What would most of you consider as the maximum weight that you would want to wear per plate, or as a set, as far as comfort goes. I'm looking for my first set of hard armor for active shooter  or armed party with a rifle type calls. Or course it would go over my soft armor and uniform. Is the 7-8 lb per plate range the best I can do without spending close to a grand? And would you consider approx 15-20 lbs acceptable? Lastly, is level 4 the only thing I should consider, or would a level 3+ rated to stop the various 5.56 rounds be ok? Also, I work in an urban area and not in the country if that influences your recommendation.

Weight is going to be very dependent on personal preference. My SWAT rig is about 40lbs give or take and we still get around ok. The 8lbs is going to be pretty average across the board for 3A and higher but if you keep an eye out you will find some good deals coming around as there are about to be a lot of advances in plates. Some of the stuff we are testing is between 2-4lbs per plate! It's pricey though. Check out highcomsecurity.com (I'm not affiliated, about to purchase a hard trauma plate myself). They have some kits that were a lot cheaper than I was expecting. I am actually considering buying a plate carrier and some plates for my wife after seeing some of the options

Your choice of carriers is equally as important as the weight of your plates. Even light plates in a cheap carrier with poor padding and load distribution will be uncomfortable. I have armored mobility TAC3S plates in my personal SKD Pig carrier. It's not the lightest but it's comfortable and I trust them to almost any threat I'm likely to face. My SWAT rig is significantly more cumbersome and is all level 4.

High com also has 20% off for leos right now.

$254 shipped for 2 plates - lvl 4

Same here but to be honest I'd prefer a plate carrier with light plates over a thin soft armor then 40lbs of cumbersome/awkward rig. I neutered my heavy as much as possible to make it as light as possible. Personally I think its still inefficient but thats just me.


Weight is everything. Anything is better then nothing in a quick touch and go situation but if you have to wear something for an extended period of time, say 6+ hours. You will start thinking about how stupid you were for trying to scrimp a few hundred dollars to go with cheap stuff. I'm also a firm believer that hanging a bunch of unnecessary crap on a rig is stupid and inefficient.



My very first carrier was cheap. I bought some AR500 plates, a 6 mag pouch rig for the front, and a giant med pouch and stuck that sucker in my car. One day it was needed so I thought I was pretty clever and it was money well spent. 9hrs later I wanted to kick myself. Current carrier has 2 AR mags. 1 TK & a few packs of quik clot with SAPI plates. I have a couple of empty mag pouches in case I need to put on 2 more AR mags if its something heavy and I know I'm going to be putting a lot of rounds down range. But for grab an go a mag in the rifle and 2 spares are all I have now.  TBH I'd like to upgrade to lighter plates then the SAPI.

So what do y'all think in regards to level 4 vs a level 3+ for patrol type duties?

3+ will cover the most likely threats, and is lighter. My PC has 3+, and I have 4 in my turtle armor.
ETA: I went with 3+ to save weight.

This, to clarify I was just stating how heavy my SWAT rig is for reference. A lot of the 3+ stuff is rated for the same ballistics as the older 4 stuff that it's replacing and it's amazingly light. For patrol use its more than adequate and the weight savings are worth it

Im looking at AR500 plates/carrier for about $200. Anyone but their stuff??
Thanks

Officer Survival Solutions is doing l2 lvl4 rifle plates and a carrier + a few pouches for $450 shipped.  Just mentioning.

How did you get that discount?

Contact Highcom for the 20% LEO program.  They also have a deal for two LVL 4 Ceramics and a basic carrier for $310.  No LEO discount as that deal is already about 30% off.  Two AR500 3+ plates on that deal is $250.  Shipping is also free.