How To Buy Rifle Plates and Body Armor Plates

The following is a transcription of EOD Gear Improvised Podcast discussing best practices as it relates to buying rifle plates, body armor as well as the pitfalls of bulletproof level IV body armor.

Steve

Alright, everybody. Welcome to another episode of EOD Gear Improvised. I'm Steve Cassidy and I'm here with Fred Golgart. He's on his way to the Vietnam Veterans Reunion down in sunny and warm Columbia, Georgia and Turing Fort Benning. Fred is actually our supplier for many of our lightweight armor that we offer. So I got him in just a quick one to talk about armor. So get your pen and paper out and get ready to take notes on how to buy armor.

Steve

Fred, thanks for coming in. You've been around a while. So you're a Vietnam veteran?

Fred

Just a few years.

Steve

And then you're a cop. You were double dipping.

Fred

Double dipping, absolutely.

Steve

So now you're in body armor, ballistic plates and we've been working together five, six years.

Fred

Yeah. Long time.

Steve

Quite a long time. It's been great working with you and Fred's out of Indianapolis. So if you're up that way, why you would go up there? I don't know. It's too cold. I used to live there.

High Performance Rifle Plates vs. Steel Plates Body Armor Plates

Steve

So hey, what we wanted to cover today, and I think this is really important, in buying armor because we have people who go buy AR 500 steel. And if that's your budget, that's fine. If you think that works, then that works for you. If you're looking for something with a little bit more performance. And then of course, there's ceramics out there, which is a great technology, but also has some drawbacks. And then now we're into the polymer world. So we wanted to talk about all that. So there's level IIIA, there's level III, there's level III+, of course, there's Level II. That's cop specific. So, Fred, what's happening in the industry right now? We're moved to lightweight. We now have the Dayton Armor at 1.39 pound combination ICW standalone plate that will stop 5.56 and 7.62 X 39.

Fred

(Sales) Just going off the chart.

Steve

Yeah, it's great. And then we have ShotStop, which we really like. They're Poly Advanced multi hit multi curve. We've actually shot and X rayed those for some of our customers. Our customers actually shot and X ray’d those. Great performance. A little bit heavier at 2.7 pounds, slightly less expensive. So where we are right now, so we have contracting officers or people who are looking to buy rifle plates. Why are we moving up from steel to ceramic to polymer?

Ballistic History and Hard Armor

Fred

Well, let's go back to the old steel days. Okay. In ceramic days when everyone was simply trying to get the best bang for their buck. I used to sell ceramic plates and that was the best bang for your buck at the time.

Fred

Roger that. Yes, sir. Anyway, going back to the old days of ceramic and ceramic body armor plates, of course, lighter weight in some regards for some people, okay? It was the first thing that really stopped bullets back in the day. And other than sand, I was once told by an Iranian general that if I need to stop more bullets, I'll just bring in more sand. And then people started switching to steel hard armor plates. We used to make ballistic shelters made out of steel. But the problem with steel is and even today, the problem with steel is might or might not stop your 2.23, okay? 5.56 That's one of the hardest hitting bullets out there that's going to go through that steel. And the other issue is, if it does stop that bullet, you can't move these two carotid arteries up above quick enough to get out of the way. And also, if you've got partners left and right of you, they also might get hit with some of the shrapnel.

Steve

So you're talking about spalling.

Fred

The spalling is horrible.

Steve

Spalling is frag.

Fred

That's correct. Okay. So I wouldn't recommend steel for anyone. I never have, never will. And then we moved into the ceramic armor that's capable of fracturing, okay? Ceramic plates should be X-rayed once a year. Military has been using ceramic for years and years and years. And you probably carried ceramic. I didn't have ceramic because I had the old flak vest, okay? I sat on my flak vest, didn't even wear it but a few times back in Vietnam. But in any event, with the ceramics, if you drop them, they're subject to fracturing.

Ballistic Plate Maintenance and Care

Steve

Not everybody has an X ray. So in our community, EOD and bomb tech community, we got X-rays.

Fred

And so you're lucky in that regard. But nobody understands that they should X ray the ceramic plates, okay? They're the least expensive other than steel. But again, my comment about steel but even the ceramic plates are very thick, they're very cumbersome and they're very heavy. Anywhere from twelve to 15 to 20 pounds, depending upon the level of threat. Absolutely. And then with the rest of your Gear on and everything else, you're going to be wearing 40, 50, 60 pounds of Gear. And that's just absolutely ridiculous.

And a lot of the military folks have had lots of medical issues with their joints, and that's why pick me. There you go. Military is getting away from that heavier weight, looking for the other alternatives in ballistic protection. Then we come along with ultra high molecular polyethylene, which is just a game changer.

Game Changer When You Buy Armor Plates

And I have to brag a little bit about ShotStop for a moment, because when they came along, they are an industry changer. Because not only did they make a lightweight plate, when you compare a 12-15 pound plate to a 2.7 pound plate or a 3.2 pound plate, multi curve, multi hit, floats, all of those things, and it just stops bullets compared to a ceramic plate that's even heavier, then all of a sudden, we've got a major game changer.

And then they did one more thing that changed the entire industry in law enforcement, okay? Police, fire and EMS. And that is almost all of the other plates out there. And even today, most everybody is still five to seven to ten year warranty. Shots Stop came out with a 15 year warranty.

Steve

Yeah. And I mean when you do the math so if you have a five year plate and you have a 15 year plate, the annualized cost, but then the hidden cost of that for the contracting officer is the acquisition process itself.

