KelTec
 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Firearms |
| Founded | 1991 |
| Founder | George Kellgren |
| Headquarters | , United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | George Kellgren (President) |
| Products | Pistols, Rifles, Shotguns |
| Website | www.keltecweapons.com |
Kel-Tec CNC Industries Inc., commonly referred to as KelTec (previously hyphenated as Kel-Tec until 2021),[1] is an American developer and manufacturer of firearms. Founded by George Kellgren in 1991 and based in Cocoa, Florida, the company has manufactured firearms since 1995, starting with semi-automatic pistols[2] and expanding to rifles and then shotguns. KelTec is a privately owned Florida corporation. George Kellgren, KelTec owner and chief engineer, is a Swedish designer who also designed many earlier Husqvarna, Swedish Interdynamics AB (in Sweden), Intratec and Grendel brand firearms. The company has been developing and manufacturing a wide variety of firearms, ranging from semi-automatic handguns, i.e. pistols, to semi-automatic rifles and shotguns.
KelTec has a reputation in the firearms industry for releasing innovative, and often radically disruptive new designs for firearms, such as the KSG shotgun and SUB-2000, as well as inexpensive, reliable and easily concealable firearms such as the pocket pistol KelTec P32.
History
[edit]Some Firearms manufactured by KelTec include the following: P11 pistol (9 mm); the P32 pistol, chambered in .32 ACP (7.65mm Browning) and one of the smallest and lightest pocketable pistols still in production weighing only 6.6 ounces (190 g); the P3AT pistol chambered in .380 ACP (9mm Short) since discontinued; the P-40 chambered in .40 S&W which has also been discontinued; the SUB-9 and the later very popular Kel-Tec SUB-2000, both semi-automatic pistol caliber carbines that readily fold into themselves for easy storage. In addition, the company offers a family of 5.56×45mm rifles known as the SU-16 series.
In November 2005 the PLR-16 was released. The PLR-16 is a long-range pistol design based on key design elements copied from the earlier SU-16 rifle design.
In 2010 Kel-Tec introduced the PMR30, a lightweight, full-size, .22 Magnum 30-shot semiautomatic pistol.[3] In 2016, Kel-Tec introduced the CMR-30 carbine, based on the PMR30.[4]
Additionally, in 2016 Kel-Tec released the KelTec KSG and permanently changed the firearms industry by releasing the highest capacity mass produced shotgun, with a capability of holding 14 rounds of 12-gauge shotgun shells.
Lightest, thinnest semi-automatic 9 mm pistol
[edit]
The PF9, a flat 9×19mm single-column magazine semi-automatic pistol based on the earlier P11 and P3AT designs, was upon its release in 2006 touted as the thinnest and lightest 9 mm pistol ever mass-produced.[5] The PF9 was retired in 2022 and replaced with the P15.[6]
"High-Efficiency Rifles"
[edit]At the 2007 SHOT Show held in Orlando, Florida, Kel-Tec introduced a series of new "High-Efficiency Rifles" called the RFB, standing for "Rifle, Forward-ejection, Bull-pup."[7] The RFB is a gas-operated semi-automatic rifle with tilting breech block locking mechanism, loads the 7.62×51 NATO cartridge and uses metric FAL magazines; the RFB "family" consists in a series of bullpup rifles with three barrel lengths (18" barrel carbine, 24" sporter and 32" target versions), and a patented forward-ejection system via a tube placed over the barrel that ejects the spent case forwards, over the handguard of the rifle. This eliminates a major drawback of bullpup rifles, which is that they may not be readily usable by left-handed shooters.[8] Distribution of the RFB rifles in the USA was scheduled for February 2009; as of 2013, it has been publicly released for sale. As a further Revolution of the Bullpup, the RDB (Rifle Downward-ejecting Bullpup) was released in late 2015.[9]
Products
[edit]Kel-Tec breaks down their product line into three main categories: pistols, shotguns and rifles.[10]
Pistols
[edit]- KelTec PF9 9x19mm
- KelTec P11 9x19mm
- KelTec P15 9x19mm
- KelTec P17 22 LR
- KelTec P32 .32 ACP (7.65mm Browning)
- KelTec P3AT .380 ACP
- KelTec P50 FN 5.7 5.7x28mm
- KelTec PLR16 5.56 NATO
- KelTec PLR22 .22 LR
- KelTec PMR30 .22 WMR
- KelTec CP33 .22LR
- KelTec PR57 FN 5.7 5.7x28mm[11][12][13][14]
Shotguns
[edit]- KelTec KSG series
- KelTec KSG-25
- KelTec KSG Tactical
- KelTec KSG Compact
- KelTec KS7
- KelTec KSG410
Rifles
[edit]- KelTec R50 FN 5.7x28 (P50 in rifle form)
- KelTec SUB-2000 9mm/.40S&W/5.7x28mm
- KelTec SUB-2000 CQB (integrally suppressed SUB-2000)
- KelTec SU-16 5.56 NATO
- KelTec SU-22 .22 LR
- KelTec RFB 7.62 NATO bullpup
- KelTec CMR-30 .22 WMR
- KelTec RDB 5.56 NATO bullpup[15]
Gallery
[edit]-
P11 9 mm with loaded magazine -
P32 .32 ACP -
P3AT .380 ACP -
PF9 9mm blued finish with gray grip -
SUB-2000 9 mm with 15-round Beretta magazine -
SUB-2000 9 mm, folded -
PLR-16 5.56×45mm with compact forend and Levang linear recoil compensator -
SU-16A 5.56×45mm -
SU-16C 5.56×45mm, with stock in fixed position -
SU-16C 5.56×45mm, with stock in folded position -
SU-16C 5.56×45mm, with after-market collapsible stock, pistol grip, and telescopic sight -
RFB 7.62×51mm, with holographic weapon sight and sling -
KSG 12 Gauge
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References
[edit]- ^ https://blog.keltecweapons.com/press/a-reminder-to-our-friends-in-the-press "A REMINDER TO OUR FRIENDS IN THE PRESS" KelTec. keltecweapons.com
- ^ Johnston, Phil W. "Little Kel-Tec P-11 Pistol Features New, Practical Design." GunWeek. 2001. [1] Archived 2012-03-18 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Pistols" Kel-Tec. keltecweapons.com
- ^ Horman, B. Gil (January 11, 2016). "Tested: Kel-Tec CMR-30 .22 Magnum Rifle". American Rifleman. Retrieved April 9, 2016 – via NRA.
- ^ "PF-9." Kel-Tec. Kel-Tec-CNC.com
- ^ "P15 Press" Kel-Tec. keltecweapons.com
- ^ "News." Kel-Tec. Kel-Tec-CNC.com
- ^ "Brochure: Kel-Tec RFB High-Efficiency Rifle." Kel-Tec. SHOT Show 2007
- ^ "RDB". Archived from the original on 2016-08-24. Retrieved 2016-08-13.
- ^ "Our Guns". Kel-Tec. Archived from the original on 19 December 2012. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
- ^ https://www.nrawomen.com/content/new-guns-2025-kel-tec-pr57-pistol
- ^ https://gunsweek.com/en/pistols/shot-show/kel-tec-pr57-clip-fed-carry-pistol
- ^ https://www.americanrifleman.org/content/the-pr57-keltec-s-stripper-clip-fed-ccw-pistol/
- ^ https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/shot-2025-kel-tec-pr57-personal-defense-gone-wild-44818318
- ^ "RDB". Archived from the original on 2016-08-24. Retrieved 2016-08-13.
External links
[edit]
- Official KelTec firearms site
- Hi-res photos of KelTec firearms Archived 2021-06-16 at the Wayback Machine