is body armor legal?

[jeffers_mz]

The Marines bought a bunch of Interceptor vests that were rejected for failing to meet specs, in the area of failing to stop pistol rounds.

Buying on the secondhand market you have two choices if you wish to avoid buying gear the Marines rejected.

One, pull all the lot numbers of the rejected Interceptor vests from the Internet and check any prospective purchases against the rejected list. I do not remember the exact number of rejected vests, but if memory serves it was at least 100,000, spanning several lot numbers.

Two, purchase only vests stamped "Pathfinder", in red ink, on the label. These are Army vests. The problem with the Marines rejecting vests were resolved prior to the Army purchasing the Interceptors, so any Army surplus vests marked "Pathfinder" ought to be good to go.

 

[E5RANGER375]

You going to put on a demonstration similar to the one the president of 2nd Chance Body Armor put on? I tell ya, that guy has got some serious faith in his company's product.

no i dont use myself or others as test subjects, but im sure theres enough morons in this country who have done just that and probly filmed it too for our viewing pleasure

something on is better than a t-shirt. i can say that with 100% certainty

 

[shooter521]

also as long as you dont get them wet, then the soft armor will stay good for MANY YEARS over the expiration date. i'll prove it to ya on a range

no i dont use myself or others as test subjects

Just got an Email that Kieslers has some police trade-in (expired) Level IIIA vests for sale at $39.00 apiece. Man up!!

 

[Scutter01]

how good is it at stopping gamma rays and neutrons?

Neutrons, probably pretty good, especially if there's any lead content in the vest. Neutrinos on the other hand, will go right through it.

 

[E5RANGER375]

Just got an Email that Kieslers has some police trade-in (expired) Level IIIA vests for sale at $39.00 apiece. Man up!!

LMAO, no thats not what i meant by prove it. i should have been more specific i guess (i know your just joking). my range time never consist of harming people or animals,

 

[45calibre]

The Marines bought a bunch of Interceptor vests that were rejected for failing to meet specs, in the area of failing to stop pistol rounds.

Buying on the secondhand market you have two choices if you wish to avoid buying gear the Marines rejected.

One, pull all the lot numbers of the rejected Interceptor vests from the Internet and check any prospective purchases against the rejected list. I do not remember the exact number of rejected vests, but if memory serves it was at least 100,000, spanning several lot numbers.

Two, purchase only vests stamped "Pathfinder", in red ink, on the label. These are Army vests. The problem with the Marines rejecting vests were resolved prior to the Army purchasing the Interceptors, so any Army surplus vests marked "Pathfinder" ought to be good to go.

anyone know where i can find those lot numbers? the kevlar has "patherfinder" stamped in black ink.

 

[jeffers_mz]

There were questions raised over numerous different lot numbers of the Interceptor soft armor accepted by the Marines. In turn, there were numerous series of tests run, by the manufacturer , by the Marines, and by independant agencies. Over time, the situation became very complex and I have yet to see any full list of the affected lot numbers.

This blog post is a reprint of a definitive article on the subject:

The Marines’ flawed body armor-MCTimes

I am unable to find the original at MC Times, but this appears to be the complete text from the original.

From the article:

"The Army, which equips its troops with different versions of the Interceptor body armor system, has never accepted vests that failed ballistic standards, and the service says it stands by the manufacturer despite the Corps’ vest failures. Army officials in charge of equipping soldiers with body armor said in an interview that the service has never issued a waiver for ballistic performance and not one of the more than 680,000 vests fielded since 1998 is from a failed production lot.

The Army versions of the Point Blank vest, dubbed Pathfinder and Pathfinder Plus, differ from the Marine Corps’ “Alpha” package in the weight and number of Kevlar sheets that make up the armor. To date, the Army has accepted nearly 500,000 vests from the company."

I believe that "Pathfinder" stamped in black ink, would be indication of an Army vest. In my earlier post I mentioned red ink, which is how my Interceptor is stamped, but the key word is "Pathfinder", as noted above.

