Tactical Vests

“Tactical vests” is a term usually used for a load-bearing garment. These vests are designed to help users carry different kinds of tactical gear or other EDC essentials. They can be used for hunting, or fishing, and worn over body armor as well. Tactical vests are also used in sports shooting and airsoft competitions.

Tactical vests are made from heavy duty durable materials, and they have a lot of pockets and pouches to increase your storage capacity. They also have a load-bearing system, like MOLLE straps or Laser Cut loops. These days most tactical vests may also have pockets for ballistic inserts that can provide extra protection, however, it isn’t essential.

tactical vests are used by many police officers and Military personal. civilians may also use them for many purposes, like a self defense setup, a range vest, an airsoft game, or other outdoor activities. The have adjustable shoulder straps, and offer a lot of load carrying potential with their MOLLE system

Though by definition, Tactical vests are only supposed to be load bearing jackets, which are used to attach tactical gear to, these days some tactical vests also have pockets for an armor plate. So, if you add a ballistic armor insert into a tactical vest, then it can definitely be bulletproof as well. Some tactical vests are also made with Kevlar lining, which is why there is confusion between tactical vests and bullet proof vests, and some people used the words interchangeably.

As previously mentioned, Tactical vests inherently don’t offer either ballistic protection or stab protection, however, with the ability of modern tactical vests to accept armor panels, you can definitely add a stab-proof panel to your tactical vest and make it resistant to stabs, slashes and spikes.

Stab proof panels are different from ballistic panels, and are designed to stop stabs and slashes from spikes and sharp knives.

Yes, it is completely legal to wear tactical vests in public. In fact, you can even own and wear bulletproof vests in public. Therefore, it doesn’t matter if your tactical vests have ballistic panels or not, you can wear them in any public place without any worries about legality. However, for convicted felons, wearing a tactical vest with ballistic inserts is illegal, unless they fall into any exception, as in, their job requires them to wear ballistic tactical vests.

Still, keep in mind that wearing a tactical vest in public will definitely make you stand out like a sore thumb, and it might attract unnecessary attention. Moreover, keep in mind that where wearing a tactical vest may be legal, some of the tactical gear you have equipped on the vest might not be.

For instance, in states like California and New York open carrying a pistol on your tactical vest might get you into trouble. Therefore, make sure that your tactical gear is also legal to carry publically.

The perfect tactical vest setup can vary for different people depending on the purpose they are using the vests for, and their personal tactics and techniques. 

Firstly, before you move on to anything else, you need to ensure that your tactical vest is a good fit. A vest that is too tight, or too loose can be uncomfortable and restrict your movement. The right tactical vest should fit you perfectly. 

 Next, make sure to load your tactical vest only with the equipment you need. This can be different for different jobs, for instance, a police officer may need to carry handcuffs, a taser, a body cam, and pistol mag pouches, whereas someone in a search and rescue party may need a medical kit, a flashlight, radio coms, and a GPS device. So, make sure to identify the best tools for your mission, and carry only those, so that you can have a lightweight tactical vest setup. 

The next step is to master your tac vest setup. In a defensive combat situation, milliseconds can change everything, therefore, you should be able to access all of your equipment instantly.

When it comes to tactical gear, there are loads of different items that you can mount on a tactical vest. To put it simply, most tactical molle vests have the MOLLE (Modular Lightweight Load-carrying equipment), or PALS (Pouch Attachment Ladder System), which allows users to mount any compatible equipment.

Most commonly, people who use AR-15s will have one triple mag pouch on the front to carry their ammo. Some may even mount a pistol holder on the chest area for quick access to a side arm. Other tactical gear that is usually mounted on Tactical vests includes medical kits, flashlight pouches, grenade pouches, knives, pepper spray, tasers, communication systems, and other pouches to carry small items and accessories.

When buying body armor, any buyer has two main choices. They can either opt for tactical bulletproof vests, or plate carriers with armor plates. Both plate forms serve a similar purpose by having many key differences. 

For instance, Tactical vests may or may not have armor carrying capabilities, and if they do accept armor insert, there are going to be soft armor inserts, which are made from Kevlar. Most good tactical vests have level IIIA armor inserts, and are made from good quality tough materials, and have great storage capabilities. On the other hand, plate carriers are always used to carry armor plates, which are designed to offer protection against rifle calibers as well. 

Tactical vests are more commonly used by local law enforcement officials, like police officers, and federal agents, however, Military personnel almost always use mil-spec plate carriers, since they are much more likely to face rifle threats. 

Tactical vests are fully adjustable, with adjustable straps, and different fits. Whereas plate carriers also have adjustable shoulder straps and cumberbunds, so that the plates can be centered on the wearer’s chest. The inside of both great quality tactical vests and plate carriers have mesh lining, which is designed to improve air flow and make your body armor more comfortable to wear in hot weather.  However, when it comes to carrying tactical gear, tac vests take the lead.

Overall, both tactical vests and plate carriers are very useful, and sometimes, they can be used together as well, as many people wear load bearing tactical vests, which don’t have armor inserts over their minimalistic or concealable plate carriers, to get better load carrying capabilities.