Has anyone converted a Sub2000 Gen1 to a Gen2?  From what I understand KelTec will do the conversion for $150 plus shipping.  I was wondering if it's a cheap easy mod that anyone can do and if it's even worth the hassle.

Huh.  Lots of parts change.  The SN moves to the stock tube, which becomes the gun.  Recently sold my Gen 1, very happy w/ my Gen 2.  It's on nightstand duty right now w/ suppressor & flashlight.

My sub2000 is more or less a novelty to me.  It's neat, but I probably haven't shot it in 10years.  It's a Gen1 that uses Beretta mags.  The only reason I bought it was that I had a bunch of factory mags 15rd-30rd and couldn't sell them.  If it's not something that is easy to go back and forth with, I may just leave well enough alone.  


KelTec Sub2000 Q&A page

I had a Gen 1 .40

Only one I’d buy now is the integral suppressed model

Haven’t seen a gen 1 in a while but I think going to a gen 2 gets you the picatinney rail on the handguard.
And the ‘multi cal’ grip is easy to swap between different mags. That’s it.

But if I had a gen 1 I’d look at the Red Lion handguards first for that kind of money.

I like my gen 2 beretta mag version. Accuracy is just OK, ergos are just OK, trigger is terrible. But it’s uber light and even with an optic mounted it’ll still fold up enough to slide in a laptop case even if it doesn’t completely fold up.

I still hate the irons. Swapped the front post with a KNS crosshairs post but I have to jam it under my cheekbone to get a sight picture, neither comfortable nor quick. A good optic fixed that. Covers up the irons but that’s OK.

More than that.  The multi-cal grip has always given you different mag catches, Gen 1 & 2, and maybe going back to the original SUB-9/40.  What's new w/ it in the Gen 2 is the entire grip can be swapped btwn Glock 17/22, 19/23, & multi-cal, b/c the bolt tube is now the serial #d receiver.

Gen 2 stock is adjustable for LOP.  The bbl is threaded.  Front sight is easier to adjust for windage & elevation.  And the forend has Picatinny rails top & bottom.

Has anyone sent their gen 1 in for a gen 2 conversion?  if so did you get a gen 2 front end thread barrel.   I love my sub 2000 but want a threaded barrel.

Apologies for QuislingTube, only place I found it.

According to him, for $150 + shipping, you send your Gen 1 in, you get a brand new Gen 2 off the line w/ your old SN.  That's one helluva deal.  If I'd known that I'd've just sent my old one in & changed caliber in the process.

Well, that sounds like a great deal. I wonder if they can legally send the new one directly back to me or if it has to go to an FFL?

Other than the threaded barrel I'm wondering why?  It's designed as a cheap gun- and it's still way overpriced in my opinion.  It's extremely easy to add a rail section to the first gen, just use a Dremel sanding drum, smooth the area where you want the rail section, drill two holes and add a Magpul rail.  Sorry, other than being innovative, I'm just not impressed with KT products- and I've owned a couple and still have a 1st gen Sub2000 although I can't recall the last time the thing has been out of the safe.  Yes, it seems to work fine with whatever ammo or mags I've used and it's kinda handy, but it just doesn't not inspire confidence and it's not something I actually enjoy shooting.  

Even w/ the inflated market now, it's about 25% the cost of a Fold AR.  I can reach in my bag while in a liberal "kill me now" store, flip the bbl locked, and slap the charging handle.  That's worth $500.  Legally carry a rifle damn near anywhere w/o a masked Karen calling the cops on you.

It does have some recoil, b/c it's a lightweight straight blowback 9x19mm.

It's definitely a niche item but if it's a niche you need to fill, it's about the only practical option.  I was just trying to figure out why I should send mine, and another $150, to KT for a second gen.

Threaded bbl, adjustable LOP stock, ability to change to all the mags.

That mag interchangeability would be nice.

Sounds like a helluva of deal at $150...
But you still have a sow’s ear, not a silk purse.

I have a Gen 2 and some of the MLOK rails are so out of spec that you cannot even align a flashlight down the barrel axis. Keltec’s QC is perpetually suspect. Hopefully I finally learned to not be tempted by their design and to be their testing department.

Did you call them & ask them to fix it?

Which is why I'm selling my Ruger PCC and getting a multi-mag Sub

I suspect the Ruger is slightly nicer to shoot.

