There's a lot of concealed wear armor vests that provide the same level of protection.

There's a lot of concealed wear armor vests that provide the same level of protection.

There's a lot of concealed wear armor vests that provide the same level of protection.

Kevlar is pretty worthless without a plate. A single high powered (.40, .45, .357, .41, etc) round to center mass will result in catastrophic blunt trauma if all your wearing in kevlar. I'm talking broken/cracked ribs and massive bruise. This is because the kevlar will keep the bullet out of your fleshy bits, but will not slow down or spread the impact than a couple of inches. The reason is to pass the test, the armor can allow the round to penetrate no more than 7mm.

Class IIIA should be what your going for if you want good pistol protection. Get one that is also certified for stab protection.

Kevlar is pretty worthless without a plate. A single high powered (.40, .45, .357, .41, etc) round to center mass will result in catastrophic blunt trauma if all your wearing in kevlar.

Whether the armour needs a license or is allowed on a plane depends on the country you're in (and I believe the case will raise questions, too).
And it's certainly less inconvenient to wear than a briefcase with similar added weight (and in fact, I believe the added weight would be heavier than the vest since the briefcase aims to cover your whole silhouette), same way as it's easier to wear certain weight in a well-fit backpack than in a briefcase.
Also, wearing personal armour is certainly less inconvenient than eating a stray bullet because you weren't fast enough to take cover behind the armour unrolled from the case or because it ricocheted and hit you from the wrong direction.

I assume your unique perspective comes from not living in the West, where people don't routinely wear body armor, and not really understanding the issues of convenience, which has much less to do with weight than bulk and heat.

Given the upheaval in the middle east, i may start looking into getting myself one and some handguns to go with it.

Oh of course it's much more convenient to haul a heavy, and, what's worse, useless, case with you at all times

Fatum, look at the facts. I have no chance of getting a license for body armor, even if i did it wouldn't allow me to wear it in an airport in a foreign country, and concealable armor really isn't concealable under my typical vacation uniform which is a t-shirt, and this weight issue you keep bringing up with bullet proof luggage really is non-existant, and the usefulness of a luggage shield is obvious.

But hey, keep on trying to convince people to wear body armor when flying. It's hilarious

I thought the .45 ACP had a bit of an issue with penetration due to low velocity. The TDI Vector gets around this by rate of fire, doesn't it? Or am I thinking old brass and powder here?

I really hate CA sometimes...

Why not everyone move to arizona and have it declare itself independent?

seriously, i just found the idea of a bullet proof briefcase a very cyberpunk/SR one.

Naw. Google might be cyber, but there's nothing punk about it.

Know what's cyberpunk?
Google.

I was very sad today when i asked one of my SWAT buddies if you could even obtain a license for Class III (or any body armor for that matter) in CA... he said its super illegal, and if you get caught with it, your ass is going to jail. I really hate CA sometimes, I know you can have it in AZ, had to leave my damned SKS and class 3 wpns there when I left .

12370. (a) Any person who has been convicted of a violent felony, as defined in subdivision © of Section 667.5, under the laws of the United States, the State of California, or any other state, government, or country, who purchases, owns, or possesses body armor, as defined by Section 942 of Title 11 of the California Code of Regulations, except as authorized under subdivision (b), is guilty of a felony, punishable by imprisonment in a state prison for 16 months, or two or three years.

(b) Any person whose employment, livelihood, or safety is dependent on the ability to legally possess and use body armor, who is subject to the prohibition imposed by subdivision (a) due to a prior violent felony conviction, may file a petition with the chief of police or county sheriff of the jurisdiction in which he or she seeks to possess and use the body armor for an exception to this prohibition. The chief of police or sheriff may reduce or eliminate the prohibition, impose conditions on reduction or elimination of the prohibition, or otherwise grant relief from the prohibition as he or she deems appropriate, based on the following:


(1) A finding that the petitioner is likely to use body armor in a safe and lawful manner.

(2) A finding that the petitioner has a reasonable need for this type of protection under the circumstances.

