The PhaZZer Enforcer actually
has more room inside the trigger guard than the TASER X26.
The ambidextrous, sliding switches for the LED white light
were easy to operate under normal patrol conditions. However, we would prefer slightly larger or more raised or higher
friction switches to be sure they could be found and operated
under the most adverse situations, including glove wear.
Likewise, the activating switch could be slightly larger, more
raised, or of a higher friction material or surface texture. This is
especially true since the traditional grip has to be “broken” to
activate the unit. The ambidextrous ON switches of the TASER
X26 are nearly the same size as the safety/decocker on most auto
pistols. The Enforcer is a slightly larger ECD and certainly has the
room for more prominent, high-stress tolerant switches.
The wireless download is a useful feature; the brighter, 160lumen white LED light is outstanding, and the bigger overall
grip is a strong advantage. Where the TASER X26 has a price
around $855, the Enforcer is around $589. Except for the two
easy-to-fix switch concerns, the PhaZZer Enforcer is fully comparable to the TASER X26 and X26P…and that is high praise.
LaO
The PhaZZer Enforcer is available with
either a black basket, thumb-break leather
holster, or a black Kydex holster. The leather
holster is also available with an extra
cartridge holder.
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www.lawandordermag.com
The PhaZZer Enforcer delivers a full 5-second
cycle of energy with each trigger pull. This can be
interrupted by turning the device off. After the third
such cycle, the safety shutdown technology
engages. This can be manually overridden.
www.lawandordermag.com 49