Specifications
Description
Kalashnikov USA sets a new standard for Personal Defense Weapons with the KP-9 Eastern Bloc, a versatile, AK-style PDW based on the Vityaz Submachinegun. The Vityaz was designed at the request of Russian Federal Police forces to address the terminal ballistics issues faced by weapons like the AK-74u and other short-barreled rifles chambered with full-power rifle cartridges. Just like its Russian counterpart, the KP-9 Eastern Bloc takes its design from a variety of different firearms. One of the most obvious weapons the KP-9 Eastern Bloc is based on is the AK-pattern rifle, evident in the weapon’s overall appearance and an AK-style recoil spring. The core operating system however differs significantly from the AK-family of weapons, incorporating a blowback system rather than a gas piston system. This design was made possible by replacing the gas components of the AK with a bolt carrier that carries the extra weight of the AK’s gas piston, reminiscent of the telescoping bolt design used by the Uzi submachinegun. Finally, the KP-9 Eastern Bloc’s magazine is based largely off the curved, double-feed magazine associated with the WWII-ear PPSH submachinegun. This magazine design was chosen due to the sheer reliability, and is enhanced with an ultra-durable polymer/steel construction as well as a specially designed feed ramp to accommodate the use of jacketed hollow point (JHP) ammunition. The result is a simple, yet robust operating system with an incredibly reliable magazine. Testing conducted by Kalashnikov USA proved the KP-9 was capable of accepting a wide variety of cartridges, and a 20,000 round torture test with a full-auto variant demonstrated the KP-9’s utter reliability.
In addition to its unique design and extreme dependability, the KP-9 Eastern Bloc offers a considerable range of user-friendly features. The bolt is outfitted with an out-of-battery safety mechanism to ensure the weapon will not fire unless the bolt is fully closed, and the Uzi-inspired bolt helps reduce both recoil and carbon fouling. The KP-9 Eastern Bloc’s hinged dust-cover is equipped with a picatinny rail, giving the user virtually unlimited options for mounting optics and retains optic zeroing even after cover is opened. The KP-9 Eastern Bloc’s customization is taken a step further with the use of detachable Picatinny rails as well as M-LOK rails on the right and left sides of the handguard, accommodating accessories such as tactical lights and lasers. The 9.5-inch barrel is topped muzzle brake to tame recoil, but this can be replaced with any muzzle device that uses 1/2x28” threads. Furthermore, the KP-9 features a smooth, 2-stage trigger for precise shot placement, and a “cheese grater” ventilated upper handguard shroud helps dissipate the heat generated from extended firing sessions.