Dragon Skin, really worth the trouble?
Dragon Skin, created by Pinnacle Armour, is a newer style of body armor. It is one of those things that you either love or hate. Many people swear by it, and many say that it should never be used. I personally think that it is a great invention, after I watched a demonstration on it.
In conventional body armor, there is what is called Kevlar, a bullet “proof” material, and it has a metal plate in it. This is decent, but it is heavy and it can only handle a couple of rounds. Dragon skin is different.
When a bullet hits body armor, the force from being stopped by the vest spreads and cracks the plate. This means that the vest can only be hit a couple times before it is completely ineffective.
Dragon skin, on the other hand, is completely different. Instead of having the single plate, it has dozens of smaller plates, each bullet proof. The plates are laid together like scales, one layer slightly covering the next. They are held together by small hinges and relatively light and portable.
When a bullet hits dragon skin, instead of it shattering like the regular armor, the force is spread across the single plates, damaging one or two but not affecting the rest. This is very important when there are thousands of rounds are flying and you need something that you can rely on to make it through without failing. Dragon skin does exactly this.
I believe that this is amazing stuff. A armor that has been proven to stop multiple bullets without compromising the vest, while still protecting the wearer. What else could you want? It is currently being tested by some military personnel overseas in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as some police units, such as SWAT, here in the United States.
The people who have been wearing it have stories about how it has saved their life. The way I look at it, if the soldiers and police trust it, then I should trust it. I think that it should become the official body armor of the United States military and police forces.