Fred

Well, it might be a hidden extra cost. It is, except that the contracting officers need to start looking at that because they're not comparing apples and apples.

Steve

Right.

Fred

They're comparing apples and apples.

Steve

But I think that comes through. It's a different way to look at things. And I'm really grateful for ShotStop for doing that.

Fred

Yes. So that has caused a number of other manufacturers to step up to the plate and reconsider and reconfigure that and whatnot? And ShotStop has an in conjunction with, ICW plate that when used in conjunction with soft body armor, is going to stop your level III rounds, your AK’S and your AR’s and your 308. Then they've got the Poly standard plate, which is 0. 95 inch thick at 3.2 pounds for a shooter's cut. Then they step up a little bit better with a poly advanced plate at 2.7 pounds. And that is just an awesome it's a great plate and it's make in USA!

Steve

We've sold a lot of those.

Fred

Sold a lot of those. That's correct. And a lot of operators really like that plate because with the multi curve, you get away from a single curve, which is a little bit uncomfortable if you have to wear it for a long time. But if that road officer is out there and all he has is an active shooter kit in the back of his car or in his back seat, then the single curve plate definitely has the advantage because now he's only got 6-7 pounds on his body rather than 25 to 20. 30 pounds on his body.

Steve

Soul crushing Pounds.

Fred

Exactly. I know a lot of officers out there that refuse to put that heavy.

Steve

Right. They're not wearing it.

Fred

Yeah. I don't want cuss on your podcast here, but it's a heavy as s*%!.

Steve

We all speak French.

Fred

Okay. All right. In the French way of saying it, that's that heavy ass armor and then they switch it over to the shot stop at 7 pounds, and it's mind blowing. Then we go to one more step okay. With the lightest and thinnest plate in the world, which is Dayton armor, and with Dayton armor plates, all of a sudden we go from a seven pound set of plates and carriers to 3-4 pounds. Okay. Now I'm including 1 pound for the carrier itself, because with a standalone in conjunction with plate 00.35 of an inch thick at 1.39 to 1.5 pounds, it is absolutely the thinnest and lightest NIJ compliant hard plate on the market.

Steve

Yeah, that's great. We're applauding.

Fred

Okay, we're going to get ready to go to a commercial break here.

Steve

No commercials today.

Fred

No commercials. All right.

Steve

No. But here's everything for everybody listening. If you need an excuse to come to Nashville, we're in Franklin, about 20 miles south. We have all the plates here. We have all the plate carriers here. We even have the armor that we shot and X-rayed. So you can come in and actually see how a polymer performs side by side against the X-rays against ceramic. We didn't shoot steel. Didn't feel the need to.

Fred

They don't need to. And Steve, for all of your listeners out there, this shop that you have created here is absolutely amazing. You've got so much good going on here.

Steve

It's fun.

Fred

We can't applaud you enough for the love and the support that you've given Light Tactical Solutions and whatnot in the rest of the industry out here.

Steve

Yeah, well, it's all about the end users. We're a bunch of old guys, so we got to take care of those in Harm's Way.

Fred

And that's the thing. When the people come in here, they get to try it on. They have it here for them to try on. Okay, you got a rappelling rope out in the middle of the shoppe here.

Steve

Fast rope, quickie saw, flash bangs, whiskey.

Fred

You want to throw a flash bang, folks? Come on down here to Steve. Okay? He'll get you a flash bang to throw. If you've never thrown a flash bang, come on down.

Steve

It's a hoot. The neighbors hate us, especially on Saturday morning.

Fred

That's awesome. But, yeah, you've got a great shop here, and I would recommend anybody that's in the area to come on over, man.

Steve

I really appreciate it, and I can't thank you enough for your generosity, of your time and your expertise and all the years of working with you. And I hope you have a great time down in Georgia celebrating with your boys that you served with in Vietnam. It was great. So I promise you'll come back through. We're going to do another podcast. Maybe we can do a deep dive on this ICW plate that military people really don't understand that’s “in conjunction with” soft armor inserts and how it relates to threat levels.

Steve

And I know you got to get going, so let's wrap it up. I appreciate it, Fred. Thank you so much.

Fred

Thank you so much, Steve. And you guys have a great day and be safe. Take care.

This concludes the recorded conversation but we wanted to make sure you get all the information you need to make the best decision for yourself or your command.

Choose the Right Body Armor

Level IV

Level IV level of protection or Armor Piercing Rifle Rounds are designed to stop AP rounds as well as smaller rifle and all pistol rounds. Level IV is an NIJ Standard designation.

Level III

Level III or Level 3 ballistic body armor plates are rated to stop rounds used in most AR and AK platforms. Level III is an NIJ Standard designation.

Level III+

Level III+ is a designation given to those plates that will take multiple hits of those rounds stopped by Level III plates or plates that are rated for Green Tip ammo. NIJ, the National Institute of Justice does not offer Level III+ as an official designation.

Level IIIA

Level IIIA is the designation awarded to armor that stops pistol rounds including the .44 Magnum. This designation is awarded to body armor and shields that meet the pistol requirements. Level IIIA does not stop rifle rounds! Most ballistic helmets on the market are rated at Level IIIA.

Level II

Level II is the designation given to soft armor that stops small pistol rounds such as the .38. Most police officers are issues Level II only.

Making an armor decision doesn't have to be a grueling task. The staff at EOD Gear are former end-users and can act as your guide to ensure you're getting the best shield to meet your needs as well as your budget. Please feel free to call us at 877-363-2626 or click HERE.