Interested in buying my first chest rig or a plate carrier. Does anyone know if G-Code is worth a damn, it seems really cheap compared to even some milsurp options. Should I spring for something nicer? What are some good options?
Chest rig or plate carrier?
Are you going for long-term sustainment or are you door-kicking?
Good question, I reckon long-term sustainability. Like I said this would be my first gear purchase so I am interested in practicing mag draws and movement with it (larping).
Then don't bother with a plate carrier it's just dead weight, get yourself an H-harness and a ranger roll
H-harness? How old are you?
Eagle made plenty of modern MOLLE ones
For long term sustain you want a belt rig. Chest rigs are for people who spend most of their time sitting down.
This dude knows. An LBE can be worn with armor if you ever need it. Scalability is dank.
I kinda disagree. Getting a belt full of shit to play nice with a ruck is a pain in the ass.
For mobility: Split front chest rig > belt kit > conventional chest rig > plate carrier.
Based, belt rig is king, there's a reason why police and military always wear this in their daily rutine.
After this you should consider more a chest rig + soft armor for concealment over a PC, these ones are focused for people that know they are going into a conflict area like Ukraine.
Chest rig can be easily removed and concealed, and soft armor is concealed pretty much by default if you put some clothes on it, its simply better for civilian use during a SHTF moment, because the last thing you want is having something like a military group or gang to recognize your ass as an enemy or thing you're OPFOR.
If you still want a PC, get a decent one with good plates ONLY if your main objective will be home defense for a long period of time were lootings are taking place.
Soft armor is useless, you are still getting broken ribs at a bare minimum and outright penetrated if someone shoots you with a rifle. Its plates or nothing. They make low profile options as well so there is no excuse there
>but hur dur i would rather broken ribs than having a pistol round go through
This mindset doesnt work when you are talking in terms of “opfor” and “shtf”. Injuries like that can kill you without care and guess what, care is not coming, you are not going to your local hospital.
Get what works. Plate carrier setup with rigidity so that it has weight distribution capability, such as a Crye SPC with an Eagle Ergo harness. Spend extra on lightweight plates. And yes, a battle belt is absolutely something you want as well since your hips is where you want to keep your weight.
Disagree with the low profile carrier. Not very concealable. Broken rib is a lot better than chest shot. In either case, I’d rather wear the plates. I think there’s a lot of merit to soft body armor though. Moderately concealable. My issue with armor is that you need a heads up that something might happen. This is usually fine with the exception of events such as a break in, etc. you will be hard pressed for time and I personally don’t think “the few seconds” it takes to don the armor is worth it especially when your average criminal doesn’t wear armor
The way I keep my PC is having it where I can get out of bed and flop it over my head in about 10 seconds total and have my rifle in arms reach. Not going to strap up the cummerbunds and all that but at least the plate is front and centered. If someone is breaking into my house knowing full well that people are inside, I can only assume the worst of intentions.
10 seconds is too long for my liking. I’d rather spend that time clearing the house. Statistically, the other party won’t be wearing armor. Sometimes they won’t even have a firearm. I guess we could agree on how having scalable gear is the best option here.
That's why you want to have alarms, window films and door jammers. They won't stop an attacker but they will slow him down.
I wouldnt agree with that at all, no. In all honesty nobody would be able to break into my house without first walking on my noisy porch or deck, opening my creaky ass screen door, or busting a window that has a window screen in front of it that will need to be cut through or pried off first. Not to mention my dog aka mobile alarm system, who will do nothing to stop an intruder bless her loving little heart, but goes absolutely apeshit berserk with her barking at even the slightest noise outside. Someone would have to decide to break in, knowing people are home, knowing they are making noise, knowing there is a dog inside flipping the fuck out, and still commit to breaking inside - anybody that committed is considered extremely dangerous and will be treated as such. Thats the difference between potential burglars who flee at the first sign of trouble, and home invaders who are willing to resort to violence. Im taking 10 seconds to put my plates on unless i can actively hear them progressing through the house and attempting to rush the bedrooms because im assuming I am about to be shot at.
Get a belt or a satchel with waist strap (modify bandolier if poor). If you actually move a lot in your gear, those two options are way better for heat management. If you insist on playing soldier boy dress up, get a chestrig.
>long term sustainment
Has nothing to do with plate carrier or chest rig. A chest rig or LBE is only good for movement over jungle or mountain terrain. Chest rigs can also be worn under a jacket or something if need be.
moronino if you're doing "blend into the population" type insurgency shit. You're going out there only with shit you are willing to leave behind every time. Fuck plates and gucci rifles. You're going out with WASR's PSA's, Hi-Points and mags shoved into your jeans.
