BIT: DIY BP armor plate (update) rnd 2 test

[Precision]

The last round we fired into the plate was a 130 grain thick walled lead point .270 from Hornady. This is our pig hunting round.

hand loaded bullet over 50 gr of H414 and should be about 2750 FPS (IIRC).

270 entry v2.jpg

nice entry and we fully expected to see an exit as well

270 exit v2.jpg

The bullet did not penetrate the first layer of steel, but it obviously blew out the duct tape holding the stacks together on the back end. I think that is more a function of me not being serious about securing the layers. Seeing as the bullet did not pierce the first layer of steel, I think the lack of integrity was not what allowed the bullet to stop. The bullet was recovered in the plat. I think the rear damage shows how it would have been a serious baseball bat effect from the hit.

edit for clarity

[Precision]

first layer of steel

first steel plate v2.jpg

second layer of steel

second steel plate v2.jpg

This shows better how effective the ceramic tile was at eating impact energy.

The tiles were destroyed where the bullets hit, through all 5 layers. With one glaring exception the steel was not compromised.

Looking at the second plate tells me that the 7.62x39 was still moving pretty good. The negative penetrations of the other bullets tells me that even with a thick jacket, not having the jacket extend to cover the meplat has a very compromising effect on bullet penetration.

notes:
we did not try .380 ACP as it was pretty obvious from round one that it is a pathetic penetrator.
all pistol shots were from 5 yards.
all rifle shots were from 25 yards.
.223 was from a 16in AR with 1:8 twist
7.62x39 was from a Norico SKS
9mm was from a Keltec PF-9 this time
same .40 Glock 22 and Ruger Mark II for the .22 lr

using my not so accurate bathroom scale - the plate weighed about 9 pounds - about the same as a commercially prepared plate.

[Precision]

Things we learned:

Thickness of the plate is very important.
Ceramic tile is fairly good at defeating bullet penetration
FMJ is WAY better at penetration than anything that doesn't have a covered end
Use more duct tape to secure layers to stop delamination

next round improvements

replacing all ceramic tiles squares with porcelain squares - hopefully slightly harder and slightly lighter will be a good upgrade.

boxing in each strip of tiles then making a layer should help to reduce tile shift / delamination from duct tape backer when a tile is hit.

likely removal of lexan middle layer as it seems to serve no purpose. The last layer seemed to help by melt catching particles and spreading kinetic energy over a larger area.

likely replace lexan with a baffle / shock absorption layer to reduce lateral tile shatter

Upgrade first layer of steel to 1/8" hot rolled steel and place it between layer 2 & 3 of the tile.

Mark III 2 layers of tile, layer of 1/8" steel, layer of tile, layer of kinetic absorber, layer 4 & 5 of tile, layer of 16 ga steel, layer of lexan.

all in all this BP plate Mk II seemed like a really good test. Our quick thrown together idea and assembly took on all pistol ammo and defeated heavy for caliber .223 quite handily and .270 level 2 game ammo.
Not so good on 7.62 x 39 but hopefully the increased hardness of the porcelain, the extra thickness of the steel plate and the revised layering will improve performance.

[308Mike]

Awesome!

Since your .270 pig hunting round was stopped, I wonder how a 150 gr soft-point .308 would do. Based on the results of the 7.62x39 FMJ round, I'm sure a .308 FMJ round would also defeat the armor. If you don't have a .308 available for testing, perhaps a .30-06 would be a suitable replacement.

[Bullspit]

I'm curious how a hard cast pistol bullet would do.

Interesting tests!

[Precision]

Awesome!

Since your .270 pig hunting round was stopped, I wonder how a 150 gr soft-point .308 would do. Based on the results of the 7.62x39 FMJ round, I'm sure a .308 FMJ round would also defeat the armor. If you don't have a .308 available for testing, perhaps a .30-06 would be a suitable replacement.

I agree.

Once we stop the 7.62x39 my next more powerful rounds are 7.62x54 148gr with soft steel core and 7mag.
I really don't think I have much hope of stopping the FMJ 7.62x54 with steel core as I have seen that penetrate through 3/4 in steel plate, but we will see.
The 7mag bullets I have are 150ish grain soft points and 175 gr soft points. I think I have a chance at stopping the 150 with the mk III version, not so much on the 175 gr.

The missing component is the underlying kevlar vest. That may well have stopped the 7.62x39. I may buy a scrapped vest for that purpose in the next few weeks.

We are also likely to make a box to hold the plate with water filled milk jugs behind it as a penetration tester once it gets through the plate.

[Precision]

I'm curious how a hard cast pistol bullet would do.

Interesting tests!

I have some hardcast .357 bullets (IIRC), so I could test that. I think they are brinell 16-18.

Or you have the super secret design plans. Grab some tile, some duct tape and try your own. Just post up your results.

[Yogimus]

Here is the issue... is it beneficial in regards to weight, or is it just a holder for material at this point?

[Precision]

Here is the issue... is it beneficial in regards to weight, or is it just a holder for material at this point?

not sure I understand the question.

The plate weighs about 9#'s, are 6"x9" and about 2.25" thick. That is roughly double the width of the commercially available plates, but the same in other dimensions and the same weight.

[Yogimus]

Here is the issue... is it beneficial in regards to weight, or is it just a holder for material at this point?

not sure I understand the question.

The plate weighs about 9#'s, are 6"x9" and about 2.25" thick. That is roughly double the width of the commercially available plates, but the same in other dimensions and the same weight.

Is the duck tape providing any specific benefit at this point, or is it just holding things in place?