School me on bulletproof vests plates etc.

[Porter Rockwell]

I nanowire absolutely nothing about these and need guidance on vests and plates. Where do you buy them? What kind do you recommend? Do you wear the plates over and on top of the vests? What kind of protection do they offer? Handgun round only? Or can they stop rifle rounds too?

 

[Danny Flucke]

If youre not spending at least $350 for new LIII plates - They are probably crap.

Go ceramic. Either coated or go old school with duct tape.

Reduces the bullet "splatter".

Im partial to the Interceptor plate carrier myself.....

 

[GAgunLAWbooklet]

You'll need to read some articles and tutorial videos, but here are a few basics to narrow your search.

SOFT vs. HARD armor:
Soft body armor is light, and semi-flexible. It is still hot to wear, though.
It's rated for threat levels I, IIA, II, and IIIA.
(Level III or III+ is hard armor not soft.)
Soft armor is usually made of aramid fibers and Dupont's brand name for this is Kevlar. Dozens of layers of this very tough woven material will stop handgun bullets and the layers when added together and tightly compressed at the factory are stiff enough that your body will not suffer a fatal injury from the bulging on the backside. A vest might fail to pass a certain threat level rating and not simply because the bullet penetrates through it, but potentially because the bullet causes such a large bulge or indentation on the backside of the vest that it is like you were getting hit with a carpenter's framing hammer swung at full force.

NiJ (National Institute of Justice) threat levels I thru IIIA are intended to save you from handgun bullets, and buck shot from shotguns, and potentially smaller fragments from some explosive ordnance. NOT rifle fire.

HARD armor comes in the form of plates-- stiff rigid plates that are worn in large pockets on a garment that is intended to carry them so this vest type thing is called a plate carrier. What saves your life is the hard plates that you slip into the front and back pockets of this thing.

Plates come in ratings III+, and IV.
"Level four" plates will stop multiple hits from full powered military rifles, even AP or steel core bullets.

DISADVANTAGE OF PLATES: They don't offer as much coverage of your body as soft body armor vests do. The soft vests have a larger surface area on the front and the back and it's more common to find them with side protection too, under your armpits.

ANOTHER DISADVANTAGE: Weight. Hard plates are heavy.



HARD PLATE ADVSNTAGE: No real backface deformation or "backface signature."
.In other words, getting shot with one of these doesn't feel like a tremendous impact that crushes the flesh of your body immediately on the other side of the garment from where the bullet hit.

HARD PLATES can be made of hardened steel the same kind of thing that is used for targets on the shooting range or they could be made of ceramic or they could be made of a composite synthetic material that's like a very dense plastic with bits of harder material in there to help the bullets break up. Composite plates are lighter than steel, but WAY more expensive.

 

[GAgunLAWbooklet]

Yes, you can find ballistic vests that are made of soft Kevlar like armor, and with Front and back pockets where you can insert your own choice of hard rifle-bullet stopping plates. The parts of the vest that are outside of the plate area will only protect you from handgun bullet impacts, but that's better than having a plate carrier that offers no ballistic protection if the incoming bullet misses the hard plate.

 

[Porter Rockwell]

You'll need to read some articles and tutorial videos, but here are a few basics to narrow your search.

SOFT vs. HARD armor:
Soft body armor is light, and semi-flexible. It is still hot to wear, though.
It's rated for threat levels I, IIA, II, and IIIA.
(Level III or III+ is hard armor not soft.)
Soft armor is usually made of aramid fibers and Dupont's brand name for this is Kevlar. Dozens of layers of this very tough woven material will stop handgun bullets and the layers when added together and tightly compressed at the factory are stiff enough that your body will not suffer a fatal injury from the bulging on the backside. A vest might fail to pass a certain threat level rating and not simply because the bullet penetrates through it, but potentially because the bullet causes such a large bulge or indentation on the backside of the vest that it is like you were getting hit with a carpenter's framing hammer swung at full force.

