The KP1: An Exciting New Entry in the Interchangeable Barrel Market

My original intention was for this article to include an exciting yarn about how I dropped a massive Iowa whitetail with the new Knight KP1 Magnum Muzzleloader this past November. But my tag went unfilled, which is unfortunate for me but perhaps a bonus for you, because now you don’t have to sift through a story about deer hunting to get to the good stuff: a comprehensive look at Knight’s newest engineering feat.

Utility Rifle
The most accurate term for the KP1 is really “utility rifle,” as this model marks Knight’s entry into the interchangeable-barrel market. In addition to the .50-caliber muzzleloader barrel, the KP1 frame accepts nine centerfire-caliber barrels (.204 Ruger, .223 Rem., .22-250, .243 Win., .270 Win., .308, .30-06, .45-70 and .300 Win. Mag.); .17 HRM and .22 LR rimfire barrels; a 20-gauge rifled slug barrel; and 12-gauge smoothbore, rifled slug and muzzleloader barrels.

After modernizing muzzleloader hunting with the introduction of the in-line rifle 20 years ago, Knight Rifles has been all about muzzleloaders — period. According to Mike Mattly, Knight’s marketing director, entry into the other markets had been on the table for a while.

“We have talked about getting into the centerfire market for years,” he said. “Many customers have asked, ‘If you can make a muzzleloader shoot this good, what can you do with a centerfire?’ We try not to be a ‘me-too’ company, but when the consumers ask for products, you react or get left behind.

“In the past few years, we didn’t react, so we are playing catch-up now. We asked several hunters and shooters what they would like to see different in other interchangeable-barrel guns on the market. We’ve made all those changes — and then even a few more. We have a great gun in the KP1, and we’re just getting started.”

Features Simple and Advanced
The KP1 is a break-action rifle with a mixture of simple and advanced features. The action opens via a button atop the tang. If you are used to shooting a firearm with a tang-mounted safety, this takes a bit of getting used to.

Changing barrels is as simple as depressing a lever to release the forearm for removal, and then breaking open the action and tapping out a hinge pin. Reverse the procedure to install the replacement barrel. (A different forearm is required for each of the centerfire, muzzleloader and rifled shotgun barrels.)

All barrels are manufactured by Green Mountain Barrel Co., a subsidiary of EBSCO, Knight’s parent company. Welded at the rear bottom of each barrel is the lug that contains the locking mechanism and hinge-pin connection point. This is also where the forearm attaches, letting the barrel be truly free-floating.

The hammer features a dual-safety system that incorporates a transfer bar, removing the dangers inherent with decocking a loaded rifle. A screw-in hammer spur makes it easier to cock the hammer when wearing gloves and keeps your thumb from bumping the scope. The spur attaches to either side of the hammer, making the KP1 truly ambidextrous.

Shooting the KP1 Muzzleloader
As I alluded to earlier, I was hoping to be one of the first hunters to shoot an Iowa whitetail using the KP1’s .50-caliber muzzleloader barrel. I arrived at Knight’s headquarters in Centerville, Iowa, the afternoon before the state’s general firearms season.

I had just enough time to get familiar with the KP1’s operating features and then sight in the gun in Knight’s underground tunnel, a two-lane shooting range in the basement of the company’s office building.

Based on the helpful recommendations of Knight personnel, I loaded three 50-grain Hodgdon Triple 7 pellets followed by a 250-grain EZ Load saboted bullet. This all-copper bullet is manufactured by Barnes for Knight and is new for 2008 (see the sidebar).
I punched a three-shot, 100-yard group that measured about 2 inches, made a few scope adjustments and shot another group of about 2.5 inches. I ran a damp patch down the barrel, followed it with a couple of dry ones and counted myself ready to hunt the next day.
The KP1 I was shooting in Iowa had a removable breech plug that accepts Knight’s Full Plastic Jacket, into which is inserted a 209 primer. KP1 muzzleloader barrels include a second breech plug that accepts the primer by itself.

What’s the difference?

“We advertise that the Full Plastic Jacket is the only truly waterproof system in muzzleloading,” Mattly said. “The plastic seals tight over the nipple portion of the breech plug. Water can’t get to the powder. We get some resistance from consumers who don’t want to buy the 5-cent jacket, so we decided to offer both systems.”

Point Taken
The Iowa opener dawned ... actually, there really wasn’t a dawn. The day simply progressed from dark gray to a lighter shade of gray. It had begun raining about an hour before I started walking to my ladder stand, and the truck’s thermometer read 26 degrees. By the time I reached my stand, the ladder’s rungs were coated with ice. Against my better judgment, I scaled the ladder anyway, breathed a sigh of relief upon buckling my safety belt and settled in.

The rain continued for the next three hours, encasing me and my rifle with a shiny coating of ice. Every time I moved, the ice on my clothing popped and crackled, sounding as if I was breaking into a thousand pieces.
And I never saw a deer, which didn’t surprise me. I would have left sooner, but it took a while to build up the courage to climb back down the slippery ladder.

The most interesting part of the day came when I thawed out the rifle in my hotel room. I laid the gun out on a couple of towels in the bathtub and let the ice melt for a couple hours. Water dripped from every crevice — including the trigger set and breech plug — as I disassembled it. With the breech plug removed, I ran a cleaning rod down the barrel to punch out the bullet and pellets. To my amazement, the load was dry. I have no doubt the gun would have fired despite the awful weather.

Positive Experience
The next day, the rain had mostly stopped, but it was replaced by winds gusting to 30 mph. It was another unexciting day of hunting. I spent my final morning in Iowa participating in drives with about 20 other hunters. Deer came pouring out of every woodlot and swamp we drove. It was an exciting morning, even though I didn’t pull the trigger.

Despite the less-than-ideal hunting conditions, my introduction to the KP1 was positive. It will be fun to watch Knight continue to expand its entry into the utility gun market.

— Jim Schlender is the editor of Turkey & Turkey Hunting. He writes the “Choked Up” shotgunning column for Gun Digest the Magazine.