The RFB Carbine model with EOTech 512 Holographic weapon sight attached.
The RFB (Rifle, Forward-ejection, Bullpup) is a gas-operated semi-automatic rifle, manufactured by Kel-Tec Industries of Florida. At the 2008 SHOT Show held from February 2 to 5 in Las Vegas, Nevada it was declared by Kel-Tec representatives that the RFB rifle would be made available to the public by the 4th quarter of 2008. Later, the Kel-Tec website stated that the 18 in (460 mm) barrel carbine variant would not be shipping until February 2009 due to a change in the production process intended as preventative measures against potential gun control legislation. The rifle first shipped to distributors in the first week of March 2009.
It was first seen at the 2007 SHOT Show.
Design details[]
The RFB is a semi-automatic firearm chambered for 7.62x51mm NATO, and is also capable of using .308 Winchester ammunition. The RFB uses metric FAL magazines, which insert straight into the magazine well and do not need to rock into place. It utilizes a short-stroke gas piston operating system. The rifle uses a patented forward-ejection system via a tube placed over the barrel that ejects the spent case forwards, over the handguard of the rifle. Extraction is accomplished by two extractors, each with 2 axes of rotation. The extractors may move side-to-side to engage the rim of the case, and pivot upwards to extract the spent case after firing. Empty cases remain in the ejection chute until either the weapon is tilted downwards, the charging handle is operated, or they are pushed out by following cases. Cases drop gently from this chute to the left of the barrel. To avoid sloppy trigger pull typical of firearms modified into bullpups, the RFB utilizes a floating linkage bar between the sear and the hammer, allowing the sear to remain above the trigger. The weapon is fully ambidextrous, much in the style of the Belgian F2000 rifle. The RFB accepts FN FAL-style magazines, and is delivered without iron sights. A mil-spec Picatinny rail is provided for mounting a wide range of optics and tactical accessories.
The barrel of the RFB is not fully free floated, it instead serves as the rigid "spine" of the weapon, to which all other components are attached (either directly or through other components).
Meanwhile, Kel-Tec is preparing smaller versions of the same design, adapted to 'intermediate' calibers such as 7.62×39mm, 5.56x45mm NATO (.223), 6.5 Grendel and 6.8mm Remington SPC. The 5.56×45mm NATO version has been tentatively named the CFB (Carbine, Forward-ejection, Bullpup), and will feed from standard AR-15 magazines.
Variants[]
Kel-Tec has planned to build at least three versions with differing barrel lengths, weight, overall length, and performance: a Carbine with a 18 in (460 mm) barrel, a Sporter variant with 24 in (610 mm) length barrel, and a Target version with either a heavy profile 32 in (810 mm) barrel or 26 in (660 mm) stainless steel barrel. The Target version also features a 5-way adjustable trigger, for a trigger pull from 2 to 6 lbf (8.9 to 27 N). As of 2013, all three variants have been publicly released for sale.