NiJ (National Institute of Justice) threat levels I thru IIIA are intended to save you from handgun bullets, and buck shot from slugs and potentially smaller fragments from some explosive ordnance. NOT rifle fire.

HARD armor comes in the form of plates-- stiff rigid plates that are worn in large pockets on a garment that is intended to carry them so this vest type thing is called a plate carrier. What saves your life is the hard plates that you slip into the front and back pockets of this thing.

Plates come in ratings III+, and IV.
"Level four" plates will stop multiple hits from full powered military rifles, even AP or steel core bullets.

DISADVANTAGE OF PLATES: They don't offer as much coverage of your body as soft body armor vests do. The soft vests have a larger surface area on the front and the back and it's more common to find them with side protection too, under your armpits.

ANOTHER DISADVANTAGE: Weight. Hard plates are heavy.



HARD PLATE ADVSNTAGE: No real backface deformation or "backface signature."
.In other words, getting shot with one of these doesn't feel like a tremendous impact that crushes the flesh of your body immediately on the other side of the garment from where the bullet hit.

HARD PLATES can be made of hardened steel the same kind of thing that is used for targets on the shooting range or they could be made of ceramic or they could be made of a composite synthetic material that's like a very dense plastic with bits of harder material in there to help the bullets break up. Composite plates are lighter than steel, but WAY more expensive.

Awesome info- Thanks!

 

[Porter Rockwell]

Yes, you can find ballistic vests that are made of soft Kevlar like armor, and with Front and back pockets where you can insert your own choice of hard rifle-bullet stopping plates. The parts of the vest that are outside of the plate area will only protect you from handgun bullet impacts, but that's better than having a plate carrier that offers no ballistic protection if the incoming bullet misses the hard plate.

thank you!

 

[GFB]

https://www.theoutdoorstrader.com/threads/plates-and-plate-carries-ii.2220908/

 

[bulletslinger101]

Call me..... My number is 7065803982. Please text first so I know your calling otherwise I wont answer.

We can do a call, face chat, zoom, or whatever you'd like. Id love to show you and explain things in person but camera will work too.

This offer is open to everyone! Nice mention G GFB

Respectfully

Chris Rogers, USA Ret.
706 580 3982

 

[leechnilk1]

Spartan Armor Swimmer Plates. You're done.

 

[bulletslinger101]

When you go to their site, it says NIJ certified however does not provide the buyer with a copy of certification that the NIJ lab conducted First Article Testing (FAT) or Lot Acceptance Testing (LAT) with them.

https://www.spartanarmorsystems.com/nij-certified/

1- If I were looking for something to trust my life with I'd want to have a certification to back it up. The only link they provide is "About NIJ"..... this tell the Buyer nothing. Further more the their "Trauma Pad Sets",

1.1- "Spartan Armor Systems™ Trauma Pads utilize slim and extremely light layers of non-Newtonian foam padding that decreases back face deformation and dissipates impact energy, reducing transmitted force.

1.2- Additionally, our trauma pads dramatically increase comfort and ergonomics while wearing body armor! The trauma pad will drastically reduce blunt force trauma by absorbing energy over the increased surface area. We have constructed these trauma pads with Nylon Ripstop fabric, which is the same material BDU’s are made from!

1.3- Back face deformation has the potential to occur when a round impacts any type of body armor. This energy transfer has the potential to be felt regardless of which advanced Spartan Armor Systems™ body armor ballistic panel you decide to protect yourself with. Though most of our body armor has inherently good energy disbursing properties throughout the strike face, our advanced trauma pads will further mitigate energy transfer and back face deformation hazards which your body may absorb."

I would get the certification paperwork for proof of what is advertised. Just me. Please look at Paragraph directly lifted from their site, (click anywhere from 1.1 through 1.3).

Paragraph 1.2 area of concern is the underlined... Ask Yourself, does this make since..... If you were in the service, How quickly did BDU's degrade........

Prior to making a choice/ purchase, DO YOUR RESEARCH. This is something you maybe trusting your lives with at some point.

Educate yourself.....

Respectfully
Chris Rogers, USA Ret.
706) 580-3982