General FAQs
Do you offer discounts for Law Enforcement, Military and First Responders?
Spartan Armor Systems offers a 10% discount on our entire store including body armor for Law Enforcement, Military, and First Responders. To qualify set up an account on our website and then send an email to, info@spartanarmorsystems.com with a copy of your credentials. We can quickly change your account status so that you receive the discount. Remember, do this first before you place your order. Please allow 1-2 business days for the discount to be applied to your account. If you ned to place your order sooner, please contact us.
For bulk LEO/First Responder sales please email leosales@spartanarmorsystems.com. Thank you for your service and all that you do to keep us safe.
How do I wash and care for my plate carrier?
Here are our suggestions:
First, remove your MOLLE pouches and hardware from the carrier. Pouches can be cleaned separately in the same fashion as outlined below..
Make sure you brush off loose dirt and plant material. Using a dulled tool, scrape off any dried or caked mud. Be careful with this step, don’t use a sharp tool that could cut and weaken the fabric. Then, use a soft cloth to remove any remaining loose dust or dirt.
In a bathtub or large basin, wash your carrier or gear in warm, never hot, soapy water using a mild liquid dish soap or a small amount of liquid laundry detergent. If you use laundry detergent ensure it does not have any color brighteners in it as these could lead to premature wear of your carrier or gear. Immerse the carrier completely and let it soak for a few minutes. Then, gently work the fabric back and forth to help loosen dirt trapped in the fabric. Use a toothbrush for stubborn stains. Avoid stiff brushes, abrasives, bleach or solvents, which can cause discoloration and damage to the carrier.
Give the gear a good rinse in clean water. You will want to make sure to completely get all of the soap out.
Reshape the carrier and set it out to dry. Always air dry away from direct sunlight. Direct sunlight or using a tumble dryer could cause premature wear or shrinkage of your plate carrier.
SPARTAN ARMOR FAQs
What does “Omega” Armor mean?
Omega Armor is a revolutionary ballistic steel with far better forming properties compared to regular AR500 steel. Not all AR500 steel is the same. For instance, we do not use the same grade of AR500 steel for our The Target Man™ shooting targets as we do for our armor products.
“Omega” designates that the AR500 steel is a special military grade used specifically for protective armor applications. Every lot of our Spartan™ Omega™ AR500 Body Armor is independently tested at an independent ballistic laboratory to meet commercial ballistic standards. Omega Armor has been successfully used by manufacturers of executive/military armored vehicles, bank trucks, guard booths, and barriers. With its lab proven performance, Spartan Armor Systems™ has chosen this specially rated armor to construct our trauma plates.
We have tested our Spartan™ Omega™ AR500 Body Armor plates with 7.62x51mm, .223 55gr, .308, 9mm, .357 Sig, .40 S&W, and 12 gauge slugs. Our plates are TOUGH! Make sure and watch our test videos to see for yourself:
Spartan™ Omega™ AR500 Body Armor 10x12 Shooters Cut Set of Two.
Here are the latest independent test results on Spartan Armor Systems AR500™ Omega Armor from Oregon Ballistic Labs:
Spartan™ Omega™ AR500 Body Armor Test Results
What is the difference between the Spartan™ Omega™ AR500 Body Armor and the AR550 Armor?
Spartan Armor Systems tests a wide variety of steel thickness / hardness combinations before releasing new body armor to market. We chose to use AR550 Armor due to it’s phenomenal forming properties and given the fact that the hardness hits the “sweet spot” when it comes to threat protection. With a 10% increase in hardness over our standard Spartan™ Omega™ AR500 body armor, the AR550 armor does exceptionally well with defeating higher velocity threat profiles, while maintaining the integrity of the steel plate.
Here are the latest independent test results on Spartan Armor Systems AR550 Armor from Oregon Ballistic Labs.
What type of finish do your plates have?
