.22 caliber AR

[venenoindy]

The 15-22 uses the same trigger as the regular AR, there is no difference from my main rifle and the 15-22. I look and bought two other rifles before the S&W (Sig 522 and Colt) and IMO the S&W comes on top in many areas, is it perfect NO but very close. I would look for a used rifle that way you may save a few dollars, I done a lot research about the uppers (Spikes, Tactical solutions, CMMG, etc) and what I found is most Re hit or miss and not cheap either.

 

[melensdad]

The 15-22 uses the same trigger as the regular AR

You are you saying you can drop in a Timney, Jewell or AR Gold trigger into your 15-22?

And even if you are, are you then claiming that all AR triggers are the same (in terms of feel, reset, take up, over travel, etc)?

 

[Lead Head]

S&W 15-22! Gets my vote. Having owned one for over a year & no malfunctions makes it a keeper!

Had one and yes it's fun and was a good plinker using high velocity rounds. I grew bored with it as did my kids and always returned to center fire calibers.

Plink, plink or BANG BANG ! You decide.

Best of both as other mentioned are receivers that can be swapped.

 

[IndyGunworks]

S&W 15-22! Gets my vote. Having owned one for over a year & no malfunctions makes it a keeper!

+1 for the M&P 15-22

I got the 15-22 and never looked back. LOVE it!

Here's my review: https://www.indianagunowners.com/fo..._review_smith_and_wesson_m_and_p_15_22_a.html

+2 for the S&W. I have a blast with mine. In fact every time I got to the range, my buddy always used to ask to shoot it. Now he has his own. Best $400 I spent in a long time. Very reliable. I can put just about any .22lr ammo through it without any problems.

+3 on the S&W 15-22. bought my wife one and she LOVES it. take it to the range every trip and use it also. adjustable stock,quad rail, what is not to like?

+4 be sure not to get the California edition though.. you might as well have the suppressor on it

BIG +5 on the S&W M&P 15-22. I absolutely love this gun. One of my favorite purchases in the last year or so.

P.S. I know the front sight is backwards. I flipped it around once I noticed.

+10 S&W 15-22 I took my brother's kids to the range and they had so much fun that I gave it to them, so got an other because my son (5 yrs old) make me promise him that we could take it to the range every time he comes with me . Not to mention the second hasn't had any malfunctions at all.

Had one and yes it's fun and was a good plinker using high velocity rounds. I grew bored with it as did my kids and always returned to center fire calibers.

Plink, plink or BANG BANG ! You decide.

Best of both as other mentioned are receivers that can be swapped.

and another reccomendation for the 15-22 here

 

[firehawk1]

I went with the Tactical Solutions .22 M4 upper. It is on a DPMS lower I had sitting around. Other than a couple of bad .22 rounds so far (around 1000 rounds total) it has been flawless. Shot it a couple of times at FNS. It is nice not worrying about sooting up my 5.56 with .22 ammo.

 

[42769vette]

another 15-22 recomendation.

id stear clear of the conversion. the rate of twist is all wrong. it may feed fine but it will more than likley pattern not group. either dedicated upper or the 15-22

 

[38special]

OK folks, break down the advantages and disadvantages for the OP and see what you come up with. Please add to the lists below to make this more complete as I'm sure I've missed several points.

For clarity, please highlight shortcomings of each system in RED type and benefits of each system in GREEN type.

Let us presume they are all "fun to shoot"



Dedicated Upper: Mounts on your AR15
Costs can run from $300 to $600 varies by configuration
Easily configured for silencer
Lets you use your actual trigger to get to know your pull and reset
Lets you use your actual gun, swing weight, optics (allows for exact configuration match to your primary gun)
Typically very accurate
Requires dedicated optic or you to switch your optics from your 5.56 upper.



