Vest or Plate carrier?

[Dean]

Hi, I was wondering which chest piece I should go with based on my reasons; a vest, or a plate carrier?

I am stuck on a decision between an OE TECH Elite Tactical Vest and an OE TECH plate carrier with Cummerbund.

I like the way the vest is styled with the multiple magazine pouches and two utility/shotgun shell pouches. It also comes with a belt, which is a plus to me. I like the looks and I like the simplicity of the design consisting of mostly magazine pouches because that's pretty much all I would use and need. The utility pouches are nice for my shotgun shells and anything else I may end up bringing that is small.

On the other hand, I like the plate carrier with cummerbund because I like how it seems to "hug" and conform to your body. It looks comfortable to me. And of course, the customization of a MOLLE plate carrier is a huge bonus. You can do anything!

But, I feel I would only waste money on magazine pouches and a utility pouch because that is all that I would imagine myself using. I just don't want to waste extra money on the same thing that I could get for much less while being just as useful to me.

So I was wondering if someone who had experience in airsoft events help me with my decision. It seems like a no-brainer to go with the vest to me, but there may be something I am missing. Thanks.

[Carnage]

How many types of events do you plan on going to such as REC games, camo based outdoor team games (the name escapes me), and Milsim? Depending on how many different types of events you go to, a MOLLE set-up will be best.

Oh, and I do have *Condor Elite Tactical Vest and I can share my opinion on it if you want to.

[Dean]

Carnage,
As of now I've never been to a legitimate event, only local rec games at a paintball woodsball field. Although, soon hopefully, I want to start getting serious and invest more beans into this sport and start going to Kalamazoo for some rec games just to get some experience and then go from there.

[cqbjunkie]

I recommend a plate carrier. I started with a vest that had pouches and everything already on it (they were sewn on). The reason I recommend a plate carrier is because it offers a lot of customization.

*EDIT*
I will be getting my plate carrier around Christmas time, I am getting a newer vest that has Velcro in October just to complete my load out.

[Pagan]

I've had the plate carrier you were interested in.
It's nice in the fact that you can run it like a compact plate carrier, or use the cummerbund for more space. The only reason I sold mine was to get a RRV, and I'm honestly thinking about picking another one up, as it was very comfortable.

[Dean]

I understand why everyone would recommend a plate carrier, but I'm just starting out so I was thinking I should go for the vest with everything I think I would need, rather than spending extra money for the same thing because I would most likely just buy mag pouches, a utility pouch, and a dump bag if i were to buy a plate carrier.

I suppose I'm just looking at it economically and direct practicality (if that is a word).

[Carnage]

In general, a MOLLE gear set-up will be more versatile in all games that you play in and will allow you to expand your weapon choices just by swapping pouches. Seeing that I already own the Condor ETV, I can say that it is a good vest (better than a cross-draw), but it is very limited in the things that I can do with it. So in short, the only thing that you'll regret about the plate carrier is the price. But it's a good price to pay for a good piece of gear.

(We keep posting within a few seconds of each other.

[Dean]

Aug 31, 2011 21:29:21 GMT -5 Pagan said:

I've had the plate carrier you were interested in.
It's nice in the fact that you can run it like a compact plate carrier, or use the cummerbund for more space. The only reason I sold mine was to get a RRV, and I'm honestly thinking about picking another one up, as it was very comfortable.

Thanks for input, especially because you can tell me from personal experience.

In the long run, I know a plate carrier would do me best. But I'm not quite 16 yet which means I can't start applying for jobs that payout more than mowing lawns or shoveling snow.

EDIT: I feel I left this post as an unfinished paragraph so I guess my point is it will take longer to finish customizing, but I think it will be well worth it. Thanks for the help guys.

[Pagan]

Look for them on here, I know there's a few for sale in the commerce section right now. I sold mine to a team mate with all the pouches for $80, so there are deals to be had.

[Dean]

Good point, Pagan. So far, I'm only trying to get a basic idea for what exactly I'm going to start looking for, but yeah, I agree the Commerce forum can be very helpful to me.