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I found some interesting videos on youtube, where a guy tries to shoot through a gummy bear with all sorts of rounds. This seemed nonsensical at first, but the more I watched him shoot it, the more it seems like something like this may actually work. I'm guessing due to a combination of tensile strength as well as being able to grab the projectile, gummys can apparently stop small projectiles moving at high velocity... It only really starts to have issues when really large rounds are used (such as a 7.62).

This may be a dumb thing to ask, but has this been tested a supplement to body armor? Like in front of a ballistic plate or kevlar.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_xx_Lj_NuQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DHGySOLCbk

There are more videos of him testing different things on it and there are some copy cat videos as well now.

Isn't it going to be similar to the gelatin dummies they use as a stand in for actual people (since the penetration for bullets is similar to shooting a person.) So it's not exactly great armor. Plus how long will your gummy armor last when it rains? And do you really want to deal with all the critters that are attracted to your armor's sugary goodness?

It fails to stop the .45, and that's still a pistol round. There's nothing really special happening here - the only reason it "stops" the .22 and .380 is because it works about the same way a person would stopping those rounds. You're thinking "body armour", when you should be thinking "substandard ballistics gel".

TwistedKestrel wrote:

you should be thinking "delicious ballistics gel".

ftfy

Actually there has been research into gelatinized body armor, but it just doesn't stand up to rounds like steel and ceramic, plus you have weight. Remember we've moved to ceramic plates due to all the equipment military users carry. It probably will stop more rounds than kevlar armor, but it would also be a good deal heavier - if the weight wasn't an issue, everyone would use steel body armor which can usually stop large caliber rifle rounds.

keltor wrote:

if the weight wasn't an issue, everyone would use steel body armor which can usually stop large caliber rifle rounds.

Once powered exoskeletons become a reality, they can have some pretty hefty armor on them.

CB5000 wrote:

keltor wrote:

if the weight wasn't an issue, everyone would use steel body armor which can usually stop large caliber rifle rounds.

Once powered exoskeletons become a reality, they can have some pretty hefty armor on them.

Once combat robots become a reality, there won't be humans with body armor anyway, just armored robots.

jihadjoe wrote:

TwistedKestrel wrote:

you should be thinking "delicious ballistics gel".

ftfy

My problem would be that I would eat all my body armor...

There are stab vests and motor bike armors which are made from gel like materials. They behave like the infamous cornstarch in water: liquid like at rest but solid when under impact.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYIWfn2Jz2g

It seems to me like the stab vest solution should work to stop bullets, but perhaps it adds too much weight at the thickness required.

.25"-4" penetration. do you really want to wear a vest that is 6" deep front and back? we could rename our marine corp the "michelin corp." I'll take Kevlar or ceramic thanks. If they want to put some gel cushions underneath the actual armor, I'll leave that up to them.

Body armor on modern soldier isn't meant to stop bullets. A high-velocity bullet with a decent caliber at medium distance is going to cut through like butter. The amount of protect you would need to prevent this would be far too heavy and unwieldy to be worth it. It is meant to protect the soldier from debris and shrapnel. They are far more lethal and damaging than most bullets.

Body armor like full plated suit in middle ages isn't going to be coming back anytime soon. You still to develop an energy storage unit that has enough density that can power exoskeletons without being too large and unwieldy while having decent operational time.

keltor wrote:

Actually there has been research into gelatinized body armor, but it just doesn't stand up to rounds like steel and ceramic, plus you have weight. Remember we've moved to ceramic plates due to all the equipment military users carry. It probably will stop more rounds than kevlar armor, but it would also be a good deal heavier - if the weight wasn't an issue, everyone would use steel body armor which can usually stop large caliber rifle rounds.

It is the weight and lost of mobility that killed plated armor. Battle and Sniper rifles can easily penetrate steel plating and ceramics without too much trouble. Soldiers became glass cannons once rifles became commonplace on the battlefield. Hard helmets and Kevlar padding is meant to deal with debris and shrapnel not bullets.

The .45 goes through a hole made prior. The gummy bear definitely has issues once it starts taking more then a couple shots, but so does ceramic. Using it as a first layer of defense is what I was thinking about, just to diffuse the energy from the bullet if not completely stop it, then use a different sublayer to do the work. Something like making it thick enough to stop pistol rounds and let the other armor do the work. I know this seems like armchair captain territory, but I can't imagine the army considering using gummy bears.

Keep in mind this isn't military grade gummy bears... this is something bought from vet not intended to stop bullets. All I was talking about was the possibility of using something like this. I'm sure weight, thickness could be toned down. Taking into account sublayers or even blending it.

I actually got to these videos from a .22 vs cornstarch video. I don't think this functions the same was as non-newtonian fluids do (cornstarch). Those tighten up when force is applied, this is just more like rubber where it diffuses the energy and grips the bullet (although rubber doesn't do that). Kevlar is similar, but I don't think it's the same thing.

MadManOriginal wrote:

CB5000 wrote:

keltor wrote:

if the weight wasn't an issue, everyone would use steel body armor which can usually stop large caliber rifle rounds.

Once powered exoskeletons become a reality, they can have some pretty hefty armor on them.

Once combat robots become a reality, there won't be humans with body armor anyway, just armored robots.

Yeah then they explode to the kid piloting 00.

Once you start talking about gelatin-type substances, you're basically talking about water and an agent that keeps it from flowing away. All other practical considerations aside, you'll never get away from the weight and bulk problems.

If the weight can be tolerated, then for equivalent stopping power you might as well start adding more layers of plating which can achieve better density ratios and thus achieve equivalent stopping power with less bulk.

Pretty much just restating the thread for clarity, but:

If it's enough gummi to stop a bullet, it'll stop the soldier (from being able to carry the weight).

I think this thread is fully explored and completed.

Forge wrote:

I think this thread is fully explored and completed.

But I still want a jelly baby ('70s Brit-Speak for a gummy bear) from the Fourth Doctor's stash. Hmm, upon reflection, probably not. No one knows where those pockets have been. Better ask Sarah Jane or K-9.