Plate Carrier vs Chest Rig

bowietx · #1 12-31-11, 11:28

Having just attended my first legitimate AR training course and having done it with virtually no specialized gear I was left with a questions regarding future gear purchases.

Chief among those was what type of gear to buy in order to maximize use for deployments and for courses. A good plate carrier seems to be the logical choice as it allows you to train like you fight, but could also be overkill when you are taking a course.

I am principally looking at the P.I.G plate carrier and the BCM chest rig. One question that I had was whether or not the BCM could be used over a plate carrier or not. I would love to hear some opions or experiences that could help guide my choice.

At this time I am running a VTAC Brokos belt and intend to continue its use.

Failure2Stop · #2 12-31-11, 13:42

You can wear pretty much any chest rig that I am awawre of over armor.
However, I am a "less is more" kind of guy.
If I am going to be putting something on, it might as well serve as many functions of gear as possible:
Stop holes, plug holes, create holes.
Stick a few mags and a bleeder kit on a plate carrier and you get all three.

bowietx · #3 12-31-11, 13:52

I appreciate the advice. What I am coming to find out is that I can only afford to buy once and get overly concerned about buying the wrong item first. You helped me solidify the thought that the plate carrier can do more and therefore is the better solution.

Given the wide array of carriers out there is there another solution besides the P.I.G. carrier that sits high enough to allow the use of a battle belt?

Failure2Stop · #4 12-31-11, 14:31

Pretty much all properly adjusted plate carriers will be high enough that they will not impede a belt mounted pistol draw.
Even when I was wearing full SPEAR/BALCS armor I only used a slightly dropped belt mounted holster. I have a relatively short torso and long legs.

I am using a Tyr PC with side buckles (no cummerbund), and it does not impede use of a trouser belt mounted OWB holster.

I personally do not currently use side-plates, though there is very good reason to do so if you can. One factor to consider is if the side plates will interfere with your ability to access your side-arm. Sometimes the answer is no, and sometimes the answer is to lower the pistol.

TehLlama · #5 12-31-11, 15:00

Unless you're going to be looking at the plate carriers with the three integral front mag pouches (like the Crye, BFC, Tyr, and LBT 6094), it may make more sense to first get a small chest rig (enough to carry a few additional magazines, maybe some extra FAK and admin/notetaking supplies, and save towards a plate carrier that will work under it as needed, giving you more flexibility.

A standing recommendation would be one of those plate carriers, some BFG 10-Speed pouches to add room for pistol magazines, hydration, blowout kit, and some admin storage and that's all you'd need.

deadlyfire · #6 12-31-11, 16:25

Always had armor, always will. Chest rigs are what you use when you can't afford a PC.

Shoot 1st · #7 12-31-11, 18:29

You say use for deployments? Are you not issued a PC for your job?

I dont ever recommend a PC to anyone unless they actually are gonna use/need it. Its a lot of money to spend only to run it a few times a year at a coarse or to be the only guy in your unit with it on sitting in a building all day etc.

Why would you run a chest rig over a PC? It defeats the purpose of having all that real estate to attach shit to on the PC.

I use a chest rig during training, if I just need to run some more ammo etc for the scenario.

As an LEO, I do wear plates, but if Im doing something that day in which I need more gear, I run a PC with what I need attached to it.

Basically I only run a chest rig for training. But I do train a lot with my PC so that I know how to use it etc.

bowietx · #8 12-31-11, 18:42

First, thank you to all of you for your insight and recommendations, both are greatly appreciated.

To answer some of the questions and respond to comments as well as to ask some additional questions here goes:

Yes we are issued plate carriers, but they typically suck and with two back surgeries under my belt I wouldn't mind spending some money on a better carrier that is ergonomic and provides enough real estate to get the job done. I concur with you that although i only have one course under my belt, the plate carrier would have been overkill. That led me to the chest rig, but if possible I would like to set something up that I can use for training and for real world use so that I don't have to go with the crap that we are issued. It seems that the best answer may be to buy both a chest rig and a plate carrier to optimally handle both scenarios, but my budget is tight.

I am definitely going to check out the other PCs from Crye, TYR etc. Has anyone used the PIG? On the same note for a chest rig has anyone used a BCM?

