At what point do you go chest rig ?

Ṡalinnis said:
Chest rig for LARP, plate carrier with storage for IRL.
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I don’t really do anything like that. I just like to shoot. I just I guess mean at what point is the carrier beneficial to start wearing and shooting with ? Like do people wear them at the range just for mag storage or? I just don’t get them.
 
If you're just 'at the range' there's not much point in a chest rig.

If you're participating in a competition or training event where you need to carry more than what's on a belt, they start to make sense.
 
Outside of a tactical application, there isn't really a "need." Some guys like them so they can wear their mags and gear on the range and not have to go back to a table, some guys use them in competitions/ run and guns.
 
mdemartino said:
I don’t really do anything like that. I just like to shoot. I just I guess mean at what point is the carrier beneficial to start wearing and shooting with ? Like do people wear them at the range just for mag storage or? I just don’t get them.
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Mag storage, quick access, muscle memory, lots of training applications.

I'm not a competition shooter, but a recreational larp'r. So I like to wear a rig/carrier anytime I'm practicing reloads and pistol rifle transition, which is basically anytime I'm shooting offhand.

I see alot more benefits of chest storage for competition shooting, but it would assume it's a preference/necessity thing.
 
mdemartino said:
Simple question but not such simple answers.
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Mostly larping. I've been doing classes for years and now you see guys running chest rigs whereas used to it was rare. Same thing with the tactical tutu aka battle belt. Assuming you have plates, they are heavy so training with them is good exercise. It gets things off your hips. I think a plate carrier/chest rig makes more sense than a tactical belt. I think most of the guys should be training in whatever they wear normally. So if your a LEO then bring your kit, if your just a civilian, better to train with your concealed carry and your spare mag. Just my two cents.
 
If I put all that stuff on and went for a run through my neighborhood, someone would be calling the law…

But I can do the same on my elliptical at home, without any pearl-clutching.👍
 
I think chest rigs are cool, and have no issue with people who own em/run em, but I have personally never really found a need for one. I have a belt/suspenders set up that I used to wear during competitions and it could hold more than enough than I would need for a match. I bought a micro-chest rig from SOE years ago, put it on and adjusted it to fit, and then have yet to use it again.

If you are setting up a "home defense" rig, then a plate carrier would make sense.

But, at the same time, forget practicality, we buy stuff for giggles, so get you a big ol'chest rig and rock that thing out to your hearts content.
 
mdemartino said:
Simple question but not such simple answers.
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Depends on your tolerance for making people uneasy, turning an otherwise normal day for lots of folks into an awkward one, or if you are anywhere near me, wondering "why that guy inhaled his cigarette butt when he turned and saw me. He looked like he was gonna say something, or laugh, but then he bent double choking, weird".

If you are by yourself, or at some sort of event, like where you ain't the only one dressed to the 9's (or bedecked with the 9's), or in a trench outside Kiev, by all means go all out.

If you are thinking like here in Murica, in some sort of real-deal-gotta-legit-need-for-one situation, when should you wear plates or just a chest rig, you should pray its cold so you can wear a big jacket over all of it.
 
I’d say 95% of my chest rig usage is classes … and even then not even full time. Tacticool is just not that practical for me.
 
Let whoever call chest riggin larpery. IMO if you get yourself a TAPS you can MOLLE any admin/canteen pouch whatever you want on the outside- then you’ll find yourself a little better off if you anticipate yourself getting in the prone with or without plates. Get the spiritus TAPS enhancement kit for fancy back/shoulder strap set up if you want and MOLLE some quick release buckles(JMs come at me) to your plate carrier if you want and strap right into that. Say you want to rock 3 mags and a radio- you’re good to go. Or run full battle rattle plates or no plates. You can do whatever you want. Worst case scenario you get it and never LARP and you got yourself a ready mag bandolier/chest rig
 
Classes, larping, and what not. Belt kit goes on first, chest rig is just an option to plus up. My Haley Micro rig with a dangler is pretty dang small and can fold in half basically for easy transport. Great way to travel with 3 extra mags, medical, and admin stuff even if not taking a class.
 
I have a Kenai chest rig for my 10mm woods gun. And I rarely consider it a necessity… a few hikes in bear country… it’s way more comfortable with a pack on than anything on my waist
 
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As soon as you need one. Or want one and have the spare cash to buy one.

