Body armor

[Sharkbite]

To stop most rifles, you would have to step up to level 4 or some of the exotic stuff like dragon skin.

That is not true. Level IIIa is soft armor and is handgun rated. Level III starts into HARD armor and is Rifle rated. III+ stops most rifle threats. Level 4 adds 30-06 AP, prob not needed for most applications.

I run III+ plates, those stop 7.62x39 and all the 223/556 threats AND 308 M80 ball.

 

[reynolds357]

It is true. MOST rifles penetrate level III.
I said "most.".

 

[Double Naught Spy]

To stop most rifles, you would have to step up to level 4 or some of the exotic stuff like dragon skin. Imo, level 4 is too heavy for home use and Dragon Skin is way too expensive.

Dragon skin was a neat concept of many small ceramic discs held inside a carrier that allowed for flexibility and rifle protection. It was level III armor. While the concept was neat, the product was a failure. It failed military testing in multiple services and at one point was forbidden theater (IIRC). Bad QC on the disks that did not have full capability and the carriers apparently had issues with disks slipping out of position.

The manufacturer has since gone out of business and the product is no longer made.

 

[reynolds357]

Dragon skin was a neat concept of many small ceramic discs held inside a carrier that allowed for flexibility and rifle protection. It was level III armor. While the concept was neat, the product was a failure. It failed military testing in multiple services and at one point was forbidden theater (IIRC). Bad QC on the disks that did not have full capability and the carriers apparently had issues with disks slipping out of position.

The manufacturer has since gone out of business and the product is no longer made.

I wondered what happened to it. I could have sworn the set our SWAT team demoed was Level 4.

 

[MikeGoob]

as far as usefulness, my CCW instructor wore one every time he took a class to the range. He didnt trust any of us to not have a ND... lol

 

[Shadow9mm]

Dragon skin was a neat concept of many small ceramic discs held inside a carrier that allowed for flexibility and rifle protection. It was level III armor. While the concept was neat, the product was a failure. It failed military testing in multiple services and at one point was forbidden theater (IIRC). Bad QC on the disks that did not have full capability and the carriers apparently had issues with disks slipping out of position.

The manufacturer has since gone out of business and the product is no longer made.

My understanding on the dragon skin issue was not QC but design. Due to it being an overlapping layer design, if something came in at an angle it could slip into the armor in the gaps.

 

[gaseousclay]

AR 500 armor has a large selection of armor and acc. Long wait times these days

This company is having a sale on body armor right now. Tempted, but the wait times make it kinda pointless if shtf right now

 

[Sharkbite]

This company is having a sale on body armor right now. Tempted, but the wait times make it kinda pointless if shtf right now

I ordered some additional pouches for my AR500 armor 13 weeks ago. Still havent shipped. Thats not a slam on them, its just how things are right now

 

[gaseousclay]

^^
I hear ya. If they had stock right now i'd probably order. But, no sense in ordering, even with a discount, if chaos erupts now. I know there are other companies out there but this stuff isn't cheap

 

[T. O'Heir]

Old post.
In the olden days, at the Second Chance Shoot, Dickie Davis ran advertising videos shooters could watch while waiting for meals. One of 'em was about his Hard Core 3 vest. It showed him shooting one of his employees, who was wearing the vest, from a range of 1 foot with an FAL. Said employee was standing on one leg at the time and didn't even move back. Very impressive to say the least. However, said Hard Core 3 vest weighed in at 20 pounds.
Second Chance is currently owned by Armor Holdings, Inc.
And you need to check local laws pertaining to body armour.

 

[ghbucky]

It showed him shooting one of his employees, who was wearing the vest, from a range of 1 foot with an FAL

That has got to be one of the dumbest posts I've ever read.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

The purpose of that demonstration was to show that a gun shot, even from a .308, would not knock you off your feet or really even unbalance you.

 

[Sharkbite]

That has got to be one of the dumbest posts I've ever read.

While i dont understand the purpose of the post, it is factually correct. Richard Davis (who founded Second Chance body armor) did a number of “live fire” demonstrations of his product stopping bullets while being worn by real people.

He would personally wear a level IIIa vest and shoot himself with a 44mag handgun. It was common for him to stick a phone book under the vest to help with blunt force trauma.

While i dont agree with the demos from a safety standpoint, i have to admit that he did more to show police the benefits of soft armor then ANY other person. This all took place in the late 60’s-early 70’s and soft armor was unheard of on the streets.

Today, no LE agency fails to issue (and most require it be worn) soft armor.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

My understanding on the dragon skin issue was not QC but design. Due to it being an overlapping layer design, if something came in at an angle it could slip into the armor in the gaps.

https://military.wikia.org/wiki/Dragon_Skin

This coupled with poor quality control (over 200 of the 380 vests delivered to USAF OSI were recalled due to improperly manufactured armor disks) and accusations of fraudulent claims of official NIJ rating which Pinnacle had not actually obtained at the time of purchase led to the termination of the USAF contract.