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I like the backpack idea because it would be something I would take with me and a plate carrier probably isn't. If I thought I might face an active shooter in my neighborhood a plate carrier and armor might be a great investment and not just a want to have because it is cool (which is still totally justifiable IMO). I think a panel in a backpack can be justified pretty easily and would way more likely to become useful even with the odds still stacked that you wouldn't need it. IDK Seems reasonable to me right now though. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
Quoted: I had a cover made for a used LE vest panel I bought iirc from APEX a decade ago. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v492/Bamashooter/Bullet%20Proof%20Backpack%202014/20141025_173819_zps94860aa6.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v492/Bamashooter/Bullet%20Proof%20Backpack%202014/20141025_173803_zpse3952aee.jpg If I thought I might face an active shooter in my neighborhood a plate carrier and armor might be a great investment and not just a want to have because it is cool (which is still totally justifiable IMO). I think a panel in a backpack can be justified pretty easily and would way more likely to become useful even with the odds still stacked that you wouldn't need it. IDK Seems reasonable to me right now though. Rifle rated armor is a different ordeal. The only rifle armor I'd ever recommend putting in a pack (and I generally don't recommend it at all for people not purposefully heading into harms way) is poly plates due to the weight. They won't stop M855 but your back will thank you for not putting something heavier in there. Every time I read about somebody putting a steel plate in their pack my face goes |
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Soft armor in a pack is totally reasonable and feasible. Done right you'll forget it's even there and no one else will ever be able to tell. Rifle rated armor is a different ordeal. The only rifle armor I'd ever recommend putting in a pack (and I generally don't recommend it at all for people not purposefully heading into harms way) is poly plates due to the weight. They won't stop M855 but your back will thank you for not putting something heavier in there. Every time I read about somebody putting a steel plate in their pack my face goes View Quote |
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Active Shooter Backpack Armor: Can M855A1 Defeat Plastic Armor ~AND~ A Book? This is the right one |
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Pretty much all of them use Kevlar. Second Chance Zylon is crap and doesn't work. I've shot and multiple people have shot old Kevlar and it still works. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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Can you do placards on soft armor? Also, what are the better soft armor brands? I've shot and multiple people have shot old Kevlar and it still works. And there's loads of vests with polyethylene now, as well as Twaron (another aramid). Shit, there's been vests with poly since the late 90's. The gamut of materials ranges from woven aramid of various makes to laminated aramid to polyethylene, plus advances in aramids have made for really cool shit like Kevlar XP. Lots of armor mixes these materials in varying ways to achieve different effects. thefutureisnowoldman.gif |
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+1 Holy shit. That's pretty damn good. There's some good eBay deals to be had if you know what you're doing so you can avoid junk. Lots of UK Police surplus floating around. Problem is you usually don't get your pick of threat rating so it's a guessing game as to what exactly the vest will do until you get hands on with it except when the seller is intelligent enough to actually provide label pics. And you don't get your pick of materials and they usually don't bother describing weight and size measurements are another guessing game. Point being you get what you pay for with armor. If you really know your shit you can get good deals buying used/surplus stuff but you've got to know your shit. Lots of CAT Armor vests on there recently too going for $200 to $300. BALCS cut IIIA armor in MOLLE carriers. It's good shit. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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If you don't have armor you're wrong. If you don't have a way to carry a combat load of 5.56, water, and food you're wrong. You're failing as an American if you cannot fight effectively in said armor and fighting load. Quoted:
You can find armor fairly cheap if you wait and watch. I've picked up used sets of LE body armor and never used LE body armor from places like craigslist and FB market place. I usually pay about $50 for a complete vest. I recently scored two never worn sets of soft body armor for $80 shipped. RMA runs plates on sale for $100 every so often. I plan to move to light weight plates next. So if you really want to get into armor you can and it not cost a fortune. Personally my priority list would be suppressor, NVG, AR pistol, and then body armor. There's some good eBay deals to be had if you know what you're doing so you can avoid junk. Lots of UK Police surplus floating around. Problem is you usually don't get your pick of threat rating so it's a guessing game as to what exactly the vest will do until you get hands on with it except when the seller is intelligent enough to actually provide label pics. And you don't get your pick of materials and they usually don't bother describing weight and size measurements are another guessing game. Point being you get what you pay for with armor. If you really know your shit you can get good deals buying used/surplus stuff but you've got to know your shit. Lots of CAT Armor vests on there recently too going for $200 to $300. BALCS cut IIIA armor in MOLLE carriers. It's good shit. If you want a custom, fitted vest, you have to pay new price for it. My current issue soft body armor is a legit, custom cut and fit vest, most comfortable body armor I've ever worn. One year out of 20+ of wearing body armor I actually had a vest that fit me. |
