what do you think about the military restrictions on body armor? (dragon skin and others)?

Question

I don't know about the NAVY they do allow some spicel ops teams to have there own body armor but why all the BS
http://www.pinnaclearmor.com/body-armor/dragon-skin.php
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragon_Skin_body_armor

I don't see the point ok maybe the hole we only trust government but if a solder wants fath in his own belives, things, and protection why not let them have it. and what do you think are the good and bads of this

yes the idea of it is to stop multiple rounds that would be from a mishine gun smg or AK-47. theres no armor body or most tanks that can stop one-two 50,60 cal. and yes it would be cost efective in a bad way. but in ther spec ops there is a choice you have some that is better then issued and some that truly arn't it depends on what a SEAL would buy.

Answer 1

Dragon Skin hasn't passed Army Regulations.

It's technically not finished yet either.

It is no better than what we currently have. When Dragon Skin protects against AP rounds, please come back. Switching to Dragon Skin would not be cost effective and I don't blame them.

Also, if you notice on the Dragon Skin Videos... none of the shots were aimed. They were all over the place. A sniper can put 2 bullets through the same hole at over 500 yards. I am no sniper and I can put 3 5.56 rounds through the same hole at 25 yards.

Answer 2

Dragon skin works great, if you stay inside all day and only go outside in the heat for a hour at a time. And don't have to carry alot of LBE and equipment. because dragon skin is heavy !!!!!!!!!!!!! And the adhesive used to hold the ballistic scales, loses cohesion when exposed to high temperatures. Dragon skin has failed DOD test three times so far Plus the fact that the company that makes dragon skin, has ethical criminal problems. They sold the Air Force and LA Sheriffs office, body armor rated NIJ level lll compliant, that they had never submitted to NIJ for testing. The Air Force is so pissed, they are trying to have the company banned from ever getting another government contract.

Answer 3

Most spec ops do use their own choice of equipment. How ever, they have their own quality control and testing, before they actually send it to the field. All other body armor used by the US Military and DOD, are tested to military specifications. Actually, when I was in Iraq, it was very cumbersome, but after a while you get used to it, whether in the hot desert or not. I know of several cases where the spec ops people were killed using their own body armor and the regular conventional forces got the same bullet, and lived without a scratch. Also, we had a few spec ops that refused to wear Kevlar, and claimed that it would ot stop an AK-47, but we would get them at the aid station with shrapnel wounds to the head, but once again, the conventional soldiers that wore the Kevlar had minimal injuries, unless they were close to the blast, in which case no amount of Kevlar will protect you. In other words, I saw more people saved by the Military issue stuff than I did the spec op stuff. The military owns you and you wear what they tell you to.

Answer 4

SOCOM units have an open-ended budget. Line units do not. Anything without an NSN (National Stock Number) has to be special ordered, and this takes a lot out of unit funds. If it's personally owned gear, this takes a lot out of the servicemember's funds.

Let's say a set of Dragon Skin takes damage to its shell carrier to where it is no longer effective. The owner would have to send for a replacement from Pinnacle, which would take about two weeks or more through USPS Priority. The unit isn't going to pay for it now, is it?

If it was IBA on the other hand, the replacement would be on hand right away, in a matter of hours, depending on the installation; days at most.

And the whole point of testing is to ensure that the guys downrange don't pour money into snake oil that will get them killed. A lot of Army units give their guys enough freedom to configure mission-essential gear; personally owned pouches for the IBA, various upgrades and attachments for weapons.

When it comes to body armor however, there is no screwing around. You either use the issued stuff, or you use the issued stuff, if you're in the line. It's been tested, and approved. That's all there is to it.

Answer 5

It's not about trust. Soldiers were often buying surplus body armor that had exceeded its shelf life as well as other items which were picked up from catalogs claiming levels of protection that were never tested. Also some items that soldiers had bought caused mobility issues. This put many soldiers at risk becuase they were putting their faith in items that actually had a higher chance of failing them than what they were being issued.

I don't agree either, but the safety factor couldn't be ignored.

Answer 6

I can see both sides here. From a military wife's stand point... I'd like to say, if my husband thinks some other type of body armor is going to keep him safer, then I think he should have it. However, on the practical stand point... his flak jacket has proven to be VERY efficient at what it does, and why mess with what you know works? Especially when it's issued, and you don't have to shell out any out of pocket expenses to get it?

Answer 7

The Army is currently testing Dragon skin right now. The TV show Future weapons tested Dragon skin by putting a live grenade under it. The grenade did cause major damage to the vest but there was no penetration, meaning if this was real, the wearer would be alive to tell the tail

Answer 8

The U.S. military armor is a grade above dragonskin rounds. One guy was hit in his torso with an RPG round and it blew off his arms and legs but he and the armor survived. If he was wearing dragon skin armor, he would have died. Also dragonskin can be pierced with standard AP rounds.

Answer 9

Last I heard Dragon Skin did not make the cut and was not authorized for use by the military. MSA Paraclete makes high quality custom body armor used by SOF...

http://www.msafrontline.com/

Answer 10

The Military is not a Dempcracy..Dragon Skin and the others are NOT approved, therefore not regulation. Just as any job, if an item is NOT approved, it can not be used.
The Military is UNIFORM, so everyone gets the same,hence, GI Issue.