In making its decision, the chief of police or sheriff shall consider the petitioner's continued employment, the interests of justice, any relevant evidence, and the totality of the circumstances. It is the intent of the Legislature that law enforcement officials exercise broad discretion in fashioning appropriate relief under this paragraph in cases in which relief is warranted. However, this paragraph may not be construed to require law enforcement officials to grant relief to any particular petitioner. Relief from this prohibition does not relieve any other person or entity from any liability that might otherwise be imposed.

© The chief of police or sheriff shall require, as a condition of granting an exception under subdivision (b), that the petitioner agree to maintain on his or her person a certified copy of the law enforcement official's permission to possess and use body armor, including any conditions or limitations.

(d) Law enforcement officials who enforce the prohibition specified in subdivision (a) against a person who has been granted relief pursuant to subdivision (b), shall be immune from any liability for false arrest arising from the enforcement of this subdivision unless the person has in his or her possession a certified copy of the permission granting the person relief from the prohibition, as required by subdivision ©. This immunity from liability does not relieve any person or entity from any other liability that might otherwise be imposed.

(e) For purposes of this section only, "violent felony" refers to the specific crimes listed in subdivision © of Section 667.5, and to crimes defined under the applicable laws of the United States or any other state, government, or country that are reasonably equivalent to the crimes listed in subdivision © of Section 667.5.

(b) Any person whose employment, livelihood, or safety is dependent on the ability to legally possess and use body armor...

Notice the part that I've bolded. It is only illegal for a person who has been convicted of a violent felony to wear body armor in California, and even then such a person can get an exemption.

Is it an exemption so that ex-convicts could serve in the SWAT or wha?

I suspect SWAT buddy is speaking of reality, at times diametrically opposed to the law.

In California, like a number of states, it's perfectly legal for any citizen to get X, Y or Z - assuming they can get a judge to agree they have 'need'. In order to establish 'need' normally requires you be someone of note, like the mayor, or the mayor's body guards. You know, the sort of people an officer would recognize walking down the street and so not arrest. There are plenty of stories in my area of people who tried to establish need for concealed carry - regular threatening phone calls from an enraged ex being the one I remember best. The judge ruled, since phone calls leave no physical evidence of the message, they can't be submitted as evidence of a threat, and the request was denied.

By the same token, you can openly carry a weapon in California cities provided that the weapon isn't loaded (and you can have a loaded magazine on your gunbelt). This will get you some funny looks at might even get you stopped, but the police can't arrest you for it. They might, anyway, though, if they haven't been informed of the law.

I was very sad today when i asked one of my SWAT buddies if you could even obtain a license for Class III (or any body armor for that matter) in CA... he said its super illegal, and if you get caught with it, your ass is going to jail. I really hate CA sometimes, I know you can have it in AZ, had to leave my damned SKS and class 3 wpns there when I left .

(a) Any person who, while armed with a firearm in the commission or attempted commission of any felony, has in his or her immediate possession ammunition for the firearm designed primarily to penetrate metal or armor, shall upon conviction of that felony or attempted felony, in addition and consecutive to the punishment prescribed for the felony or attempted felony, be punished by an additional term of 3, 4, or 10 years. The court shall order the middle term unless there are circumstances in aggravation or mitigation. The court shall state the reasons for its enhancement choice on the record at the time of the sentence.
(b) Any person who wears a body vest in the commission or attempted commission of a violent offense, as defined in Section 29905, shall, upon conviction of that felony or attempted felony, in addition and consecutive to the punishment prescribed for the felony or attempted felony of which he or she has been convicted, be punished by an additional term of one, two, or five years. The court shall order the middle term unless there are circumstances in aggravation or mitigation. The court shall state the reasons for its enhancement choice on the record at the time of the sentence.
© As used in this section, "body vest" means any bullet-resistant material intended to provide ballistic and trauma protection for the wearer.
(d) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2012.

I would encourage anyone following hyzamarca's line of thought to grab his AR and trot down to wal-mart and see what happens. While he not may technically be arrested, for most of us it will seem eerily similar.

I would encourage anyone following hyzamarca's line of thought to grab his AR and trot down to wal-mart and see what happens. While he not may technically be arrested, for most of us it will seem eerily similar.