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So. What I knew about the modern personal armor is that there were serious efforts in the first world war. steel helmets (which offers protection against falling debris and artillery shrapnels) were the first to be reintroduced (the last armor pieces worn by infantrymen during the Renaissance) .... only saw mass productions and distributions by both sides however.

Yet the body armor did saw reintroduction there. The most common form was a variety of steel cuirasses.

http://www.zombieprepwiki.com/page/Ballistic+Armor

Development of similar (bulletproof) armor to the armored suits of old continued well into World War One, monstrous suits of heavy steel and leather seen by both sides. They were tested by machine gunners and other stationary users, but were not issued in any significant numbers on any front.

But.. Did Leather armor saw the uses (or at least... tested) in the first world war too? What does this WW1 leather armor looks like? and how well did it do?

Either noting or steel and usually the former.

Some soldiers in some conditions did wear body armour, notably sappers, but it was very rare.

http://www.planetfigure.com/threads/has-anyone-ever-seen-this-on-a-ww1-brit.49750/

From what I've ever seen in historical pictures, they really didn't wear any type of armor.

http://flashbak.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/735cdcf4a896e8b9d474080e15c8fc90.jpg

Germans had this stuff in WW1. It really was reminiscent of medieval warfare at times.

^ He's Stormtrooper. and AFAIK only Stormtroops (Germans) and Trench Raiders (Allies) had them, (yet German stromtroops didn't like that cuirass thing and it is said that once they've jumped into an enemy trench, they tossed out that brestplate armor and preferred fighting without it...

So did the 'Leather' version of this FlaK armor ever really been developed and tested?

There is a set of WWi armour in the Bovington Tank Museum. IIRC it was made from boiler plate and was used by observers and others who needed to be in dangerous places but didn't actually need to move.

The Soviets used something similar, but much lighter, in WW2.

The most common materials used were steel and various textiles available at the time (dense cottons/wools/ect)

Anything thick enough to be effective vs bullets was too heavy to use in any non stationary defense role for the most part.

Things like this:



and



Were very uncommon, but they did exist.

Thanks for bringing this up, I almost forgot how hilariously cool looking brewster armour was!

Gives frog faced dreadnoughts a run for their money!

 easysauce wrote:


Things like this:

That is so going to be my costume for this year's Halloween.

 easysauce wrote:

I'm pretty sure they were deployed at least once....

TIS BUT A FLESH WOUND!

here is another prototype, british IIRC,



Dapper as feth!


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Here is a good article I had read a while ago on the subject if you are still interested

Covers all sides of the war and explains why certain things came about or didnt.


http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2013/04/could-body-armor-have-saved-millions-in-world-war-i/275417/

They look like robots!

What I wouldn't pay to see a horror film with all the monster designs heavily based on these armours....

 easysauce wrote:




Were very uncommon, but they did exist.

Thanks for bringing this up, I almost forgot how hilariously cool looking brewster armour was!

Gives frog faced dreadnoughts a run for their money!

these are looted from the dead German stormtroops or recovered after the original wearers tossed away just before the actual trench fight.
Why did stormtroops tossed cuirass away after they successfully crossed the No Mans Land and fight the defenders without wearing one?

I'd guess because they look rather heavy and cumbersome.

Probably cumbersome and probably because they wouldn't work that well at that range anyway. Body armour tech wasn't exactly bulletproof, and even the helmet was there for state of mind rather than actually blocking a shot.

 welshhoppo wrote:
Probably cumbersome and probably because they wouldn't work that well at that range anyway. Body armour tech wasn't exactly bulletproof, and even the helmet was there for state of mind rather than actually blocking a shot.

The main concern were falling debris and shrapnels made by the new artillery shells I think

 welshhoppo wrote:
and even the helmet was there for state of mind rather than actually blocking a shot.

Infantry helmets were reintroduced to protect the head from flying shrapnel and debris kicked the advanced artillery weapons developed since they had been phased out. They were not designed to withstand actual rifle bullet impacts that were not ricochets.

I'm pretty sure there were suits made for Tank Crews. The effects of spalling armour from machine gun fire could be very hazardous such that chainmail was used; Search Splatter Masks.

Bovington has some examples on show.

Quite a good one here of some French WWI body armour undergoing testing



didn't look too successful as if it had been being worn the soldiers wouldn't have survived


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and a British made set although not official issue here

http://www.warrelics.eu/forum/ww1-allies-great-britain-france-usa-etc-1914-1918/wilkinson-sword-bullet-proof-jacket-22746/