I just like to be able to put on a jacket on chilly range days tbqh
A Type 81 chest rig is still a chest rig.
You are actually far too real for this one, hope our names touch on the watch list bro, though the high point take may be a tad exaggerated in certain situations, you remind me of Fry The Brain ( a book on urban gurilia sniping and also general urban gurilla work, the audio book is free on YouTube, literally mandatory reading/ listening for PrepHoleomandos
t. Twink
Pay an extra 30 dollars and get a JPC or 60 dollars for a JPC 2. Thats what the Gcode is knocking off after all, and when the difference in cost is so minor why would you go with unknowns?
You people are fucking retarded and your retardation is driving inflation in the gun/gear market. That being said the plate carrier/battle belt combo is the way to go for most people. Carry your ammo between your hips and your chest, don't put too much weight on the plate carrier especially not on the front where you'll want to be able to go prone. Chest rigs are retarded for that very reason, crush all your shit trying to go prone and can't even get that low. Most you should have on the front of you is 3 mags as flat against the carrier as possible. I leave my front slick and carry the mags on the cummerbund. They're harder to reach though so be advised of that. Hips is the place to carry them ideally. Even a drop leg for a couple spare mags, they're highly underrated for comfy ammo carrying.
Doesn't a dropleg suck for running?
For a gun definitely, they're heavy and wider so will flop around which makes me uncomfortable since I'm terrified of glockleg. For mags not so much, 1-2 mags aren't that heavy and sit flat so they don't swing as much. There are drop leg platforms that have rubber on the back that look like they'd help slightly with the slipping, otherwise just put rubber tape on the back in some spots. But you definitely want to keep anything mounted to a drop leg light and low profile to not swing as much. Handguns belong on the belt imo.
Yes, in all applications, drop leg subloads are bad. Floppy as shit.
NTA but
>Chest rigs are retarded for that very reason, crush all your shit trying to go prone and can't even get that low.
Usually the only reason to get that low is for indirect fire. If you're bracketed you're pretty much fucked regardless. If you're face down flat for more than a few seconds in a gunfight without a plan, you can't see shit - which is bad because you should be returning fire and moving to the nearest cover.
Both plate carriers and chest rigs have their merits, and neither are retarded. Following that digression, OP is talking about a first purchase and getting into gear. A good carrier and good plates can easily reach towards the $1,000 range, and that's not even including pouches, let alone a belt setup. A good chest rig can cover the basics for $200. Like you said, inflation is a bitch.
>don't go prone
I've been taught otherwise but ok. Just get a Chinese carrier for $60 and pouches. Don't load it up with plates until you have the money for it. There's no denying the practicality of body armor. If you ever want to use it a PC is the way to go. Even just a battle belt should be able to carry most of the ammo you'll need and some gear pouches. I am biased because I like to keep my front completely slick to get low when prone. I don't even use a kangaroo pouch, everything is on the sides, belt, or drop legs.
Where did he say not to go prone, dummy? Read his post again. I think you're overstating the obstruction posed by a single row of mags and maybe an admin pouch on the front of your carrier... Which is even less of a problem when you subtract the bulk of armor. But let's be real, you don't run armor in your carrier because you play airsoft.
I bought my JPC in 2016 for 210 dollars. In the last 7 years, its gone up 20 dollars. If that degree of inflation is making you panic, maybe you're legitimately too poor to be worrying about gear and should be focusing on stockpiling catfood so you can survive the winter.
>plate carrier
>drop leg
Tell me you don’t actually wear or use any of this gear without telling me
If you wanna actually wear it, get a chest rig.
The two aren’t mutually exclusive and you should get both, eventually, but you’ll use a chest rig 10,000x more,
Fair point, hadn't considered that. Any recommendations?
Haley Strategic makes some really good ones. The D3CRX is great, but is around $200
https://haleystrategic.com/d3crx
They’re kinda all the same honestly.
I use a Velocity systems Mayfloeer UW gen IV or something (idk).
It uses bungee pull tabs for retention and I don’t like that.
I’d say get something that uses kydex.
Trex is launching an another chest rig soon so maybe see what’s all about.
As far as plate carriers get something that doesn’t use a Velcro cummerbund.
Either get something slick like the Ferro or get something heavy duty like the sage concepts.
Again, they kinda all do the same thing just don’t get Agilite.
Shaw concepts*
100% this. Get armor first if your plan is actually getting into a gunfight. If not, a decent chest rig is probably the better way to go for a first purchase. A lot of smaller chest rigs integrate with modern carriers via buckles and velcro too, so you won't have to redo your kit when get the carrier. I think this is probably the best use case for some of the micro chest rigs on the market today.
>Like I said this would be my first gear purchase
It won't your last. What tends to happen is you end up with a pile of nylon before you figure out what exactly you need.