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I like the backpack idea because it would be something I would take with me and a plate carrier probably isn't. If I thought I might face an active shooter in my neighborhood a plate carrier and armor might be a great investment and not just a want to have because it is cool (which is still totally justifiable IMO). I think a panel in a backpack can be justified pretty easily and would way more likely to become useful even with the odds still stacked that you wouldn't need it. IDK Seems reasonable to me right now though. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
Quoted: I had a cover made for a used LE vest panel I bought iirc from APEX a decade ago. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v492/Bamashooter/Bullet%20Proof%20Backpack%202014/20141025_173819_zps94860aa6.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v492/Bamashooter/Bullet%20Proof%20Backpack%202014/20141025_173803_zpse3952aee.jpg If I thought I might face an active shooter in my neighborhood a plate carrier and armor might be a great investment and not just a want to have because it is cool (which is still totally justifiable IMO). I think a panel in a backpack can be justified pretty easily and would way more likely to become useful even with the odds still stacked that you wouldn't need it. IDK Seems reasonable to me right now though. Most folks are not going to want to tote the weight of a legit plate, or the cost of a lightweight plate. Just one of those things. |
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OP, if you don’t mind waiting to get a good deal on something you admittedly hope to never have to use, then wait 7-8 months for Trident Tactical to run their Black Friday promo again for their “active shooter kit” @ under $250 Shipped for:
T3 Trident TACTICAL: www.t3gear.com T3 Active Shooter Kit: (1) Plate Carrier (2) M4 Mag Pouches (1) Tourniquet Pouch (2) Hesco 4400 Lvl IV plates 10x12 (1) Carry Bag = $244 shipped! Then upgrade to a quality PC like a Grey Ghost minimalist plate carrier when they go on sale @ 50% off = $66 shipped https://greyghostgear.com/collections/plate-carriers Then get it rigged up and work out in it, or as a fellow father of 4, you can take my lead and just put it under your bed and hope you never need to use it ... but know that it’s there if you ever need to |
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Dude you're waaaaaaaaay behind the curve. Zylon is gone and has been for like 10+ years now. Its life was short anyway, only being used from 1998 to 2005 and the vests were recalled. And there's loads of vests with polyethylene now, as well as Twaron (another aramid). Shit, there's been vests with poly since the late 90's. The gamut of materials ranges from woven aramid of various makes to laminated aramid to polyethylene, plus advances in aramids have made for really cool shit like Kevlar XP. Lots of armor mixes these materials in varying ways to achieve different effects. thefutureisnowoldman.gif View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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Can you do placards on soft armor? Also, what are the better soft armor brands? I've shot and multiple people have shot old Kevlar and it still works. And there's loads of vests with polyethylene now, as well as Twaron (another aramid). Shit, there's been vests with poly since the late 90's. The gamut of materials ranges from woven aramid of various makes to laminated aramid to polyethylene, plus advances in aramids have made for really cool shit like Kevlar XP. Lots of armor mixes these materials in varying ways to achieve different effects. thefutureisnowoldman.gif I've shot a lot of old vests from various companies and 25+ years later they all have held up to their ratings. |
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The only reason why I mention Zylon is in case someone runs across an old vest. I've shot a lot of old vests from various companies and 25+ years later they all have held up to their ratings. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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Can you do placards on soft armor? Also, what are the better soft armor brands? I've shot and multiple people have shot old Kevlar and it still works. And there's loads of vests with polyethylene now, as well as Twaron (another aramid). Shit, there's been vests with poly since the late 90's. The gamut of materials ranges from woven aramid of various makes to laminated aramid to polyethylene, plus advances in aramids have made for really cool shit like Kevlar XP. Lots of armor mixes these materials in varying ways to achieve different effects. thefutureisnowoldman.gif I've shot a lot of old vests from various companies and 25+ years later they all have held up to their ratings. |
