I stumbuled across this one while I was doing some pre purchase reasurch on a sub 2000. I have never fired a Kel Tec before but I know a few guys at work who have Kel Tec handguns. This littel carbine looks great. I am now thinking of gettin it instead of the sub 2000. Is this a really great buy for a budget .223, or is it just a good consolation for California shooters who cannot get an AR style rifle. How such a cool design, and a full under-folder too; still be leagle in California. I know they come with 10 round magazines but how do they work with 20, and 30 round magazines? Any info would help. Unable to find any here, and I cannot get any kind of a time fraime as to when I will be able to buy one. Eveyone is sold out and on backorder. I hope that they are not written out by any new laws.
I'd say the SU16 is about the only choice for a budget semi-auto .223 . THey are quite popular in Kali because they manage to tip-toe around the "assault weapon" designation. I'm not sure if the Charlie model is legal there or not, my head hurts when I think about their laws.
Although the A and B models fold, the can't be fired while folded. However, with a 30 round mag stored in the buttstock, it can be made ready to fire in seconds. The A model has a longer, heavier barrel and the B has better sights. Mine is an A with the Pistol grip adapter and ACE Products side folding stock.
The C model can be fired while folded and the stock will fit over a METAL 30 round mag. Plastic mags are too thick for the hole in the stock to fit over.
I'd say the A model should certainly be safe from any legislation in the immediate future. It's basically a takedown rifle. They've even come up with a "bullet-button" for it.
One great thing about the SU16 as opposed to an AR (besides price) is that it's rod operated so the chamber stays relatively clean. Also Keltec's customer service is top notch. They've been known to give people new guns with the old serial number if the problem can't be fixed any other way.
You may hear rumors about them being prone to Kabooms. This was a problem in a few of the very first ones off the assembly line and was due to an improperly staked operating rod. It was promptly fixed and I haven't heard of this happening to anyone since.
That's all I can think of for now. I love mine. KTOG.org is a great resource for Keltec info as well.
Oh, one more thing. You can use a tennis racket or Razor scooter bag as an SU16 carrying case. Talk about stealth!
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Thanks for the info. I will have to wait and get some cash together before I get one. I went ahead and and got the Glock style .40 S&W 29 rnd. magazines, just in case. I figure the magazines will become unavalible for sale long before the SUB 2000 will be unavalible. Eventually I want a copy of both the SUB 2000, and the SU-16, I really like the C/A configuration. It seams like the best of both rifles.
In Kali a rifle with a pistol grip can't have a detachable magazine, detachable meaning removable without the use of a tool. It has been decided that a bullet is a tool, so AR's and the like are fitted with a bracket where you have to use a bullet (or other such pin-type device) to depress a button to remove the mag...bullet button. It works kind of like removing the floor plate from a pistol mag.
And yeah, the C/A does seem like the best all around. Some folks say C/A stands for Cat's A$$.
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I sortof stumbled onto a Sub 9 (predicessor to the sub 2000) and picked it up on the spot several months ago and Love it. I would get one just for the portability and how rapidly you can deploy it alone. Then I too started looking at the Sub 16's as I wanted a 2nd or backup rifle in .223 and was lucky enough to find a used one minus the back sight at a local gun shop for around $350. I've yet to shoot it yet but from everything I've read I'm sure I will be very happy with it. The only thing I don't care for so far is having to use the push pin for the stock. I've read that many people have substituted the factory pin with a 1/4" hitch pin, but I would love to be able to figure out a way to make it as rapidly deployable as my sub 9. To me that is the only negative I've seen about the 16 yet.
I have the B model. Make sure you clean it and lube it properly before firing it. Don't rapid fire it. Keep in mind it's a SURVIVAL weapon and not a combat weapon. expect a 2 to 2.5in. MOA. Dress it properly before you shoot it and it'll be even better. Don't forget to lube the EJECTOR.
My 10yr old Daughter can shoot it all day and still wants more.
Thanks for the info. I will have to wait and get some cash together before I get one. I went ahead and and got the Glock style .40 S&W 29 rnd. magazines, just in case. I figure the magazines will become unavalible for sale long before the SUB 2000 will be unavalible. Eventually I want a copy of both the SUB 2000, and the SU-16, I really like the C/A configuration. It seams like the best of both rifles.
i think your out of luck i just checked out the new sub2000 at my local gun shop and guess what they no longer accept glock mags they now make them to take sig mags i think. this was the 9mm model i am talking about but i think it's the same for all calibers of sub2000's. i had a few of them 30+3 mags for my sub2000 and trust me your better off going with a regular high capacity mag the ones i had didn't really work that well and they was a name brand .i traded mine in for a two for one swap on some glock17 mags for it.
I think the Sub 2000 comes in a Sig, Glock, and Baretta configuration, for both 9mm and .40 S&W you just have to specify which configuration you want when you order it of just "buy from dealer stock". I held off on any Kel Tec gun now, I am working on a M-4 build. Either way you can never have enough spare High Cap Glock mags.
I had an SU 16 B. Now I have a PLR 16; both excellent guns. But you need to use an optical sight on the PLR, in order to hit anything; the "iron" sights are useless.
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I feel more like I do now than I did awhile ago.
Instead of starting another thread, did anyone notice the article in the March 2010 issue of Gun Test Magazine, it tested a Kel Tec SU-16 against two $2000.00 rifles from Sig, and Ruger. They only gave it a "B" rating, although it shot just as accuratly as the two other rifles that cost over twice as much. They have never tested a 1911 or AR-15 they did not like. Still it was a good article.
I have wanted to get one for quite some time but I have been unable to find one at a gun show and none of the local gun stores ever have one in stock. I do not want to special order one and pay the full retail price, which now since AR prices are falling and botteming out the SU-16 does not seam to be the bargen priced black rifle it was last year. I still want one though.
Since I had put my first post in this thread I actually picked up a 2nd SU-16, a CA version. Having played with both I am pretty content with the two I have, the 2nd one I picked up New for $600 last year. I do prefer the CA to the A with the slightly shorter barrel and intigrated front sight in the foregrip (to me although functional the front sight on the A looks cheesy). My wife also likes the CA better being a little lighter and easier to hold up with the shorter barrel. Also the comments on this being a survival vs. military weapon are right on target too. I would be hesitant do do much rapid firing etc, but that's the trade off for having a good rifle that you could put in a backpack and not even know it's there. So after several months I'm still pleased with my purchases, although I think I am going to sell the A model as since I've picked up a Benelli MR1 so I have more .223's than I want now.
I am looking at getting the Charlie model, they thickened the barrel and fixed the horrible plastic front sight. Also they apparently added a nice threaded front barrel that you can attach a flash suppressor to it. The Charlie defiantly seems to be a much improved/durable rifle.
