Soviet Cold War Body Armour

[ChalkLine]

Soviet/Russian Body Armour
(This includes post-dissolution armour that was in development during the soviet period.
All armour apart from the SSh-68 came with a cloth TTsKO or VSR camouflage cover unless otherwise noted.)

6B2
Type: Body Armour
Designation: 6Б2
Place of Origin: USSR
Produced: 1979-1983
Manufacturer(s): Research Institute “Stali”
Material(s): Cloth, titanium and kevlar
Weight: 4.8 kg
Used by army and GRU spetsnaz (Main Intelligence Directorate of army).
6B2 is first generation army armor vest. It is first modern bulletproof vest in the Soviet army.
Was used in Afghanistan 1979-1989, 1-st Chechen campain and 1993 Moscow Crisis. Widely used in the war in Afghanistan.
6B2 consists of chest and back parts connected with each other in the shoulder joints and with the side buckles. Protective composition consists of titanium armor plates ADU-605-80 1.25 mm thick and ballistic screen of 30 layers of aramid fabric TSVM-G. Provides Ballistic protection and protection from pistol bullets.

6B3
Type: Body Armour
Designation: 6Б3
Place of Origin: USSR
Produced: 1984-onwards
Manufacturer(s): Research Institute “Stali”
Material(s): Cloth, titanium and kevlar
Weight: 10.0 kg
One of first mass produced body armour in USSR (later in Russian Federation). Vest was adopted in 1984 and first used in Afghan war (1979-89). Protected the user against rounds of AKM calibre and weighed around 10kg. Later the 6B3 was developed into more versions and camouflage covers were also adopted. The vest saw widespread use in both Chechnyan conflicts and recently even in the South Ossetian conflict.
- 6B3 - ballistic vest Zhe-85T (romanized from 6Б3 and Ж-85Т)
- 6B3-01 - ballistic vest Zhe-85T (romanized from 6Б3-01 and Ж-85Т)
- 6B3TM - ballistic vest Zhe-85TM (romanized from 6Б3ТМ and Ж-85ТМ)
- 6B3TM-01 - ballistic vest Zhe-85TM-01 (romanized from 6Б3ТМ-01 and Ж-85ТМ-01)

6B4-01-P
Type: Body Armour
Designation: 6B4-01-P (6Б4-01-П)
Place of Origin: USSR
Produced: 1988- onwards
Manufacturer(s): -
Material(s): Cloth, titanium and kevlar
Weight: 10.0 kg
This vest was produced in limited quantity for spetsnaz assault teams and for KGB Alpha and Vympel units
On the front cover located pouches for 4 AK magazines, spare parts, first-aid kit. On the back cover located 4 pockets for F1/RGD grenade and a buttpack.
(Note: I don't have the armour rating for this but I assume it's heavy assault armour with a greater than normal protection)

6B5-15
Type: Body Armour
Designation: 6Б5
Place of Origin: USSR
Produced: 1986-1998
Manufacturer(s): Research Institute “Stali”
Material(s): Cotton, Nylon, TSVM-G, Titanium, and Carbon Boride
Weight: varies
The 6Б5 vest is ballistic by having inner slabs/plates made from: Titanium, and Carbon Boride. Then having a TSVM-G inserts that go behind the plates reducing the chance of bullet penetration occurring. These vests came in sizes 1 and 2, 1 being good for 48-54 and 2 for 54-60
Furthermore, the covers are made from Nylon and Cotton
These vests had differing ballistic classes and had 8 different classifications.
6Б5-11 (First iteration of the 6Б5 vest, Came only with ballistic fabric TSVM-G)
6Б5-12 (1.25mm Titanium front and back)
6Б5-14 (Classification does exist, not enough documentation)
6Б5-15 (Most common seen variant, Carbon Boride plates in the front and back) 12.2 kg
6Б5-16 (6mm/1.25mm Titanium plates in the front and 1.25mm Titanium plates in the back)
6Б5-17 (Front was a mixture of plates, 4.3mm Iron plates and 1.25mm Titanium plates in the front.)
6Б5-18 (Last Soviet 6Б5 vest developed, 6mm Titanium plates in the front.)
6Б5-19 (This was a classification of the vest after the fall of the Soviet Union, 4.3mm Steel plates and 1.25mm Titanium plates in the front.)

KIRASA "universal" (cuirass) armor vest
Type: Body Armour
Designation: KIRASA
Place of Origin: USSR
Produced: 1996-1997
Manufacturer(s): -
Material(s): Cotton, Nylon, TSVM-G, Titanium, and Carbon Boride
Weight: 10.5 kg.
Used during 1st and 2nd Chechen campaign by Maroon Berets MIA special forces.
Olive color set, protects from SVD 7.62 sniper rifle and AKM 7.62

Armor vest KM-1
Type: Body Armour
Designation: KM-1
Place of Origin: Russian Federation
Produced: 1999-onwards
Manufacturer(s): NPO "Class"
Material(s): Cotton, Nylon, TSVM-G, Titanium, and Carbon Boride
Weight: 6.6 kg.
Was used by Russian police, MIA MVD, VV, SVR units.
Class II (pistols and submachine guns 9x19, 7.62x25).
Flora or VSR-98 flora camouflage.
Universal size, adjusted by velcro. Pocket for radio.
Full protection set includes:
1. 2x armor plates
2. VSR-98 flora cover
3. 2x soft buffer
4. 4x kevlar (tvaron) plates

SSh-68 Helmet
Type: Helmet
Designation: SSh-68
Place of Origin: USSR
Produced: 1968-1980s
Manufacturer(s): Varies
Material(s): Steel
Weight: 1.5 kg.