Tehllama, I greatly appreciate the load suggestions and will use that to optimize my gear. How many mags are you normally carrying on the chest rig/PC?

Shoot 1st · #9 12-31-11, 20:59

I understand, budget makes our world go round.

I can not afford to go out and buy 3 different rigs to find out what I like or need either.

I dont know what job or even what branch your in. That will dictate your load out, and will make it hard to make certain recommendations.
It looks cool to have 10 things strapped to your chest, but if you work for a living you learn real quick what you can and can not live without.

So again your job/mission will dictate what your load out is. My issued stuff was all eagle/ retagged arc-teryx stuff. Maybe i got lucky but they did what I needed them to.

I see you have a brokos, so I would bypass a chest rig all together.

I've yet to see a bad review on the PIG, but I dont believe you can pick a size for it. So if your smaller, or larger than the average person I would maybe look at another carrier. Good thing with most of the PC available, they are great quality and all have enough reviews to make your decision a lot easier to make. With everything being molle, you can make any PC work for whatever you need it for.
You can run mags etc on that belt no problem. Get a PC put what you need on it, and be able to pick it up and go when needed. When doing a coarse, run just the belt, sense Im sure you will wear/ get comfortable w/the PC just from your job etc.

13MPG · #10 01-01-12, 01:31

Take a look at the Mayflower APC. It’s a bit cheaper than the PIG and every bit as well made.

rob_s · #11 01-01-12, 08:15

A couple of links you may find helpful. Even if not for the specific products listed, at least for some of the concepts covered.

https://sites.google.com/site/tactic...-load-carriage

https://sites.google.com/site/tactic...-armor-carrier

bowietx · #12 01-01-12, 09:04

Gents,

Thanks for the information. I checked out the Mayflower APC and it looks remarkably similar to the P.I.G with some great features one being the lightweight design and fit. Going to have to do some further research on that. Lighter weight and the ability to carry the weight evenly and close to the body helps keep my back from remembering the surgeries. Great suggestion.

Rob S, thank you for the links to the writeups on the chest rig and plate carrier. Much of what was written about addressed some of the concerns/thoughts that I have formulated with limited experience. Chief among them was the ability to carry some etc gear during courses without having a ton of unnecessary crap hanging off of my body. The only thing that I have weighing on my decision that doesn't line up with this is the deployment issue. However, as I have considered the opinions given by many here, it seems like having a chest rig and a PC may be the best route. Your point on searching for used gear was a good one and I need to spend some time looking for some. I tend to over research my purchases and then become locked in on a specific setup and forget that others exist that may also fit the bill. I also appreciated your loadout considerations and thought that they were well thought out for the intended purpose. Do you run a hydration carrier on the rig? Might have missed this in the article and if so my apologies.

rob_s · #13 01-01-12, 09:22

No, I do not carry water on me in any way. My torso-mounted load carriage is training-only and I have never been in a training environment where I couldn't get a drink as needed. Pre-hydrating and taking smart advantage of scheduled breaks (like coming to the range with enough loaded magazines to get through the day without having to top up) works for me.

deadlyfire · #14 01-01-12, 20:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by bowietx

Gents,

Thanks for the information. I checked out the Mayflower APC and it looks remarkably similar to the P.I.G with some great features one being the lightweight design and fit. Going to have to do some further research on that. Lighter weight and the ability to carry the weight evenly and close to the body helps keep my back from remembering the surgeries. Great suggestion.

Rob S, thank you for the links to the writeups on the chest rig and plate carrier. Much of what was written about addressed some of the concerns/thoughts that I have formulated with limited experience. Chief among them was the ability to carry some etc gear during courses without having a ton of unnecessary crap hanging off of my body. The only thing that I have weighing on my decision that doesn't line up with this is the deployment issue. However, as I have considered the opinions given by many here, it seems like having a chest rig and a PC may be the best route. Your point on searching for used gear was a good one and I need to spend some time looking for some. I tend to over research my purchases and then become locked in on a specific setup and forget that others exist that may also fit the bill. I also appreciated your loadout considerations and thought that they were well thought out for the intended purpose. Do you run a hydration carrier on the rig? Might have missed this in the article and if so my apologies.

Just wanted to throw my two-cents in on Mayflower. I currently run their low profile assault carrier with my lvl IV plates. Wonderful system and has my recommendation

careboy · #15 01-01-12, 22:01

I'm awesome like that!