>a pile of nylon before you figure out what you need.
Can confirm.
plate carrier is a chest rig. even a foam plate will give you some rigidity to help pull shit out easier
And youre gonna sweat your ass off needlessly with something you’re not even taking proper advantage of.
ice plate
It's a life jacket
But you are not even close to water.
rate my absolute dogshit chestrig setup
its okay.
its not ok the velcro on the surplus mag pouches doesn't work
soul/10
Honestly I like it. Never wore one before so I’m no expert, but I’m a fan of simplicity.
you'll be ghost outmaneuvering tactical turtles
>low drag smooth brain
I like it
Varusteleka enthusiast/10
its true
Certified kino. Just needs coms.
Concealable/slick vest/carrier and a chest rig. Most new chest rigs are designed to interface with slick vests/carriers using velcro. Some slick vests/carriers even have sewn-in mag pouches, which can complement a micro-rig.
Plate carriers are bad at carrying your shit. A sturdy carrier like by Eagle is a solid platform without plates, but without them it's just a heat trap that restricts chest wall movement (breathing). The purpose of the plate carrier is to carry plates... If you're not getting plates or not going to wear it often, don't bother with it. Chest rigs are good because you can carry your shit while having a lot of ability to vent heat since it doesn't usually cover much or any of your back. They're far more comfortable. If you get a chest rig wiry buckles and a velcro backing, you can wear it as a placard on a plate carrier... Or just wear it over top.
So... Get a chest rig and if you plan it out properly, you can wear it over top of a plate carrier if you ever decide to get into it. I own a Scarab LT carrier for when I need to carry a bunch of shit and armor. I'm going to buy a slick carrier for wearing in conjunction with my chest rigs.
Better yet, start with a belt. Maybe a nice fat battle belt with suspenders. Belts are always relevant and can be worn with rigs or carriers, so it's never a bad buy. You get that set up and you can take the time to decide what you want next.
Huh, I always wondered why anyone would want a chest rig over an empty plate carrier on a value save money if you ever want plates later perspective.
Well, here's the thing with a plate carrier, especially newer ones, is that they like structure without plates. Like I was saying, my Eagle plate carrier is sturdy and doesn't require plates to maintain structure, my Scarab LT is much softer and a different story. Most plate carriers will droop and sag without plates, especially if you load the front down with crap. Older carriers like the Eagle will not, but they're really fucking uncomfortable compared to a dedicated chest rig for the listed reasons. I went through the empty carrier phase with my Eagle and when I got my Helikon-Tex micro rig it was like night and day in terms of comfort. Didn't feel restricted, wasn't overheating, had plenty of space for mags and it doesn't interference with me going prone one bit. Yes, you can theoretically get a plate carrier and run it empty, but you're quite limited on what you can get since many modern full featured carriers forego rigidity for comfort... And slick carriers without plates are right out, they absolutely need plates. I'm not even sure what current meta carriers can be run empty, but my experience finger blasting them at the Tactical Merchant pretty much rules out just about everything from VelSyst/Mayflower to 5.11 (it's shit for other reasons) to Ferror and more niche brands.
Tl;dr Plate carriers are for plates, don't run them empty because it's a trash experience. Buy a chest rig that can be run as a placard on a carrier for ease of use if you ever decided to get into armor and you'll probably save a few bucks.
Even airshitters know not to run PCs empty, and it's not for bb protection since an empty PC blocks bbs just fine. They put foam plates in them so they retain their form and hold the weight better. Some even put plate shaped hydration bladders. You can buy a foam plate pre made or just cut foam to make it the shape of a plate. I wouldn't use styrofoam, you want the rubbery type foam. That'll give you sturdiness until you get plates. Even a soft armor panel would be good if cheap enough.
Get a chest rig, or lbv. Then get a minimalist plate carrier later on to wear under that chest rig. That's what I plan to do. An flc will work just fine
I prefer chest rigs, but I also weigh about 120 pounds. Heavy plate carriers just tire me out after a few miles of hiking.
belt first
plate carrier second (JPC 2.0)
chest rig never (unless LARPer)
>belt first
Yeah man, that's the ticket.
>plate carrier second (JPC 2.0)
Wait, what the fuck?
>chest rig never (unless LARPer)
This is ass backwards. If you're doing range matches or courses, you're way better served with a chest rig and a belt. You got your ass before your dick here with this shit. Plate carriers are for larping and cross fit. Chest rigs are for actually shooting your fucking guns.
>another LARPer dying on Chest Rig Hill
sad, but to be expected.
