Anything metal or kevlar likely outclasses bone and leather in general, I think.
I think boiled leather and plated leather might compete with or beat bone, but I’ll have to check. And see if I can make them without books.
uses debug wish menu to check
Hmm. Bone body armor has 12/12 bash/cut protection. Leather has the exact same value, as does fur body armor. Fur and bone both have 1 more encumbrance than leather. Fur body armor has 60 warmth, leather 25, and bone 20. Leatrher armor has 8 storage, fur has 4, and bone has 0. Bone has 95% coverage, fur has 90, and leather has 85.
EDIT: Also, boiled leather armor gains 15/15 protection in exchange for only 20 warmth and 4 storage, and 3 encumbrance. Chitinous body armor has a whopping 18/24 protection, 90% coverage, 2 encumbrance, 10 warmth, and 0 storage.
Really, if I wanted armor that WASN’T shit, I would’ve started as a fighter or knight instead of giving barbarians a fur cloak and bone helmet.
EDIT 2: Hmm, it seems installing a travois or water barrel are the only vehicle additions available to me that use level 0 mechanics.