XSPEED Level IIIA+ body armor plate test: 9mm and 5.7x28

Key points: XSPEED Level IIIA body

• The XSPEED plate weighs 820 grams, under 2 pounds, is 22 mm thick with a slight curve, and was worn for two days at a desert airsoft event in roughly 100-degree heat without discomfort.
• XSPEED calls the plate Level IIIA+ and rates it for handgun threats including .44 Magnum, 9mm, 5.7x28 and 7.62x25; it is not rated for rifle rounds such as 5.56.
• A backing layer XSPEED calls Super Cushion is meant to reduce back face deformation, the bulge behind an impact that can cause blunt-force injury such as broken ribs.
• 9mm full metal jacket and 9mm hollow points, fired from a Glock 19 and a SIG P365, were stopped, with back face deformation judged at under a centimeter.
• A 40-grain 5.7x28 round from a PS90, the strongest load tested, left a small entry hole but did not penetrate, with a dent judged at under a centimeter.
• A rapid string of about half a magazine, aimed mostly at the bottom of the plate, cracked the face and raised a bulge on the back, but no round went through.
• The .40 caliber Glock failed to fire, so that load was never tested, and back face deformation was judged by eye and by hand rather than measured.

About this Ballistics Focu video

XSPEED Level IIIA+ body armor plate shot with 9mm full metal jacket, 9mm hollow points and 5.7x28 from a PS90, then a rapid string aimed at the bottom of the plate. Lilly Tactical covers the plate's weight, thickness and curve, wears it for two days at a desert airsoft event, and checks each hit for penetration and back face deformation. The plates were supplied by XSPEED, a Taiwan armor maker entering the US market.

Transcript: XSPEED Level IIIA