We spent the last year developing a real life version of John Wick's bulletproof suit. And this is one of the bullets that we shot at it. Now, before we start, I want to make something absolutely clear.
Nothing is bulletproof. There is no such thing as a bulletproof vest. Bullet resistant is far more appropriate, but bulletproof sounds a lot cooler, doesn't it?
Now, we've all seen movies featuring bulletproof vests, FBI agents, cops, SWAT guys. They've got them all. Even Iron Man suit is bulletproof.
But nobody nobody has a bulletproof suit. And looks as good as John Wick. Like.
Like, come on. It's literally a bulletproof three piece suit. And with John Wick 4 coming to theaters on March 24th.
Let's just say I thought it would be a perfect time to enhance my wardrobe. How cool would it be to make a bulletproof suit? Is it even possible?
So we've got 38 different samples that we're going to be testing, and I've labeled them one through four. And basically all the samples in box one are the many fracture recommendation for the number of layers of each material. So hypothetically, everything in this box should stop a nine mil bullet.
Now, what we've done is we've actually reduced the number of layers box by box by box, because what we're trying to figure out is what is the minimum number of layers and the most flexible material that still stops a nine bullet because all of these materials right now we're testing monolithically. So it means we're just using one material. But most bullet proof armor uses composites.
It uses multiple different kinds and different layer orientations and all that. how are we going to create the ultimate bullet resistant composite To offer the most protection you need plate armor. This is what can stop rifle rounds once you drop to level 3A now we're into soft armors.
This is what most bulletproof vests are made of. But as you can see, it's still pretty thick and it's probably not going to fit in a fine tailored suit. So we're going to have to look at level two and below these Level two samples are recommended from the manufacturer and are quite thin.
But at the range we were able to determine some even thinner samples. The next step is taking these material swatches and making composites. Basically, our goal is to get somewhere in between our possible minimums and level two, keeping it flexible, lightweight and able to fit inside of a suit.
Now we've had to make some concessions and we've decided to make the suit jacket slightly thinner and it's probably not going to stop the vector. So we brought new samples and we're going to test against just the handgun to make sure that the the blazer can stop a handgun and the vest can stop the submachine gun. So there's the variability in the bullets.
You might be confident in your results, but the reality is you've just got four rounds that maybe had slightly less gunpowder in them. Some perfect really on the outside of the material still. I have faith we can do is just from the suit to look good and not look like a sweater.
It seems like we're a bit optimistic with our layups for the suit jacket. We kind of went on the lighter side of composites and even using the P 226, Now, let's make this suit. If you want to help support the channel and own a piece of Hacksmith history check out hacksmith.
store We've got a whole bunch of souvenirs from this project, including a sample of the material used in the vest with a squished bullet and a continental coin. Check it out at Hacksmith. store.
Here we have a jacket! . .
. sort of. In this state, everything about it can be changed.
And that's important for me because I don't know how the bullet resistant panels and the wool are going to work together. We've got mockup sleaves we’ve got a mockup collar. All of this white stitching is temporary and will be removed eventually.
No, no. Good afternoon, Mr Wick. It's been a long time coming, Mr Wick.
Is this a formal event or a social affair? Social. And is this for day or evening?
I need one for day and one for night. And what style? Italian.
How many buttons? Two. Trousers?
Tapered. How about the lining? Tactical.
That was awesome. This suit is super flexible. I had no issues shooting that gun and honestly, it just feels like a bit of a thicker, heavier suit.
It does not feel like I'm wearing a bulletproof vest, but I do feel like super safe in it. And the mobility, Like I can run around and be John Wick in the suit. Like, no problem.
I think it's safe to say we definitely achieved that goal, but the biggest goal was making a bulletproof suit. It goes without saying, Do not try this at home. Do not try and make your own armor and certainly do not tested To start the tests.
We're going to be pitting our custom made composite versus a standard bulletproof vest. We're going to use a P226, which is the same gun they used in the movie. First up, the standard bulletproof vest.
. . .
and now ours. Let's see what happened. Oh, I'm nervous.
You can see the hole through the wall, but we knew that would happen. This wall is not bulletproof.
