I think the Kel-Tec SU-16B could be a handy rifle for SHTF or HITW (hiking in the woods) AS you can see in the pic it folds down to less than 30" I think 27" to be exact. Takes standard M-16/AR mags and holds two in the buttstock.. and since even the local academy has 50 rd mags and shells you should never be hard pressed for ammo. It has some similarities in design with the AR-15 rifles, but the operating system borrows the operating rod from the AK-47 / SKS series of rifles for bolt cycling and the rest is John Browning via Colt.
Did I mention the fore grip is also a built in bipod!
Alpha Model Bravo Model
37.4 inches overall length
18.5 inch barrel
4.8 pounds
35 inches overall length
16.1 inch barrel
4.6 pounds
I don't work for Kel-tec and I'm not trying to sell this sucker to anybody!!... Except my wife..
The SU-16 series is an okay plinker - I wouldn't rely on it for a true hard-core TSHTF situation.
Accuracy is good - til the barrel heats up and POI starts to wander.
Trigger pull is actually quite good!
The folding bipod/forend is stouter than it first appears - but I don't know about long-term ruggedness.
The folding stock is pretty much a gimmick, and again unsure about it in the long-term.
At least it can retain optics with the stock folded, unlike their earlier "Plumber's Nightmare", the Sub2000.
The SU-16 series is an okay plinker - I wouldn't rely on it for a true hard-core TSHTF situation.
Accuracy is good - til the barrel heats up and POI starts to wander.
BigDog,
This is the type of thing I've been wanting to know.. Everyone that has one loves it, but none of the ones I've talked to have fired more than a couple thousand rounds through their SU -16's..
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I know what you mean Larmus!! This is my next purchase:
Only setting me back round $500 alltogether and it should be a great plinker for me PLUS my wife should be able to handle if necessary in SHTF situation!! Lifetime Warranty!!!
I had been on the fence for a while; but, this MPA20SS ^ just beat out the Cx-4 Storm, after discussing the Masterpiece Arms pistols (by the same basic design) with some VERY satisfied customers!!!
The SU-16 series is an okay plinker - I wouldn't rely on it for a true hard-core TSHTF situation.
Accuracy is good - til the barrel heats up and POI starts to wander.
Trigger pull is actually quite good!
The folding bipod/forend is stouter than it first appears - but I don't know about long-term ruggedness.
The folding stock is pretty much a gimmick, and again unsure about it in the long-term.
At least it can retain optics with the stock folded, unlike their earlier "Plumber's Nightmare", the Sub2000.
I know this is an old thread but......
I have an SU-16b. Best $500 I've ever spent. I've fired alot of ammo through mine. No problems as long as it's lubed properly. NEVER had the POI wonder on me even after heavy use at the range. I don't like bi-pods so I don't use it. It's alot tougher than it looks! Check out the durability test on the KTOG website. Fits in a backpack, flawlessly uses AR mags and my 10yr old Daughter can hit soda cans CONSISTANTLY with it up to 300yds (it's actually her rifle and She's quite proficient with it).
With proper "dressing" it can be a 1.5MOA or better shooter. Expect a 2 to 2.5MOA out of the box. I'll take it over anything else in 5.56 NATO in a SHTF situation for the money. My other SHTF rifles are a couple of SKS'.
The SU is more than a "plinker" It will kill you just as efficiently and just as dead at 300-400yds as ANY AR or any other 5.56 NATO rifle. It is FAAAAR more accurate than a Mini 14. Just keep in mind it's not a "battle" rifle, it is a SURVIVAL weapon and fills that niche better than anything else intended for that specific purpose.
My buddy who has the SU-16 has a very early model - they were noted for the wandering POI when hot, and we confirmed that when putting it thru it's paces. Looks like they fixed that problem.
His also had bad sights - the front sight couldn't be adjusted without damage, and the rear sight would not adjust for 100 yards. He replaced the plastic rear sight with the then-optional metal sight - much better!
It functioned flawlessly, with several brands of AR magazines and with many brands of ammo.
Being an old-school guy who likes Steel&wood, I have always been distrustful of 'plastic'.....
But just as I came to appreciate the Glock handgun, so I do appreciate this product of Kel-Tec - indeed, it is so far the ONLY thing Kel-Tec makes that I would possibly own.
Another buddy has the Sub2000 - and that is a horror story for another thread......
I might indeed be interested in the SU-16, if I didn't already have the Bushmaster M17S Bushpup. So, I do have a couple 'Plastic Fantastics"....
They did have some issues when they first came out, however the newer ones like mine are supurb weapons. They will certainly hold their own next to anything in 5.56. I'm used to people capping on them. Usually someone whos never owned one before, I'm kinda' tired of it. Kel-Tecs warranty is iron clad! they are fantastic people to deal with.
