Are you looking to protect yourself using body armor?
There’s no reason for you to not get yourself some protection. There’s no telling when someone will pull a knife or a gun on you while you’re outside. Despite the slight decline of violent crime, it’s still better to be safe than sorry.
If you want to know what you should use to protect yourself, we can help you make a decision. We’ll help you pick out the best body armor to use.
Read on to know what your best choices are and why they’re the best choices available today!
Types of Body Armor
There are two types of body armor for you to know about. These are the soft and hard armors that you can find in the market today. They have different qualities that can be beneficial to you or detrimental depending on your situation.
Soft Body Armor
Soft armor is the more popular choice in the market nowadays. They’re often used by the police force to protect themselves against the threats they face in their line of duty. Kevlar is among the most used materials for these armors, along with small amounts of steel and polyethylene.
The main benefit of this armor is that it provides you with flexibility. You won’t have any problem maneuvering through tight spaces and you’ll be able to move your body as you would without armor. This also makes it perfect for you if you’re planning on being covert about wearing armor.
Their popularity and flexibility make them popular accessories for other items, as well. You can often find small kevlar inserts that go into bags and other pieces of clothing.
Their main function is to protect the wearer through energy dispersion. They spread the impact across the body to prevent it from penetrating the armor.
Hard Body Armor Plates
While soft armor provides comfort, hard armor provides more protection to the user. These armors are often a single slab of material made from either steel or ceramic composite. There are even hard armors made from ultra-high-density polyethylene.
Unlike soft armors, these armors don’t aim to disperse the energy throughout themselves. Instead, they rely on their durability to prevent the threat from going through. It’s a great way to prevent the wearer from feeling the pain from the impact of the blow.
Their durability comes at a price, though, which is mobility. These armors don’t offer as much freedom of movement as soft armor does. This is because they’re often a single plate of hard armor that you need to insert in a special pouch in your vest.
This leaves you more vulnerable in other parts of your body, though. You can compensate for this by getting some accessories to cover your other body parts. You can find such accessories online at reputable websites like Legionary.com.
Because of their bulk, hard armor is also impossible to hide. This makes them a more overt choice for armor.
Which Body Armor to Use?
Now that you know the basic types of body armor, it’s time to find out which one you should use. This involves knowing what you will go against. Below are the common threats you’ll face and the appropriate armor to use against them.
Ballistic Protection
Getting protection against ballistic weaponry makes sense since 30% of adults currently own a gun. Another 36% of adults are even thinking about getting one along the line. Getting some armor is the best defense against the threat they represent.
In most cases, soft armor is enough to prevent bullets from penetrating your body. The armor catches the bullet and disperses the energy throughout itself. You’ll still feel some pain, but you’ll be safe from bullet poisoning, at least.
However, part of why this is effective is because the bullet travels first before reaching you. It’ll have lost most of its momentum to wind resistance before you catch it. This means that getting shot in point-blank range will be a different story.
Hard armor is the best point blank body armor for you. This will absorb the bullet without any issue. Hard armors with higher protection levels will even stop high-caliber bullets like that of high-powered rifles.
Blade Protection
If you’re looking for protection against bladed weapons like knives and even broken bottles, it may be best to go with layers of soft armor. A common trend is to wear chainmail with soft armor like kevlar underneath. This provides you with enough protection to absorb the impact and keep you safe from lacerations.
Hard armor is a good choice, but can often be detrimental to you. Bladed weapons mean close combat, where they can strike your exposed areas. Due to the mobility issues with hard armor, you can see how this can be a problem.
Spike Protection
Most people confuse blade protection with spike protection. Blade protection deals with edged weapons that can slash and stab. Spike protection deals with weapons used primarily for stabbing.
Screwdrivers and makeshift spears are among these weapons. Your best bet against them is hard armor.
Their durability can be a boon to you as it can destroy the weapon as it hits you. It can also disarm the attacker depending on how hard they hit you.
Soft armor may not be enough to absorb a close-range attack that’s concentrated at one spot. You’re likely to sustain damage as spikes will easily tear through your soft armor.
There are also instances where they can pierce hard armor when struck at the right spot. A good way to prevent this from happening is by wearing soft armor underneath your hard armor. The hard armor will be enough to slow down the hit that the soft armor should catch the weapon out.
Protect Yourself With Body Armor
No matter what threat you face, body armor is the best way you can protect and defend yourself when necessary. Know what you’re up against and protect yourself today!
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