A Bullet Proof Vest Could Stop An Arrow Couldn't It ?

[Themoocher 231]

 

 

Two completely different projectiles. A broadhead has far more penetration power per ft/lb than a bullet. They kill by two different methods.

If i had to guess I would say that a broadhead clad arrow would zip through one side of a vest, through the person wearing it, and out of the other side....

 

not a chance , body armour or bulletproof vests have a front plate and a back plate ,no way it would go through the 2 plates and the body ,,,,id very much doubt it would go through a half tidy sets front plate to be honest ,but i will find out

http://youtu.be/1nLRymWv-CA

That video ain't the same type Kevlar as british forces plates.

Forces plates are about 2 or 3 inch thick

[ChrisJones 7,973]

Kevlar is issued to protect against pistol rounds. It's f***ing useless against rifle rounds without adding the ceramic/steel plates. Body armour is rated to threat level and costs accordingly.

 

Steel plates will stop knives and arrows but not sure with ceramic.

[Themoocher 231]

Those plates issued in army are strong plates.

Stop a 556 and 762 sure stop 50 aswell but don't quote me on it.

Don't think arrow would penetrate it

[ChrisJones 7,973]

Those plates issued in army are strong plates.

Stop a 556 and 762 sure stop 50 aswell but don't quote me on it.

Don't think arrow would penetrate it

 

Mil spec plates will stop certain bullets under optimal conditions. Never tried an arrow/knife on the ceramic plates though. I'd be interested to see as they tear up soft armour.

[Themoocher 231]

Maybe I'm wrong.

I just couldn't see a knife penetrating those plates you wear in afghan.

There solid bout 2 inch thick and weigh bout 35 lb.

[neems 2,406]

Those plates issued in army are strong plates.

Stop a 556 and 762 sure stop 50 aswell but don't quote me on it.

Don't think arrow would penetrate it

There's a vid on youtube where he uses the most powerful crossbow in the world and just about goes in 1 inch into a cinder block.

 

no way it's going through even ecba plates imo.

[Born Hunter 17,622]

So in answer, it depends entirly on what BP vest you're wearing... Simple Kevlar police issue stuff you may well end up skewered. But if you rock up into battle against Robin Hood wearing a Challenger II battle tank you're safe as houses.

[Themoocher 231]

 

Those plates issued in army are strong plates.

Stop a 556 and 762 sure stop 50 aswell but don't quote me on it.

Don't think arrow would penetrate it

There's a vid on youtube where he uses the most powerful crossbow in the world and just about goes in 1 inch into a cinder block.

no way it's going through even ecba plates imo.

Yeah the ecba plates are solid aswell.

The osprey plates are bout 3 times as thick as ecba plates.

 

I might be wrong but I just couldn't see an arrow going through them

[Themoocher 231]

So in answer, it depends entirly on what BP vest you're wearing... Simple Kevlar police issue stuff you may well end up skewered. But if you rock up into battle against Robin Hood wearing a Challenger II battle tank you're safe as houses.

British military issued body armour is osprey.

It has small thin Kevlar protection all over it 1/4 inch thick.

The same as in that video.

 

Then you insert the plates in when on ops or live firing ranges.

[ChrisJones 7,973]

Maybe I'm wrong.

I just couldn't see a knife penetrating those plates you wear in afghan.

There solid bout 2 inch thick and weigh bout 35 lb.

 

Probably not. I must admit I can't envision a situation where it would penetrate the higher spec plates. They moved from steel to ceramic because of weight, fragmentation, and richocet but like BH says you're applying a higher degree of tank armour!

 

The soft stuff on the other hand is a liability in pointy situations. It hits 120ºF+ out here and a lot of the lads won't wear it because heat stroke is almost guaranteed. I'll see if I can dig out some of the photos from what we tested. It's pretty alarming when you first realise that blades go right through it with little fuss. But you can shoot it with LE defence rounds and it doesn't even split until you hit it with around a dozen shots. Gives you food for thought, for sure. Body armour is an insurance policy but like most policies it's good to see when it will/won't pay out! I'll wear it because the survival rate from a shooting is over % with even the softest of armour.

 

The saying goes your best gear is made by the cheapest bidder. Granted you're not likely to come up against mounted cavalry but it's interesting that we've advanced the protection against the newer threats but find that it's next to useless against the old weaponry. It kinda makes you think how useful a bayonet still is.

[RemyBolt 420]

Kevlar is not stab proof. It is slash proof. How do you think it's cut? You can cut Kevlar with a pair of scissors. You cannot SLASH the material, but you can cut it.

 

As for how armour can stop 5.56 and 7.62, even stopping 50cal's....it all depends on what kind and where you're hit.

 

Level I or Level II will stop 9mm pistol rounds and .22lr's.

 

Going up to Level III you'd be hoping to stop 5.56's.

 

Transition to Level IV and you'd expect it to stop a 7.26.

 

If you're looking at stopping a 50cal....wait, aren't they designed to take out light armoured vehicles? So you're going to expect an impact that would probably kill you by crushing your ribs and smashing you back a few meters, all at the same time. Armour against that kind of impact is useless!

 

Okay, now the question about arrows...they work through the sharp 'part/separate the material' penetration technique, while bullets work through 'enough pressure over a certain area to penetrate' style of impact. With a bullet, the idea is to disperse the energy over a larger area. So the plates are designed to have a density, from a material with a 'flexible' molecular structure, that will absorb the energy over the specific area of impact.

 

So a steel plate will use the density to slow the energy and because it's molecular structure is stronger that a lead bullet, it will stop the bullet penetrating. However, if a higher energy with the same size round is used...problem. The relative flexibility of the plate will not be able to withstand the impact. It's like hitting a thin sheet of lead with a baseball bat. The force over the area will stop the bat moving forward, the sheet of lead will buckle but it won't break through. Using a higher speed on the bat would simply rip through the same thickness of lead. So you have to increase the thickness to absorb more energy. Think, dropping a ball in sand. You need the depth of sand to stop the energy of the ball. A little sand will stop a low energy ball. The more sand, the more energy it absorbs.

 

A Ceramic plate will absorb the impact through high density or by dispersing the initial contact over a larger area, thus dispersing the pressure. Back to the ball and sand example, imagine the sand covered with a blanket or sheet of paper. That's pretty much the concept with the ceramic plate.

 

Now, the fun...arrows.

 

Because an arrow is not an impact tool, it is actually a cutting implement, you're looking at a different modus operandi. The bladed weapon will cut through the physical structure of the other plates. So providing they can provide a higher cutting force than the molecular structure's ability to stay together, then you have a particle separation...namely a cut. It just so happens that the cutting system is propelled forward and with masses of momentum/energy.

 

This will explain why bladed attacks are better able to penetrate bullet proof materials. One works on a massive impact, the other works on the ability to cut. A dull arrow head will be like a super heavy, low velocity bullet. Think high speed baseball bat, still able to punch through the weaker materials.

 

Out of curiosity, why would you be using a bullet proof vest against bows and arrows? Have you pissed off some native American tribe or something, and they're departing from Gatwick as we speak?

[RemyBolt 420]

Totally forgot to mention the places of impact issue. Certain types of plate rely on having other 'material' of the plate around it to absorb the energy of the impact. If a round catches in the corner of certain types of plate, there may not be enough material there, and the bullet will get through. This is one of the reasons why so much emphasis is made of wearing shock abosrber pads and the alike, behind your plates, to help disperse the energy over a larger area...but also to assist the 'extra material' factor that I just described.