Plates

Seen (2) threads with no replies and (1) from 2016 on these.
Anyone have a feel for these plates and the manufacturer?

Looks like it does what it says it does, the NIJ Cert is current and active.

It is an ICW plate so remember that it's meant to worn with soft armor behind it.

Very light, it would handle most of the threats that we would see

They have a very light level IV, that looks perhaps like a tile plate, or at least not a true 10x12 plate (I see foam ring). I emailed them about testing, but they seem uninterested in a third party unbiased test..

Buffman, I'd bet that it has got a laughably undersized ceramic strike-face with a huge foam ring that brings it to 10x12" -- just like the RMA plate.  I don't think that anybody would be dumb enough to take me up on that bet, though!

With that aside, this company stinks to high heaven.

First of all, some of their plates are described as being "Made in America", but some others don't have "Made in" information at all.  The Level IV plate, for instance, is probably Chinese.  It may even be a Militech plate.

For another thing, the plate they have listed on the NIJ's list is not one that they make.  The "A-101 ICW SLTIIIa" is also on ATT-Tactical's product list, as is SLTIIIA soft armor.   And I don't think that the A-101 is ABA's 1.6 pound plate.

Lastly, the "1.6 pound Level III ICW" plate's test document raises a real red flag.  
http://americanblastsystems.com/content/platetest.pdf

"Remarks:
Required velocity: 2780 ±30 ft/s
Plate size: X-Large; Plate weight: 1.64 lbs
Vest size: 12.00 x 9.75 in; Vest weight: 2.97 lbs"

The vest that it was tested "in conjunction with" was 10x12" and weighed three pounds! That's around 3.46 pounds per square foot. Your average Level IIIa backer is closer to one pound per square foot.

The total package that they tested was 4.5 pounds.

So would the 1.6 pound plate work ICW a normal IIIa backer? I don't know. I have my doubts, to say the very least!

But I have no doubt that the Level IV plate is RMA-style.

I can't figure out which of the plates they sell is the ATT A-101. I don't think that they actually sell it. I think that they just used it to get onto the NIJ's list, thus fooling people into thinking that their products are more legitimate than they actually are.

This is pure cringe: http://americanblastsystems.com/nij-level-iii-stand-alone-2-6-lbs-ballistic-plate/

"Protection Level: NIJ III ammo 7.62×59 AK47 MSC, NATO Stand Alone"

7.62×59 AK47 MSC, NATO.

As for the Level IV plate, here's something for comparison's sake.

Hesco's BI-4800 is their top-of-the-line plate. It costs over $1000 per unit. It's rated to Level IV, and it weighs..... 5.1 pounds in a size M SAPI.

Armor Express' Abrams H IV SA is their top-of-the line plate.  The MSRP is over $2000 per unit, and it's well over $1000 per unit even with bulk quantity discounts. It's rated to Level IV, and it weighs..... 5.0 pounds in a size M SAPI.

TPG's BLACK LVL IV Elite Series is their top-of-the line plate.  It costs well over $1000 per unit. It's rated to Level IV, and it weighs..... 4.8 pounds in a size M shooter's cut, which would be somewhere slightly over 5.0 pounds in a SAPI size M.

And you're telling me that the guys responsible for "7.62×59 AK47 MSC, NATO" and the 1.6 pound ICW* plate, are capable of making a $300 Level IV plate at 4.5 pounds? If you believe that, I've got some oceanfront property in Nebraska I'd like to sell you.

Nah, it's a Chinese plate with a huge foam ring. It doesn't use the expensive and exotic materials that those more costly plates use, and its ceramic coverage is probably around 80 square inches or less. As such, it's very cheap to make.

Hesco could copy that risible technique and release a "2.5 pound Level IV plate"!  But Hesco actually have integrity.  They wouldn't stoop so low.

* - ICW a 3.5 pound backing plate!