KEL TEC SUB-2000 Hunting | KEL TEC SUB-2000 Home Defense

by Chris Nelson on November 12th, 2017

“Handgun-caliber carbines are becoming popular for home defense, but are lacking in power for big game hunting, especially dangerous game like wild hogs.”

Is the KEL TEC SUB-2000 a more suitable firearm for hunting or home defense?

The most important thing to consider here is what makes a Pistol Caliber Carbine different from every other type of Rifle, Pistol and Shotgun. For starters the name sort of gives away one of the major differences. The Pistol Caliber Carbine shoots a pistol caliber cartridge and the KEL TEC SUB-2000 is considered one of the best Pistol Caliber Carbines (PCC for short).

I’m glad we’re asking these sort of questions and analyzing the way we intend to use the KEL TEC SUB-2000 within our daily lives. I personally consider firearms to be a tool and like any good tool each one has a specific purpose with an intended use.

The SUB-2000 is excellent firearm choice for home defense for a multitude of reasons but the primary reason has to do with the type of ammunition it shoots. We all know that home defense has a special sort of criteria that we must take into consideration because we likely live there with other people who mean a lot to us. We don’t want to have any sort of collateral damage and we want to immediately eliminate the hostile threat with quick surgical action.

One truth that you must always keep in the back of your mind is that drywall does not stop lead projectiles ripping through the air well over 1,000 feet per second. The bullet will keep going until it hits someone or something more solid than drywall. If you are using a pistol or the SUB-2000 for home defense you must keep your magazines loaded with hollow points so that in the event you miss your intended target the bullet will immediately fragment once it hits drywall and deteriorate upon impact. This is the most import factor to keep in mind when talking about home defense. Always use hollow points to avoid collateral damage within your own home.

Another consideration for the SUB-2000 is that it is small, light and a very function carbine that you can use tactically throughout your own home to eliminate the threat efficiently. The carbine has far more control over the pistol in that it has the advantage of being a shoulder fired weapon. Not to mention the recoil is more easily managed and a much more suitable primary weapon to remain in the fight longer if you’re up against a well armed opponent. Another consideration is that fact that you may have just awoken from your bed to the noise of glass breaking in the other room. The KEL TEC SUB-2000 is a more natural choice for clearing rooms and a more suitable defensive weapon than a bed side pistol. Another benefit the SUB-2000 has is an excellent amount of intimidation factor that will hopefully convince your intruder to surrender or flee. If they give up but are still unwilling to lay face first on the floor you always have the option of delivering a good muzzle punch to the face. This usually does the trick and it’s important to establish dominance in this sort of situation immediately. If you hesitate they will try to take you.

Now let’s talk about using the SUB-2000 for hunting. First we have to look at the ballistics of the 9mm Luger and the .40S&W since these are the only two calibers in production for the KEL TEC SUB-2000 at the moment. Take a look at the 9mm vs .40 S&W Trajectory Chart. As you can see your range is limited to roughly 50 yards and will limit your ability to harvest any game at great distances. Also keep in mind that not only is the bullet dropping it’s also losing velocity which directly translates into a loss of kinetic energy or killing power. So depending on the size of game your hunting this could be a big problem. As responsible hunters we aim to kill the animal not injure it, so the idea is to take a well aimed shot at the vital organs and deliver enough stopping power to kill it instantly. The biggest problem when hunting with a Pistol Caliber Carbine is that your really at odds of being able to do that effectively with the tool you’ve chosen.

Another factor to consider is that it may be illegal to hunt with certain calibers due to the fact that it is considered inhumane by your local wildlife commission and they do have the power to confiscate your firearm if caught with the intent to harvest game with a non suitable hunting caliber. Also make sure there aren’t any sort of magazine restrictions while you’re at it. Sometimes hunters are limited to a “5 round” magazine capacity.

Now it all depends on what you are hunting… the universal caveat to this is any sort of varmint is usually fair game no matter what you use. This includes coyotes and wild hogs to name just a few. Your certainly likely to take down a coyote at under 50 meters with your SUB-2000 but the Wild Hog may be a bit more challenging depending where you hit it and how aggressive it is. Most of the time if it’s a young male or female your fine but if it’s an old crusty male that doesn’t travel in a herd you better get something more powerful because he’s going to fight you if you miss.

On the other hand, hunting whitetail deer will be much more restrictive and a bigger legal risk if you fail to do any research online before you go out hunting with your SUB-2000. If your after Coyotes or Hogs than chances are your ok but I would still highly encourage you to check your state laws and local county restrictions.

Final thoughts….

The 9mm and .40 S&W are not the ideal hunting round, even from a carbine. Game animals deserve better than to be wounded and run off to die. The 9mm and .40 S&W is marginal for hunting use, due to the low velocity and range limitations, plus the limited bullet expansion/killing power for any size game animal larger than a Coyote. As a sportsman and hunter you have an inherent duty and responsibility to protect the sacredness of the sport and help the rest of us avoid any unnecessary liberal media attention. Be sportsman like and take the animal with enough gun to do the job right!

On the other hand, the SUB-2000 is perfect for home defense due to the ability to shoot hollow point pistol caliber cartridges with a shoulder fired carbine instead of a pistol. The SUB-2000 is much more ideal for clearing rooms and has many more tactical advantages over the pistol.