Who'se got it? What's your take on it?
I'll share one strange experience here, true story: I work with security systems, it takes me to different houses a couple times a day... Well, one morning I had a very vivid dream that someone shot me in the chest with a .38 snubbie. Now, I've had alot of dreams in my life, like anyone else, and I tell you, this one was so coherent, cohesive, detailed and lucid..... I'm no 'dream analist' kinda person by any means, but this one just freaked me out. I had a very impressive feeling that it was significant, and 'different' from other dreams... symbolic maybe? I dunno.
My first client of the day, the following morning... I was in his house working on the security system there, and this guy, out of the blue, he shows me this M1955 flack vest (vietnam surplus? issued, lightly worn) this was a pretty cool thing to me, I hefted it a little, and the guy looks at me all quiet and serious, and he tells me that I should keep it.
It was a strange enough coincidence that a year later I still wonder what it was all about. No, I haven't been shot, and no, I don't strut around town in my M1955 like a crazy person. This summer I did have a stranger pull a gun on me in a neighborhood I was working, but it was just a .22 and I was able to diffuse the situation and get the weapon away from them.
Anyone ever considered a vest for their B.O.B or do you own one for day use? My experiences have left me curious and very likely to own some better ballistic protection, maybe something I can wear without looking like rambo. Reccommendations?
oh yeah...and if anyone knows anything about the REAL protective value of my flak vest, that'd be cool cause I've always been curious. A vietnam veteran told me he took three rounds from an AK with his and lived to tell about it.... but I really really have to wonder... (not wonder whether he lived to tell about it lol, but I wonder if A: he's full of crap or confusing his attacker's weapon with..I dunno... a slingshot? or B: he's confusing the vest with something more substantial? My vest has hard overlapping plates inside, don't know what they are. overall weight is around 12 lbs.
I'll share one strange experience here, true story: I work with security systems, it takes me to different houses a couple times a day... Well, one morning I had a very vivid dream that someone shot me in the chest with a .38 snubbie. Now, I've had alot of dreams in my life, like anyone else, and I tell you, this one was so coherent, cohesive, detailed and lucid..... I'm no 'dream analist' kinda person by any means, but this one just freaked me out. I had a very impressive feeling that it was significant, and 'different' from other dreams... symbolic maybe? I dunno.
My first client of the day, the following morning... I was in his house working on the security system there, and this guy, out of the blue, he shows me this M1955 flack vest (vietnam surplus? issued, lightly worn) this was a pretty cool thing to me, I hefted it a little, and the guy looks at me all quiet and serious, and he tells me that I should keep it.
It was a strange enough coincidence that a year later I still wonder what it was all about. No, I haven't been shot, and no, I don't strut around town in my M1955 like a crazy person. This summer I did have a stranger pull a gun on me in a neighborhood I was working, but it was just a .22 and I was able to diffuse the situation and get the weapon away from them.
Anyone ever considered a vest for their B.O.B or do you own one for day use? My experiences have left me curious and very likely to own some better ballistic protection, maybe something I can wear without looking like rambo. Reccommendations?
oh yeah...and if anyone knows anything about the REAL protective value of my flak vest, that'd be cool cause I've always been curious. A vietnam veteran told me he took three rounds from an AK with his and lived to tell about it.... but I really really have to wonder... (not wonder whether he lived to tell about it lol, but I wonder if A: he's full of crap or confusing his attacker's weapon with..I dunno... a slingshot? or B: he's confusing the vest with something more substantial? My vest has hard overlapping plates inside, don't know what they are. overall weight is around 12 lbs.
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Salt Lake City
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Re: Ballistic Armor?
Mon, August 27, 2007 - 7:22 PMoh BTW just so people don't get the wrong impression about my job... I'm not a security guard...I just install and service systems in private residences...like the old lady on your block with the ADT sign in her yard next to the mailbox. Guns and direct confrontation with criminals in NOWHERE near a supposed risk or part of my job description. I may as well be an electrician or a cable guy. so yeah, the dream, the vest, and having a gun pulled on me are pretty wierd circumstances.
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Re: Ballistic Armor?