PSH-77 Titanium Helmet with visor and internal radio
Type: Helmet
Designation: PSH-77
Place of Origin: Switzerland
Produced: 1977-???
Manufacturer(s): Tig Bicord AG (Switzerland), Ulbrechts (Austria)
Material(s): Titanium
Weight 2.7 kg with visor.
Weight 1.4 kg without visor
Used by Soviet/Russian elite special forces KGB/FSB. Special forces "Alpha" and "Vympel".
Helmet safety class 2.

"Altyn" Titanium/Aramid Helmet with clear visor and internal radio (without radio is the K6-3)
Designation: Алтын
Place of Origin: USSR, Russia
Produced: 1984-???
Manufacturer(s): NII Stali (НИИ стали)
Material(s): Titanium, kevlar
Weight with face-shield/visor: 4.3 kg

6B7 (6B7-1M in 2008) Kevlar Helmet
Type: Helmet
Designation: 6Б7
Place of Origin: Russian Federation
Produced: 2000s-onwards
Manufacturer(s): -
Material(s): Kevlar
Weight 1.2kg
In development in the Soviet Union prior to the dissolution and slated to replace existing helmets for the ground forces in the 1990s. An updated version, the 6B7-M1, was adopted by the Russian SVR (army) in 2008

Note that the massive 10kg assault armours can be down-rated by swapping out plates and removing groin guards, collars and so on.

[pmulcahy11b]

In the 1983, in Basic, we were shown a Soviet body armor vest that was basically canvas with fiberglass-stiffened cotton with additional pockets for additional fiberglass/cotton or plates. Unfortunately, we weren't able to get more than a cursory look at it. The "Soviet" advisor teaching us said it was captured in Angola a few years before that.

(I say "Soviet" because I don't believe he was really Soviet.)

[Raellus]

Originally Posted by pmulcahy11b

In the 1983, in Basic, we were shown a Soviet body armor vest that was basically canvas with fiberglass-stiffened cotton with additional pockets for additional fiberglass/cotton or plates. Unfortunately, we weren't able to get more than a cursory look at it. The "Soviet" advisor teaching us said it was captured in Angola a few years before that.

That "armor" does not sound like it could stop more than small fragments of shrapnel that had already expended most of their kinetic energy.

-

[Legbreaker]

I'm thinking it may have been more of a propaganda piece than a real item of equipment.
"Look at this boys! The enemy are wearing little more than cotton wool while we give you this high tech kevlar! Aren't you glad you're one of us and not them?"

[Raellus]

Originally Posted by Legbreaker

I'm thinking it may have been more of a propaganda piece than a real item of equipment.
"Look at this boys! The enemy are wearing little more than cotton wool while we give you this high tech kevlar! Aren't you glad you're one of us and not them?"

Good point. From what I understand, the old U.S.-issue M-1955 flak vest wasn't much better.

[StainlessSteelCynic]

Well it's also possible it was more a plate carrier rather than a full armour vest given the description Paul has supplied.
From what I recall, the Soviets used metal plates (titanium, steel, aluminium alloy and even iron) for much of their personal protection as their development of ballistic fibres was not as advanced as the West.

It sounds like the item Paul is describing is something along the lines of the ZhZT-71 vest which was quite basic, in essence it's little more than a vest with titanium plates that required an under-vest for full protection from rifle rounds. The ZhZT-71 was used from 1971 to the early 1990s.
I don't think what Paul is describing was a ZhZT-71 vest but I'm using the ZhZT-71 to illustrate how basic the Soviet body armour was at that time.

There's some decent pictures of the ZhZT-71 towards the end of the images for the under-vest listing on the following site: -
http://depotmilitary.com/index.php?id=942

ZhZT-71

[ChalkLine]

Originally Posted by pmulcahy11b

In the 1983, in Basic, we were shown a Soviet body armor vest that was basically canvas with fiberglass-stiffened cotton with additional pockets for additional fiberglass/cotton or plates. Unfortunately, we weren't able to get more than a cursory look at it. The "Soviet" advisor teaching us said it was captured in Angola a few years before that.

(I say "Soviet" because I don't believe he was really Soviet.)

That may have been a stripped-out set of 6B1 body armour from 1957, I didn't include it as it seems to have been rare (the mashka helmets got excluded for the same reason).

Here's a link on that, it could be good for an early game set in the sixties.

[Severian]

Originally Posted by pmulcahy11b

In the 1983, in Basic, we were shown a Soviet body armor vest that was basically canvas with fiberglass-stiffened cotton with additional pockets for additional fiberglass/cotton or plates. Unfortunately, we weren't able to get more than a cursory look at it. The "Soviet" advisor teaching us said it was captured in Angola a few years before that.

(I say "Soviet" because I don't believe he was really Soviet.)

When I went through Benning in '89, we had a similar drill, but I don't recall any body armor. Unfortunately for them, the guy pretending to be a Soviet defector didn't speak any Russian (my major in college) and the Cuban dissident was called out by all of the Puerto Ricans sitting near me as being one of their own based on his accent. Good times though, LOL!

[Nyrond24]

Saw some of these fibre filled vests when i worked with an Intel group in germany in 84/85 they were coming to us from various countries , we couldn't belive they were issue to anybody but they were, all we could say was thank god we didn't have to wear them.