Not sure man, 70 bucks is a great price IMO..... I haven't bought any gear for a while now as I haven't been in TKD for about 3 or 4 years now
.. I really need to get back in. Great stuff. And yeah Torso protection is for Olympic Sparring, AKA Full Contact. Sparring, for those of you who read this and don't know, Is a way to practice your skills without KO'ing people, as KO'd people cannot continue to test your skills...
Kicks are allowed, but obviously your instructor is smart and makes sure to emphasize its not full contact. Just a matter of knowing your distance on that. You don't need Hand or Shin Pads? PM me about this thread, so that when i get back here later, I immediatly go to my sources, I"m about to pass out, so I'll do it when I wake. But I'm happy to help out a fellow martial artist.
BTW, at my school, we'd buy them within a month