Mon, August 27, 2007 - 7:37 PMAs far as I understand things, I am no expert and Descovery has given me my own show so I can pretend to be one, is that a flack vest is for flack. The small flying piecies of metal that are thrown at you from an explosion. Not to stop a bullit. In fact I think the guy theat told you he survived 3 AK-47 rounds left some info out. Like that he was only grazed and the was little to know center body hits. I have handled 2 police issue vests and they where both very light but hot to wear in any weather above 50 degrees. Second Chance is the brand I would buy if I where to purchase a vest for my self the 6 hour video I have seen on their product is very interesting. The founder, his name escapes me, was on the History Channels show on body armor. It has been a while sence I have looked into body armor as I now longer do security but Second chance had a "feather light" style that is susposed to be so thin and light no one will notice that you are wearing it. I would not be surprised if you could buy one and write it off fromyou taxes as a busniess expence if you have a CPA that can help you. I would Keep the Flack vest as something cool to have and only wear it in a s**t hits the fan kinda situation. Something is better then nothing.
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Re: Ballistic Armor?
Mon, August 27, 2007 - 8:13 PMI couldn't find any clear specifications for the M1955's rating, but I know that by today's current standards, a Type III vest or higher is needed to stop the 7.62 mm FMJ rounds an AK-47 fires.
Anyway, I personally don't own any ballistic armor, nor do I intend to purchase any. Wearing that stuff makes you HOT, and not only that, but it traps your sweat and prevents it from evaporating. Boise is at the edge of the desert, and it is bloody hot enough here... even the thought of wearing armor makes me feel exhausted.
Another reason I wouldn't want to wear a vest is due to how much it restricts your mobility. All my essentials are neatly packed into a convenient, rugged MOLLE pack, so if shit goes down, I only want to worry about that bag and my rifle. It may just be one bag, but it is HEAVY... I just don't have the strength to carry that and my rifle along with a 10-18lb vest.
Of course, this is all based on my vision of "the fall" being one of economic collapse with the possibility of martial law being enacted. My solution isn't going to be playing solider, it's to find a nice place in the mountains to set up camp and rough it out. Now, that may not be the way it goes down, but it seems the most likely to me... such as the case, I can't see the value in burdening myself with that kind of dead weight. -
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Re: Ballistic Armor?
Mon, August 27, 2007 - 9:04 PMthe dude told me he'd been shot once in the upper left chest, then right middle, then left of center. he said it spun him and knocked him down.
I pulled up an old field report once, but can't find it again. said the flak vest stopped something like 80% of flak, 23% small arms, and of the small arms that did penetrate, tissue damage was reported at some significantly less ammount than unprotected hits of same caliber...they even attached a % value to it...something in the twenties or thirties.
It's a really generalized report I know, doesn't get into caliber specifics, types of hits, etc.... but it was conducted by some medical bureau of the army in vietnam based on field reports. Yeah I know how lame I sound but I swear I have seen and read it, and it was legit.
the folks at bulletproofme.com claim that flak vests fit into category of 'type1' protection level...which is just .22's at around 1,200 fps and .38's at 850 fps. I was just wondering if anyone had had, or heard of, any real life experience with the performance of these vests.
It's a moot point as I never wear it, just curious. But I really do think I'll be getting a vest soon. -
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Unsu...
Re: Ballistic Armor?
Tue, August 28, 2007 - 7:24 AMWhat kind of vest were you planning to get? I would think a type 2 or 3a would be enough, unless you foresee someone with either an assault rifle taking shots at you. Personally, if getting shot with an assault rifle was a day-to-day possibility for me, I'd consider moving... -
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Re: Ballistic Armor?
Tue, August 28, 2007 - 9:19 AMwell, I've been threatened with gun violence and been around quite a bit of it, I thought that three drive-by's within ear-shot were bad enough when they had me working in DC area a couple years back. I was visiting Vegas with a buddy back in '05 and happened to be about ten feet from the target of another drive by (right at the Denny's on the strip if you've been there, althouth I hear MGM is knocking it down for other stuff now) That guy wasn't so lucky, he's dead now. Nobody else in the 15-or-so crowd within his vicinity was hit that I was aware of, amazingly... and then that gun pulled on me in Indianna just this summer. I know the 9mm is most popular on the streets these days, although I would bet the .40 S&W is phasing in now that it's becoming more prevalent in law enforcement as well and you'd be surprised how many of the 'poor men' (and by that I mean non-drug dealers lol) among thugs are packing little .22's..... Seems a decent level II would do the trick. Like any of us with a CCW, I know my chances of needing it in a bad situation are something like the chances of being hit by lightning... but it's more of a reassurance. On the other hand, I seem to have attracted enough lightning to make it a justifiable concern in the past four years. -
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Re: Ballistic Armor?
