For a good part of the 20th century, when militaries and law enforcement agencies needed something that could provide greater effective range, accuracy and capacity than a handgun, but in a package smaller than a rifle, submachine guns and pistol-caliber carbines did most of the heavy lifting. Likewise, when a similar need for some form of personal defense weapon (PDW) arises for everyday citizens today, it’s often fulfilled by some variation of a medium-size, pistol-caliber firearm.
The reductions in weight, length, muzzle flash, blast and recoil, as compared to centerfire rifles, drive the continued popularity of this approach. However, there are times when these solutions fall short. As many a service member and LEO has learned under fire, the advantages of a pistol-caliber firearm evaporate when you’re suddenly faced with someone who’s outside of your reach and trying their best to kill you with a rifle-caliber firearm. It gets worse when they bring friends.
In the 1990s, this shortcoming was keenly felt by our Special Operations Forces (SOF) working in covert roles. This and the lack of concealable, full-power weapons compelled us to continue using standard-size carbines ill-suited for clandestine operations.
Around that time, a small number of manufacturers focused on smaller, purpose-built PDWs with increased magazine capacities and better soft-armor penetration. However, the reduced-power, centerfire-rifle cartridges developed for those guns still didn’t have the needed reach for many of the environments we operated in.
But, within a few years, refinements to existing semi-automatic designs and newer developments answered the problem with reliable, ultra-compact gas guns that could be chambered in fully capable, centerfire-rifle cartridges. Our SOF elements benefited immediately, followed by the law enforcement community. The commercial market wasn’t far behind.
Today’s PDW use expands well beyond clandestine operations and VIP protection. Sadly, that expansion is needs-based. Violence during extended power outages, rioting, terrorist attacks and threats to businesses, shopping centers and places of worship all make the case for having rifle-cartridge-chambered PDWs close at hand. Fortunately, there are numerous options to better arm us for these types of circumstances.
Folding-stock-equipped short-barrel rifles (SBRs) and folding-brace-equipped large-format pistols make up a big chunk of the current PDW market. These lightweight, compact firearms are still effective well beyond pistol-caliber and scaled-down rifle-cartridge distances. If built correctly, short gas guns like this are highly reliable and capable of 1-MOA (or possibly better) 100-yard accuracy.
As an example of packability, an AR-15-pattern firearm with a 7.5-inch barrel and a decent flash hider will fold down to around 18 inches. Unfortunately, folding stocks and braces are verboten in some states, along with SBRs and large-format pistols. Still, there are other options with greater acceptability in many of those places.
Folding Rifles
Semi-automatics that fold at the receiver/barrel union cannot be fired when folded, giving them somewhat wider regulatory acceptance. FoldAR’s Concealed Carry Rifle is a side-folding example. The company’s 16-inch-barreled version folds down to a neat, 18-inch package, but availability can be limited and the cost may be prohibitive.
KelTec’s SU16 “Sport Utility” rifle is a lower cost, non-AR option. The “B” and “CA” versions each weigh less than 5 pounds and avoid many legally problematic features. How-ever, a folded length of 24.9 inches puts these options at the same size as a 16-inch-barreled rifle with a folding stock. At that length, discreet carry becomes more challenging.
Takedown
Once exclusive to deep-pocketed sportsmen, takedown rifles are resurging in the form of defensive carbines. As of this writing, there are at least four companies offering toolless, semi-automatic systems. All are AR-based and have options for additional barrel assemblies.
One of those, Cry Havoc’s QRB system, has been incorporated into several rifles I’ve built. Using a pinned and welded 13.9-/16-inch barrel/muzzle device yields a compact, 16.5-inch-long barrel assembly. That’s the longer of the disassembled rifle’s halves. Each of those QRB-equipped rifles maintained 100-yard, sub-MOA accuracy and retained zero through repeated disassembly and reassembly cycles.
Starting with a folding stock or brace-equipped firearm in a shouldered, unmodified backpack, it takes me about 9 seconds to remove, un-fold, chamber a round and get it on target. That jumps to 25 seconds if the backpack contains a disassembled takedown carbine, which is still faster than running to my truck for the rifle I suddenly wish I had on my person.
Regardless of the cartridge type used, if you decide a packable rifle or large-format pistol fits your needs, it’s important to understand all relevant laws for that choice. Making a mistake—especially in a gun-unfriendly state—can have lifelong legal ramifications. While folding and takedown firearms chambered for full-power rifle cartridges may be niche defensive tools, the dark situations in which they shine brightest aren’t going away anytime soon.
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