Never really done a review before, but I thought you should all know what a great piece of airsoft kit you all originally interested in missed out on.
Left - Canadian Forces issued Fragmentation Protective Vest (FPV), size Small-Regular (hereby designated Issued)
Right - rustysniper's replica FPV, size S/M (hereby designated Replica)
As you can see right off the bat, for a "small" the Replica is more on the side of medium. My combat shirts are 6736 and 7036 (first two numbers are height in inches, last two are chest size - I am 5' 7.5"), and the Issued fits snugly at the adjusted length of straps. The Replica is cinched all the way down and is still a little big/loose.
The Replica's material looks a lot like the combat cloth used for the uniforms, but has a stronger feel to it, but not as tough as the Issued vest's (1000D?) material. The underside seems to have a water-repelling liner.
Top - Replica
Bottom - Issued
The back of the front panel opens to allow placement of soft armour and plates. Great attention to detail with the stitching. Replica's grommets are gold (instead of black) and a little smaller, but still good.
Top - Replica
Bottom - Issued
The Replica has a lightweight foam throughout to simulate the bulk of the soft armour. The Replica is
very light, roughly measured at 2.5lbs, versus the Issued at ~6lbs.
Replica - inside front panel
You can see here, the pocket can hold a plate in the front. There are two different patterns of material that resemble the 1000D fake CADPAT made in USA and commonly used on paintball gear. I like that he used that here because it will provide a stronger hold for anyone adding weight to their plates and doesn't waste hard-to-find CADPAT material on something no one else will see.
Left - Issued
Right - Replica
Emphasizing the stitching of the front plate on the inside.
Right - Replica
Left - Issued
There are no tags on the Replica, but you can see again his attention to detail where he stitched velcro to hold the soft armour in place on the inside.
Left - Replica
Right - Issued
The straps used on the Replica are a bit of a cheaper material, but more than does the job.
Left - Replica
Right - Issued
Now this really impressed me. rusty was able to get the actual moisture-wicking material that the Issued vest uses on the collar and inside of the Goretex combat jacket.
Top - Issued
Bottom - Replica
You can see the Replica shoulder pads are noticeably larger than my Issued ones (size small). But I assume this is only because rusty did a generic one-size-fits-all for the majority of the others who needed M/L vests.
Left - Issued
Right - Replica
The moisture-wicking material is used on the underside of the Replica. The opening to access the soft armour is also on the wrong side. But no one would notice unless they were looking for it (which I was).
Replica
You can see that rusty even included the stretchy material inside of the shoulder pad straps to allow for a better fit.
Left - Issued
(note the fold due to the stretchy strap inside the shoulder pads)
Right - Replica
Unfortunately, due to the generic sizing of the shoulder pads, the stretchy straps don't pull down on the shoulder pads as snugly as the Issued ones, and you tend to get a more of a "free float" when the Replica is donned.
Replica - the shoulder pad sort of "floats" above the vest
Top - Issued
Bottom - Replica
The pocket for the rear plate on the Replica is noticeably bigger than the Issued pocket. The Replica also lacks grommets.
Left - Issued
Right - Replica
The black on the sholder strap of the Issued is a rubbery material intended to grip the butt of the weapon. Although the black on the Replica provides no grip, it replicates the Issued well, including the CADPAT material underneath it.
rustysniper's Replica Fragmentation Protective Vest (without shoulder pads) with my DZT ModCan vest
Final thoughts
AMAZING replica! Some small items in terms of material and size/placement (e.g. plate pocket), but that's just me having great attention to detail and being a reservist/university student with nothing else better to do before classes start. Overall, I'd rate this a 9.5/10.
Suggestion for further project
I know Parklands has a decent quality replica of the issued tac-vest in CADPAT TW, but rusty, I think you should do an interest-check to see if anyone would be interested in a replica of the issued tac-vest in CADPAT AR/desert. I know I'd definitely be interested in that, or at least a DZT ModCan-type vest in AR to allow for MOLLE pouches.