If anything is a larp in this situation, its body armor. If you shoot in any capacity, a method of ammo load carriage is crucial; whereas ballistic protection is only useful in a small margin of situations. Youre welcome to disagree with that, youd be wrong to but thats your right.
educate yourself futher on the subject and i may reconsider ignoring your argument
>I own a couple plate carriers and plates but you're the one larping for not consoooming the chest rig and claiming it's superior
ok man this isn't reddit though
In order to have an effective set up for a plate carrier you need:
>The carrier.
>At least two plates.
>An assortment of pouches.
Meanwhile, when you buy pre-set chest rig, you're done. You got everything you need. Who's consuming more? What is more cost effective with the least amount of creep? Hell, even wearing a chest rig over a plate carrier ends up being cheaper because if you're buying halfway decent pouches, they'll end up costing more in most cases than a decent chest rig. You're a fucking retard, dude.
When I was a govfag in 2006 we wore soft armor in low pro carrier, plates in an outer carrier, and an Eagle or Blackhawk Rhodesian chest rig.
Checked and correct.
As this dude said, you can engage and win a gunfight without armor, but you cannot do so without ammo.
Here's a realistic use case for armor:
>OP lives innacity or near one
>mostly peaceful protests nearby
>pallets of bricks appear in OP's neighborhood
If you're on the defensive and mostly static or maybe doing short patrols around a few blocks for a couple hours, a plate carrier with a mag placard and some medical is a good idea. Shove a nalgene and some jerky into your cargo pockets and you're good to go.
For literally anything else from casual shooting to Red Dawn, a chest rig makes a lot more sense.
You described literally the last scenario I want to run anything high profile lmao.
>See that moron wearing plates and shit? Bet he is a big fat lootbox. Plus he is white, let’s kill him.
>Sir, we have rounded up the morons and commies in the affected area and are beginning cleanup. There is someone running around with a plate carrier though, he is white but he looks like he means business. Okay, take him out first.
It's called a jacket/large button up.
Any steel armor that can stop ss109 is g2g, which is pretty much all of it that's above shit tier AR500/550. The concern with steel is that this cheap Chinese target steel shit wasn't stopping ss109. Everything else does, so tell me how plates that stop .308 are a liability.
Steel armor which can stop .308 and ss109 will not stop M193.
Plenty if not most actual steel plates will stop M193. AR500 are not actual armor steel plates. They are shit and they made it seem like all steel armor was shit which is false.
Waving M193 like its some miracle round to beat is a real steelfag cope. Actual plates stop actual AP. You cant get a steel 7.62x39 BZ-api plate, to say nothing of 30-06 AP or m993. Doesnt matter if its Armox 600 or what have you.
It's absolutely true that steel plates are bullshit.. There's MUCH more to plates and soft armor than stopping penetration. The steel plate industry preys upon the vast majority of people who don't understand impact ballistics and physics. I don't want to type an entire basic physics and medical book here so I'll give you the Body Armor For Dumbshits version: The human body is a water balloon made up of smaller water balloons called organs. If the water balloons pop, you're having a bad fucking day. Impact and shockwaves pop water balloons. Penetration by bullets isn't the only serious damage they do. It's that disruptive shockwave that does all the damages that give surgeons hell trying to keep you alive. Steel plates really fail in spall, ricochets and energy wave transfers into the wearer. Even worse, steel plates make you VERY visible to millimeter wave radar and other such targeting systems. Being seen in such a way is being fucked. The premise of the thread is a greenhorn trying to figure out what works with his not unlimited pockets while he's figuring out how to fight for his life sans government sponsorship. That would require I meet him, figure out his fighting abilities and proclivities. That's right. A person must gear to how they fight. A full circle kind of thing even soldiers go through. Insurgents have to make that turn with less resources and according to their specific operational realities. Hence why many advantages go to the INSURGENTS. Government training and doctrine yields government results. So argue amongst yourselves. It's good to flesh out ideas. But keep this as your guiding compass on this journey: If you kill the other guy first trying to kill you, all other arguments and debates are resolved. Figure out how to kill without getting yourself killed and everything else is window dressing in life.
Steel is a terrible idea. It's too heavy and spalling happens, rhinoliner or not.
Spall sleeve, rhino liner is a cheapass AR500 meme too. It's supposed to be used as rust prevention only, some poorfag retard got the idea to clump it on the front as a spall stopper (it does work for a few shots just not very well) but regular ass Cordura stops spall just fine, the sleeves are just several layers of it. Still ends up being less fat than a ceramic.
No, steel will stop bullets but like the other guy said, spalling will kill the shit out of you. Maybe the spall liner works, maybe it doesn't, but the risk is enough that it can fuck right off. Only way I'm using it is if we're deep into the post apocalypse and it's the only thing left. Please research steel plates and spalling. It's not a good thing.
