In reading the wiki about Dragon Skinit seems that it failed time after time in the Army testing, but Pinnacle armor is apparently still doing a good business selling Dragon Skin.
These Dragon Skin vests costs thousands of dollars each. If it failed why its it still popular?
Just looking at that Wikipedia article, it sounds like the problem (or a problem) is quality control. So someone might see a good vest in action and buy it on that basis, not realising that they might not get a good vest.
It’s called “Dragon Skin”.
Tests have shown that Budweiser doesn’t really get you hot party babes but people still buy it. People buy the hype as much as the actual product.
Wait…Budweiser isn’t going to get me hot party babes?? Dammit, why am I drinking this pissed down water
It will definitely get you the babes. Don’t give up!
Was a big issue a few years back. What was the straight dope on it. Was it really better than the stuff the US army used?
Uh, if you even skim the article for 5 seconds, you find example after example of the armor working in tests perfectly. Apparently, there’s is/was legal shitstorm about some technicalities or other, which doesn’t make sense. There’s no motive for the NIJ to hold back certification this long, especially when it’s a simple question : does the armor work, or does it not work?
Apparently, when it works, it’s high quality body armor that can take multiple hits, and is flexible to wear. The “level V” version sounds like it might be able to save you if you came under fire from a long burst or a russian machine gun (assuming, obviously, that the rounds are hitting the armor and not the unprotected part of you).
Seems pretty much a no-brainer to me. Look, body armor’s a risk anyway. There’s no guarantee you won’t get shot in the face if you wear it. If the armor has a 90% chance of working perfectly, and it is more flexible than the other stuff that is available, I’d take it.
I’m curious too.
Being shot in the face is a different deal than being shot in the head.
Is it? 
I don’t know about you, but my face has always been a part of my head.
I’m not a conspiracy theorist in the least, but the Army’s behavior about DragonSkin sure seems suspicious- almost like they had some dog in the fight with their own chosen body armor.
If you skim it for just a couple more seconds you can see that there are definite NPOV(neutral point of view) problems with that particular Wiki article.
People get shot in the face all the time and survive. In the head, not so often.
Cool name, bro.
No one is going to buy Kitten Fur™ body armor, no matter how good it is.
I am not up on the facts about DS, but the Army’s disapproval does not meant the product was crap. They probably didn’t want to pay the price because they didn’t seem to think it was worth it (after wasting billions on trials, of course). Look at the tale of the XM8 and related firearms. Lots of politics behind the decisions (not least of all some probably didn’t want a German weapon, and H&K is also not known for their low price point).
Well, furries might buy it, but that’s a whole different application.
It does sound kind of weird.
The only thing I could think of is that the Army tests are a lot more comprehensive than just shooting it. Maybe they found that the Dragon Skin armor breaks down in the desert heat or the disks fall off after repeated wear? Or the disks cause chaffing or something? Maybe it was just too expensive?
Then again, the Army bought a bunch of camouflage that didn’t really work that well either.
How can you be shot in the face without being shot in the head?