I posted this review on a different forum a while back, but I figured people on this forum ought to give this rifle some consideration. The Keltec RDB is the downward ejection bullpup rifle in 5.56 that looks like a smaller version of the .308 RFB. This rifle is amazing in my opinion, and handles better than any 5.56 rifle I've handled. I currently own a 16" AR15, Tavor and used to own an AUG.
Here is a copy and paste of my own review:
The rifle feels as light as a feather and very comfortable/natural to shoulder.
It feels very solidly built, sturdy. Disassembly was smooth and easy, so was reassembly. All the pins seemed captive and strong, much like the pins on an AR or the Tavor. Every section or part fit together seamlessly. . The edges of the different sections are solid and thick, so they joined together without anything catching, getting stuck or causing friction. The bolt carrier disassembles/reassembles easily. It reminds me of a Tavor in that regard.
Dry firing the rifle, the trigger is exceptionally crisp with a clean break. The best I've felt on most rifles I've fired, easily. The magazine release feels easy to engage, natural. I don't feel as if I would accidentally hit it.
I loaded an empty USGI mag and it locked into the well with an audible click. It also dropped free easily when I engaged the mag release with the rear of my firing hand. I did the same with an empty Pmag, it felt a bit more snug in the well and didn't click when inserted. It also didn't drop free as easily.
The charging handle folds, but is easy to grab onto and pull back. It locks upwards much like that on a Steyr AUG. It can be slapped downward to release. It is also very easily reversible once the rifle is disassembled and the handguard removed by just pulling the entire thing out and replacing it into the opposite side. No tools required. According to the manual, the gas plunger thing can be removed too, but I didn't try that.
The bolt release feels a bit stiff, when trying to release the bolt. I think that's because it's a new rifle and will likely loosen up after using it some. It needs to be pressed downwards rather than upwards to release the bolt, which I would think to be odd, given its location above the mag well.
There are four sling mounting points in the form of small protruding rings which would work well for hook type attachments.
I only shot just under 200 rounds, but these are my findings thus far for those interested.
Keep in mind, I swapped out the A2 Birdcage flashhider for a 3.5" A1 style muzzle brake from a dealer online due to legal issues in my state. I can't say whether it helped or hindered me today, but I wanted to mention that. I also shot the American Eagle XM855 green-tip bulk packs you can find at Walmart. Just cheapo stuff.
I fully disassembled and scrubbed every part with Breakfree CLP and punched the bore before bed last night.
Today, I setup printer paper targets with 1" red bullseyes at 48m (52.5 yards). I was initially planning on shooting off a bench using my caldwell front bag rest, but found that it was too tall to rest the RDB handguard on it; my sights were peering well above my targets. I needed a lower rest so I managed to find a small bag to use as a rest for the fore-end/handguard, which allowed me to get the handguard lower to the table and more in line with the target. I kept the butt of the rifle in my shoulder, with my off-hand holding it there. I'm not sure why the smaller bag was needed.
I used the TA31RCO-A4CP from my M16A4 clone for the shooting today. I'm not particularly fond of the ACOG, but it's what I have available for the time. My shot pattern wasn't that great, even at 52 yards. It was probably just around 2" or so. Understand, it was definitely the shooter and not the rifle. I was still getting the feel for the rifle, and my shooting position didn't feel very steady. I fired in this fashion with a slow, steady tempo. As I became more comfortable steadying the rifle (I ended up using the bottom of the pistol grip as a monopod against the table to assist in steadying the rifle) my grouping became tighter. Probably close to 1.5" at that range. Still not great. However, when I took my time and fired slow controlled shots, I achieved much tighter results. I do feel confident that with proper technique and a better optic, this is easily as or more accurate than a Tavor or AR15 (I have both).
I have read other people commenting about the RDB charging handle and how it can interfere with some optics and my experience was no different. The charging handle itself is well designed, easy to grab, lock rearward and slap to release. However my AGOG has its screws on the left not the right, and my charging handle does seem to come close to the knobs when locking it rearward. It's better to use gloves as to avoid scraping your knuckles, or else try to only pull on the end of the charging handle.
I experimented with different methods of chambering a round. I used two 20 round USGI magazines, and one 30 round USGI magazine today.
