Is lvl 4 armor worth it?

[Jmccracken1214]

Researching plate carriers/armor and of course I want the best, so I jump to lvl 4 and looking at all the plates offered and got to thinking...

Sure, itll stop m2AP, but......... thats a lot of fucking energy hitting you.. a lot. Yeah, you wont have a hole in you, but 100% its going to put you on your ass instantly, now you're on the ground, with most likely enternal injuries/bleeding... Are you as good as dead, or atleast laying there, wishing you were dead after getting hit by a armor piercing freight train?

 

[XCHITOWNCOPPER]

No holes in you is better than holes. That's why they make it. If you worried about it hurting don't wear any body armour at all and save your money on a coffin.

 

[DarnYankeeUSMC]

What company are you going to work for and what region of the world?

 

[E. Bryant]

How hard does an M1 Garand or grandpa's deer rifle hit your shoulder? Knowing that, why are you imagining all sorts of trauma occurring by stopping the round on the other end?

I'm way less concerned about getting tagged in the plate with a round of .30-'06 black tip than I am about taking a shot to the guts, pelvis, transverse across the shoulders, or any other important part of my body that isn't covered.

 

[Jmccracken1214]

What company are you going to work for and what region of the world?

None... Just starting to spend more time at the range training with my rifle and wanted a carrier mainly for mags. Figured I'd just get plates too.
My only training prior to doing it on my own is 6 years Army and trained with the bulky ass IOTV.

The carrier is for training, and reloads from the mag pouches. After our 3rd child is here in september, Im wating to get back into a local 2 gun match, and the carrier would also come in handy there having my rifle mags on it instead of a belt.

These thoughts of the blunt trauma are just random thoughts going through my head while I sit in silence with my coffee.

 

[Jmccracken1214]

How hard does an M1 Garand or grandpa's deer rifle hit your shoulder? Knowing that, why are you imagining all sorts of trauma occurring by stopping the round on the other end?

I'm way less concerned about getting tagged in the plate with a round of .30-'06 black tip than I am about taking a shot to the guts, pelvis, transverse across the shoulders, or any other important part of my body that isn't covered.

Youve got a point there. Im sure the realistic odds of getting smoked with a 30-06 AP is probably slim to none anyways.

 

[pmclaine]

Youve got a point there. Im sure the realistic odds of getting smoked with a 30-06 AP is probably slim to none anyways.

Redirect Notice

 

[Rtlm2007]

Your def gonna wish you were dead if you get hit by one if these lmfao. All jokes aside, even with a plate yes your gonna end up with bruised or broken ribs, if your fighting something as smart as you they will always double tap. Better to know your target is done then to guess if they sirvived

 

[pmclaine]

Buy your gear with the thought in mind of the training and stress benefit.

If you are buying this shit with the thought in mind SHTF you would be better served buying drinks for and socializing with - a doctor, someone that repairs generators, a farmer, someone that can build a tube radio, an auto mechanic, maybe a naturalist that knows what to eat and not to eat in the wild......otherwise you are just buying yourself about twenty seconds.

 

[NoDopes]

The better plan is to not get shot in the first place.

 

[diggler1833]

I swore up and down after a couple of deployments that I'd only wear a pair of eye pro, gloves, boots, a boonie, and a frigging jock if I got my choice in PPE to take into battle...but I was never shot, let alone shot in the E-SAPI plates...so maybe my thoughts would be different if I had.

Add in that you have to be fighting someone proficient enough to hit you in the plate and not the gut, pelvis, or face...yet they're stupid enough not to double or triple tap you...and now you're playing the stupid "what if" game with more possible negative outcomes than positive ones.

However, plates do work and have saved lives. I remember watching the video of the Corpsman that was shot by a sniper in the plates at ~100 meters. It knocked him on his ass, but he promptly got up and stumbled behind the HMMWV for cover. Unfortunately, most of the insurgent sniper videos that I watched were head shots with no possibility of survival.

