So, I had signed up to be notified for the availability of a Keltec SU16-A on a few websites several months back. I'd almost forgotten about it when I finally received a notice a couple of weeks ago so I pulled out the plastic and pulled the trigger.
It arrived at my FFL yesterday and I wasted no time in picking it up and heading into the woods to give it a go. Just some light shots of lube here and there, installed the Bushnell TRS-25 I ordered for it and strapped my supplies onto my ATV and headed up .
I didn't have a great deal of time so I only grabbed 80 rounds with the expectation that I would not burn through it all. I got the rifle sighted in and just started plinking and threw up some targets. I ran through the 80 rounds pretty quick and was grinning from ear to ear afterward. Wicked fun gun. However, I did experience some failures. Two FTF's and three FTE's in total. I read this is common when breaking in this particular rifle so I will not judge it too harshly (yet). But I will note that my other semi-auto centerfire has never had any failures of any kind no matter what I have fed it (1500+ rounds and counting).
In addition, the spent shells of all 80 rounds are dented in a consistent manner upon ejection. Not sure if this is a problem but will call Keltec to be sure, if anyone has any insight I'm all ears.
Aside from that the gun was great. Decent trigger, nice fit and finish. Some of the parts were stiff when I first started handling it but it is quickly breaking in. The bi-pod was a bitch to deploy and retract but now it's smoothed out some and I expect that to further improve. The mags were also stiff and would not eject but are getting better. Metal mags eject just fine. I replaced the takedown pin (which was also stiff) with a looped version to make it easier to pull out. Some people complain about the sights but I don't see why, they were fine for me. I'm also just barely able to co-witness with the Bushnell. Accuracy was decent from what little I have been able to gather in 80 short rounds. 2-4' groups at 50-ish yards leaning against a tree. If I were prone or bench resting that would be better. I'll post more on accuracy as I play with it more.
After I got back I took it down and gave it a deep cleaning\lubing. Takedown is about as easy as any AR platform with maybe 60 seconds worth of extra effort. But easy nonetheless, everything seems to fit together nicely.
Now, I'm a bit biased when I say this but I think I really like this gun. I have a thing for small, portable rifles designed to be in the field for extended periods. Most of my rifles share this theme to one extent or another. But this gun takes that concept to a higher level. It's just stupid light and ultra portable. I loved that my Ruger 10/22 Takedown is portable and all, but this gun has real punch. Centerfire power in a sub 5 lb package, what's not to like? I have a Mossbrg MVP Predator and a Ruger Gunsite Scout which are both great guns that share in the small field rifle theme but this thing feels like half the weight of those. Dare I say I enjoyed it more than an AR? Time will tell but all indications are that this is going to be a fun gun. I'll post more as I go and answer any questions you may have.