 

[CarmelHP]

You going to put on a demonstration similar to the one the president of 2nd Chance Body Armor put on? I tell ya, that guy has got some serious faith in his company's product.

Former president. He sold the company after a scandal involving Zylon based vests.

 

[garagegunmaker]

May I ask what a Zylon based vest is.

 

[shooter521]

May I ask what a Zylon based vest is.

A death trap.

From Wikipedia:

Zylon gained wide use in U.S. police officers body armor protection in 1998 with its introduction by Second Chance Body Armor, Inc. But protective vests constructed with Zylon became controversial in late 2003 when Oceanside, CA Police Officer Tony Zeppetella's and Forest Hills, PA Police Officer Ed Limbacher's vests failed, leaving Zeppetella mortally wounded and Limbacher seriously injured. Some studies subsequently reported that the Zylon vests may degrade rapidly, leaving wearers with significantly less protection than expected.

Second Chance eventually recalled all of its zylon-containing vests, which led to its subsequent bankruptcy. In early 2005, Armor Holdings, Inc. first recalled its existing Zylon-based products, and decreased the rated lifespan warranty of new vests from 60 months to 30 months. In August 2005, AHI decided to discontinue manufacturing all of its Zylon-containing vests. This was largely based on the actions of the U.S. government's National Institute of Justice, which decertified Zylon for use in its approved models of ballistic vests for law enforcement.

The DoJ report:
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bvpbasi/docs/SupplementII_08_12_05.pdf?popupWindow=Y

 

[patience0830]

huh

something that I don't want to test and do want to trust my life or the life of a family member to, hmmmm. I believe I'll buy a new one from a reputable manufacturer and store in an air tight sanitary package. you guys pinch pennies where you want. I'll buy military used brass when I can find it. I'm pretty sure that will work the second and third time. vests, not so much.

 

[dwp9mm]

I would like to have a level III. Who makes a good one for a reasonable price?

 

[shooter521]

I would like to have a level III. Who makes a good one for a reasonable price?

Level III protection is only afforded by a hard ballistic plate. Is that what you mean? Level IIIA is the highest protection level offered by soft armor that I'm aware of.

 

[VUPDblue]

Check out EASI armor on Ebay. They custom make any shape or size and they have been getting some realy good reviews. Their pricing looks good as well.

 

[shooter521]

Check out EASI armor on Ebay. They custom make any shape or size and they have been getting some realy good reviews. Their pricing looks good as well.

Couldn't find anything under that name. Link?

 

[VUPDblue]

eBay My World - easiarmor

 

[ihateiraq]

why need some??? plates too ????? plate carriers???? Armor carriers??? side plates, front plates, rear plates, paper plates, china plates, All new plates. im might know a guy

got any lines on IOTVs w/ all 4 plates? i could also use some new dinnerware.



if youre buying plates, you might want esapi plates, not sapi. all the sapi plates have been pulled from theater for some reason.

 

[RearFlankDowndraft]

Neutrons, probably pretty good, especially if there's any lead content in the vest. Neutrinos on the other hand, will go right through it.

Lead won't do squat for blocking neutrons. You want boron or cadmium for neutron absorption. Layer with lead for x-ray/low energy gamma shielding.

Neutrinos, you're on your own since the entire planet doesn't do much to stop them.

 

[dwagner3701]

I know a guy that has level 4 plates for sale. He has tested them to show that they are good. They will stop a 30-06 armor piercing from 25 ft. He gets $400 for 2 plates, you can pick up a vest for $30

 

[E5RANGER375]

got any lines on IOTVs w/ all 4 plates? i could also use some new dinnerware.



if youre buying plates, you might want esapi plates, not sapi. all the sapi plates have been pulled from theater for some reason.

nope sorry i dont know where to get anything anymore. esapi's are old news now.