Level 4 Body Armor – What You Should Know Before Purchasing

According to the NIJ ratings, level 4 plates are only required to defeat one round of armor-piercing .30-06 Black Tip ammunition. However, during the NIJ .06 Certification testing, an entire lot of level 4 armor must also be subjected to a drop test, water submersion, temperature cycle chambers, as well as other important tests to determine the integrity of the ballistic materials. All of those tests are completed before the ballistic test is done.To get more news about bulletproof tactical helmet, you can visit bulletproofboxs.com official website.

If you’re considering buying level 4 body armor, we’re here to answer some of the most frequently asked questions regarding one of the most popular body armor levels. But first let’s go over what exactly level iv armor is.CERAMIC BODY ARMOR
Level IV body armor is made from a hard surfaced strike face and some sort of lightweight backer. But the ceramic strike face is an integral part of breaking apart any armor piercing round. On the surface, ceramic is a hard, heat-resistant material that is also averse to corrosion. For body armor, you typcially use one of three ceramic materials for a Level 4 strike face – alumina-oxide, silicon carbide or boron carbide. Alumina is the heaviest ceramic used in body armor, but it’s also the least expensive. RMA utilizes an alumina-oxide ceramic in our model 1155 Level 4 body armor plates and 6×6 side plates. Silicon-carbide ceramic and boron-carbide ceramic are both lighter, but more expensive ceramic strike faces found in level 4 plates. RMA’s model 1192 hard armor plate utilizes a silicon and boron-carbide blend to produce a lightweight body armor plate that weighs just 5.9lbs.

Ceramic alone is not sufficient to defeat a 30.06 armor piercing round. While the ceramic does in fact break apart the ammunition, a polyethylene backer made of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) or e-glass is required to catch the bullet fragments and minimize back-face deformation.

Compared to any type steel body armor, ceramic body armor is better at absorbing and dispersing energy than steel. This means that wearing ceramic armor will result in less broken ribs and other injuries to your bones and internal organs. And because of the ceramic, these plates performs much better versus armor-piercing bullets and high-velocity rounds when compared to steel body armor.

Level 4 body armor has historically been made from steel or ceramic composites—but as technology has changed, so have materials. Today, body armor manufacturers are using all sorts of materials to defeat ballistic threats such ceramic composites, ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fabrics, aramids like Twaron and Kevlar, steel, silicon carbide, boron carbide, carbon nanotubes, and more. Because of this broad range of materials and manufacturing methods, some level 4 armor will strictly only defeat one single round of M2AP while others will defeat multiple M2AP strikes.

Level IV body armor can weigh anywhere from as little as 5-pounds or as much as 9-pounds, depending on the materials used and shape of the plate. A declaration of level 4 armor protection under NIJ certification is a good place to start your buying decisions, but pay attention to weight, price, and total number of bullet strikes a plate can protect you from before you buy. Most importantly, ensure you purchase your armor from a reputable source and manufacturer that has a reputation for high quality products. Don’t bet your life on anything less.

WHAT IS LEVEL 4 BODY ARMOR?
Though many other formats have been tried, the only tried-and-true reliable format of level 4 body armor is the hard plate. The most common size of level 4 body armor is the 10 x 12 hard plate. The vast majority of adult humans can properly fit a 10 x 12 plate for torso and back coverage, though other formats like SAPI/ESAPI, shapes such as shooter’s or swimmer’s cut, and larger and smaller sizes exist.

WHAT IS A LEVEL IV PLATE?
A level IV plate is rated to defeat one round of M2AP ammunition at a minimum before it is fully compromised. A level IV plate is the highest level of ballistic protection rated under the current National Institute of Justice 0101.06 standard. Though commonly called ‘Level 4’, the technical nomenclature to describe armor levels under the NIJ 0101.06 standard is with roman numerals in ascending levels of protection as IIA, II, IIIA, III, and IV.

WHY DO ARMOR PLATES EXPIRE?
Armor plates don’t expire due to time alone, but for reasons of use or abuse. Warranty expiration and the material expiration are ideas that are commonly confused. Most manufacturers warranty their products for five years against defects in materials and workmanship. The expiration of your warranty doesn’t have anything to do with the expiration of the ballistic properties of your armor. There are numerous ways an end user can compromise the ballistic integrity of their armor, and they’re all fairly obvious.