AR500 Armor vs Shotgun
 

This was a surprise.. :eek:

Not that the armor stopped one slug, but one plate stopped all the buck & slug rounds.. :lifter

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuJF...V6OK2jq40Clorn

Not surprising at all. Shotgun's are actually pretty easy to stop. I use AR500 for steel targets and have thousands of 5.56, 7.62, 300WM 338LM rounds on them.
Speed is one of the main killers for steel. Mild Carbon steel will stop shotguns & pistols. A 17HRM will really divot AR500 due to the speed. My 7mm Rem Mag and 6mm Creedmoor are pretty bad @ 100 yards but not @ 200 yrs.

I think someone did some tests with AR500 plates with a 16" barreled AR and got penetration @ 10yrds. The 10.5" AR barrel would not penetrate. Same round, just less velocity.

No surprises. The tradeoffs with AR500 armor are weight and splatter. A couple other references:

http://www.ar500armor.com/
http://www.catiarmor.com/

What is the general opinion of the frag-coated, steel armor plates? Would a civilian disaster prepper be behooved to purchase a similar product?

My own impression is that while better than nothing, ESAPI's are a better option.

IMHO, the coated steel in the same protection level would be better in all categories but weight.

And if moving, weight is a significant consideration.

TR

Concur. If I were expecting to be static or mounted, I would prefer coated steel.

Roger that. Thank you, Gents.