Airsoft Gun Vs. Fiberglass

[BlindRascal]

I thought about grabbing mat while i was at the Ace hardware store in my area, but they didnt carry it and i only had like 40 bucks to my name at the time. When i come home from college or if by some miracle i can find some in the next 3 days before i leave, I'll post results.

Psh I work at Ace and we have fiberglass mat. I know because I bought mine there lol. You can always special order it next time if you wanted. But I'm sure your happy with yours now that it doesn't matter it.

 

[AoBfrost]

Dont forget kids, paint will chip off and be ruined.

Also dont forget, in airsoft and paintball fights, you just dont stand there and shoot each other like idiots, you duck, run, and jump for cover, etc. Impact, weight, and force will rip your armor apart.

 

[scandomfo]

well, both cloth and mat have their places. cloth is a bit easier to work with for those who haven't worked with fiberglass alot, mainly because its woven and requires less resin than mat. Mat on the other hand is a bit tricker because its just random fiberglass threads infused in a binder and requires a TON more resin to get the best results

I guess in a way either pick is good but then mat has an extra layer(s) of resin for strength. Just depends what you use in the end.

AoBfrost

Yeah he's right -.- I guess you can wear your armor in those type of things for kicks and giggles. A laugh here and there for fun.

 

[CPU64]

People will soon realize the mistake when they start to run and the armor starts to weigh down and sag...

Also, I've said here way back that fiberglass will take airsoft shots with no problem.. Try shooting a motorcycle helmet.. Thats the test right there. You just need to have the same density applied to your armor.
I've done test shots with a pellet rifle @ 1000 pfs. It can stop it, but it needs to be significantly thick...

I'll do another test if you guys want to "see" the results..

 

[AoBfrost]

People will soon realize the mistake when they start to run and the armor starts to weigh down and sag...

Also, I've said here way back that fiberglass will take airsoft shots with no problem.. Try shooting a motorcycle helmet.. Thats the test right there. You just need to have the same density applied to your armor.
I've done test shots with a pellet rifle @ 1000 pfs. It can stop it, but it needs to be significantly thick...

I'll do another test if you guys want to "see" the results..

Jump and fall face flat on your 100% accurate high detailed 1000 hours of work put into armor. Your visor will come lose, your fiberglass will crack, the paint will chip, and you'll have noobs shooting the crap out of you with bb's your armor has a million circular dents in it.

The fact you become "buff" too, you stick out more when hiding, someone can just shoot you. All the running and jumping will rip apart your armor. People have tried, and wasted their suit in the process. Listen to this advice, or you'll lose your nice suit.

 

[CPU64]

Yeah, unless you're bluerealm with the power to cast as infinite awesome pulls, its a bad idea..

 

[scandomfo]

So really the armor we make is only a prop or costume for normal use as in walking around.

 

[TexasAggie2011]

im sure it isn't entirely impossible. if someone wants to take the time to make armor thats resistant or even impervious to shocks, falls and pellet fire, and still be maneuverable, they could. the only limits are you imagination and your wallet

 

[helios]

I'd say mostly wallet. Imagination can be borowed from friends.

 

[BlindRascal]

I donno, my fiberglass matted helmet was pretty indestructible. That took many hammer hits with only paint scrapes. Paint can be repainted. But I'm not endorsing going out in your armor and doing this.

 

[CPU64]

I donno, my fiberglass matted helmet was pretty indestructible. That took many hammer hits with only paint scrapes. Paint can be repainted. But I'm not endorsing going out in your armor and doing this.

If the armor is designed from the start to be used in a paintball type environment, it can be wearable.. I wouldn't mind falling on armor if its on dirt instead of cement/rocks..
No matter what the material used is, it will get trashed against concrete/rocks..

 

[Deadguy]

So the real question is, can you run around your house and dive through the open window of your car without drawing blood, getting bruised, and/or wrecking your suit. If the answer is no, welcome to the club and don't bother going any further.

If the answer is yes, then this ballistics test is "ok" to start with, although the test semed to be more about the box than the fiberglass. Anyone want to wear their Halo 3 box to the range? It SEEMED to do pretty good, with only a seemingly 1-in-30 fail rate.

Make a fiberglass lid to that box, smooth it, and paint it. Then shoot that lid, and then you'll be on the right track for testing the costume itself.

Next, do a ballistics test against your neck, shoulders, knees, stomach, etc. because obviously, these areas have no fiberglass on them, and you'll need to protect them in other ways.

Next, assuming that you've already tested the lens... Put it into the helmet, put the helmet on, and fire under the chin to determine how good the armor is as far as pellets that get past the armor that's not designed to stop pellets from accessing your eyes, nose, or mouth.

