Sneak Preview:
The 2007 Knight Rifles KP1 Utility Rifle
In my impressions from this year's SHOT show, I mentioned that Knight Rifles surprised me with the slickest single shot muzzleloader (and rifle) I've ever seen from Knight: the Knight KP1. The Knight KP1 obsoletes the T/C Encore as well as most every Knight Rifle ever made. It attacks and defeats all the Encore shortcomings: trigger, recoil, and aesthetics in one fell swoop, is superbly designed and built, and is easily the best, most impressive muzzleloader (and single shot rifle) introduced in 2007--perhaps the very best in years. This is a single shot break action exposed hammer "utility gun" platform that gets Knight Rifles into the centerfire and rimfire business as well, and in a big way. Wait till you see and shoot one-this is the Knight that we have been waiting for, for a very long time: I don't think you'll find this to be an exaggeration at all. It is a "wow."
Several things were notable about the KP1, which stands for "Knight Phase One." The triggers broke crisply in the 3 - 3-1/2 pound area, with no creep, sand, or drag. Less than enjoyable triggers have plagued many break action rifles, and just long guns in general. It was a pleasure to see that Knight has adroitly addressed this from the beginning.
The stock design on most break action muzzleloaders and rifles has been lacking; they too often have been sway-back designs that are hard on the shoulder and the eyes alike, and invariably tend to be fairly hard recoilers. Knight has always had very good solid composite stocks on their inline muzzleloaders-no exception here. The design bring the recoil straight back where it can be attenuated well, and the footprint of the stock is a comparatively generous one. The shooter I spoke with found the gun very manageable and enjoyable to shoot, even in .300 Winchester Magnum configuration. The gently raised comb is part of what makes this gun comfortable to shoulder and shoot.
The KP1 is offered not just stand-alone, but in several combination packages right from the factory. There is a Varmint package of 17 HMR and .223 Remington, and several Whitetail packages of .50 cal. muzzleloader and your choice of .243, .270 Win, or .30-06 barrels to complete the picture. The KP1 action can fire centerfire, muzzleloader, and rimfire configurations with equal aplomb. Your choice of solid composite stocks or laminated stocks will be available, as well as your choice of stainless steel or carbon steel configurations. As you might expect, they are all offered with premium Green Mountain barrels as standard equipment. It is also the most streamlined, attractive break action rifle I've seen in a long while.
"Slick" really is the word for this action. The forearm comes off in a flash, and the entire trigger assembly drops out in a moment. It is clearly an ambidextrous design, and a superbly executed one at that.
General availability
is expected to be June, 2007, and you can expect a thorough review of
the .50 caliber muzzleloader / .270 Winchester package in stainless /
camo configuration at that time.
Copyright 2011 by Randy Wakeman. All Rights Reserved.