>spalling will kill the shit out of you. Maybe the spall liner works, maybe it doesn't, but the risk is enough that it can fuck right off. Only way I'm using it is if we're deep into the post apocalypse and it's the only thing left. Please research steel plates and spalling. It's not a good thing.
Post a single bit of evidence that spalling carries enough energy to do more than barely break the skin.
>I'm afwaid of a widdle bit of spawwing
First of all you're citing spall liner which is shit, but testing shows that it works for a few rounds. By those few rounds, your ceramic plate is dust so it's a non argument. The steel wins here because at least it stays in tact and doesn't shatter into dust.
Second, spall sleeves absolutely work and keep working. There are videos showing they work beyond tens of rounds which is what they're made for. Videos show that the shitty redneck rhino liner solution works too but it's a known moron-rig solution and again it was only meant to be used as rust proofing, spall sleeve is the appropriate solution, weighs less, and creates less bulk. I only use one spall sleeve for my front plate. Fuck whoever is standing next to me in the off chance I get shot in the back.
Alright, wear your steel plates poorfag, I won't stop you.
Yeah, running an armor carrier with foam plates is the ideal. Absolutely based. Airsofters running plate carriers either learn it's a shit option or they don't actually play the game.
I've been advocating chest rigs and belts most of the time. Armor is for the .009% chance you'll actually get Red Dawn'd, other than that it's for crossfit and larping fun with the boys.
It's for the immanent war we're going to be forced to fight against our own goddamned tyrannical government, retard.
You're going to engage in guerilla warfare while wearing a plate carrier?
Yes. It's called a jacket or having friends. You don't show force unless you have force.
Is the tyrannical government in your walls right now, anon?
Imagine being this much of a disingenuous gay. They are “in our walls “ as this tyrannical government is literally monitoring ALL of our communications at all times.
Belt and Road Initiative connects mainland China to Russia. Lots of soldiers and equipment could be moved by rail. An invasion of the European continent by large numbers of Chinese soldiers is more feasible than it has ever been.
As we saw in Ukraine, a person could potentially face a very large conventional force in their country very quickly and be forced to fight it with what they have on hand... Many TDF reservists reported to their checkpoints with what they had at home, shotguns and hunting rifles. Some guys were able to get stuff out of the armory. Very few had their own body armor. I helped some local friends source good and economical kit to send to friends and families fighting in that conflict in the early days.
Anyone that lives on the Eurasian mega continent is more exposed than anyone living in the Americas, it's true, but the reality is still stark... Body armor is a good thing to have around for the .009% chance your country is invaded with little time to mobilize. Not all of us fantasize about fighting our government or being seditionists, some of us train to protect our neighbors in the event of extreme national emergencies.
It's not the Chinese you have to worry about, it's the Africans.
The ones that are going to starve to death if anything happens to the economic system... Like demographic decline or wars? Mediterranean pleasure cruises from Africa only happened when Russians sponsored it and Europeans allowed it. They can very easily stop happening if things get desperate enough and they will. Quit being a cuck and save civilization like a fucking man.
Let them come. Our current government is bad enough that I don't care if something else takes them over. I'd welcome it and see how they fare in ruling, perhaps strike a deal for sovereignty. If they end up being tyrannical well shit we're back to square one and have to fight them like we should be fighting ours now.
>There is someone running around with a plate carrier though, he is white but he looks like he means business. Okay, take him out first.
That's an interesting way to say you don't have friends or neighbors backing you up. There have been lots of situations in the past few years where LE has no presence or is ineffective/unwilling to act.
And you think you and your neighbors are going to throw on that Multicam pc to larp as the tough boys on the block? Juicy fantasy.
When shit went down in your hood you stay as low pro as you can. Even in active war zones mercenaries chose to blend in. If given the chance, military would do it too. Nobody likes to let everyone else know that they are a threat, except for larpers. The reason they larp is exactly because they hope everyone perceives them as strong, powerful, menacing beings. The total opposite of what you want your enemy to know in any given scenario a civilian could find himself in.
If one of our houses is next in line for a molotov or a loot mob, then yes, we are going to do something about it. It's not a larp at that point, it's home defense. I agree with you that staying low profile is the best option up until that point. I live in a very small and rural town which is pretty geographically isolated. Potential threats here would be imported - so yes, locals banded together would absolutely become the tough guys on the block (working with or without LE). If I lived in a dense city, or an active war zone as you said, your option would be much more viable and correct.
You are fucking heavy on the spectrum and have no idea how criminals think. Go outside and touch grass
>don’t criticize my fantasy
Listen larper, people went through all these scenarios before. No one in any country torn by civil unrest/war, a tyrannical government or occupation ever thought it’s a great idea to be the biggest larper on the block. It’s a fantasy to justify your purchase decisions. You are a consoomer. You buy stuff because it makes you happy and you fantasise about scenarios you will be able to use your gucci gear in. Never going to happen.