 

[hlee]

Rumor has it that empty plate carriers make lousy lbe. And level 4 plates are going to be (relatively) heavy and (relatively) useless at a 2 gun event. If it is just to carry mags, get a purpose built chest rig.

 

[Hobo Hilton]

Risk versus Reward versus Cost.
Spend just enough to put yourself in a "comfort zone"
Nothing is 100% sure
As mentioned above since the beginning of time there have been well equipped warriors die of thirst.

 

[Forgetful Coyote]

Just get some CrossFit weights. Get in shape and have some protection while doing so
Not joking

 

[oneshot86]

This place is going to the homos.

They dropped a fucking stupid bomb wherever you live

 

[LawnMM]

Youve got a point there. Im sure the realistic odds of getting smoked with a 30-06 AP is probably slim to none anyways.

Not so much as you'd think. Had an almost active shooter turned suicide that had a garand with 06 AP ammo with him.

It's out there. I'll take a busted rib over a blown out chest cavity any day. Here's the other consideration for you.

Level 4 armor tends to be heavy, like 7-8lbs per plate, so compared to other stuff, the pricing is fairly cheap.

If you want Level 3+ that weighs like 4lbs or less per plate you're going to pay like 4-5x as much.

Weight is a factor for sure but if you're just buying this for oh shit moments not patrolling across miles of open terrain the weight is less important.

 

[rlsmith1]

The better plan is to not get shot in the first place.

They must think their guns are invisible

 

[benchmstr]

As someone who wears heavy body armor for work at least 4 days a week I must say..body armor fucking sucks to wear.

That being said, it serves a purpose.

If you are that concerned buy some safe life FRAS.

I wear that when I can get away with it from command staff..if it were up to me it’s all I would wear.

 

[502Chevelle]

Serious question here. When I shoot steel, the frag lines in the dirt are tremendous. When someone is wearing a plate, does their body and under their chin get fragged like that? All of this body armor stuff came out years after I left the service, and I’ve always wondered about the fragging.

 

[Forgetful Coyote]

Serious question here. When I shoot steel, the frag lines in the dirt are tremendous. When someone is wearing a plate, does their body and under their chin get fragged like that? All of this body armor stuff came out years after I left the service, and I’ve always wondered about the fragging.

Most plates have anti spall coating, so unless you take a burst from a mini gun to the chest and get it all torn off or something insane, you should be fine.
Even if you do take a bit of shrapnel to the chin..better than a damn slug through the heart or getting laid out with a sucking chest wound.

 

[ArTeeKay]

Serious question here. When I shoot steel, the frag lines in the dirt are tremendous. When someone is wearing a plate, does their body and under their chin get fragged like that? All of this body armor stuff came out years after I left the service, and I’ve always wondered about the fragging.

Ceramic plates don't do that. Steel body armor does, sometimes even if it is coated, which is why steel armor is for mouth breathers and poors.

 

[benchmstr]

Serious question here. When I shoot steel, the frag lines in the dirt are tremendous. When someone is wearing a plate, does their body and under their chin get fragged like that? All of this body armor stuff came out years after I left the service, and I’ve always wondered about the fragging.

I do see a lot of ar500 armor and have personally seen a lot of real world testing on it..and the ones that have the heavy coating on it are absolutely good to go.

I have an active shooter load out in all 3 of my vehicles and 2 of them are spartan armor ar500 plates

 

[benchmstr]

Most plates have anti spall coating, so unless you take a burst from a mini gun to the chest and get it all torn off or something insane, you should be fine.
Even if you do take a bit of shrapnel to the chin..better than a damn slug through the heart or getting laid out with a sucking chest wound.

Or for free for people who were gifted it to test it…but that’s how I got a lot of ceramic too

 

[rtB]

Considering our government has minimal problems droning someone with a hellfire from 2000 miles away, I just carry some extra candy bars these days.

 

[Jmccracken1214]

I do see a lot of ar500 armor and have personally seen a lot of real world testing on it..and the ones that have the heavy coating on it are absolutely good to go.