You know.. similar to the effectiveness of an umbrella when walking underwater. You might as well not bother with it because it's as good as useless if it's not designed to block things from coming-in around the edges of it.. That's kind of the point with goggles in the first place.

If you do not manufacture protective devices, you are not manufacturing a protective device.

It CAN be done, but you need to decide right from the start if you're planning a costume or usable armor. It certainly makes a difference in the methods and shapes you'll be working with.

If you wear your basic protective gear UNDER the costume, you'd probably be in better shape, but if you fail test #1 above.. then your costume won't make it anyways.

 

[odst26]

Jump and fall face flat on your 100% accurate high detailed 1000 hours of work put into armor. Your visor will come lose, your fiberglass will crack, the paint will chip, and you'll have noobs shooting the crap out of you with bb's your armor has a million circular dents in it.

The fact you become "buff" too, you stick out more when hiding, someone can just shoot you. All the running and jumping will rip apart your armor. People have tried, and wasted their suit in the process. Listen to this advice, or you'll lose your nice suit.

unless you have matal armor and a bad a$$ gun so everyone knows to stay away unless they want some thats how i play

 

[Jax Archillies]

ahh, i see you've seen my armor than!



its scary seeing THAT coming over the hill at you, knowing you can't destroy it, and it will never stop, ever, until you are dead!

 

[TexasAggie2011]

So the real question is, can you run around your house and dive through the open window of your car without drawing blood, getting bruised, and/or wrecking your suit. If the answer is no, welcome to the club and don't bother going any further.

If the answer is yes, then this ballistics test is "ok" to start with, although the test semed to be more about the box than the fiberglass. Anyone want to wear their Halo 3 box to the range? It SEEMED to do pretty good, with only a seemingly 1-in-30 fail rate.

Make a fiberglass lid to that box, smooth it, and paint it. Then shoot that lid, and then you'll be on the right track for testing the costume itself.

Next, do a ballistics test against your neck, shoulders, knees, stomach, etc. because obviously, these areas have no fiberglass on them, and you'll need to protect them in other ways.

Next, assuming that you've already tested the lens... Put it into the helmet, put the helmet on, and fire under the chin to determine how good the armor is as far as pellets that get past the armor that's not designed to stop pellets from accessing your eyes, nose, or mouth.

You know.. similar to the effectiveness of an umbrella when walking underwater. You might as well not bother with it because it's as good as useless if it's not designed to block things from coming-in around the edges of it.. That's kind of the point with goggles in the first place.

If you do not manufacture protective devices, you are not manufacturing a protective device.

It CAN be done, but you need to decide right from the start if you're planning a costume or usable armor. It certainly makes a difference in the methods and shapes you'll be working with.

If you wear your basic protective gear UNDER the costume, you'd probably be in better shape, but if you fail test #1 above.. then your costume won't make it anyways.

excellent points deadguy, i'm sorry if it seemed like I was trying to prove that safe ulti-take-anything-on-armor was possible using those basic materials. I was merely trying to figure out how much fiberglass would be needed to stop any BB's. it's up to anyone else to test what would be required to run, duck roll, fall and take a beating, as well as vulnerable spots not covered by the fiberglassed armor.

 

[AoBfrost]

If you seriously wanted to use this without it breaking from all the abuse, 10 layers of fiberglass will probably work.

 

[scandomfo]

If you seriously wanted to use this without it breaking from all the abuse, 10 layers of fiberglass will probably work.

Yeah wouldn't 10 layers of fiber glass would just be too heavy for airsofting? Sure you can't get hurt or anything, but it really slows down reaction time and movement. We all are not really spartans you know

 

[Tru7h]

I think a good test at least for airsoft BBs would to take a piece of cardstock and put it through the entire strengthening process. Resin, fiberglass cloth, bondo, paint, etc. Then you see how much abuse the sheet can take. We've pretty much determined that you can't move around in a suit like you need to playing airsoft, but I think a lot of people just want to know what getting shot would do to their suit and the paint job. I'd be willing, I have a c02 pistol that shoots 400+FPS and plenty of paper and fiberglass. I'll post back when I get done with that.

 

[BlindRascal]

If I had resin left I'd experiment and make fiberglass kneepads. Someone else should try that, and make forearm guards too.

 

[Bobo The PandaX]

Hey, even though I don't airsoft much I bought a mask and I REALLY hate wearing it, so as a project, what if i made a helmet of any kind just to airsoft with(if it is a helmet that's meant to have a visor, i'll probably replace it with airsoft goggles)

good idea or not?

p.s i will OBVIOUSLY fiberglass it