Most people buy body armor and hope they never have to use it. That is unless you’re a convicted felon or are using the body armor to commit a criminal act. The good news for most civilians is we are allowed to own and wear Level 4 body armor in public spaces if we choose to do so. How Many Hits Can Level IV Armor Take?Īlthough NIJ testing only requires that it defeat a single 30 caliber AP round, our level IV plates are testing to defeat multiple hits. We've conducted additional threat tests against our level 4 Duritium plates to ensure optimal protection. NIJ, however, only requires one test shot per plate with an Armor Piercing (AP) round. This means that Level 4 body armor will also stop all smaller rounds, including armor piercing 308, all pistol rounds (including Five-Seven, 500 magnum, and 50 Action Express), and shotgun slugs. Level IV Duritium is less than 1" thick (0.9") and will stop any rifle round, including the 7.62x54R M2 round fired from an SVD Dragunov sniper rifle. ShotStop Duritium Level IV armor weighs in at an incredible 5.3 lbs. Our Duritium plates are better than most other plates on the market for good reason they are lighter, stronger, and have the best warranty in the industry. This process ensures all Duritium plates can withstand multiple hits in the same location without losing the armor's integrity. After the plate is hardened and reinforced with polymer, the vulcanization process finishes it off for a perfectly cut armored plate. Duritium Armor Platesĭuritium is our patented technology that combines UHMWPE with composite materials for the lightest, thinnest, and most durable body armor.Ĭonstruction of Duritium plates includes polymer covering sheets that are cut using a 3-axis CNC machine. Polyethylene armor plates are more expensive than steel and ceramic. Polyethylene body armor is lighter than steel and ceramic armor plates and can defeat multiple hits in the same area of the plate. It's known to have excellent chemical inertness, self-lubricity, and impact resistance. The UHMWPE is rated as the most durable thermoplastic produced. Polyethylene is the most common type of plastic used in the world today.īody armor is generally made from a specific kind of polyethylene, called Ultra-High-Molecular-Weight Polyethylene ( UHMWPE ). These unseen cracks can render the armor plate useless which becomes a liability to the person wearing it. Additionally, ceramic plates need to be x-rayed frequently for cracks since they are susceptible to damage from drops and other impacts. However, ceramic armor plates are often thicker than steel, cannot handle multi-hits in the same area, is much more expensive, and will only last roughly 5 to 7 years. Additionally, it performs better against supersonic and armor-piercing bullets than steel armor does. This will result in less broken ribs, broken sternum, and collapsed lungs. With the ever-changing technologies out today, many soldiers have worn both steel and ceramic body armor plates.Ĭeramic is better at absorbing and dispersing energy than steel. It's been used in body armor since around the Vietnam Conflict for its lightweight properties. Ceramic Armor PlatesĬeramic is an inorganic, non-metallic material, customarily made from nitride or carbide. A round with a velocity higher than 3,200 fps will pass through the steel armor and into your chest. The A46100 steel is the only steel that is rated to defeat a bullet traveling faster than 3,200 feet per second (fps). When choosing steel armor, I personally wouldn't buy anything that didn't say Mil-Spec A46100.Īlthough steel is commercially graded between 100-900, Mil-Spec steel is tested against ballistic threats.Īccording to MIL-DTL-46100E, the A46100 steel is tested and rated to defeat all small arms and shrapnel from explosions.Ī46100 steel is the same steel our military uses in constructing armor plating for vehicles and body armor. Steel Body Armor is the most common and the cheapest of all body armor. Types of Level 4 Body Armor Steel Armor Plates If you’re considering buying level 4 body armor, we’ll clear the air for you and provide some guidelines as you consider this life-saving investment. But, understanding the nuances of body armor can seem a bit daunting. With that type of rated protection, it seems to be a reasonable investment. Level IV plates are currently the highest-rated armor recognized by the NIJ.Īccording to the NIJ ratings, level 4 plates should stop the six hits of spaced M80 ball, all 5.56 threats including M855 and M193 that level 3 is rated to stop.Īdditionally, level 4 should defeat at least one round of armor-piercing.
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