FIRST IMPRESSIONS: Kel Tec Sub 2000 Gen. 2 9mm carbine

[Uni-Vibe]

I needed a carbine for the car. Something that I wouldn't cry too much if it were stolen.

I picked up a Sub 2K at a gun show. I was skeptical of Kel Tec, because of an out of box failure with a Kel Tec .32 ages ago, but the internet buzz said it worked, so I took a chance.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: This unorthodox rifle works as an inexpensive defense weapon.

EXTERIOR: Detailed descriptions abound and will not be repeated. This thing looks like something made to be air dropped to fourth world allies somewhere. The receiver is a piece of pipe, the charging handle is on the bottom and reciprocates, the furniture looks like cheapo plastic. The iron sights could stand much improvement. There's 1913 rail top and bottom and that's good, because I strongly recommend a red dot sight. The plastic rail is not completely flat and so your red dot is slightly canted if you look closely. Also highly useful is a Magpul angled foregrip on the bottom rail. The barrel is threaded and I plan to put on an A1 flash hider.

MAGAZINES: Mine takes Glock 17 mags but others are available; make sure what you are getting. Sub 2K comes with a 17 round Magpul. I bought 33 round Glock magazines and the Uplula mag loader. These magazines lock in positively and drop free.

INSIDE: This is a straight blowback design. The bolt fits together with a weight, and the weight contains a captured action spring.

FIRING: The Sub was generously lubricated with CLP. The trigger is long and takes some effort, but at least is smooth. The charging handle takes some effort to pull. Bolt hold open is accomplished by a notch in the slot the charging handle travels in. There is no bolt locking back on an empty magazine. The gun is not ergonomic at all but it is manageable. Ammo tested was:

Winchester 115 grain FMJ
Winchester NATO Q4318 124 grain
Federal American Eagle 147 grain conical. flat nose FMJ.

The round nose ran 100% reliable. The Sub 2K did not like the 147's flat nose and caused frequent failures to feed with bullet setback. Testing of 147 was discontinued. The rifle was reasonably accurate off the bench, and shooting offhand it was light and maneuverable. Rapid firing with the red dot yielded 6 to 8 inch groops at 25 yards.

CLEANING: Blowback guns run dirty. The sub is easy to strip but to reassemble you'll need a 3/8 hardwood dowel. Hoppe's and a toothbrush should tidy it up. Very little glop is dumped onto the magazine.

[jsbhike]

Remington 115gr jhp might be worth trying in it since it has a rounder profile than most other jhp.

[wanderson]

My gen 2 Sub2k runs Beretta mags and it feeds 147gr. flatnose just fine.
That’s from factory 15s, 17s, 30s and Surplus M9 mags.
But I hear all the time that other Glock ver. subs don’t like flatnose.
I’d like to know if S&W or Sig versions have this issue.