Get an Mcarbo bolt buffer and fat charging handle. They help with felt recoil. Definitely makes a difference.
https://www.mcarbo.com/kel-tec-sub-2000-accessories.aspx

Sometimes I miss my Gen1

I have a gen 1 .40.  I wonder if they will send me a gen 2 9mm?

I sent my Gen 1 in for the conversion.  Total of $168 with shipping.  They just called me last night for payment information and it should not be long now.  I am pretty stoked.  The Gen 1 was good.  Looking forward to the upgrades.  Thinking about getting the MCARBO flip mount and some trigger improvements too.

I believe they would.  Shoot them an email.  I called and they answered all my questions.  They have excellent customer service.

Just received mine back yesterday. It's a nice deal and worth it also includes a magazine

I just received notification it was finished and is on the way.  I am gong to get that MCARBO optic flip mount and their trigger upgrades.  I think that $150 is a spectacular deal for an upgrade.

I suspect that's close to their actual cost.

Midwest Industries makes one also. pros and cons of each. not sure which I like better, so I'll try both when i get a sub

I just got mine back.  They included the accessories I had on it.  Buffer tube cover, buffer donut and included a new magazine.  It looks like a brand new PCC.  I am totally impressed.

Did they thread your barrel as part of the upgrade?

Thanks!

I just sent my gen 1 back today.
My gun never ran right.
I sent it back once when I first got it.
When I called and spoke to a women in customer service. I was told you get a brand new gen 2 gun off the line with your old serial number.
When the Smith gets to your gun. They contact you to see what caliber and mag configuration you would like.

eta
she said the reason for the upgrade program was lack of replacement parts for warranty work on gen 1 guns.

@turbojosrt4

@akajimmy

I got the “we recieved your gun” keltec email a week ago, and today got my “work has begun on this gun” email.  For you guys, what was the timeline after that “work has started” email in which they contacted you for payment, how long after payment do they ship, and then how long after shipping does it take to get to you?

about 2 weeks from shipped out, to return delivered. After the work has started email,  few days later got a called for payment then around a week to get a shipping notice. 1 day to receive since I'm like 30min away

Great.  Thanks for the info!

I just called and asked a few questions. To answer a couple in this thread, they will ship the gun directly back to you, no ffl.  They will also change the caliber if you want. Hell, I have a .40 and want a 9mm, so just that is worth it to me. Besides the upgrades, whether you feel you need them or not, you get a brand new gun. I bought mine like 17 years ago when they were very very first released , and have put a shit load of rounds through it. Now I get a new gun, that is more desirable if I decide to trade it. I think I paid 260 or so 17 years ago, so to me, spending 150, is well worth it and I don't feel like I'm just adding 150 to a 500 gun I've had a few years. I chose .40 at the time, because it was all the rage . Now I have 4 9mm pistols and the sub2000 is the only 40 I have. I live shooting it, but don't want to buy 40 ammo. I'll be sending mine off I'm the next month or so.

@agb104983

How long did it take to get the we got email after they received it?
Im a week in after they received it and haven't heard anything.
Im not sweating it just curious.

They could be backed up with stuff. I might call if I were you and just check with them. I think mine was delivered on a Monday and I got the “we got your stuff” Email after 1-3 days.

Thanks

I called to find out the "process."
The very nice and nonchalant lady at the other end was just like "yeah, mail it to us with a piece of paper with your contact info on it and what you want done.  They'll be in touch."
Hopefully I can get that done this week.  I am pretty slammed.    

Just to update everyone thinking of sending their sub2000 in, here is the timeline so far:

-my gun was delivered on 2/8,
-2/9 I received a “ work order created“ email indicating that they had my gun,
-2/17 I received an “in service” email indicating that work had begun on my gun.
-3/1, they gave me a call to confirm the extra accessories I wanted to purchase as well as to take my credit card information so they could charge me.  

I will update whenever my card gets charged, when it ships, and when I receive it

Yes and no.  It looks like a brand new barrel that is threaded.

AFter they charged my card.  It was about 2-3 days and it was sent out and arrived on my doorstep.

I did all of the MCARBO internal upgrades.  It is worth it.  The trigger is smoother, crisper.   It is ALOT less spongier.  My wife likes it a lot more now.  She has adopted it and I am wondering if I am going to see it again.

Mine should be arriving today, if I’m here to sign for it

and what does that get you that is better than a full size handgun other than wasting a  bunch of time compared to drawing from a holster.

well that makes a difference.