The new Kel-Tec .308 that ejects out the front is fascinating in it's design.
So far though, it doesn't seem to making it to market? Being a bullpup style, it would make a nice 'big brother' for my Bushpup.
For my needs, the SU-16 does offer a better choice than a Mini-14, for about the same price. Since my BO plans involve using a dual-sport motorcycle on dirt roads, the folding rifle is a great idea!
That pack setup carrying the rifle would work well for what I am considering!
everyones garrantee is good till they go belly up.....ask me about a grendal .380 with a "lifetime warranty".....i'd like to put it where they'd know they needed to do some claims work.
I know what you mean. My last couple years owning an AMC car, the company went under, and when I took the car to the very dealer who been an AMC dealer just a year before, suddenly they are asking me, "Whut the hayul IS it!?"
Bad news when your service dudes suddenly forget the stuff they did before, or are no longer there at all!
Gun companies come and go all the time. Even when they get bought out by a bigger fish, they don't always honor their warranties and service agreements. Worries the heck out of me with all the mergers and sellouts occuring lately. One reason I try to learn enough to do my own minor 'smithing. Just gotta hope parts are available!
I know what you mean. My last couple years owning an AMC car, the company went under, and when I took the car to the very dealer who been an AMC dealer just a year before, suddenly they are asking me, "Whut the hayul IS it!?"
Bad news when your service dudes suddenly forget the stuff they did before, or are no longer there at all!
Gun companies come and go all the time. Even when they get bought out by a bigger fish, they don't always honor their warranties and service agreements. Worries the heck out of me with all the mergers and sellouts occuring lately. One reason I try to learn enough to do my own minor 'smithing. Just gotta hope parts are available!
Why hope parts will still be available? Why not stock up on replacement parts BEFORE TSHTF? There are plenty of places around that deal in parts and most are reasonable. DO you wait to buy ammo until you start hunting?
The new Kel-Tec .308 that ejects out the front is fascinating in it's design. So far though, it doesn't seem to making it to market? Being a bullpup style, it would make a nice 'big brother' for my Bushpup.
Supposedly, Kel-Tec as been changing shop since Obama took office, and from what I can remember from the e-mail they sent, they were changing their facility to be more in line with expected changes.
Basically what I got from them was that the RFB was going to be on the backburner since Obama would likely ban everything scary looking (hasn't happened, yet) so why invest their resources on a niche product. They also hinted that they would be chambering their SU-16 series in pistol calibers to allow them to be more acceptable to places like California which, hypothetically more and more states could potentially follow with their gun laws. The non-assault weapon look without a pistol grip, and a more efficient product line. All of this was months ago, and is purely speculative on my part, but it could come true!
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I take my coffee how I take my women: bitter and overbearing.
Why hope parts will still be available? Why not stock up on replacement parts BEFORE TSHTF? There are plenty of places around that deal in parts and most are reasonable. DO you wait to buy ammo until you start hunting?
He was saying that when he owns a gun that is no longer supported by a still-operating company, he likes that he is able to do his own minor gunsmithing, so long as parts can still be found for that gun.
Basically what I got from them was that the RFB was going to be on the backburner !
There have been several on Gunbroker already. Did they quit production after sending these out the door? And what's the deal with the price? $1800 list?
And if you think about the cost of developing a completely new (and very innovative) design in the current market, versus Springfield Armory simply continuing to build the same rifle they have for the last 35 years, I think the price is very fair. For example, if SA or Colt or Armalite or Bushmaster (or any of the other big "black rifle" companies) had built the exact same thing, I'd bet they'd be charging over $2500 for it.
Expensive, yes, but very far from overpriced. Not to mention the features you get for the money, like both the weight being balanced nearer to the grip (if not slightly behind it for the short version), and the OAL being 14" shorter than an M1A for the same barrel length. The 26" (18" BBL) version of the RFB is probably one of the most powerful long guns one could have in such a compact size.
And I think they should have called it the BFR... I'm sure they thought about it, but chickened out and scrambled up the words, heh. Though I think there was a revolver called the "BFR" ("Biggest, Finest" Revolver), so maybe thats why. But how about the BFW, with the "W" being "Weapon." It's nickname could have been "The BeefDub."
As far as the SU16, I think the new ones, specifically the C and CA models with their shorter, beefier barrels, are very fine rifles. Accuracy is near MOA, they seem very reliable, and the folding feature, as mentioned, is very handy. It is among the top few entries on my list of long guns I often consider buying. At least once a month I toy with the idea of picking one up.
