All body armor is not made equal, as we have already addressed in great detail. You get what you pay for in a market-based global economy, like most things. The place to fret over a few dollars worth of the price difference is not when you're entrusting a piece of equipment with your life. You want the body armor that is, without a doubt, the greatest and most comfortable one available.
NOTHING IS TOTALLY IMPERVIOUS
In reality, body armor is not bulletproof. Many people outside of law enforcement and the military are surprised by it. Various sorts of ballistic projectiles, from low-velocity pistol rounds all the way up the ballistic scale to high-velocity, armor-piercing rifle rounds, can be stopped by body armor. Body armor users must choose the hazards they are most likely to encounter and customize their gear for that threat scenario. There might be specialized bullets or peculiar circumstances that allow a projectile to penetrate the ballistic panels even if you're wearing a bulletproof vest.
Body armor performance is evaluated in accordance with criteria established by the National Institute of Justice, or NIJ for short. These are referred to by the numerals II, IIIA, III, and IV. IIA once existed, but the NIJ disregarded that standard.
TESTING VS. CERTIFICATION
Meeting NIJ criteria differs from receiving official NIJ certification. The NIJ standards are self-certified by body armor manufacturers. One might wish that they had contracted with an impartial lab to carry out those tests.
Damien Black, CMO of Spartan Armor Systems, asserts that "in general, anyone can say that body armor meets NIJ standards without any formal verification."
NIJ Certification is the following step up. Manufacturers that want to obtain that must submit their products to NIJ-certified laboratories for stress testing prior to ballistic testing. Products with an "NIJ Listed Model" designation have undergone that rigorous testing methodology. To keep that listing current, products displaying the mark must still go through routine retests.
According to Black, Spartan Armor Systems offers eight different NIJ-certified body armor models. "We still use an independent NIJ-certified laboratory to test every body armor product before it ever goes on the market for our body armor that is not NIJ certified."
THE BRANDS YOU KNOW
It's crucial to know and trust your source for body armor because anyone can claim to meet NIJ standards. Sometimes deceptive marketing terminology can hide the fact that you're purchasing aftermarket body armor that hasn't been thoroughly tested.
STRANGE EXCEPTIONS
Body armor is not designed to stop all types of popular weapons. Shotgun pellets are a prevalent threat that is not rated. Due to the pellets' tendency to hammer or deflect one another when they collide, any group of shotgun pellets can exhibit significant variations in both velocity and material penetration. The majority of ballistic vests are not rated to stop shotgun pellets because of their potentially complex physics.
AVOID TAKING RISKS
The safest course of action is to stick with NIJ-listed products, and many institutional clients are obligated to do so. But be careful that makers of body armor might not certify each item they sell.
Body armor is a product that may be used to defend you from the most dangerous situations and threats that they were intended to withstand. It's important to spend some time getting to know your supplier and learning about the standards the armor must follow.