Loading a magazine on a closed bolt and then racking the charging handle, or rather, using the charging handle to lock the bolt open, then inserting a magazine and slapping the charging handle; both methods worked reliably to chamber a round.
Upon firing the last round in a magazine, the bolt would lock open at which point you could drop the empty mag with a bump of of the firing hand (Tavor method) and inserting a fresh mag. As I mentioned earlier in this thread, you have to press DOWN on the bolt-release to drop the bolt. The bolt release was very stiff and it took considerable pressure to engage it. Hopefully it loosens up, but I wouldn't mind seeing an aftermarket bolt release where one could simply bump it with your palm (AR15 style) or press upwards rather than downwards. It would certainly speed up combat reloads.
I will note that there were several instances when my bolt did not lock to the rear on an empty magazine, but I noticed that my 30 round magazine tended to lock open on the last round more so when my 20 round magazines would often fail to do so. So I'm pretty certain that's a magazine issue, not a rifle one.
Over the course of the day, the rifle didn't have any issues or stoppages until I started experimenting with the gas settings. I wanted to see how low I could go before it started experiencing failures. I kept firing and lowering the gas until I got a failure to extract, with a fresh cartridge getting stuck against the spent one. I removed the magazine and racked the charging handle to clear out the jammed rounds, increased the gas by one click and tried again. Again, I had either a complete failure to extract or the empty casing fighting against the fresh round, getting stuck. I kept opening the gas until these failures disappeared and the rifle cycled normally. Upon doing so I experienced no other issues. This is what's supposed to happen when tuning the gas settings, so the rifle did its job properly.
As the afternoon progressed, I got more comfortable with my groupings and decided to speed up the pace of my firing, shooting at rocks and whatnot at the far end of the range, and shooting while standing or walking. As I did so, the rifle did heat up, but I never felt that it was 'too hot' as many others have experienced. It felt about as hot as any AR15 might get when shooting rapid fire. The chamber always remained cool enough to touch with your fingers. The gas adjust dial, however, did get hot enough to make me hesitant to touch without gloves, but cooled when I slowed down my rate of fire.
On to the safety selector. My experience with it seems to be no different from other reports we've heard.
The safety is nicely setup, and is mostly comfortable to engage or disengage. It does feel slightly awkwardly positioned, maybe a bit too close to my thumb. I occasionally needed to rotate the base of my thumb/palm rearward to reengage the safety. Disengaging it is a little more natural. It's not enough of an issue to warrant much discussion, imo, just something one might get used to.
The trigger on the RDB was very crisp, just as it was during dry firing. It was light with a clean break. Very nice. The magazine release felt good. I never felt like I would accidentally hit it. No issues there.
As for the downward ejection. I could feel the expended casings land against my boots, or in my lap or against my thigh while in the seated or kneeling position. It didn't bother me unless some hot brass remained on my lap for a few seconds, or made its way under my boots or something, making me need to adjust my footing. But all in all, it kinda felt neat, feeling the brass hit you as you fire. It was gentle, like being head-booped by a kitten. I kinda liked it.
The gas adjustment knob was a bit weird. There are no numbers or markers to let you know where you are in your setting. When turning the setting knob, you can feel vague clicks to let you know you've hit the next setting, but the clicks need to be more distinct or crisp. I would also like numbers to denote where you are. It's really just a ridged wheel with no markings on it.
Without a side ejection port like those on an AR or Tavor, it wasn't as easy to determine if you were empty. After shooting for some time, I was able to recognize the recoil impulse of the empty rifle. Otherwise you have to turn the rifle upside down to be able to see if the bolt is locked open.
Once I got home, I completely tore the rifle down to inspect for any wear or damage as well as for cleaning, and it seems to be in perfect condition.
Overall, the rifle performed flawlessly, aside from when tinkering with the gas settings. It felt natural to shoulder and sight in. It seems accurate. It was felt light as a feather, even with an ACOG and mag loaded with 28 rounds. Holding and firing the rifle is very comfortable. Holding it at the ready, moving and transitioning between targets all felt effortless. Much smoother handling than my 20" AR15 or Tavor, in my opinion.
Thus far, I'm impressed. I know it was only 200 rounds but still.
