Adjusting/custom fitting your armour

When I started my armour acquisition phase I overestimated the weight and volume a person can carry without severely hampering mobility and combat readiness. I thought: “hey, I can wear 50 kg of armour, transforming me into a human tank as long as I train hard enough and use a suitable steroid cycle”. Wrong… It is very important that you try out your gear along the way and test it while on the move to ensure that you are in fact able to move relatively comfortably in it for up to two hours. Take a walk around your flat for 15-30 mins and ensure that the items are in place after all types of bodily motions. You can add extra fasteners like hook/loop/Velcro if necessary. Don’t be shy when it comes to adhesive hook/loop strips (1 and/or 2 inches) and nylon straps (1 and/or 2 inches). I made several small miscalculations when planning/designing/creating my armour system and you will be able to avoid these and similar pitfalls if you follow this guide. I am certainly not a master armourer but I have managed to learn a lot about armour structure and design techniques. However, there is always room for improvement.

Miscalculation 1: I was unable to use the chest piece of the Damascus FX-1 as a base anti-blunt trauma layer under my primary ballistic vest and my plate carrier. The reason was that I had underestimated the weight, volume AND thus the mobility disabling effects of these two vests combined. As a result it simply became too bulky to apply and equipping the armour would have required the assistance of a helper. My primary vest weighs 4, 5 kg (no plates, only soft armour) and my plate carrier vest weighs 13, 5 kg (2 XL ESAPI plates level IV, 2 ESBI side plates level IV + plate carrier and various molle/modular attatchments (pouches for 6 grenades – splint/smoke/flash, 1 back pouch for 1, 5 litre camelback, 1 medic pouch, 1 gas mask pouch, 3 other pouches).

Miscalculation 2: I miscalculated the weight that is practically possible to wear for combat readiness. As a result, I had to discard two extra neck protector pieces and a groin protector piece, in addition to materials gathered for a hip piece (padded war belt with level IIIA ballistic armour.

Miscalculation 3: I underestimated the cutting power of my electric jig saw which resulted in me having to have the ballistic panel pieces for my leg armour and shield professionally cut at a work shop. You can prevent this by borrowing or buying a more professional jig saw.

Mistake 4: not really a mistake, but I ordered a lot of material and 4 armour pieces (two side plate carriers with soft armour and two neck protectors. In addition, the Kevlar inserts in the deltoid and axillary protectors in addition to the groin protector were pretty rotten and had to be replaced with new Kevlar fabric (30 layers). Total price of the surplus/discarded goods were around 800 Euro.