LV 119 Covert Plate Carrier: Is Minimalist Plate Carrier Right for You?
I bought my LV 119 in 2019. If I did the review right away, I would probably start the review by explaining why a citizen would feel the need to have a plate carrier. But the times changed. 2020 riots in the US and the horrors of the full-scale war in the middle of Europe changed a lot of minds when it comes to disaster preparedness, firearms, and gear. For most people the question now is not why you would need body armor, but rather what body armor will be the right tool for the job. I will try to explain why I chose this style of body armor and what considerations I think are important when choosing body armor for disaster preparedness/civil unrest scenarios.
Plate Carriers @ TFB:
Why choose a covert plate carrier?
Well, of course, it was slick TREX arms marketing videos that sold me on the idea of LV 119, but there were a few specific applications that steered me toward covert plate carriers.
1. Working in High-Risk countries
I spend a lot of time working in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Somalia. In those countries, you’re often required to wear body armor, and if you don’t have your own, you have to constantly borrow it when you’re bouncing between multiple contracts in different parts of the country. When you have been in the same contract for years, it is not a big deal, you just have a set of gear assigned to you, but when you’re everywhere at once, it becomes challenging.
Issued equipment is never top-tier, especially if you’re a gear aficionado and used to only the best stuff. So many people bring their own plate carrier into the country, and Iraqi customs officers at the border are generally ok with that.
The problem comes when you need to fly home with your plate carrier. All of a sudden, customs agents change their minds and confiscate your plate carrier for the greater good of Iraqi national security, threatening you with all kinds of allegations.
LV 119 and other covert minimalist plate carriers without the plates can be rolled into a neat little package the size of a small water bottle. In my experience, such a small package never threatens anyone’s national security, especially if you put it deep into your suitcase.
On many contracts in Iraq, body armor is worn slick, without any pouches on it, and people with full combat load on their plate carriers are perceived as wannabe Rambos.
Covert plate carriers are perfect for this role. And even without pouches, on LV 119 you can have a radio, some mags, and a medical kit stuffed inside the elastic cummerbund, where those items will be in easy reach and concealed if necessary.
2. Working in mostly peaceful regions of High-Risk countries
However, there is a time in place for “full combat load”, so the plate carrier must be easily adaptable for this purpose. On LV 119, or another covert plate carrier, you can quickly clip in the placard with pouches of your choice.
This placard can be stored somewhere fully loaded, for example in your GO-BAG, and when it is time to look like a minor character from Call of Duty, you just put it on within seconds.
I never understood why people only have three magazines on their carrier, so I opted for a larger custom-made placard that fits 4 AK magazines, some Glock mags, and a bunch of random pouches I had lying around the house. Even more AK magazines can be stored in an elastic cummerbund.
3. Going to shady places back home
If you can avoid going to stupid places with stupid people – good for you. But when it is unavoidable, having some sort of body armor just makes sense. Since I avoid trouble, I don’t go to dangerous places often, so buying an entire set of concealable body armor didn’t make sense.
But with a covert plate carrier like LV 119, you can detach fast tech buckles in the front, insert some soft armor into the carrier and it will be pretty concealable. Perhaps far from ideal, but pretty good for such a versatile item.
For me, LV 119 was very fitting for all three main purposes I described above, and I was happy I bought it. With it, you can go from concealable body armor to “full kit” within seconds, it is light and relatively comfortable. I thought those features would be in high demand in our society, but apparently, I was wrong.
Recently, Spiritus Systems quietly discontinued their covert version of LV 119 due to low demand. The rear part of the covert plate carrier is still available. Thankfully, the “Overt” version of the carrier isn’t that different, and I would assume it is still pretty concealable as well.
In 2020, a friend borrowed my LV 119 for a movie production. It was used by the main antagonist of the movie, so my humble setup got some time on the silver screen.
Naturally, now I don’t even want to try other covert plate carriers, cause mine has so much nostalgic value.
The circumstances I described are similar to what a lot of people might face in the situation of civil unrest, so perhaps this article can help someone who is shopping for new gear.
In conclusion – do you need a covert plate carrier? The short answer is: “Well, I sincerely hope you won’t ever need one“.
Vladimir Onokoy is a small arms subject matter expert and firearms instructor. Over the years he worked in 20 different countries as a security contractor, armorer, firearms industry sales representative, product manager, and consultant. His articles were published in the Recoil magazine, Small Arms Review, Small Arms Defence Journal, and Silah Report. He also contributed chapters to books from the "Vickers Guide: Kalashnikov" series. Email: machaksilver at gmail dot com. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Vladimir-Onokoy-articles-and-videos-about-guns-and-other-unpopular-stuff-107273143980300/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vladonokoy/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/machaksilver
More by Vladimir Onokoy
Comments
Join the conversation
Vlad, how do you like the PUFGUN mags?
I'm late to the party, but another great option for a minimal carrier is the
https://lapolicegear.com/la...
Fifty smackers and it's low profile with plenty of great features. Slick carriers and chest rigs are the way to go for me!