I know there has been a lot of plate carrier questions, so I’m hoping that this is not a repeat of a previous post. My scenario is this. I am a police officer who works the road. I am looking for the most comfortable plate carrier out there to go over the top of my uniform. At a bare minimum I want shooters cut, but I am leaning towards swimmer cut plates for more range of motion, especially because I have one bad shoulder that already has lower range of motion. The two carriers I have been leaning toward are the Air light SPC Swimmer and Agilite Gear K19 Plate Carrier 3.0. What are your thoughts?
The K19 and the SPC aren’t really comparable, IMO, given that the K19 lacks a structural cummerbund. The two will wear totally differently.
Comfort is entirely dependent on what you put on the PC, and without that, we can’t make a judgement. If you’re running some lightweight special threat plates and maybe a triple shingle and nothing else, a minimalist PC would be way more comfortable than a big padded one, but if you’re carrying a bunch of mags, radio, water, grenades, etc. on it, you’d want the big, bulky padded one over the minimalist PC.
I would look at slick style carriers like the airlite and add all that to the front.
I dont know how much difference a carrier will make for comfort if its sitting on top of soft armor. But I would get the lightest multi curve plates you can afford at the rating you want.
Uh… what? All rifle rated plates would defeat .44 Mag. Hell, IIIA is specifically tested against .44 Mag, and is a very common rating for soft armor.
Soft armor provides much better coverage than plates ever could. In an LE job, soft armor would provide much better protection compared to plates, given the threats most LEOs face. There are many plates that are designed to be used with a backer, and the IIIA soft armor that many agencies issue would be a great match to them.
I will argue against finding the lightest plates with the level of threat defeat you want, as this can often mean you’re running around with plates >1", as UHMWPE can be very light, but also very thick; I’m more than willing to trade some weight for to be lower profile, as mobility remains key IMO. It’s all a balance, and you’ll have to determine what weight, thickness, cost, and threat defeat you need, we can’t do that for you.
I’ll note that I would outfit the SPC with a quick donning system rather than deal with the hook/loop attachment, particularly for an active shooter type rig; I personally run the AXL Tube adapters for my SPC.
I’ve run an active shooter/warrant rig like the OP outlines for numerous years, worn over a class A polyester uniform with soft armor underneath. At the the time, it was just medium SAPIs in a Diamondback carrier with the cummerbund removed and just using the quick clips.
If I was going to run it again it would probably be something in the realm of a First Spear First On, Grey Ghost Gear Minimalist, or Eagle Active Shooter carrier with special threat plates. The latter two carriers needing additional pouches, I prefer Esstac KYWI mids, and I’d add a dangler for the IFAK.
Get the SPC or a JPC 2.0 hands down.
The Agilite build quality is ok, but it is heavy and bloopy. And if you’re wearing this over your soft armor duty vest, you’re not going to need the ridiculous amount of extra padding it has anyway. Might actually fit worse.
For your loadout and usage level, you probably don’t “need” the SPC if you can get a JPC 2.0 cheap enough. But, the structural support of the SPC won’'t hurt either. Flip a coin.
Agreed, lighter/thinner would be best for your application, and DEFINITELY go FS tubes or some other QD setup for the cumber for this particular mission. In your place, I’d consider that a must.
You definitely need to wear your soft armor- for the coverage against pistols.
I’m a LEO and find myself occasionally in uniform. When I do. I’m wearing an external soft armor carrier with a couple items mounted on front ( flashlight, TQ, and OC ) as I can’t carry everything needed on my duty belt. I could not throw my Pc on over that if needed for an active shooter situation. I carry 2 options based on response time and situation. One is a simple bandolier with rifle mags and an iFak. The other is my SWAT issued soft / hard armor combo- and will be used if time permits.
I think PC’s for LEO’s have a specific stand alone use, and should be used for the most part in conjunction with soft armor. I’d recommend the JPC 1 or 2.0 if you are throwing over soft armor / uniform shirt
Really depends on what you want to spend. I’ve had the Ferro Concepts Slickster and the FCPC and a few other cheap no name brand plate carriers. I like the FCPC better than the Slickster for LEO active shooter response. The JPC 2.0 option is good as well. If you’re really looking to save weight choose your plates wisely. You can pick up some lightweight Level III+ in conjunction with soft armor plates which are pretty light. Again though depends on what your budget is and whether your a buy once cry once type of guy.
I would go this route - https://www.optactical.com/fispfionwigp.html. On sale and specifically designed for what is your stated mission. Because you are already wearing soft armor you can get plates would be Level 4 with backers. Save you some weight.