I have an active shooter load out in all 3 of my vehicles and 2 of them are spartan armor ar500 plates

I guess one shot thinks you’re a homo and someone drop the stupid bomb where you live also

 

[Jmccracken1214]

So I’m seeing we are at 50/50, people think owning armor is smart and dumb.

I wonder if the people that think it’s dumb, have 75 pmags loaded up also that never touch them.

 

[LawnMM]

Considering our government has minimal problems droning someone with a hellfire from 2000 miles away, I just carry some extra candy bars these days.

If you assume it's only the government you'll ever have to contend with, then sure.

If you think you're dangerous enough to rate a hellfire worth more than your house, rock on!

I can think of a number of times armor would be handy in a declining economy / civilization that have nothing to do with the government.

But I'm sure everything will be fine and everything will keep humming along as we spend trillions of dollars we don't have

 

[Lapuapalooza]

No need for lvl 4 for a round from a m2. That’s why the m2 has such a long barrel on it. To keep yourself from ND yo self during cleaning.

 

[roostercogburn98]

The difference in standard sapi and esapi plates is painful to see. Buy what you think you’ll run into cause it’s always better to have and not need versus needing and not having.

 

[elwarpo]

I thought a great deal about plates. 3,3+,4... And decided on 3+ plates that stop M80, M855, M193 and 7.62x39 ap. They weigh half as much as level 4 and if someone hits me with a 30-06 AP round it is a risk I would take. The adage is a plate that stops most rounds and one you wear is better than a plate that stops all rounds that you do not wear. I set a weight limit for my carrier, one I was comfortable wearing for long periods. this means lighter carrier, lighter plates and not having a bunch of junk on it. I see people with steel plates 12 mags, canteen, pistol, and pouches... that weighs 50 lbs. good luck wearing that for more than a few minutes.
My carrier with XL level 3+ plates front and rear and 6x12 side plates, with 3 Ar15 mags weighs in at around 20 lbs.
My pistol, spare mag, multi tool, flashlight, First aid kit, canteen... is on a battle belt. While still the same weight, it distributes it differently, so is easier to carry. Add a rifle and day pack, and I can hike 20 miles in this kit. Is it easy... No, but them I am in my 60s..

 

[akmike47]

This place is going to the homos.

But you’ve been here since July 13 2001, that’s the day the homo arrived.

 

[Jefe's Dope]

Why not both? Mission appropriate.

 

[Old Man with Gun]

Consider the question:
When is lvl 4 armor worth it and how much?

It is heavy, hot preventing perspiration, harder to stay low in a crawl, makes positional shooting much harder and most does not cover very much. If you are a gunner on top of a Humvee in a war zone, yes. And they will also have side plates, helmet and often a big ass armor plate on the gun mount.

Police SRT going after armed target may use lvl4 plates, helmet, face shield, neck guard, side plates, groin, legs and a big ass shield on wheels.

If you are a civilian in the USA you have to ask yourself what is the value proposition? We shoot until the threat is over... fast and as common as body armor is, all training deals with it. By shot 3 or 4 it is head shots for sure.

Soldiers deal with shrapnel and a lot of indiscriminate fire that is not focused on following through untill they are dropped.

I used to wear armor with several jobs.

Personally concealable soft body armor makes the most sense to me. Not because the protection is so high, but the inconvenience is so low.

If I know trouble is coming to me I can ADD a composite plate carrier that can stop 338L and a lvl3 helmet. Yes, I put the plate over my soft body armor, because the plates has a lot less coverage.

I do not like big plates as they are very restrictive and heavy.

But, if I am going to look for trouble on foot, probably not. I am too old not to have fatigue/endurance become an issue if I bring too much stuff. Hell, first thing I would pack today for SHTF is the SUV.

 

[Forgetful Coyote]

So I’m seeing we are at 50/50, people think owning armor is smart and dumb.

I wonder if the people that think it’s dumb, have 75 pmags loaded up also that never touch them.

For one.. this is the bearpit. Not going to get many serious replies in this section.
Also, it definitely aint dumb to protect yourself and give yourself every advantage possible.