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The only reason why I mention Zylon is in case someone runs across an old vest. I've shot a lot of old vests from various companies and 25+ years later they all have held up to their ratings. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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Can you do placards on soft armor? Also, what are the better soft armor brands? I've shot and multiple people have shot old Kevlar and it still works. And there's loads of vests with polyethylene now, as well as Twaron (another aramid). Shit, there's been vests with poly since the late 90's. The gamut of materials ranges from woven aramid of various makes to laminated aramid to polyethylene, plus advances in aramids have made for really cool shit like Kevlar XP. Lots of armor mixes these materials in varying ways to achieve different effects. thefutureisnowoldman.gif I've shot a lot of old vests from various companies and 25+ years later they all have held up to their ratings. The only material that really suffers from noticeable wear issues that I've seen is laminated aramid. The film has a tendency to delaminate and you can get fiber migration in areas subject to flexion or rubbing. You can also get delamination within a ply, wherein one fiber layer separates from the other/s. It takes time and lots of wear but it happens. That was on older vests though, don't know how the newer aramid laminates hold up to extended wear. |
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I used to were plates for work. When I came home from my last trip I took the whole thing and literally threw it in a dumpster.
99% of people have no idea what they’re doing in a gunfight and survive purely out of luck. People on the receiving end of an assault usually don’t have any luck. If a non-cop kicks in your door, you’re not going to have time to gear up. If you’re looking to blow $400 on something silly, do it. FYI, Kevlar expires. Plates don’t but the antispall material does. |
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I really appreciate all the input. I’ve never tried on a kitted PC, I didn’t realize they were that easy to don.
My student loans will be paid off very soon and I’ll need to reward myself then. One months payment there would be a good armor setup from the looks of things. This gives me some time to consider everything before deciding on anything. |
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I invested in body armor roughly 10 years ago after I was shot in the head at the range (ricochet). I woke up on the ground bleeding.
Also am an EMT and some of us train with le in case of an active shooting incident. And of course because it makes me look like a commando. |
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I used to were plates for work. When I came home from my last trip I took the whole thing and literally threw it in a dumpster. 99% of people have no idea what they're doing in a gunfight and survive purely out of luck. People on the receiving end of an assault usually don't have any luck. If a non-cop kicks in your door, you're not going to have time to gear up. If you're looking to blow $400 on something silly, do it. FYI, Kevlar expires. Plates don't but the antispall material does. View Quote Kevlar does not expire. I have no idea what you mean by "anti spall material" unless you're talking about the coatings on steel plates which I've never seen or heard of going bad. I'm not even sure how that would happen unless they used some real cheap shitty stuff or fucked up the material prep. Depending on the situation putting on armor is an entirely feasible thing to do in a home invasion. My soft armor takes maybe 3 or 4 seconds to don. 99% of people do not survive gun fights due to "luck". That's just ridiculous and that statement puts your qualifications to say anything about such a subject in serious doubt. No idea why you supposedly threw hundreds of dollars of gear in dumpster. |
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Larping. I look super cool when mom picks me up in full kit. For real though, great for physical conditioning when run and gunning, and good to have for SHTF I guess. After I spend 2-3 hours on the range in a vest, when I take it off I feel much lighter. View Quote |
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Help a guy that’s on the fence. I’m no wanna be commando, I respect actual commando’s too much to dress up like one without having earned it. I’m disciplined with my money, but am not afraid to spend good money where it’s worth it. Im having trouble seeing the use case for myself. I don’t work in LE or the armed services, I work a desk job and lead what is ultimately a boring traditional lifestyle (4 young kids, 40 hours a week, 1 vacation a year, etc). I understand the value of armor if I ever found myself being shot at, I just can’t imagine a scenario where I’d actually use it short of a Red Dawn event, which is impossible. I’m not going to lace one up mid home invasion due to time, and I’m not going to run out to my car to grab it and head back into the office to stop a shooting spree as I’d likely just get lumped in with the actual shooter. Help me see how I’m justified spending $400 or more on a decent setup. View Quote Do you ever plan to take any carbine training? If not, why not? |
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Mine is a great place to keep my spare AR mags and a hand gun with mags.
