Business Name: Blue Line Consultants, LLC
Product: Bang Box
Officer/ Department: Officer Mike O’Reilly, Naples, Fla. Police
Website: www.type3bangbox.com
In 2012, the ATF ruled that law enforcement officials could transport two smoke, gas, NFDDs (flash bangs), SFDDs, EATDs, or explosive K9 training aids in their vehicles with the proper Type 3 magazine requirements. The problem was that the only products available were big enough for 10-20 devices and wouldn’t conveniently fit in most vehicles.
What is your signature product?
The Original Bang Box is a heavy-duty and powder-coated matte-black 5x7-inch wood-interior box designed to safely and legally transport flash bangs, smoke, and chemical agents by officers and tactical team members. They exceed Type 3 magazine requirements and the newest ATF regulations for storage and transport.
The Original Bang box is 14 pounds and holds 2 devices; the Big Bang Box is 33 pounds and holds 10 devices.
Where did the idea come from?
The ATF requires that in vehicles you can’t have flash bangs loose because they’re explosives, so they must be stored in a Type 3 magazine, but the containers that were out there were way too big. There wasn’t anything small enough to fit in a regular vehicle. Once the ATF came out with a ruling that flash bangs could be carried in vehicles, my partner and I decided on working on the Bang Box.
How did that idea turn into a product?
My partner Brad Gallagher was an explosive breacher, so he made a small box to hold blasting caps. When it came out that we could carry flash bangs and smoke agents in vehicles, we discovered flash bangs could fit perfectly in that box.
We started out making them in our garages with heavy-gage steal. First we used 11-gage but it fragmented so we started using 7-gage steal, and found that it doesn’t fragment. We fabricated them using a laser-cut welding system. The end result was a snag-free, rounded-edge product.
We first came out with the original Bang Box in July 2012, but the biggest hurdle was getting the information out there – the new ATF regulations (ATF Ruling 2012-4) aren’t public information and a lot of agencies didn’t know about it. The regulation states that two flash bangs may be transported in a squad and ten may be transported in a SWAT vehicle. Other companies that were making comparable products were only making them large enough for 10-20 flash bangs, which is extremely inconvenient and inefficient for squads.
The Bang Box has a tiny, 5x7 inch footprint (which fits exactly two flash bangs), leaving plenty of space for the rest of your gear in your squad. The Big Bang Box holds a maximum of 10 flash bangs and includes a Lexan insert to keep them secured.
How did you test it out?
We tested it by creating a realistic situation. We put the Bang Box in the trunk of wrecked Crown Vic, and set the explosives off using remote detonation. There was zero fragmentation, everything stayed intact.
How does it work?
The box comes with three pre-drilled holes so that you can mount it anywhere as long as it’s in a lockable area. We usually mount them in the trunk of the vehicle, from the bottom-up. With comparable products, you have to drill the holes yourself, but then you must go back and cover those holes with wood or you’ve defeated the effectiveness of the box.
Is there anything else out there like this product?
Comparable companies make a similar product aimed towards military, mining operations, and other applications, but ours is the only one available in a smaller footprint so that it can be easily carried in a squad for law enforcement use.
Its snag free design eliminates the possibility of getting caught on any other duty gear. The box comes with an ATF-complaint lock, included in the price of the box. We discovered we can save money for both us and our customers when we buy the locks in bulk, and the ATF requires a very specific lock.
Where can it be purchased?
Both Bang Box designs are available on the website, and they are also sold at Protech in the Midwest, SRT in the Southeast, Adamson in the Southwest, and X2 in Texas.
What’s next for San Tan Gear?
We’re looking at a Bang Box model for the U.S. government that would have a hood over the lock that would protect it from bolt cutters.
