I managed to get my hands on a Kel-tec P17. This is the smaller lightweight 22 LR pistol with 16 rounds magazines. A gun range near me had two and I got one. It was the first time I saw it in stock anywhere. The other one sold the next day. $199 plus tax.
It comes with 3 magazines and a threaded barrel adapter. It is extremely light weight, but it does look cheap even for a Kel-tec. . Lots of big Allen screws holding everything together. The rear site is adjustable for windage and elevation.
I have put several hundred round through it with no issues for the most part. I have had misfires, but the primers had a good dent in them every time. I had some issues early on with some Federal Champion ammo, but I think some lead shaved off a couple rounds when they were feeding and gummed things up. Once I cleaned things out, it worked 100%.
I have shot 40 grain solids, 36 grain Federal HP, CCI standard velocity, CCI subsonic, and some CCI 45 grain Quiet ammo. All ran through the gun okay. The CCI Quiet ammo was with a suppressor which may have helped.
The 16 round magazines are easy to load with no tricks to loading them. They are double stack mags. You empty a 50 round box of ammo just loading the magazines. And you can dump that ammo downrange really fast.
One nagging problem I need to work on is the rear site keeps drifting to the left. The windage adjustment screw isn't very tight. I was planning to try some blue locktite on it.
The other issue came up last weekend: It has a small "slide bushing" that is small and falls out when you field strip. The recoil spring is around the barrel and this bushing sits on the inside of the slide and holds the recoil spring in. When you remove the slide, the bushing isn't held so it just falls out. I wouldn't recommend field stripping at the range unless you have a good table. I managed to lose that part in the dirt and am waiting to hear back from Kel tec on getting another one. I figure I am approaching 1000 rounds through the pistol and am dead in the water until I get that part. Kel-tec doesn't have parts or spare magazines on their site for this pistol yet.
Overall, the gun is mostly plastic like their other rimfire pistols. The slide rails are thin and the recoil spring is light which is normal for 22 LR. With all that, I can see how minor QA/QC issues or defects could cause bad reliability issues. But mine works well and seems to be a great plinking pistol. I am very happy with it.
It comes with 3 magazines and a threaded barrel adapter. It is extremely light weight, but it does look cheap even for a Kel-tec. . Lots of big Allen screws holding everything together. The rear site is adjustable for windage and elevation.
I have put several hundred round through it with no issues for the most part. I have had misfires, but the primers had a good dent in them every time. I had some issues early on with some Federal Champion ammo, but I think some lead shaved off a couple rounds when they were feeding and gummed things up. Once I cleaned things out, it worked 100%.
I have shot 40 grain solids, 36 grain Federal HP, CCI standard velocity, CCI subsonic, and some CCI 45 grain Quiet ammo. All ran through the gun okay. The CCI Quiet ammo was with a suppressor which may have helped.
The 16 round magazines are easy to load with no tricks to loading them. They are double stack mags. You empty a 50 round box of ammo just loading the magazines. And you can dump that ammo downrange really fast.
One nagging problem I need to work on is the rear site keeps drifting to the left. The windage adjustment screw isn't very tight. I was planning to try some blue locktite on it.
The other issue came up last weekend: It has a small "slide bushing" that is small and falls out when you field strip. The recoil spring is around the barrel and this bushing sits on the inside of the slide and holds the recoil spring in. When you remove the slide, the bushing isn't held so it just falls out. I wouldn't recommend field stripping at the range unless you have a good table. I managed to lose that part in the dirt and am waiting to hear back from Kel tec on getting another one. I figure I am approaching 1000 rounds through the pistol and am dead in the water until I get that part. Kel-tec doesn't have parts or spare magazines on their site for this pistol yet.
Overall, the gun is mostly plastic like their other rimfire pistols. The slide rails are thin and the recoil spring is light which is normal for 22 LR. With all that, I can see how minor QA/QC issues or defects could cause bad reliability issues. But mine works well and seems to be a great plinking pistol. I am very happy with it.