Keeps my CHL current while still armed in legal "No Handgun" zones.  Everywhere else I carry the Glock 23.  Also a decent option for 18-20 yr olds who can't get a CHL.  Longer sight radius, ability to mount red dots w/ larger fields of view, laser designator if you want to carry around NV, more stable shooting platform than a handgun, higher velocity due to the 16" bbl (though can cause issues for expansion).

I’m not sure what you’re arguing.  That PCC‘s are not that incrementally better compared to a handgun or the Kel-tec specifically is not?  I mean we could go all day about the advantages of a PCC over handgun(recoil management, longer site radius, greater practical accuracy on target, better ballistics from a longer barrel, etc).

As far as the Sub2000 there are many instances where I might carry it and a handgun, or just carry it alone in a backpack so it can go places where other PCC’s can’t.

Here’s my reasoning/opinion based on being a GEN 1 owner for probably the last 10+ years as well as someone that just got back there “upgrade“ Gen 2 gun.  At the time I bought mine originally, not only was it lightweight and folding/concealable, it was about your only option for a PCC inexpensively.  At that point you had the Sub2000 and then there was a lot between of MSRP between that and MP5 clones, colt 9mm AR15’s, and other guns that were more expensive.  Loved and still love the light weight and folding aspects of it, as well as taking pistol magazines, especially high capacity.  

What I didn’t like about the GEN 1 was how cheap and flimsy the pistol grip area was.  If you didn’t have a magazine in there providing support, it would often flex and spread apart a little when gripping it to fold or unfold the gun.  The plastic and texturing felt cheap.  The Front hand guard was usable but looked ugly and not very ergonomic. Also looked oversized and blocky.  No easy ability to mount rails onto it unless you wanted to add aftermarket rails yourself.  No threaded barrel so no chance of using suppressors, unless you wanted to pay a Smith to internally thread the barrel and then add a adapter($$$).  Front sight worked fine on mine but it’s not a very easily adjustable design and using a clamped piece of clear pink plastic as your front sight blade, surrounded by/protected by plastic, never seemed very durable.

So I sent back my Gen 1,  they destroyed it and slapped my serial number on a new Gen 2 gun along with an “A” after it.  Here are the improvements I definitely have noticed.  Threaded barrel obviously so now I can run a suppressor if I want to.  The second generation hand guards are so much more ergonomic for me, I prefer a thinner handguard and it makes the gun less bulky when folded.  Best comparison I could make is the new hand guard feels more like the thin free floated mlock/keymod ar15 hand guards that are popular now compared to the thick bulky, four sided Picatinny hand guards that were popular 10 to 15 years ago.  The new hand guards actually have rails built-in so that you could run a light/laser on the bottom rail and still have a not interfere with the folding.  The pistol grip and receiver area feels like it’s a more durable stiff polymer.  I don’t have any of the flexing that I felt in the Gen 1 gun.  The front sight assembly is now metal instead of plastic and the front site post is a thin metal post like in the AR15.  The trigger itself feels may be a little sturdier but not much has changed as far as the trigger pull.  The rear stock is a lot nicer.  You can actually adjust the length of pull a little bit.  I also like the new folding latch release mechanism.  And finally maybe it’s just me but it seems like when you unfold the gun the reciever latches into place with much more of a positive click then the old gun.  

It’s about what I expected based on my research.  They improved or fixed a lot of the things I didn’t like about the first generation that were easy fixes.  They added some features like the threaded barrel, which would’ve probably cost me 150 to have done anyway on the old gun.  And finally I now have a new gun with a zero round count, compared to my old one that had 3k+ rounds through it.  All in all, definitely worth $150.

Great writeup/ review! Hearing it from someone who has had experience with both, makes a big difference. Looking forward to trading mine in and going from .40 to 9mm.

I was looking at the MCarbo flip mount but ordered the Red Lion instead.

https://www.redlionprecision.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=R11

I also ordered their Front sight.

https://www.redlionprecision.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=R12

Don't get me wrong love the MCarbo stuff did the bolt tube cover and Charging handle cover. Just these two thing make a big difference.

Just to update everyone thinking of sending their sub2000 in, here is the timeline so far:
I bought it a few decades ago.  Shot it a few times, stuck it in the safe.  
1/16 read this thread, decided to DO IT!
2/21 Called to see about the process.
4/4 boxed it up and put it in my truck
4/10 remembered it was there and mailed it.

  They better get it back to me pretty quick!

April 13 - I ship notification "package delivered"
April 13 -Work order created
April 14 - "in service" notification
April 16 - called me for payment info

'fn slackers!