Whenever I see someone post his rig in M81, Multicam or any other camo, I just laugh at the thought they are going to seriously wear this ever. Especially Multicam, which is probably being used even by North Korea right now and is everything but an indicator for the good guys.
But keep larping hard brother. It’s a fun hobby.
Autistic word salad sprinkled with some retarded tangent.
>What is this guy doing in that camo and gear over there? Is he a retard?
Asking the question means knowing the answer.
>Real people are going to treat life-threatening events and situations like my favorite looter shooter.
Get laid bro
>What is this guy doing in that camo and gear over there? Is he a retard?
You posted a lot of gay and uneducated shit for someone who currently lived through the Syrian Civil War, the ISIS Invasion of Iraq and Land War in Europe. In all these cases, normal people had to equip themselves with the best shit they could get their hands on or have donated to them. Overt carriers are for the fringe possibility you're in a fucked up situation like that, fighting head choppers or some shit.
If you live in a place that has a reasonable probability of turning into a warzone that would warrant buying armor, you might want to move.
Oh yeah instead of buying a decent armor set up for less than 1k just uproot your whole life for tens of thousands lmao jfc
>buy plate carrier
>get Bucha’d anyways
Just move lmao
Almost everything you posted is non-sequitur except the consoomer bit, which is totally true. I buy gear because its fun and makes me feel cool. More gear = more cooler
Anyone anywhere can say this about anyone anywhere. If you the plate wearing guy is getting GOT well then your plate isn't your problem or solution - but rather the fact that you got - GOT.
You should probably not do what you are doing to get GOT.
Holy shit dude, what in your gay mind makes armor crucial for anything other than larp? I own a couple plate carriers, and plates. I even rationalize it as PPE for range larp, but unless you're wearing the things for work or you're engaged in active combat against fucking Nicaraguan paratroopers in your hometown, it's the last thing you need to worry about as a normal civilian sport shooter just getting into kit. You can do without. Belt first, yeah, good advice. But your shit is backwards.
>Nicaraguan paratroopers
I thought they were Cuban?
Armor is a completely optional non essential thing to have for any type of operation; reconnaissance, combat, civil, etc. It can be a really nice thing to have, it can also suck ass to have to have. It all depends on what you're doing. On top of that, the idea that a chest rig is somehow bad or for larpers just doesn't make any sense at all. It is a thing you can wear in order to carry ammo, maps + tools, and comms in a nice way while stuffing your cargo pants pockets with food.
Combat or no combat, if you are moving a lot and not just from the L/D to the objective a couple hundred meters away, but you're doing actual light infantry/guerrilla shit innawoods. Then armor becomes a massive fucking burden, something you don't have to deal with if you don't want to by just using a chest rig. One isn't better than the other, they just simply have pros and cons.
According to Wikipedia, we're both right. Calumet, CO was occupied by Soviet, Cuban and Nicaraguan troops.
why are his type 56 straps crossed in front of his neck
Tactical necessity
I’m just going to throw this out there. Undeniable fact that armor is effective and can absolutely save your life, however unless your job regularly necessitates you wearing one, you probably don’t need it/should spend that money on something to further your living situation (housing, food, education, you name it)
You're gonna spend $200+tax+"shipping" because they used different types of nylon and made it look weird? These things are just double layer nylon vests with some padding and molle webbing. Don't spend retarded amounts and maybe inflation wouldn't be so bad.
>Interested in buying my first chest rig or a plate carrier.
why?
Gotta carry mags somehow notraining. You won't always have the luxury of a range table floating in front of you.
have you not?
what are some decent mag pouches?
Dear poor fags. Please keep wearing chest rigs so me and my heavy armor bois can mog you and take your shit when shtf.
Heavies are always cocky until they get a sneaky 00 buck pellet in their scrotum. Can't level III your whole body. The pellets will find a way. The pellets ALWAYS find a way.
Easy, groin pad
The pelvic bowl exists
If you're just starting off id just get a microrig or a TAP, maybe even go with ALICE. Plate carriers suck and you probably won't want to use it.
I'd say - from all I've heard - is that if you can just get both. PC are for when you know you're absolutely going to get shot at. Chest rigs/LBE are for medium/long term sustained in field "missions"
All those badass operators from the GWOT who have PCs, Pano nvgs etc etc are going on an hour long raid. They don't need food, or water or anything. They're basically a SWAT hit squad that is showing up to kill or capture one or two people and then get heli'd out.