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I used to were plates for work. When I came home from my last trip I took the whole thing and literally threw it in a dumpster. 99% of people have no idea what they’re doing in a gunfight and survive purely out of luck. People on the receiving end of an assault usually don’t have any luck. If a non-cop kicks in your door, you’re not going to have time to gear up. If you’re looking to blow $400 on something silly, do it. FYI, Kevlar expires. Plates don’t but the antispall material does. View Quote |
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I have a set of military soft armor I got from a buddy. It's heavy and thick but supposed to be pretty good. There is a way to add plates and stuff but i haven't gotten to it. I picked it up as a "better to have it and not need it" kind of thing, and it's sat for a while mostly unused. One thing we have done though is drape it over a baby in a car seat during a tornado threat. I know wind doesn't shoot, but it does provide impact and projectile protection more than anything else I own, so why not?
Need to lose some weight and work out in it more, that seems to be what the cool kids are doing. It's also super awkward, so if you're not familiar with it you will have a hard time doing basic stuff with it on. |
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Inside my smelly old armor is my safe space.
But unless you can get both spend the money on range time, particularly with your ccw. |
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Who needs an excuse when you have a reason?
You don't need either. Just get it because you want to. |
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I got four sets ( ceramic) a good while back for the wife and I as well as both of my sons. Not every day wear by any means BUT we have them for any bad times ahead. I wish they made earplugs that made liberals impossible to hear.
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I have several sets of armor, most of which have seen actual use. Much like my five spare AR15s, they are more for my friends than my personal use.
That said I still throw one in the car for a long road trip. |
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I bought mine for a combo SHTF event as well as for a bump in the night. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
Another tid bit is I could see them wanting to ban armor down the road |
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Archived thread of when I shot some old body armor.
https://www.ar15.com/forums/general/Shot-some-25-year-old-soft-body-armor-today-Lots-of-pics/5-1481388/ |
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Most likely use would probably be major grid down or riot scenario, which may be more likely than you think, OP. Steel plates plus a basic carrier costs the same as a big night at Applebee’s. For a little SHTF insurance, why not? I bet you have plenty of stuff collecting dust that you’re less likely to use that won’t save your life. View Quote |
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I used to were plates for work. When I came home from my last trip I took the whole thing and literally threw it in a dumpster. 99% of people have no idea what they’re doing in a gunfight and survive purely out of luck. People on the receiving end of an assault usually don’t have any luck. If a non-cop kicks in your door, you’re not going to have time to gear up. If you’re looking to blow $400 on something silly, do it. FYI, Kevlar expires. Plates don’t but the antispall material does. View Quote Kevlar does not "expire," and neither do anti-spall coatings. Also, there are plenty of instances where you'd have the chance to don your armor at home. Being dead-ass asleep and having someone kick your door in on the first try is probably not one of them, but there are absolutely scenarios where it is not only possible, but makes good sense. And that only covers home engagements. |
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$220 carrier and plates
Is the above a good set? I have no idea. But for $220, it might be worth taking a look. |
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Study up on the capability of the different types of armor and levels. A poly level III is susceptible to certain 5.56 while steel level III is susceptible to other 5.56.
