Responder Ballistic Vest Cummerbund

2021-11-11T15:01:55-05:00

Vendor: North American Rescue
Type: Body Armor
Price: 199.99 - 229.99 (11 variants)

The North American Rescue (NAR) Responder Ballistic Vest Cummerbund provides NIJ 0101.06 Level IIIA soft armor protection to the lateral torso — extending ballistic coverage from the front and rear vest panels around the sides of the body. Measuring 22"L × 6"W × 0.5"D, weighing 1.71 lbs, expandable to a 52" maximum waist, with multiple MOLLE attachment points, available in Black, Coyote Tan, Red, Navy Blue, and reflective variants — PFAS-free, designed for Fire/EMS daily wear and rescue task force deployment.

Key Specifications

Specification | Detail
Manufacturer | North American Rescue (NAR)
Protection Level | NIJ 0101.06 Level IIIA — additional special threat tested
Dimensions | 22" L × 6" W × 0.5" D
Weight | 1.71 lbs
Maximum Waist Size | 52"
Colors | Black, Coyote Tan, Red, Navy Blue, Black w/ Orange Reflective, Black w/ Yellow Reflective, Coyote w/ Orange Reflective, Coyote w/ Yellow Reflective
MOLLE Attachment | Multiple MOLLE attachment points
System Compatibility | NAR Responder Ballistic Vest IIIA system
PFAS Free | Yes
NIJ V50 (.357 SIG) | 1,867 ft/s
NIJ V50 (.44 Mag) | 1,661 ft/s
Special Threat: 9mm SXT | P-BFS Avg. 24.6 mm
Fragmentation Tested | Yes — multiple RCC fragment sizes and velocities

Product Overview

The NAR Responder Ballistic Vest Cummerbund is a critical component of the NAR Responder Ballistic PPE system, closing the lateral torso coverage gap that exists when wearing a front-and-rear vest without side armor. The cummerbund extends the vest's Level IIIA ballistic protection around the sides of the torso, covering the lateral chest and upper flank zones — areas where oblique and side-angle rounds can defeat a strictly front-rear vest configuration. In active threat scenarios, lateral exposures occur during turning movements, vehicle ingress/egress, and working positions that expose the operator's side to threat angles.

NAR designed the Responder Cummerbund for an often overlooked first responder category: Fire/EMS personnel who may wear ballistic protection not just for RTF activations, but as part of daily patrol or response configurations. This daily-wear design intent is reflected in the cummerbund's dimensions (22"×6"×0.5") — keeping the panel slim enough to wear beneath turnout gear or EMS jackets without creating excessive bulk — and its 1.71 lb weight, which enables all-day wear without cumulative fatigue from the cummerbund alone. The maximum 52" waist expandability accommodates the range of body sizes in fire and EMS services where personal protective equipment must fit diverse personnel.

The cummerbund's ballistic protection goes beyond the standard NIJ 0101.06 Level IIIA certification. NAR has tested and confirmed special threat performance against 9mm 127gr SXT (a high-performance hollow point used by many law enforcement agencies), multiple 5.7×28mm SS195 and SS197 rounds, .40 S&W, and a range of fragmentation threats from 2-grain through 64-grain RCC (right circular cylinder) fragment simulants at velocities up to 3,060 ft/s. This fragmentation testing is particularly relevant for explosion-adjacent scenarios — vehicle bombs, IEDs, secondary device activations — that produce high-velocity fragment projections as a primary threat mechanism.

Reflective Variant Options

The reflective colorways (Black w/ Orange Reflective, Black w/ Yellow Reflective, Coyote w/ Orange Reflective, Coyote w/ Yellow Reflective) serve a specific operational requirement: night-time or low-light scene visibility for fire and EMS personnel. NFPA 1971 and ANSI 107 high-visibility standards drive much of fire/EMS PPE design, and ballistic gear worn over or integrated with standard fire/EMS equipment benefits from the same visibility principles. Reflective piping on the cummerbund allows personnel to be seen by vehicle operators and other responders in nighttime incident scenes.

Special Threat Performance Data

V50 – .357 SIG 125gr TMJ: 1,867 ft/s | P-BFS Avg. 27.3 mm

V50 – .44 Mag 240gr JHP: 1,661 ft/s | P-BFS Avg. 36 mm

V50 – 9mm 127gr SXT: 1,754 ft/s | P-BFS Avg. 24.6 mm

P-BFS – .40 cal 165gr GDHP: 27.2 mm

P-BFS – 5.7×28 27gr SS195: 17 mm | SS197: 19.3 mm

Fragmentation: 2gr RCC: 3,060 ft/s V50

Fragmentation: 64gr RCC: 1,866 ft/s V50

See also: NAR Responder Vest Side Armor Pouches on MED-TAC | Premium Body Armor Vests | Ballistic Protection