MSteele · #16 01-04-12, 19:02

I was in the same dilemma, PIG PC or BCM chest rig. A friend of mine actually purchased the PIG PC along with the molle CB, elastic CB and some of the kangaroo pouches. He runs 2 HSGI rifle tacos, 2 HSGI rifle/pistol tacos and the HSGI Bleeder kit as well as a hydration carrier. He has nothing but great things to say about it as it can be configured using the different CB's. He also uses a large plate in the rear and a medium plate in front which the PIG can adapt to any size plates. I recently used the BCM rig and like it very much so that I ordered one. It sits high enough to allow drawing from the hip and carries just enough ammo to complete any training course. I will have it set up with HSGI pistol tacos on the 2 left mag pouches and possibly a HSGI bleeder pouch also on the left. This gets the job done for me and when the time comes for some shoot house training then I will buy the PIG and mag carriers needed. Both are great products and if I had a need other then training for a plate carrier I could justify to myself spending the money on one. Almost did this past week when SKD had 16% off sale. Just my 2cents on what I have seen both these products do.

bowietx · #17 01-04-12, 20:38

Thanks glad to hear that I am not the only one who has faced down this dilemma. Interestingly I have the HSGI taco mag pouches and also almost bought the PIG when the SKD sale was on this past week. I am interested in what your friend thinks of the different CB options. Any preference indicated between the elastic and the Molle?

MSteele · #18 01-05-12, 01:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by bowietx

Thanks glad to hear that I am not the only one who has faced down this dilemma. Interestingly I have the HSGI taco mag pouches and also almost bought the PIG when the SKD sale was on this past week. I am interested in what your friend thinks of the different CB options. Any preference indicated between the elastic and the Molle?

He runs the four AR and two pistol mags in front along with two AR mags in the kangaroo pouches. When he runs his HSGI med pouch he attaches it to the molle on the left side of the CB. When he runs the elastic CB he eliminates the 2 mags in the kangaroo pouch and runs his speed reload on his belt on the left side. So he runs the PC according to what he is doing. He really likes the elastic CB because it makes running his RCS gear on his belt easier to access. Both the molle (which is the non soft armor one) and the elastic CB ride high enough to run the belt mounted gear. I really want one of these myself but it is definitely an investment once you consider all of the pouches and plates. Just started doing research on the TAG Banshee and for 1/3 the cost of the PIG at Ares Armor it kind of seems like an easy decision if you run 10X12 plates which I would. I also think you could use the elastic CB from the PIG on the Banshee as most CB are the same design. You could get the Banshee, triple mag pouch, 2 PIG Kangaroo pouches, 2 HSGI pistol tacos and HSGI Bleeder pouch for the price of the PIG maybe less. The PIG takes the prize over most PC's I have done research on for the simple fact it has several accessories, easier on & off with split front and seems to be very comfortable for a PC. In the end money dictates what I end up with. I want the PIG but if I can find something cheaper that has the low-profile design I could always use more ammo. That said my buddy couldn't be happier with the PIG and he's used PC's for many years as he's active mil. Keep me updated on your quest of the PC over chest rig.

variablebinary · #19 01-06-12, 02:11

Less is more.

Consolidate your gear where possible, unless you have a stellar reason for otherwise.

There are several light weight solutions on the market that are plate carriers with webbing.

TacMedic556 · #20 02-05-12, 12:30

On swat we have a soft armor complete vest with shoulder, neck and groin protection flaps, as well as two kidney plates on sides and front and back plates. I hate this vest, and I do not know the brand. One of our guys, hated his as well and ordered/configured his own vest in matching color (OD) to our current issue.

My question is, because I am paying for its replacement, what would you gentlemen recommend as far as just a front back plate carrier, lightweight, easy to don/doff/adjust. I want quality, but cannot break the bank ($200). I am the medic, and typically my main officer down blowout kit is on my left thigh, with some misc. stuff in a admin pouch on my chest.

Here is what I have gathered on here: Mayflower APC and PIG are recommended. What are thoughts on HSGI (Weesatch, Wasatch), and Eagle?

I was really interested in the Weesatch, however after seeing the Mayflower, I am curious what you all think.