The only things I didn't like were the bolt release and the gas adjustment. I think they should redo the bolt release to allow for it to be hit upwards rather than downwards, and give the gas adjust numbers marking it.
Here is a copy and paste of my own review:
The rifle feels as light as a feather and very comfortable/natural to shoulder.
It feels very solidly built, sturdy. Disassembly was smooth and easy, so was reassembly. All the pins seemed captive and strong, much like the pins on an AR or the Tavor. Every section or part fit together seamlessly. . The edges of the different sections are solid and thick, so they joined together without anything catching, getting stuck or causing friction. The bolt carrier disassembles/reassembles easily. It reminds me of a Tavor in that regard.
Dry firing the rifle, the trigger is exceptionally crisp with a clean break. The best I've felt on most rifles I've fired, easily. The magazine release feels easy to engage, natural. I don't feel as if I would accidentally hit it.
I loaded an empty USGI mag and it locked into the well with an audible click. It also dropped free easily when I engaged the mag release with the rear of my firing hand. I did the same with an empty Pmag, it felt a bit more snug in the well and didn't click when inserted. It also didn't drop free as easily.
The charging handle folds, but is easy to grab onto and pull back. It locks upwards much like that on a Steyr AUG. It can be slapped downward to release. It is also very easily reversible once the rifle is disassembled and the handguard removed by just pulling the entire thing out and replacing it into the opposite side. No tools required. According to the manual, the gas plunger thing can be removed too, but I didn't try that.
The bolt release feels a bit stiff, when trying to release the bolt. I think that's because it's a new rifle and will likely loosen up after using it some. It needs to be pressed downwards rather than upwards to release the bolt, which I would think to be odd, given its location above the mag well.
There are four sling mounting points in the form of small protruding rings which would work well for hook type attachments.
I only shot just under 200 rounds, but these are my findings thus far for those interested.
Keep in mind, I swapped out the A2 Birdcage flashhider for a 3.5" A1 style muzzle brake from a dealer online due to legal issues in my state. I can't say whether it helped or hindered me today, but I wanted to mention that. I also shot the American Eagle XM855 green-tip bulk packs you can find at Walmart. Just cheapo stuff.
I fully disassembled and scrubbed every part with Breakfree CLP and punched the bore before bed last night.
Today, I setup printer paper targets with 1" red bullseyes at 48m (52.5 yards). I was initially planning on shooting off a bench using my caldwell front bag rest, but found that it was too tall to rest the RDB handguard on it; my sights were peering well above my targets. I needed a lower rest so I managed to find a small bag to use as a rest for the fore-end/handguard, which allowed me to get the handguard lower to the table and more in line with the target. I kept the butt of the rifle in my shoulder, with my off-hand holding it there. I'm not sure why the smaller bag was needed.
I used the TA31RCO-A4CP from my M16A4 clone for the shooting today. I'm not particularly fond of the ACOG, but it's what I have available for the time. My shot pattern wasn't that great, even at 52 yards. It was probably just around 2" or so. Understand, it was definitely the shooter and not the rifle. I was still getting the feel for the rifle, and my shooting position didn't feel very steady. I fired in this fashion with a slow, steady tempo. As I became more comfortable steadying the rifle (I ended up using the bottom of the pistol grip as a monopod against the table to assist in steadying the rifle) my grouping became tighter. Probably close to 1.5" at that range. Still not great. However, when I took my time and fired slow controlled shots, I achieved much tighter results. I do feel confident that with proper technique and a better optic, this is easily as or more accurate than a Tavor or AR15 (I have both).
I have read other people commenting about the RDB charging handle and how it can interfere with some optics and my experience was no different. The charging handle itself is well designed, easy to grab, lock rearward and slap to release. However my AGOG has its screws on the left not the right, and my charging handle does seem to come close to the knobs when locking it rearward. It's better to use gloves as to avoid scraping your knuckles, or else try to only pull on the end of the charging handle.
I experimented with different methods of chambering a round. I used two 20 round USGI magazines, and one 30 round USGI magazine today.
Loading a magazine on a closed bolt and then racking the charging handle, or rather, using the charging handle to lock the bolt open, then inserting a magazine and slapping the charging handle; both methods worked reliably to chamber a round.
