The Kel-Tec P50 is a

FN 5.7×28mm The FN 5.7×28mm (designated as the 5.7×28 by the C.I.P. and FN 5.7x28mm NATO) is a small-caliber, high-muzzle velocity, velocity, smokeless powder, Rim (firearms)#Rebated rim, rebated rim, bottlenecked centerfire cartridge (firearms), cartridg ...

semi-automatic pistol designed in the United States by

Kel-Tec Kel-Tec CNC Industries Inc., commonly referred to as Kel-Tec, 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 ...

in 2021.

History

In December 2020, an image of a magazine cover showcasing the P50 was leaked on KTOG, an online forum dedicated to Kel-Tec. The image advertised the pistol's ability to feed from 50 round 5.7×28mm magazines, and it is described as the "most unique Kel-Tec yet." The image subsequently spread to the rest of the Internet, which coincided with a trademark of the name P50, registered by Kel-Tec in February 2020. In January 2021, Kel-Tec's official website revealed details about the P50, saying that the weapon was going to begin shipping in March 2021, with an

MSRP The list price, also known as the manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP), or the recommended retail price (RRP), or the suggested retail price (SRP) of a product is the price at which its manufacturer notionally recommends that a retailer ...

of $995.

Design

The P50 is a straight blowback semi-automatic pistol that feeds from

FN P90 The FN P90 is a compact 5.7×28mm personal defense weapon designed and manufactured by FN Herstal in Belgium. It can also be considered a submachine gun. Created in response to NATO requests for a replacement for 9×19mm Parabellum firearms, th ...

magazines. Like the P90, the rounds are rotated at a 90 degree angle from the magazine into the chamber. A

Picatinny rail The Picatinny rail ( or ), or Pic rail for short, also known as a MIL-STD-1913 rail, 1913 rail or STANAG 2324 rail (cancelled), is a military standard rail interface system that provides a mounting platform for firearm accessories. It was ...

is located on the upper receiver, and a second rail is located below the magazine. The

trigger pull A trigger is a mechanism that actuates the function of a ranged weapon such as a firearm, airgun, crossbow, or speargun. The word may also be used to describe a switch that initiates the operation of other non-shooting devices such as a trap, ...

is 5 lb (22N). The barrel and moving parts are made from steel, with a

polymer A polymer (; Greek '' poly-'', "many" + ''-mer'', "part") is a substance or material consisting of very large molecules called macromolecules, composed of many repeating subunits. Due to their broad spectrum of properties, both synthetic a ...

frame and lower receiver to reduce weight. The P50 has an unusually long barrel for a handgun, helping to improve its muzzle velocity. At nine inches, it is over double the length of the barrel of the

FN Five-seven The FN Five-seven (stylized as Five-seveN) is a semi-automatic pistol designed and manufactured by FN Herstal in Belgium. The pistol is named for its 5.7×28mm (.224 in) bullet diameter, and the trademark capitalization style is intended to ...

, and only one inch less than the P90's barrel. Kel-Tec has stated that they have no intention of creating any braces or other accessories for the P50, leaving the aftermarket to "do their thing". At 50 yards, the P50 has an average shot grouping of . The bolt is longer than that of an average handgun, which helps reduce recoil, making the P50 "significantly more accurate than 9mm

machine pistols A machine pistol is an autoloading pistol capable of fully automatic fire. The term can also be used to describe a stockless handgun-style submachine gun. The term is a calque of ''Maschinenpistole'', the German word for submachine guns. Mac ...

or their semiauto lookalikes". With a sling attached, the P50 can consistently make accurate shots from ranges up to .

Reception

''Shooting Illustrated'' called the P50 "rather bulky for a handgun", but noted that this increase in size gave it better velocity and magazine capacity than other handguns and that it could be used in

home defense Self-defense (self-defence primarily in Commonwealth English) is a countermeasure that involves defending the health and well-being of oneself from harm. The use of the right of self-defense as a legal justification for the use of force in ...

as a more compact alternative to a shotgun or rifle. They called the trigger "outstanding", and noted its light recoil, and said that the P50 was a "serious competitor" to other 5.7x28mm designs such as the FN Five-seven and

Ruger-57 The Ruger-5.7 is a semi-automatic pistol introduced in December 2019 by Sturm, Ruger & Co. It is the first traditionally-styled semi-automatic pistol to be chambered for the 5.7×28mm cartridge since the introduction of the Excel Arms MP-57 in ...

. ''

The National Interest ''The National Interest'' (''TNI'') is an American bimonthly international relations magazine edited by American journalist Jacob Heilbrunn and published by the Center for the National Interest, a public policy think tank based in Washington, ...

'' praised the low recoil, customisation options from the various rails, and the "one of a kind" top-break access, describing it as "unique, buzzworthy, and the all-around coolest new gun of 2021." ''

Outdoor Life ''Outdoor Life'' is an outdoors magazine about camping, fishing, hunting, and survival. It is a sister magazine of ''Field & Stream''. Together with ''Sports Afield'', they are considered the Big Three of American outdoor publishing by Money ...

'' called the P50 "a cross between a space gun and a bullet hose", and named it as one of the best guns of the year.

References

{{Kel-Tec firearms 5.7×28mm firearms Semi-automatic pistols of the United States Weapons and ammunition introduced in 2021