Is that what you're going to be doing? No. Not a chance. You're going to be larping through the woods. Get something with suspenders and a belt to evenly distribute the load so you don't fuck your back up. Same thing with pure chest rigs, all the weight on your chest, all that extra volume, means you can't easily go prone, either.
If you're thinking of a SHTF event in a suburb or city, a plate carrier might be appropriate but realistically most people are going to have handguns so some IIIA+ soft armor worn under your clothes would be best. No attention drawn and adequate protection against 90% of threats. You're not Ned Kelly, and no amount of armor is going to keep you safe from a mob of people.
Pic semi-related a PC and some LBE
Good luck, have fun and take care.
Soldiers in GWoT were scrounging to get armor, there was a big fiasco about them having to get their families to purchase and send it. They wanted armor even just on regular patrol because snipers were picking them off. Plates saved a lot of lives out there.
It's still your preference, plates are added weight and annoying to wear. You can move faster without armor, but you have to weigh the cost. I'll agree that soft armor serves civilian purposes way better than hard armor. I've also felt how heavy an AR500 carrier is and holy shit, that's not viable at all so it's sad that so many civvies opted to run that. AR1000 is the lowest grade of steel armor you should get. Ceramics are lighter but become useless after one shot. Again most opt for a PC because it's an easy way to carry their mags on top of providing armor. For me it was extra armor over my level 2, which btw is what to get over a thicker 3a. You need to research threat levels some more because 3a only protects against the extra threat of hot loaded .44mag, not very useful over level 2.
>Ceramics are lighter but become useless after one shot.
Why would you say something like this with literally hundreds of videos on youtube that contradict you?
>steel armor
>should get.
no
>Ceramics are lighter but become useless after one shot.
lol, no.
The only thing steel armor is good for is cardio conditioning. They're a liability otherwise. Ceramics and polyethylene can absorb more than one hit, but you chuck them out afterwards because their shit gets all fucked and you cannot necessarily rely on it in its... Altered configuration. Armor, weapons, ammunition and any kit is all expendable. The expectation is that you will replace things as they are damaged or destroyed. Guns not so much, but parts wear is a thing. You shoot the gun, expect to replace shit. Same goes with everything. Pants tear, plates get hit, barrels are shot out.
But there is one universal truth... Don't wear steel plates outside of a crossfit environment.
How about you buy both a plate carrier and a chest rig? You know they're different things right?
You know how ghillie suits are individually made for a reason? Get the cheapest plate carrier and fix it up. Then you'll understand the role of the tool. Buy a cheap ass Condor and figure out why it sucks then FIX IT. Then go shopping for what best resembled your fixes.
I'll tell you right now since this is literally my arc. Bought a Condor lcs sentry and didn't like it. Then bought a Valken and didn't like it. Both lacked inner padding, but I liked that because it made them lower profile. This is fine for quick use, but prolonged use it sucks. Ideally I want it to have removable inner padding, there's a lot of options that have velcro pads. Same with the shoulder straps and this was the biggest area of concern. Without shoulder padding, PCs suck to wear. This is an easy fix as there's a ton of shoulder pad options. I also didn't like the integrated kangaroo pouch on the Valken because it wasn't made right, hard to put mags back in. So i want something I can use my own mag pouches with. Cummerbund options are going to be up to personal preference, pick something you can swap the cummerbund on. Some don't give you that option, they have a fixed type or are solely designed for straps. I like the skeleton molle but if you're going to run side plates get something with side pouches for plates.
Speaking of side plates and drop legs, I only run mine mainly because I put side plates in the drop legs. I'm 2tacticool4u, unfortunately can't post pics because chudmods here ban for stupid reasons, it won't let me upload on this.
this is legitimately a good way to learn shit. its 'buy once cry once' until the really expensive top of the line thing you bought ends up not being what you really wanted because you had no idea what you really wanted because you never owned one before.
There's chest rigs out there that can add a plate with minimal added bulk.
Velocity Systems makes a rig that has an inside pouch for a plate and you can secure it with a plate sleeve.
It really depends on what you're doing, why you're doing it, where, when, and on the weather.
That said, if you don't have a friend with a gun, you're probably better served buying an extra rifle to give to a friend than you are spending money on armor, if we're comparing ROI.
Ther situations that justify donning armor are going to be so fucked up that you're entirely fucked if you're not in a group to begin with. If it's just to have armor, which is perfectly justified as a reason, for the love of all that's holy, get the comfiest possible.
I joined the Army and all I got was this lousy TAPS
Where my hard boys at?
Does LBT still have big contracts going? Or did the US military move on to another company?4xmth
how the fuck should I know? I'm not their
accountant.
I already have mine from them.
Premium bait, good sir.