Upon firing the last round in a magazine, the bolt would lock open at which point you could drop the empty mag with a bump of of the firing hand (Tavor method) and inserting a fresh mag. As I mentioned earlier in this thread, you have to press DOWN on the bolt-release to drop the bolt. The bolt release was very stiff and it took considerable pressure to engage it. Hopefully it loosens up, but I wouldn't mind seeing an aftermarket bolt release where one could simply bump it with your palm (AR15 style) or press upwards rather than downwards. It would certainly speed up combat reloads.
I will note that there were several instances when my bolt did not lock to the rear on an empty magazine, but I noticed that my 30 round magazine tended to lock open on the last round more so when my 20 round magazines would often fail to do so. So I'm pretty certain that's a magazine issue, not a rifle one.
Over the course of the day, the rifle didn't have any issues or stoppages until I started experimenting with the gas settings. I wanted to see how low I could go before it started experiencing failures. I kept firing and lowering the gas until I got a failure to extract, with a fresh cartridge getting stuck against the spent one. I removed the magazine and racked the charging handle to clear out the jammed rounds, increased the gas by one click and tried again. Again, I had either a complete failure to extract or the empty casing fighting against the fresh round, getting stuck. I kept opening the gas until these failures disappeared and the rifle cycled normally. Upon doing so I experienced no other issues. This is what's supposed to happen when tuning the gas settings, so the rifle did its job properly.
As the afternoon progressed, I got more comfortable with my groupings and decided to speed up the pace of my firing, shooting at rocks and whatnot at the far end of the range, and shooting while standing or walking. As I did so, the rifle did heat up, but I never felt that it was 'too hot' as many others have experienced. It felt about as hot as any AR15 might get when shooting rapid fire. The chamber always remained cool enough to touch with your fingers. The gas adjust dial, however, did get hot enough to make me hesitant to touch without gloves, but cooled when I slowed down my rate of fire.
On to the safety selector. My experience with it seems to be no different from other reports we've heard.
The safety is nicely setup, and is mostly comfortable to engage or disengage. It does feel slightly awkwardly positioned, maybe a bit too close to my thumb. I occasionally needed to rotate the base of my thumb/palm rearward to reengage the safety. Disengaging it is a little more natural. It's not enough of an issue to warrant much discussion, imo, just something one might get used to.
The trigger on the RDB was very crisp, just as it was during dry firing. It was light with a clean break. Very nice. The magazine release felt good. I never felt like I would accidentally hit it. No issues there.
As for the downward ejection. I could feel the expended casings land against my boots, or in my lap or against my thigh while in the seated or kneeling position. It didn't bother me unless some hot brass remained on my lap for a few seconds, or made its way under my boots or something, making me need to adjust my footing. But all in all, it kinda felt neat, feeling the brass hit you as you fire. It was gentle, like being head-booped by a kitten. I kinda liked it.
The gas adjustment knob was a bit weird. There are no numbers or markers to let you know where you are in your setting. When turning the setting knob, you can feel vague clicks to let you know you've hit the next setting, but the clicks need to be more distinct or crisp. I would also like numbers to denote where you are. It's really just a ridged wheel with no markings on it.
Without a side ejection port like those on an AR or Tavor, it wasn't as easy to determine if you were empty. After shooting for some time, I was able to recognize the recoil impulse of the empty rifle. Otherwise you have to turn the rifle upside down to be able to see if the bolt is locked open.
Once I got home, I completely tore the rifle down to inspect for any wear or damage as well as for cleaning, and it seems to be in perfect condition.
Overall, the rifle performed flawlessly, aside from when tinkering with the gas settings. It felt natural to shoulder and sight in. It seems accurate. It was felt light as a feather, even with an ACOG and mag loaded with 28 rounds. Holding and firing the rifle is very comfortable. Holding it at the ready, moving and transitioning between targets all felt effortless. Much smoother handling than my 20" AR15 or Tavor, in my opinion.
Thus far, I'm impressed. I know it was only 200 rounds but still.
The only things I didn't like were the bolt release and the gas adjustment. I think they should redo the bolt release to allow for it to be hit upwards rather than downwards, and give the gas adjust numbers marking it.
