Kel-Tec today announced the newest gun to their lineup, the PMR-30 pistol chambered in .22WMR. The P30 is a double stack semiautomatic pistol that has a 30 round magazine.
From Their Press Release:
The PMR-30 is a light weight, full size pistol chambered for the flat-shooting .22Magnum cartridge (.22WMR). The PMR-30 operates on a unique hybrid blowback/locked-breech system. This operation system allows for the use of a wide variety of ammunition as it seamlessly adjusts between locked breach and blowback
Kel-Tec To Unveil PMR-30 at 2010 SHOT show. Click image to view full size.
operation, depending on the pressure of the cartridge. It uses a double stack magazine of a new design that holds 30 rounds and fits completely in the grip of the pistol.
The trigger is a crisp single action with an over-travel stop. The manual safety is a thumb activated ambidextrous safety lever (up for SAFE, down for FIRE). The slide locks back after the last shot and a manual slide lock lever is also provided. The light, crisp trigger pull and fiber optic sights make the PMR-30 ideal for target shooting and hunting small game.
Slide and barrel are 4140 steel, frame is 7075 aluminum. Grip, slide cover, trigger, mag release, and safety levers are glass reinforced Nylon (Zytel), much like other Kel-Tec Pistols. Magazine is Also Zytel and holds 30 rounds, with round count ports. Other features include: dual opposing extractors for reliability, heel magazine release to aid in magazine retention, dovetailed aluminum front sight, Picatinny accessory rail under the barrel, Urethane recoil buffer, captive coaxial recoil springs. The barrel is
fluted for light weight and effective heat dissipation. PMR30 disassembles for cleaning by removal of a single pin.
Expected Availability: Quarter 2, 2010
Expected MSRP: $415
Caliber: .22 Magnum (.22WMR)
Barrel length 4.3”
Length: 7.9”
Height: 5.8”
Grip Width: 1.1”
Max width, across safety levers: 1.3”
Magazine capacity: 30 rounds
Trigger pull: 3.5 to 5 lbs
Weight (no mag): 13.6 oz.
Muzzle Velocity (40 gr): 1230 fps
Made in USA
More info will be available at the SHOT show 2010 Kel-Tec Booth (#2825)
 The New Kel-Tec PMR-30, Photo Courtesy Oleg Volk. Click to view full size. |
It's really no surprise that Kel-Tec is finally releasing (or should I say, re-releasing?) the PMR-30. Swedish designer George Kellgren initially designed the Grendel P30 .22 Magnum autoloader. Now, it's been rehashed and re released as the Kel-Tec PMR-30.
Many of Kel-Tec's guns share an incredible number of similarities with Kellgren's Grendel designs. Comparing the Grendel P10 with the Kel-Tec P3AT for example one can see how the P10 was essentially a prototype for the now famous P3AT. Redesigning the Grendel P30 into the new PMR-30 seems only natural
The Grendel was not the first autoloader to fire the .22WMR. AMT (now sold by High Standard) designed a very elegant pistol for the cartridge back in the mid 1970s, the Automag II. In 2007 Excel Industries also released their own .22 Magnum pistol. Like the Automag II, the Excel MP-22 also uses a single stack magazine.
There's a reason that semiautomatic handguns chambered in .22 Magnum are rare. Engineering an autoloader for that cartridge is no easy feat. The .22WMR cartridge has some unique characteristics which make it difficult to work with in an autoloader. It was initially designed as a rifle cartridge, and as such is generally loaded with slow burning rifle powder. This causes the cartridge to develop a late peak pressure, which leads to the possibility of the case mouth expanding and jamming in the chamber.
 George Kellgren's Grendel P30, source unkown |
The Grendel P30 utilized a fluted chamber to facilitate better extraction, while the engineers at AMT took a different approach. They drilled 18 holes at 90 degrees to the chamber, and then welded a larger sleeve around that to provide room for excess gasses to vent. No word yet on what approach the engineers at Kel-Tec in the P30 chamber design, though presumably they will use the same fluted chamber design as the Grendel.
The Grendel P30 also had a double stack Zytel plastic magazine, which the Kel-Tec P30 also appears to use.
Kellgren also designed a carbine model of the Grendel P30, designated the R31. Presumably we can look forward to Kel-Tec releasing a carbine companion to their new PMR-30 pistol sometime in the not too distant future.
More photos are available over at Oleg Volk's Gallery
No comments:
Post a Comment