Nowadays, many people in extreme situations prefer body armor, in short - BZ. This device is an element that provides individual protection to its owner. If necessary, you can make a bulletproof vest with your own hands. It is worn as an ordinary vest and protects the human torso from attacks with cold and firearms, as well as the striking elements of some shells. The composition includes materials that delay and disperse the energy of bullets and fragments: ballistic fabric, metal or ceramic plates.
Protection classes
Modern armored clothing is divided into several classes according to the degree of protection. These standards entered into force in the Russian Federation in 2014:
- 1st class - protection against weapons of 9x18 mm caliber with a steel core;
- 2nd class - weapons of 9x21 mm caliber with a lead tip;
- 3rd class - 9x19 mm with steel heat-strengthened tip;
- 4th class - 5.45x39 mm and 7.62x39 mm;
- 5th grade - 7.62x54 mm;
- 6th grade - 12.7x108 mm.
A large role here is played not only by the caliber of the charges, but also by their mass, speed in flight, and the distance with which the shot occurs.
Both from the bullet and from the blade
Everyone who decided not to spend money on purchased protective equipment, but does not know how to sew a body armor with their own hands, should first familiarize themselves with the classification of protective clothing. This is necessary to understand what kind of armored vest you need to stock up in a particular situation.
All bulletproof vests are divided into two large groups: civilians or police officers worn by ordinary people and law enforcement officers, and military men intended for members of the armed forces. Before deciding what kind of body armor you need to do with your own hands, the potential owner should study the types of these devices, each of which differs in the degree of protection and type of weapon, from which it is intended to prevent injury. The most common for the average person are lightweight bulletproof vests of lightweight and light / medium outer wear armor. Such armored jackets are designed to protect against defeats by firearms. If you want to make body armor from a knife with your own hands, you should remember that the classes described above will not help to protect yourself from cold steel. This type of protective clothing is highlighted in a special, so-called zero class, which provides reliable protection against metal blades.
Lightweight concealed body armor
This type of body armor is designed to be worn by civilians and police officers. He is able to stop the pistol bullet, as well as withstand the shots of small - caliber automatic weapons. The disadvantage of this model is that the vest is, in fact, disposable, and after a bullet hits it, it becomes unusable. Deciding to make such a body armor with one's own hands, one should take into account the fact that in case of damage, one will have to do sewing again. This product weighs from 700 grams to 8 kilograms. This vest is used mainly by civilians. They put it on under the clothes.
Light / medium body armor
This armored vest is capable of withstanding bullets up to 7.62 mm inclusive, which corresponds to the calibers of the striking elements of almost all types of firearms. It is able to withstand more than one shot, which provides the possibility of repeated wearing.
The product is used by armed forces around the world. It is possible to combine the wearing of this armor with the carrying of a backpack. The minimum weight is 2 kilograms, the maximum is about 30.
What is bulletproof vest made of?
Before you make a bulletproof vest with your own hands, you need to know what materials you need to stock up to make a product at home that in an extreme situation will help save a human life.
The material, when it comes to lightweight and modern models, as a rule, is Kevlar - a high-modulus armid thread, the production of which was first launched in the United States. The disadvantage is the high cost of the material and the ability to withstand only the first three classes of protection: pistols and revolvers.
Heavier models are made on the basis of steel, titanium and other metals. However, the use of metal has its drawbacks. This is primarily due to an increase in the mass of uniforms, and therefore a decrease in human mobility.
Ceramic armor elements can become an alternative to metal. They are lighter than metal, but heavier than fabric. Due to its strength, ceramics are very common in protective clothing. When deciding to make a bulletproof vest with your own hands, you should pay attention to this material, but remember that special devices are required to process it. Among other things, such a body armor can be used only once, since a repeated hit of a bullet will immediately lead to its complete destruction.
What can be made of body armor at home?
Unfortunately, Kevlar, ceramics or metal is not always at hand in order to produce high-quality armor. It is in this case that many are wondering how to make a bulletproof vest with their own hands when the materials described above are not available?
To protect yourself from bullets of a Makarov pistol, packing A4 paper will help. A bullet, freely entering it, does not pierce the paper through. It is enough to sheathe an ordinary vest with layers of matter (peculiar inserts) and fix well-pressed sheets of the above paper into them. It will turn out to be a good home-made body armor that can withstand 9x18 caliber shots (PM).
To protect yourself from attacks of greater power, you can use a wooden base covering the chest and stomach, and coins of 10 rubles. Such a combination will help protect against pistol bullets. Here you need to make 2 layers: the top of the wooden base (will stop the movement of the bullet) and the bottom of the tight-fitting coins (finally stop the bullet that gets stuck between the tree and the coins). For better protection with coins, it is better to sheathe also in 2 or 3 layers. The vest will be reliable, but a person will experience very sharp pain when a bullet hits, but he will get off only with shock and bruises.
The combination of three layers of coins, plates of steel and reinforced threads will help to avoid injury even from the Saiga carbine. This option will be the perfect body armor.
However, professionals still do not recommend the manufacture of body armor without special training. If a person’s life is really in danger, it is better to resort to factory-made armored clothing. Home-made armor, if it is not made in compliance with all the rules and recommendations (which happens quite often due to the incompetence of the master), will not be able to protect against injury in the event of a real threat.