Used for competitions or just training for “what ifs”.

LARP it up my dude. You aren’t alone. ✊
 
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I run and hike in a plate carrier for the same reason guys my age play pickup basketball, hockey, softball, etc…basically I’m just trying to temporarily re-live my glory days. There really is no practical purpose to having a plate carrier or chest rig in my opinion, but if having one can make you feel good about yourself and augment your fitness at the same time then it’s a pretty cheap date.
 
363medic said:
I run and hike in a plate carrier for the same reason guys my age play pickup basketball, hockey, softball, etc…basically I’m just trying to temporarily re-live my glory days. There really is no practical purpose to having a plate carrier or chest rig in my opinion, but if having one can make you feel good about yourself and augment your fitness at the same time then it’s a pretty cheap date.
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@mdemartino

As you can see, chest rig means different things to different people. For some it's hunting rig for large handguns. For some, it's a plate carrier. For some it's a load bearing vest. It could be many things.
So, it depends on what you mean. It also depends on your individual needs, wants and circumstances. What are you trying to accomplish with it? What problem are you trying to solve? Sometimes, there are solutions that don't have problems.

Here's a chest rig for you...
giphy-1747132635.gif
 
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When I lived in Vermont, I chest carried all winter due to overcoat requirement. It was the most comfortable carry I've ever had.
 
363medic said:
I run and hike in a plate carrier for the same reason guys my age play pickup basketball, hockey, softball, etc…basically I’m just trying to temporarily re-live my glory days. There really is no practical purpose to having a plate carrier or chest rig in my opinion, but if having one can make you feel good about yourself and augment your fitness at the same time then it’s a pretty cheap date.
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I have a PC with plates I use for exercise. That's it. I understand the probability enough to know that if I die from being shot COM because I did not wear my PC, it's just my time to go.
 
At the end of the day, I think anyone who has a plate carrier/chest rig/battle belt/tacpack - has one for the same reason they have a gun.

Because we can,
and if we're being completely honest about armor and respirator systems, if you can have one, you should have one. Maybe even 2 or 3 for family members.

Best case scenario, you pass away before ever needing to use it in a real situation, and someone in your family inherits your kit.

Worst case, you live long enough to be caught without it and get center massed by the Hill People in full kit. Spending your final moments wishing you had spent more time viewing it as a valuable piece of equipment and less time pretending it's not a proven and highly effective means of stopping projectiles from making holes in your upper body.

I'm slightly joking with that last part, but let's face it. Having a kit on hand set up to be fitted to you in matter seconds isn't going to be the worst way you'll spend $500-$1000. And will make a pretty cool conversion piece
 
If we're talking about plate carriers (and plates)...

They're like parachutes. You may never need one, but if you do, you're going to need one real bad. And you're going to wish you'd bought the best money can buy.

And if you have one (or any "chest rig"), it would be good to train with it. Wear it in a competition for example, to discover any gotchas, like it impedes your draw or interferes with your aiming/shooting/reloading or gets tangled with your gun.
 
That every citizen, so enrolled and notified, shall, within six months thereafter, provide himself with a good musket or firelock, a sufficient bayonet and belt, two spare flints, and a knapsack, a pouch, with a box therein, to contain not less than twenty four cartridges, suited to the bore of his musket or firelock, each cartridge to contain a proper quantity of powder and ball; or with a good rifle, knapsack, shot-pouch, and powder-horn, twenty balls suited to the bore of his rifle, and a quarter of a pound of powder…

Militia Act of 1792


“Hey, Samuel…where’s your sh*t?”

“Eh…really don’t see a need in having all that stuff.”

“TF?!!!!!!!!”
 
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No one needs that many rounds!

Interesting perspective, going to war with 24 rounds. We tend to think of battles in the modern perspective, lots of rounds fired quickly. But, back then, each round took a while.
 
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To each his own. If we're going by probabilities, you'll protect yourself better by wearing a helmet in your house for falling trees or passenger jet doors, or while driving in your car. But that ain't cool. Having a chest rig with 90+ rounds of rifle ammo is not something high on my list, while plates/carrier is of somewhat higher importance to me.
 
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