Will Level 4 Body Armor Protect A Ballistic Dummy?!

Test setup with Level 4 armor and ballistic dummy

The video is filmed at Take Aim Training and Range and focuses on testing Guard Dog Level 4 standalone plates. The armor is mounted in a Guard Dog Tracker plate carrier on a Ballistic Dummy Labs torso to better visualize what different hits might do to a human body. The plan is to start with handgun calibers and move up through intermediate rifle cartridges, 7.62 NATO, a 12 gauge shotgun, and eventually a .50 BMG. The host emphasizes that previous tests focused on round counts, while this test looks more closely at backface deformation and potential injury to the dummy behind the plate.

Pistol calibers versus the Guard Dog Level 4 plate

The first shots are handgun rounds into the Level 4 plate. A 115 grain 9mm is fired from an AP5, impacting slightly lower than intended due to height-over-bore, but leaving a clean, contained strike with no rear penetration. A Colt 1911 in .45 ACP is then fired higher on the plate; the impact tears the carrier’s zipper and exposes a warm copper jacket fragment and Kevlar fibers, but again no penetration. A Colt Python in .357 Magnum is aimed near a front buckle and leaves no visible rear-side effect. Finally, a Desert Eagle in .50 Action Express is fired into the plate. The plate shows clear front-side damage and noticeable deformation, yet the back remains intact, and the dummy shows no broken structures, only expected bruising and soreness if it were a real person.

5.45x39 and 5.56 NATO rifle impacts

A fresh Level 4 plate is installed in the carrier on the ballistic dummy. The first rifle test uses 53 grain 7N6 5.45x39 from an AK-74 pattern rifle. The small, steel-core projectile, known for high velocity and energy transfer, cuts into the plate and leaves the armor surface very warm, but there is no detectable backface deformation. Next, a 20-inch M16A4 is used with 5.56 NATO M193 55 grain. A center hit demonstrates the high-velocity behavior of this load from a longer barrel, violently damaging the carrier’s zipper area. Despite the dramatic front impact, the rear of the plate shows no penetration and no obvious copper jacket remnants, suggesting the projectile fragmented and was contained within the armor.

M855 and 7.62 NATO follow-up on a compromised plate

The test continues with 5.56 NATO M855 62 grain steel-core ammunition from the same 20-inch M16A4. A shot aimed to the right side strikes and destroys a front buckle, illustrating that the carrier hardware is not ballistic. The host notes that the M193 hit appears to have disintegrated faster than the M855, and there is a slight bulge on the back of the plate, prompting interest in comparing internal damage once the plate is removed. An HK MR762 is then used to fire 7.62 NATO into nearly the same area as the earlier 55 grain hit, effectively stacking impacts on a compromised section. The rear of the plate shows noticeable deformation but still no penetration or fragments reaching the dummy, which is considered impressive given the multiple overlapping rifle strikes.

Shotgun buckshot and slug on the armored dummy

A Salient Gold 12 gauge shotgun is introduced to evaluate shotgun performance against the armored dummy. One round of buckshot is fired into the central upper chest area of the plate. The impact produces a large, obvious strike zone on the carrier, but inspection reveals no penetration and no transfer through earlier 7.62 NATO impact areas. A 12 gauge slug is then loaded and fired. The slug hit feels substantial and knocks the dummy’s helmet off, yet the armor surface shows less tearing than expected, likely due to the slug’s lower velocity compared to rifle rounds. The plate remains intact, and there is no evidence of the slug or buckshot passing through to the back side.

Inspecting plate damage and dummy trauma

After the series of rifle and shotgun shots, the carrier is opened and the Level 4 plate is removed for inspection. Ceramic material spills out, showing that the strike face has fractured under repeated hits. The front of the plate displays distinct impact zones from buckshot, rifle rounds, and handgun calibers, along with embedded fragments such as a 12 gauge wad. The rear of the plate, which provides the actual ballistic protection, remains intact despite multiple hits in close proximity. The ballistic dummy behind the armor shows no visible holes or obvious fractures. While the host notes that a real person would likely suffer heavy bruising and possible internal bleeding from the blunt trauma, the armor appears to have prevented bullet penetration throughout the test sequence.