If this is a serious question, the answer is chest rig. Get a basic bitch 3-4 cell rig(may be used, doesn’t matter) figure out for yourself what you actually need and work from there.
Check this out. Apparently they don't make the sleeve anymore but you can buy it third party elsewhere.
?t=933
This is basically a Eagle Industries Rhodesian Recon chest rig, which have a fold out plate holder. Looks like they can be had for about 100 bucks used or $150 new.
Pic related?, this looks like one.
chest rig and battle belt
plates are too heavy and suck balls after a couple days, but I also only weigh about 60kgs
my previous webbing setup
Plates are for when you know for certain you're getting into a gunfight and have the time to prepare. Defensive kit or short distance neighborhood patrol under conditions where violence is likely. Belt or chest rig for everything else. There is a place for plate carriers, but if a man is to get one thing to start with it is belt > chest rig > plate carrier in order of relevance. Because those things can all be used in conjunction with the other. Chest rig before plate carrier because it can be run as is in conjuction with a belt, or over a carrier. I've argued against plate carriers in this thread, but only as an exclusive means of carrying your shit. I think every man should have a way to carry armor and a ballistic helmet for Extreme National Emergencies(tm), in addition to belts and chest rigs. They're not mutually exclusive kit.
What harness and pack setup is that? I've been wanting to integrate a pack into my chest rig, but most of the solutions out there connect the pack's straps directly to the chest rig's swift clips rather than clips on the harness, in effect taking the place of the harness. Your setup is exactly what I've been looking for.
I bought the shoulder straps and small backpack from Varusteleka. The buckles are also aftermarket.
>https://www.varusteleka.com/en/product/sarma-tst-pc18-shoulder-pads/59502
The benefit of this setup is that the molle allows it to be attached and not shift around, and also, as you desire, allow non-permanent attachment of backpacks/hydration carriers.
The harness is Australian Army issue.
That's really cool. I've been thinking about doing something very similar by attaching QASM buckles to the laser cut MOLLE on my chest rig harness's shoulder straps using these adapters:
https://www.optactical.com/dorageqaveco.html
It should be easy to attach some webbing and male buckles onto the pack I've been wanting to integrate with my rig:
https://headontactical.com/v5-pack/
Look up screw on buckles
How do you attach the hydropack to the harness?
And what harness is this?
Plate carriers can still be fairly comfortable and distribute the load of your equipment well, but nine times out of ten a quality chest rig will be more comfortable and thud used more in training. It's good to have plates and to train with them, but the problem is people will get a heavy carrier and obscenely thick or improperly sized plates which results in you having no desire to train, but you can get things piecemeal over time. I think from personal experience if you intend to bring it out hiking or shooting on land/innawoods, get a rig first then buy a quality carrier piecemeal.
The hardest thing with gear is that besides some must-haves for sustainment, it's pretty subjective and "mission" or environment-driven. It's also very expensive and from experience it really sucked buying a Gen 1 LBT carrier and it ended up being the most uncomfortable thing ever and I was stuck with it for several years back when I was a poorfag enlisted doing part time college.
There's also different kinds of plates. This piece of shit has soft standalone IIIA plates in it which provide a bit of rigidity but are still pretty light. Won't stop a rifle bullet at engagement ranges but useful for shrapnel and handguns.
Forgot picture. Am drunk
Jesus the amount of bad info in this thread is honestly astonishing, I feel bad for OP this is the blind leading the blind
Anyone who could offer valid feedback stopped regularly posting here a ways back. PrepHole was always dubiously effective for getting information to a layman, now it's outright hostile and detrimental to do so. Too many poors, too many noshoots, too many posers, too many morons.
I think the problem here is the same anywhere else tactical gear is discussed: very few people stop to really think about what they want to do with the gear, and when they ask about gear, very few people who respond think to ask what they want to do with the gear. If someone doesn't really know what they intend to use a piece of gear for, they're probably not going to get particularly useful feedback from the community.
Then there's the fact that there are a lot of people from different backgrounds who think whatever they use is the best for everyone. Some guy will ask if something like a Spiritus Micro Fight rig is good for shooting on the flat range and get responses from military vets and prepper survivalist types screaming at him that if a rig can't hold 10 mags and doesn't have 20 pouches for sustainment equipment, then it's trash.
OP's post is a good example, really. He doesn't know if he wants a plate carrier or a chest rig, and didn't say what he would be using it for. How did he expect to get good feedback?
It’s medium quality bait, anon.
I’m a huge fan of the crye SPC the structural bund really takes a lot of weight off your shoulders
>there are anons ITT in the Year of Our Lord Two-Thousand and Twenty-Three actually justasgoodposting about fucking steel plates
There's absolutely no reason for this.