couldn't find a flak jacket before heading off to combat. this relies on donations and improvisation. this is some padding for the flak jackets to go around the armor plates. and they're made from the material that's used for floor mats for cars. the armor plates come from scrap metal scavenged from old cars, welded and reworked by volunteer mechanics, and field tested. so, he's taken out a plate to a firing range. this is six millimeters in wid , and they tried different kinds of firearms and rounds, and it was able to block some rifles. but a sniper's rifle punched right through, as did a machine gun. they're not using this width for their flak jackets. the team settled on a width of 8 millimeters. vitali says this newest model will go to a new fighter within