 

[Bender]

Pit. I’m so disappointed in you. How many years had it been? All this about armor this and plate carrier that and not one of you faggots ask what mall he works at? Or if this is Gecko 45? Not even “how much you bench?” Or “you work concrete?”

I am so ashamed of all of you.

 

[Steve_In_29]

Researching plate carriers/armor and of course I want the best, so I jump to lvl 4 and looking at all the plates offered and got to thinking...

Sure, itll stop m2AP, but......... thats a lot of fucking energy hitting you.. a lot. Yeah, you wont have a hole in you, but 100% its going to put you on your ass instantly, now you're on the ground, with most likely enternal injuries/bleeding... Are you as good as dead, or atleast laying there, wishing you were dead after getting hit by a armor piercing freight train?

If the round hit you as hard as you put forth, the gun that fired it would have knocked the shooter on his ass.

You are on a gun forum with no idea of terminal ballistics and apparently physics either.

 

[Maser]

IIIa is fine for me when I'm running through an airsoft course with a 30 pack of Natty Ice.

 

[Average guy]

Pit. I’m so disappointed in you. How many years had it been? All this about armor this and plate carrier that and not one of you faggots ask what mall he works at? Or if this is Gecko 45? Not even “how much you bench?” Or “you work concrete?”

I am so ashamed of all of you.


View attachment 7933542

You gotta stay strapped when you are walking the mean streets of the mall. Never know when there’s going to be a disturbance outside of Hot Topic and Gecko45 is in the shitter.

 

[n2ishun]

Pit. I’m so disappointed in you. How many years had it been? All this about armor this and plate carrier that and not one of you faggots ask what mall he works at? Or if this is Gecko 45? Not even “how much you bench?” Or “you work concrete?”

I am so ashamed of all of you.


View attachment 7933542

And it is a "Yeet Cannon" dammit.

 

[Average guy]

You won’t see him, but he sees everything

 

[DuneBoer]

Ghey

 

[Average guy]

Ghey

Just remember he’s got your 6 white you are in Bed Bath and Beyond

 

[Downzero]

The carrier is for training, and reloads from the mag pouches. After our 3rd child is here in september, Im wating to get back into a local 2 gun match, and the carrier would also come in handy there having my rifle mags on it instead of a belt.

PLEASE take pics and ideally videos with other competitive shooters if you show up wearing a plate carrier to a shooting match. I haven't had the kind of laugh I'm going to have from this in a long time.

 

[Forgetful Coyote]

And it is a "Yeet Cannon" dammit.

Yessss
It is the ultimate cannon. Actually the only cannon really

 

[hlee]

PLEASE take pics and ideally videos with other competitive shooters if you show up wearing a plate carrier to a shooting match. I haven't had the kind of laugh I'm going to have from this in a long time.

No video, but I’ve seen a few guys at run and guns wearing plates. Generally not the types I’d laugh in their faces. They’re generally running the course while I’m walking…

 

[GreenGO Juan]

I never understood why people wear armor over their chest yet leave their balls wide open.

 

[DarnYankeeUSMC]

I am putting new, well they aren't "new" just new to my car, doors on my 77 Monte Carlo. Anyone know what level of armor plating I should put in them?

It's for when I have to make runs for baby formula

 

[rtB]

I am putting new, well they aren't "new" just new to my car, doors on my 77 Monte Carlo. Anyone know what level of armor plating I should put in them?
View attachment 7933671
It's for when I have to make runs for baby formula

We all bought a bunch of plate for fixing up rides like that, but I think most of it was left in Afghanistan or something. Logistical issues I believe.

 

[Average guy]

I am putting new, well they aren't "new" just new to my car, doors on my 77 Monte Carlo. Anyone know what level of armor plating I should put in them?
View attachment 7933671
It's for when I have to make runs for baby formula

Minimum thickness 3” AR 500

 

[DarnYankeeUSMC]

Hmmm, it does have a sky roof. Maybe I should install a gun turret. You know, for those formula runs

We all bought a bunch of plate for fixing up rides like that, but I think most of it was left in Afghanistan or something. Logistical issues I believe.