Fragmentation protection is a critical feature when selecting your body armor platform. A common drawback of steel body armor is that projectiles can fragment and ricochet off the face at a zero to 20 degree angle. This means that bullet fragments have the potential to end up in your legs, arms, neck and head which may result in life treating injuries. A full coat of our fragmentation mitigation coating prevents or greatly minimizes these types of injuries. Put simply, a $60 upgrade to our full coat of Encapsaloc™ could be a lifesaver.
THE FULL COAT OF OUR ENCAPSALOC™ COATING SYSTEM IS OUR RECOMMENDATION FOR OPTIMAL PROTECTION
We tested a wide variety of bed lining, kevlar sleeves and urethane coating systems with mixed results. In fact, we found that some coatings caused more harm than good so we set out to create a superior coating. We factored in durability, adhesion, consistency, texture, elasticity, and price point during our testing. After years of tweaking and testing in an effort to offer the best possible fragmentation and spall mitigation in the industry, Spartan Armor Systems™ developed a specialized coating system to be the absolute BEST coating for our plates. With over 20 years of industrial grade coating experience in our arsenal we are confident that our Encapsaloc™ formula is the gold standard for fragmentation protection in tactical applications for law enforcement and civilian use.
BASE COAT VS FULL COAT
Our sets of steel core body armor come standard with a base coat. Although the base coat will not contain fragments when struck, our testing shows that the fragments project farther away from the body as opposed to an uncoated plate. The base coat helps reduce corrosion from exposure to the elements and esthetically looks better. Still, we can not stress enough the benefit of going with the full coat for your body armor. A full coat of Encapsaloc™ will mitigate fragmentation at minimal cost.
What do we do that is so special? Preparation is PARAMOUNT when it comes to coating our body armor. All of our body armor goes through a multi-step process to ensure maximum adhesion and function of our anti-spalling coating. First, each and every steel plate is shot blasted to remove any mill scale, oils, dirt, and debris. Next, the plate is wiped with acetone to ensure cleanliness. After the acetone has dried, they go into the spray booth for final inspection. After quality control has done their check, the plates then get a professional application of our Encapsaloc™ coating system.
Are your plates ambidextrous?
Yes! Our plates are equally cut on both sides of the shoulder. This enables the operator (left-handed or right-handed) to comfortably shoulder their weapon and defend against threats.
Do you manufacture your Level IV Armor in house?
Yes, our level IV Hercules and Ares ceramic body armor plates are manufactured at our Tucson, AZ facility.
TARGET FAQs
Why don’t you paint your targets?
We are avid shooters and have collected feedback from tons of our customers. When you paint a target, it looks great for the first couple of impacts. The only downside to painting them is once you start to paint them, you will continually have to repaint them. Paint chips, flakes, runs, etc. and can make the target difficult for acquisition. Don’t get us wrong, there is nothing wrong with painting, but the upkeep is tremendous once you do paint them. Should you decide to paint your target, please just remember to use quality paint. When it comes to paint. you definitely get what you pay for.
We do recommend ONLY painting our reactive targets. This way acquisition of the reactive paddles is quick and concise.
What kind of life can I expect from your targets?
We have targets that have experienced literally thousands upon thousands of impacts. Granted, we only shoot lead. If properly taken care of, these targets can potentially outlive you!
What is AR500 steel and why do you use this type of steel?
AR500 steel is a quenched & tempered steel It is commonly used in situations where it will experience severe impact and abrasion. “AR” stands for “Abrasion Resistant” and the 500 is the Brinell Hardness. The Brinell scale characterizes the indentation hardness of materials through the scale of penetration of an indenter, loaded on a material test-piece. It is one of several definitions of hardness in materials science. In short, the higher the Brinell rating, the harder the steel. AR500 steel has been used as a reliable armor plate source by the military, armored car companies, and several body armor manufacturers.
What kind of impacts do you rate your AR500 steel targets to withstand?
We rate our targets to withstand any impacts from any lead centerfire weapon traveling 3200 FPS or less from 100 yards. You can (and we have) shot much closer, but do understand the closer you shoot will result in a quicker target fatigue. Our plates are also rated with withstand ANY pistol round from any safe distance. Always keep your safety and the safety of others TOP PRIORITY when determining a shooting distance.