Some companies omit info and include other info which just confuses people as to what it actually does. P&S Primers - Your Armor Is Easily Defeated |
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Most likely use would probably be major grid down or riot scenario, which may be more likely than you think, OP. Steel plates plus a basic carrier costs the same as a big night at Applebee’s. For a little SHTF insurance, why not? I bet you have plenty of stuff collecting dust that you’re less likely to use that won’t save your life. |
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I've skimmed the first two pages of this thread and haven't got to the GD recommendations with link to purchase???? What the hell is wrong with this place. Am I supposed to research this all myself?
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I'm pretty set on RMA's 1091-1094 series of level 3+ multi cut plates.
Thinking I'll do JPC 2.0, a placard for PMAGs and a placard for my CZ Scorpion mags. Side plates as well, haven't decided what direction to go there yet. |
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I'm pretty set on RMA's 1091-1094 series of level 3+ multi cut plates. Thinking I'll do JPC 2.0, a placard for PMAGs and a placard for my CZ Scorpion mags. Side plates as well, haven't decided what direction to go there yet. View Quote |
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With crazy deals popping up on known manufacturers gear it was impossible to resist.
Kota outfitters: LBT 6094 b $100 Midwest armor Proguard mc4+ LvL IV 10x12 multicurve (Ugly) $50 each Attached File Cheap insurance, Just make sure you wear them enough to understand the limitations. |
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OP, if you don’t mind waiting to get a good deal on something you admittedly hope to never have to use, then wait 7-8 months for Trident Tactical to run their Black Friday promo again for their “active shooter kit” @ under $250 Shipped for: T3 Trident TACTICAL: www.t3gear.com T3 Active Shooter Kit: (1) Plate Carrier (2) M4 Mag Pouches (1) Tourniquet Pouch (2) Hesco 4400 Lvl IV plates 10x12 (1) Carry Bag = $244 shipped! Then upgrade to a quality PC like a Grey Ghost minimalist plate carrier when they go on sale @ 50% off = $66 shipped https://greyghostgear.com/collections/plate-carriers Then get it rigged up and work out in it, or as a fellow father of 4, you can take my lead and just put it under your bed and hope you never need to use it ... but know that it’s there if you ever need to View Quote Grey Ghost Gear minimalist PC ceramic level IV plate 2 AR mags IFAK |
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Looking at the stats on it, it seems they omitted m193. M193 is super common. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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I'm pretty set on RMA's 1091-1094 series of level 3+ multi cut plates. Thinking I'll do JPC 2.0, a placard for PMAGs and a placard for my CZ Scorpion mags. Side plates as well, haven't decided what direction to go there yet. ETA: Also it's actually not entirely omitted from mention, it's listed under threats in the specification link. RMA is aiming for NIJ .07 cert with this plate and Rifle 1 (lowest rifle rating under .07) requires testing against M193. They test against M855 so they're aiming at Rifle 2 which is the testing that level will require in addition to the Rifle 1 threats. |
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$220 carrier and plates Is the above a good set? I have no idea. But for $220, it might be worth taking a look. View Quote |
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I've skimmed the first two pages of this thread and haven't got to the GD recommendations with link to purchase???? What the hell is wrong with this place. Am I supposed to research this all myself? View Quote |
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Y'all convinced me. Help a body armor newb pick a good plate carrier to start. Only issue is size, I might get some XL plates and a large Slickster. Though an extra 1/2" on either side still won't cover the nipples. |
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$220 carrier and plates Is the above a good set? I have no idea. But for $220, it might be worth taking a look. View Quote |
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With crazy deals popping up on known manufacturers gear it was impossible to resist. Kota outfitters: LBT 6094 b $100 Midwest armor Proguard mc4+ LvL IV 10x12 multicurve (Ugly) $50 each https://www.AR15.Com/media/mediaFiles/195843/BE5D1C11-C8B7-4C05-B0EA-28B20C9B8BA6_jpeg-883188.JPG Cheap insurance, Just make sure you wear them enough to understand the limitations. View Quote |
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