Ok question about plate armor

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sonier

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I am not sure where this thread belongs, so if it needs to be moved please do.

I know kevlar is great at stopping large caliber pistols cartridges such as 9mm 357 mag 45 acp even some 44 mag ratings out there. Out of curiosity, I was looking at plate armor other day. These things are rated to stop even AP 30/06, and designed to be worn under kevlar vest. My questions is does plate have issues with stopping small fast calibers? kevlar cant stand things such as 7.62x25 and 5.7 rounds. does plate have this same drawback? This question is purely educational, with no reason for self defense or carry options. I am just curious :)
 
thats even better a lot of surplus ammo is steel core. I saw some videos of those plates taking multiple hits without letting any rounds through. Thats great for living but man I would hate to have my body absorb the impact that those plates are going to take. Probally does knock the wind out of you, even crack ribs i bet. Id much rather have that then take a fatal shot. Plus if i do hit the ground i know my buddies have my back.
 
kevlar cant stand things such as 7.62x25 and 5.7 rounds. does plate have this same drawback? This question is purely educational, with no reason for self defense or carry options. I am just curious
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Actually, any Kevlar vest rated to stop .357 magnum will stop civilian-available 7.62x25mm and 5.7x28mm rounds as well. There are Kevlar-piercing rounds available for 5.7x28mm (and .357) that will easily penetrate NIJ Level IIIA Kevlar vests, but those are sold only to police/military/government.

5.7x28 and 7.62x25 will certainly penetrate older type vests not rated to stop .357, though. The Brady Campaign scare video about the FN FiveSeven shows them shooting an old NIJ IIA vest under questionable test conditions, but it is likely that a full-size .357 would have done the same thing.

Here is a rundown on the NIJ armor level ratings, if you're interested:

http://www.bulletproofme.com/Ballistic_Protection_Levels.shtml
 
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..."I would hate to have my body absorb the impact that those plates are going to take"...

the large size spreads the force out over considerably more area. if the laws of physics are true, it should feel like holding the rifle butt on the plate while shooting. most decent physical specimens can do same without the plate.

gunnie
 
:D

Crossbows in the hands of peasants heralded the end of the age of plate...

What?
Wait!

Oh you're talking about ceramic plate inserts for contemporary body armor. Well - that's a different matter entirely.
 
A pair of 2 year expired ceramic plates turned up at an informal range I was on a little while ago. They looked new but I have no idea how they were stored.

Placed in a plate carrier and hung.

7.62x54- through plate carrier and the thin steel door it was hung on. Blew through it and fractured the plate. It's weave held it together but it was no longer 1 piece.

5.56- Stopped with considerable spalling of the ceramic

7.62x39- Stopped with similar results.

50 cal- made a 1/2 hole clean through. Very little damage to the surrounding ceramic

What I learned is: Just like other periods of history, Armor vs mobility is a balancing act. All the armor in the world will not help you against some weapons. Moving quickly enough to be a poor target is sometimes the be you can hope for.
 
My nephew took three hits in the chest point blank from a 5.56 while wearing the military armor and walked away from it. :eek:
 
5.56 is our Bullets!!! does that mean one of his buddies screwed him and accidentaly lit him up or what?
 
There has been alot of talk about these plates... Yeah, we just unloaded 19 - 21 7.62x25 and penetrator shots against this plate

http://www.bluedefense.com/hard-armo...and-alone.html

weighing under 5 lbs. I shot everything in High Def, you guys gotta check it out. I'll post it as soon as I get home.
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Chanpal - I noticed that your sight allows a visitor to add these items to cart, and then proceed to payment window... Am I correct in assuming you sell these to private citizens?
 
sonier said:
designed to be worn under kevlar vest
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Plates are worn OUTSIDE kevlar. When hit, SAAPI plates will break and can lose fragments. The kevlar underneath will keep them on the right side of your skin.

Rshooter said:
My nephew took three hits in the chest point blank from a 5.56 while wearing the military armor and walked away from it.
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I'd be very interested to hear the circumstances surrounding this.
 
A friend of mine spent some time in Iraq with the USMC. He said that one of his buddies got hit in the back by a sniper (assume 54R but no way of knowing). The plate stopped the round but the impact (or something) messed him up real bad with internal injuries.
 
yep plates are good, But sometimes just have plate carrier no kevlar. Which means all of the blunt force energy is transfered to you. Not spread out more to diffuse. Bad pain breaks ribs etc. bad on lungs etc. But broke ribs verses doa well easy to pick. lol. I just picked up a new back plate supposed to be a level 4 multi hit but not going to test it out I hope.
 
I thought you were talking about knight's armour. That's two mouse clicks I'll never get back.
 
What does soft body armor plus two rifle plates weigh today? What is the weight "penalty" to our troops? Are there any tactical situations where speed and agility are needed more than the possible (if you're shot on the plate) benefit of wearing armor?
 
I didn't see those plates for $250, only price I saw was 289 each- which for a stand alone level 4 is pretty darn good. Still 16 lbs.
 
There has been alot of talk about these plates... Yeah, we just unloaded 19 - 21 7.62x25 and penetrator shots against this plate

http://www.bluedefense.com/hard-armo...and-alone.html

weighing under 5 lbs. I shot everything in High Def, you guys gotta check it out. I'll post it as soon as I get home.
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Checked the web site. The plates weighs under 8 lbs. not under 5.

SIZE: 10"x12" (25 x 30 cm)

WEIGHT ( lbs. ): 7.2 (3.27 kg)

THICKNESS ( inches ): .70 (1.8 cm)
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Still, that is a vast improvement over the Level IV plastes I have that weigh a tad over 20 lbs.
 
You'll need to do research at forums that have members that have tested plates. The info is out there.

Steel plates will stop heavy and slow, and mulitple hits. Small and fast, like xm192 will zip right through them. I've tested steel plates that stopped .308 and 7.62x39, and certain high speed lite weight 5.56 rounds went clean through.

Poymer will stop small and fast but can be beat by heavy and slow.

Ceramic stops both, but shatters, so you can forget about mulitple hits.

Some plates are stand alone, some team up with kevlar. The best plates are a sandwich of steel and polymer. They can stop quite an assortment, but are expensive, and illegal for citizens in the United Socialist States of America.
 
I think each of the E-SAAPIs weighs around 8 pounds. In a stripped IBA with none of the MOLLE crap attached to it, with the two E-SAAPIs, throat and groin protectors, I think I remember it being in the neighborhood of 25 pounds. Remember, that's without your ammo, IFAK, Camelbak, NVGs, ect.

I had an instructor in SOI that showed us an E-SAAPI that had taken 3 rounds of 7.62x39 AP, a 6 to 8 round burst of M855 from a SAW, and two rounds of M118LR from an M40 without letting anything out the backside. So they can take a beating, but are heavy and bulky.
 
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