Magpul transformer pistol

This thing has been all over the Internet:

I first saw the video in a SHOT Show review on AR15.com, then OpFor ran it here, and LawDog did so here. For any who either cannot or do not wish to view a You Tube video, the Magpul FMG9 is a small package, about 10 inches by 6 inches, that looks like a small plastic case with a flashlight along the upper edge. Press the magic button and Hey! Presto! it unfolds into a machine pistol (if an automatic-fire sear is installed) or a 9mm carbine, with an extremely short barrel. (Note that a butt stock for shoulder-firing and shorter than 16" barrel make it legally a Short barreled Rifle under federal laws.)

Reactions range from "What's it good for?" to "That's really cool!" through "I want one NOW!" to "Too bad short-barreled rifles are illegal in my state..."

(The demonstrator seems to have a problem with muzzle control, by the way. I'm sure that folding the thing back up does not require that one point the muzzle at one's chest...)

As for what is it good for, well, for decades folks who are unfamiliar with firearms have been advised to purchase a shotgun for home defense. The problem with a long gun in the home, however, is that, well, it is long. I don't know about you, but my house is rather cramped. I have often thought that a short barreled shotgun--also taboo under Washington State law--would be better than a full-length one, and if it had a collapsible stock (like an M4 carbine) that would be even better. (Although it would compound the illegality...) For that reason I have been known to advise a new-comer to self-defense weaponry to purchase a handgun, preferably a revolver, even if it is for home defense. The drawback of a handgun is that it is inherently harder to shoot well.


I do not believe that the FMG9 is The Answer, although I certainly do not feel that "Since I see no use for it, it should not exist." (Which seems to be a common viewpoint among the gun control crowd, but that's a different post.)

A good compromise may be the Kel-Tec Sub2000 Carbine: Mrs. Drang got me one for my birthday last year, and was so taken with it we got one for her, too. Ours are in 9mm, and take Glock magazines. We have attached the KT Picatinney rail to the fore-end, and attached Surefire lights and vertical handgrips to that. It folds up into a slightly bigger package than the Magpul FMG9, but is legal and available.

H/T: The LawDog Files: WANT!
H/T: Opfor Gun-day Sunday