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Through popular media, there is the idea that ‘The Special Forces’, or the popularly called ‘Green Berets’  for the SOF in the Army, have some sort of advanced equipment that makes them better than everyone else. Regretfully, that is not the case, and it is not a question of what body armor do Special Forces use, or which guns, but how they use them. The reason why all branches of Special Forces are so superior is due to harsh training...

When talking about levels of ballistic armor, we usually refer to the National Institute of Justice and their NIJ ballistic standard. In this context, we can know how armor is tested and what types of ammo does NIJ Level 2 body armor stop. Additionally, the armor might be referred to as NIJ Level II using Roman numerals, as these styles are used interchangeably. There are four main levels for the NIJ standard: IIa – Soft/ anti-9mm armor.II – Against automatic...

Regardless of preference and marital status, anyone who served tours in Iraq or Afghanistan had two loves: Molly and Alice. Namely, these are both parts of the IBA body armor that was the standard for the US Army and Navy troops from 2000 to 2020.  MOLLE (pronounced Molly) refers to the modular webbing on the armor that allows for attaching various types of gear. And ALICE stands for All-purpose Lightweight Individual Carrying Equipment, which is for lugging around standard gear....

Although it may look very sturdy, and its main purpose is to stop a bullet, a ballistic vest is not indestructible. Even with proper maintenance, body armor will expire at some point, and it is recommended that you exchange your plates at least once every five years. Additionally, any type of wear and tear, especially exposure to very low temperatures and direct sunlight, will reduce this time significantly. There are three questions to ask when deciding if it’s time to...

While there are standard requirements when it comes to body armor for law enforcement officers, each department and State jurisdiction will have their small differences. Either for political, social, or objective reasons, some departments will use different types of vests. But, the overall types can be categorized by the type of mission where they will be used. These types of police body armor are: Internal Soft Body ArmorCovert Body ArmorSoft External CarriersHybrid Soft and Hard Plate CarriersPlate Carriers with Auxiliary...

When asked so broadly what is body armor used for there is no other answer than defense. But, as we start to narrow down the question we can get more information about what we can defend from and how. Ballistic body armor is made to protect from bullets, and there are big differences when it comes to types of ballistic armor, their hardness, weight, and levels of protection. Each piece will protect a different part of your body and may...

Probably the biggest confusion in the world of personal defense is the difference between Level III and Level IIIa body armor. Not only do they sound very similar, but it is also confusing that IIIa refers to a significantly lower level of ballistic protection than Level III. Also, even though the standard is to write the NIJ ballistic levels of protection in Roman numbers, there are blogs and even manufacturers who will use regular numbers and issue products as NIJL3a...

Although the collective terms for body armor doesn’t actually specify what is body armor made of when talking about ballistic protection we have some tried and tested materials. For those of us who haven’t been to the proper schools to know the exact processes of how these fibers and ceramics work, we need to observe how they act and what their purpose is. There are two distinct categories of body armor, soft and hard, and each have been made with...

If you want to know exactly how heavy military body armor is, imagine gaining 30lbs and needing to run, jump, and climb. Then there is the backpack and everything you need to carry in it. While not as hard at first, after a while the weight gets to you, ankles start aching, feet start swelling, and you just stop having such a swell good time. There are three sets of armor that a soldier might wear when deployed: Plate CarrierFront...

Humans started dreaming about being impervious to damage the first time one caveman smashed another with a club. We don’t like being hurt and always wonder how effective is our body armor and how much do we need to become untouchable. Sadly, there is no such thing as a perfect piece of armor that will protect you from anything at all times. The best we can do is to try to predict the risk we might face and take the...