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Range Officer
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May 2, 2009
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Well, it was a lazy Sunday afternoon.... So I decided to have a little fun at the range 
....
Todays project--playing with a 20 yr old Point blank Kevlar bulletproof vest and the 45 ACP. For those of you who don't know, Kevlar is only rated for 5 years before you have to replace it.
Let's do some pics first and then some more discussion...
from left to right;
-Generic 230 gr
-Win White box (WWB) 230
-Magsafe Black tip
-Magsafe Grey tip
-Black talon
-Hydrashok
-KTW Armor piercing solid
Yea, I have some cool ammo in my stash. Before I forget, this wasn't testing, it was just a day of fun. Vest was just hung over my target frame loosely--not strapped properly to a mannequin. Shooting was done at 10 yards.
Nothing says cool like a 230 gr bullet slamming into a vest at 10 yards--I had a lot of spectators 
....
I believe I would have had better expansion if the vest was properly mounted--hanging loosely it absorbed a lot of impact.
None of the rounds penetrated the vest--with the exception of the KTW AP round. I'm sure you guys will have questions about the KTW, so I'll discuss that in a later post.
SHOOT
May 3, 2011
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Nice test! I see pain to the one that would receive one of those rounds. Even though the rounds don't penetrate they can shatter ribs, sternum and bruise the heart/lungs etc. I would rather be shot with a taser. It sounds like the vest held up pretty good. It's odd a bullet won't penetrate them but you can stab a knife through them. Let's see the vest! 
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Range Officer
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May 2, 2009
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OK, I used a level II vest dated 17 Nov 1992–which means it expired in 1997…
Level II WILL stop 44, 45, 10mm, etc as long a sthe velocity is correct for the vest.
By definition Level II is;
NIJ LEVEL II:
(Higher Velocity 9mm, .357 Magnum). This armor protects against .357 Magnum jacketed soft-point bullets with nominal masses of 10.2 g (158 gr.) impacting at a velocity of 425 m/s (1,395 ft/s) or less and against 9mm full-jacketed bullets with nominal velocities of 358 m/s (1,175 ft/s). It also protects against most other factory loads in caliber .357 Magnum and 9mm as well as the Level I and IIA threats. Level II body armor is heavier and more bulky than either Levels I or IIA. It is worn full time by officers seeking protection against higher velocity .357 Magnum and 9mm ammunition.
For the most part, all the bullets only penetrated the silky nylon covering of the vest and immediately stopped upon hitting the kevlar.
The AP round went about halfway through the Kevlar liner (12 of 24 layers). No doubt in my mind it would have passed all the way through properly mounted. As you can see in the previous pic, the bullet has zero damage to it.
This was the best target ever... you see the impact, you see results, it is reuseable over and over, and it was just plain fun !!!
SHOOT
February 11, 2010
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I recently saw a fresh level III vest mounted to manican fail against the
FN 5.7 cal. and hot loaded FMJ 10mm and .357 mag. But same vest
survived the .44 mag. Seems the high velocity smaller calibers can
"slip through"
-Blacktop
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Dans Club
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November 17, 2008
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Cool! What supprises me is (I realise this was not a test format) that is the ball ammo expanded almost equal to all the high dollar defense stuff. Hmmm. Hey Shoot, since you started this, why not repeat the same drill with a supported vest. And or even the ole stack of phone books or something assumming you don't have a barrel of balistics gelatin sitting around.
LB
Wisdom is merely the realization of how little one knows, therefore I am wise.
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Range Officer
Range Officers
May 2, 2009
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Blacktop said:
I recently saw a fresh level III vest mounted to manican fail against the
FN 5.7 cal. and hot loaded FMJ 10mm and .357 mag. But same vest
survived the .44 mag. Seems the high velocity smaller calibers can
"slip through"
-Blacktop
Oh--I can defeat vest if i wanted to 
.... Any really good 9mm round will whip right through--I've done it several times with 9mm Magsafe ammo. Velocity is the key to beating the kevlar.
SHOOT
February 11, 2010
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Yep, thats the scary thing and most of these Mo Fo side wrist aiming
BG's are getting smart to +P+ loads. Our LEO's go out double vested
on any critical calls.
-Blacktop
October 1, 2010
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What great day at the range.
thanks
"close isn't good enough" 
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Moderators
January 24, 2009
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That's interesting stuff. I'm surprised too, that the ball ammo expanded the way it did. What's that KTW bullet made of? It looks like nylon, from here.
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Range Officer
Range Officers
May 2, 2009
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Charger Fan said:
That's interesting stuff. I'm surprised too, that the ball ammo expanded the way it did. What's that KTW bullet made of? It looks like nylon, from here.
I can give a brief overview of the KTW bullet--I'm sure you noticed it was the only bullet with no loaded case above it... reason--I only had one of them left !!!
The bullet is solid bronze or brass depending on when it was made ( and some were made of other materials), covered in green teflon--teflon was to keep the bullet from glancing off angled targets I've been told.
These bullets were banned by congress in 1986.
Here is a good internet excerpt;
http://www.recguns.com/Sources/VG2.html
SHOOT
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Range Officer
Range Officers
May 2, 2009
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lbruce said:
Cool! What supprises me is (I realise this was not a test format) that is the ball ammo expanded almost equal to all the high dollar defense stuff. Hmmm. Hey Shoot, since you started this, why not repeat the same drill with a supported vest. And or even the ole stack of phone books or something assumming you don't have a barrel of balistics gelatin sitting around.
LB
I was thinking about that... I have some big blocks of foam I could strap inside the vest to give it some rigity against the frame.
SHOOT
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January 24, 2009
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I can see why those bullets would be banned. They remind me of the "cop killers" in Lethal Weapon...except I doubt they would penetrate a dozer bucket & kill a bad guy.
December 26, 2010
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I wish I had been smart enough to pay attention to what I was shooting in the early 80's and had taken pics of the result. It was scary impressive, even to stupid, testosterone laced 20-somethings.
A friend and I were out shooting my old 9. We leaned a 2x4 against a steel fence post. (Yes, we weren't smart enough to be worried about ricochets.) The first two bullets went through the 2x4 like a needle through cloth. My friend shot next. He missed the 2x4 but hit the fence post. The post was the t-style used with barbed wire. That one bullet cut the post in two, leaving the top piece hanging from the barbed wire.
I put the gun away after that and never shot it again. I wish I still had that old Hi-Power.
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