Mon, April 7, 2008 - 10:15 AMAnother old thread, threat level 3 is good up 44 magnum, buy from a reputable retailer and have it fitted to your person. One thing to keep in mind that vest stops penetration, but your body is still aborbing up to a ton of force. As the old saying goes"Better to Bruised, than Excused"
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Re: Ballistic Armor?
Mon, April 7, 2008 - 12:46 PMI have a 3A balltics vest. I have owned and used them since I was 20. I was a repo agent when I started wearing them and pulling cars in NYC was deadly I lost many of vest to my job. I pocess a 3A now with a truama plate for being a bail enforcement agent. I have been taken out of the action due to a car accident. Flak vest are very heavy and ackward to wear when doing any tasks. Especially the M195, made back in 1955 for the world war 2 and vietman era was good be to big.
Your veteran story teller is neither bullshitting nor misinformed. A Flak vest can stop multiple rounds of small arms fire. Only issue they were firing standard issue lead ball rounds at the time. The newer vest will stop the equivalent round size with trauma plates. You can conceal carry the vest so you can walk around town without looking like a freak.
Check into the Second Chance gear or Armor Express. The owner of Armor Express is the son of the creator of the Police issue conceal carry vests. To demo test the models at Armor Expres the owner shots himself point blank then turns and empty guns at targets down range.
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Re: Ballistic Armor?
Mon, April 7, 2008 - 12:51 PMSorry forgot to say the M1955 are second generation flak vest origanally used by Air Force pilots and bomber workers to protect them from falk.
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Re: Ballistic Armor?
Mon, April 7, 2008 - 4:40 PMI love body armor in the winter but hate it in the summer, as a protection speclialist I don't usually wear it, we don't want to draw attention to who we are. and you can tell when someone is wearing it. After it became public knowlege that the police wore body armor the incidence of head shot police officers rose significantly.
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Re: Ballistic Armor?
Fri, April 11, 2008 - 3:30 PMInteresting anecdote.
The only time I strap on my body armour is when slinging rocks on the block. -
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Re: Ballistic Armor?
Fri, April 11, 2008 - 7:37 PMI work in Asia and after about two hours in the stuff you are ready to get out of it. But in the winter time in Korea it is a God send for keeping you warm. That it stops bullets is a plus.
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Re: Ballistic Armor?
Tue, April 29, 2008 - 10:00 PMCool story. I have a used concealable Kevlar police vest. Don't like it, but thought I should have something and it was a lot cheaper than a new vest. I've never worn it. I do like low-tech tho, and I also have a plate carrier with 2 steel rifle plates. Weighs about 22 pounds, but damn do I feel invincible when I put it on. Ain't nothing quite as comforting as plate steel! Talk about hot. If TSHTF Rodney King-style in my neighborhood, I'll wear both and try to bug out in my truck. Or, I'll wear the plates while I spray the streets with #4 gang banger repellent. Well damn, actually I couldn't do that in the summer, because I'd die of heat exhaustion. -
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Re: Ballistic Armor?
Wed, April 30, 2008 - 11:54 AMPut ice-cubes in your breast pockets. -
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Re: Ballistic Armor?
Tue, June 10, 2008 - 1:17 PMThat may work if you are wearing a bullet proof trench coat or any one of these... www.fortierandco.com/the_collection.php
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Re: Ballistic Armor?
Wed, June 11, 2008 - 9:41 AMThe Atheletic gear called Under-Armor is a cotton based sweat wisking undershirt made for the police in the high heat regions of the country. Sports personal and trainers have found it works great on athletes because the conditions it was made for is what you are looking for.
Checking Under Armor at Dicks and other sporting goods places.
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Re: Ballistic Armor?
Wed, June 11, 2008 - 10:31 AMWell I have one old school Marine Infantry ( non US ), which has 1 cm made out of several layers of Kevlar cloth, and a 3 mm layer of Titanium plate - and man is it heavy, and bulky. The thing weighs about 12 Kg. Would wear it is TSHTF.
-Then I have a more wearable one, a French one, think it stops .22 and .38, and has a 12 mm Kevlar plate in front and one in the back. Weighs about I guess 10 Kg, but has a mag/com pouch.
-Then a really thin one, blue, think it stops .22, can be worn underneath any shirt, but damn hot in any weather.
-And a old version, less wearable, more cumbersome, and thicker. Wouldn't trust my life on that one... I would on the 2nd one.
And by the look of things, TSWHTF soon, finally I should say.
