Popular with US Navy Seals, Special Forces and Law Enforcement personnel, products of Mayflower have been successful for a long time. Mayflower produces gear up to the highest standards, using only materials 100% MADE IN USA. Likewise, the production will be fully accomplished in the United States.
The Mayflower Assault Plate Carrier, short “APC” is available in the sizes small/medium and large/extra large. In addition, the cummerbund is availible in the sizes small, medium/large, extra large. This allows the user to perfectly adjust the plate carrier to their body dimensions.
MATERIALS AND BUILD QUALITY
The Mayflower Assault Plate Carrier (APC) is made out of PU coated 500 Denier Cordura, which is en excellent choice because it is fairly lightweight and hard-wearing at the same time.
Mayflower are known for their excellent build quality and the APC is no exception. The seams are clean, well stitched and reinforced where needed. There’s nothing to criticize here.
When it comes to the SwiftClip buckles and square rings, Mayflower only uses quality products made by ITW Nexus, which not only guarantee a long lifespawn but also meet the high demands of today’s tactical applications.
THE FRONT PANEL
The front of the plate carrier features an integrated admin pouch that can easily be opend even when wearing gloves thanks to the integrated flap. There’s enough space for pens, field notes, chemlights, a multitool and other small items that are used frequently.
The items are held in place by the elastic tape on the inside. The large admin pouch is quite deep and is 15cm wide and 19cm tall. The admin pouch spans almost the whole upper half of the plate carrier.
In front of the integrated admin pouch is another small one. The smaller admin pouch can not be closed/sealed like its bigger brother but features a 15x10cm Velcro area and two MOLLE rows of Velcro tape. The Velcro area is great for patches and other items. The MOLLE rows can be used to mount a PTT unit, light or other items. If you don’t use the Velcro area, you can also add various pouches to the front.
THE SWIFT CLIP SYSTEM
Mounted on the left and right side of the admin pouch are two detachable buckles that are part of the Swift-Clip System. This system is intended to mount various chest rigs to the front of the plate carrier – for example the Mayflower UW CHEST RIG GEN IV. In the photo below, we mounted a Mayflower RECCE Rig to the APC. The RECCE Rig is specifically designed to carry HK417 magazines.
Mounting a chest rig to the APC is fairly easy: remove all straps from the chest rig, put the chest rig to the front and plug the buckles into the Swift-Clips. Done.
A lot of chest rigs from Mayflower and other manufacturers feature a Velcro area on the inside that stick to the front of the pate carrier’s Velcro tape. The Velcro creates a tight and secure connection between the the APC and the rig.
Unfortunately, our RECCE Rig is missing the Velcro area on the inside. In a case like this, you should consider using the Swift-Clip System by Velocity Systems. The Swift-Clip is used to mount the left and right side of the chest rig to the cummerbund so that the rig is tightened down and stays in place and is also recommended whenever mounting a large chest rig like the RECCE.
A lot of products from companies like Velocity Systems, Blue Force Gear, Haley Strategic Partners already utilize the Swift-Clip system and can be combined with Mayflower products according to the user’s needs.
THE FRONT FLAP
The front flap of the APC features 4 individual MOLLE rows that are 6 slots wide, the lower 3 MOLLE rows are made out of Velcro tape for mounting compatible chest rigs. The front panel accepts most standard MOLLE pouches and can be configured individually.
The Velcro tape is more flexible than the Cordura tape, which helps a lot when mounting the MOLLE pouches.
THE CUMMERBUND
As mentioned at the beginning, the cummerbund is available in three different sizes and features 3 rows and 5 to 7 loops of MOLLE tape depending on the size.
The cummerbund is mounted inside a Velcro backed slot on the back of the plate carrier. The cummerbund can be adjusted inside the slot by moving it in or out. It also features an elastic insert right behind the MOLLE area that provides a lot of comfort and flexibility.
The cummerbund can be mounted on the front Velcro area right underneath the front flap. This is a common mounting method. The cummerbund also features pockets for side plates or different pouch inserts.
PLATE COMPARTMENT
Depending on the size of the plate carrier, the plate compartment can store BALC/ESAPI or Swimmer Cut plates in combination with Soft Armour ranging from SMALL to EXTRA LARGE. For more detailed information on sizing please take a look at the manufacturer’s website.
Mounting the ballistic plates is easy and works like on most other plate carriers. Open the slot on the bottom and slide the plate in as far as you can.
Now there’s a feature not seen very often: a dedicated Velcro backed Cordura tape that is used to keep the plate in place securely. The tape is long enough to work with all plate sizes.
The side pockets of the cummerbund are capable of holding ESBI plates up to the size of 6×6 inches. If you want to use larger plates you should oinsert the Velocity System Side Plate Retainer Strap.
KANGOROO POUCH & MAG INSERT
If you want to use the Kangaroo pouch as a magazine pouch, Mayflower offers inserts for 3x 5.56 and 2x 7.62 mags. The inserts slide right into the Kangaroo pouch and are held in place by Velcro. The magazines can be secured using shock cord. The inserts can also be inserted into the pockets of the cummerbund.
SHOULDER PADS
The shoulder pads are made out of a 3D mesh that provides a lot of comfort due to its soft and large contact face. The pads are mounted with two elastic loops.
The loops can be used to store the hose of your hydration system or your radio cables. The shoulder straps can be adjusted smoothly.
CONCLUSION
The Mayflower Assault Plate Carrier is a sophisticated, extremely modular and high quality product. For the price of $ 255 USD you receive a quality product made in the USA that can be configured according to your mission/situation within seconds.
The Assault Plate Carrier and various other products from Mayflower can be bought at U.S. ELITE in the USA. The plate carrier is availible in Coyote Brown, Multicam, Ranger Green, Black and Desert Digital.
We want to give thanks to U.S. ELITE for sending us the Mayflower APC.