Chamber Conversion Kit: Fits inside your current 223 or 5.56 upper converting it to 22lr
Lets you use your actual trigger to get to know your pull and reset
Lets you use your actual gun, swing weight, balance, etc
Lets you use your existing optic
Lets you spend more $$$ on accessories and full power ammo
Inexpensive: Costs run from $120 used to about $200
Some brands are known to be finicky with ammo feeding
Not quite as accurate as a dedicated 22lr barrel
Optics while the same, may not shoot to point of aim beyond modest ranges




Dedicated 22lr AR: S&W 22lr or similar dedicated rifle
About $425 to $500 depending on configuration.
Uses a different trigger system.
Trigger reset and pull is different than your main weapon
May not have the same swing weight, configuration, balance, etc
Cannot be altered to take other calibers.
Requires dedicated optic or you to switch your optics from your 5.56 upper.

Wow - you seriously have a problem with people buying dedicated .22 ARs.

I love my 15-22. Actually - I believe it can use upgraded AR trigger groups. It's also easily configurable for a suppressor, it's more accurate than a chamber conversion kit, you get the advantage (and fun) of having another gun entirely, etc. You seemed to have left off ALL of the advantages to a dedicated gun - not exactly a balanced approach there.

Don't get me wrong - I like conversion stuff. I have a 9mm barrel and mag for my glock .40. But I'd rather have a 9mm glock.

 

[.45kohnACP]

I also recommend the S&W MP15-22 I have shot at least 1500+ rounds threw mine and have never had a jam that I can really remember i would buy another on no doubt but don't really think ill have too this thing is tough as nails.

 

[melensdad]

Wow - you seriously have a problem with people buying dedicated .22 ARs.

No sir. No problem at all. But this thread is very interesting. The OP asked what to do. Lots of people gave very little real information. So I compiled a list. I even asked others to add to the list. The question is can the list be refuted reasonably or added to because it is incomplete?

I love my 15-22.

That is a reasonable feeling. Many people love the guns they buy.

Actually - I believe it can use upgraded AR trigger groups.

That is still a question I'd like confirmed. I don't know. I was led to believe it could not. BUT EVEN IF IT CAN, no matter what the average shooter claims, no two triggers are identical. So if you are using the 22lr as a trainer for a competition weapon then it would be doing you a huge disservice, not to mention dramatically increasing the cost, to use 2 different triggers. Heck an Jewell or and AR-Gold trigger is over 1/2 the price of the entire 15-22 rifle! So even if it is, it is still a huge cost disadvantage.

It's also easily configurable for a suppressor

So are the other 2 systems, what is the point. This is neither an advantage nor a disadvantage. It is equal to all the other options, nothing more.

it's more accurate than a chamber conversion kit

Yes, we clearly agree, as I pointed out before. Advantage over a Chamber Conversion. But you fail to point out it is NOT an advantage that can be claimed of a dedicated upper. Still, this was previously pointed out so what is your beef?

you get the advantage (and fun) of having another gun entirely, etc.

Actually this isn't an advantage if the costs are considered and if you have to reconfigure the gun extensively because you'd so dramatically raise the price of this gun that you might have been better off simply buying a couple cases of surplus 5.56 ammo and gotten good training.

You seemed to have left off ALL of the advantages to a dedicated gun - not exactly a balanced approach there.

I'm sorry but I believe that you are the one who is wrong on this point. I clearly provided a list of advantages and disadvantages and clearly asked others to add points. Now I believe my points are fairly OBJECTIVE factually based points.

How does it makes sense to install a $250 or $300 trigger on a good quality AR15, then buy a $425 22-lr clone, only to have to buy another $300 trigger for that gun. And if you have even reasonable quality optics on a decent mount, you'd easily have $450 sitting on top of your AR15, now you have to put $450 more out to duplicate the optics . . . or you have to remount the optic each time, which requires a re-zero.

Now lets see, we take our $425 gun, we add a nearly $300 trigger and a $450 optics package and that $425 gun doesn't look like such a deal. What if you have MagPul stocks on your "real" AR . . . or a Streamlight . . . or a laser . . . get the point?

• If you have a heavily modified AR15, then the chamber conversion kit makes a heck of a lot of sense.
• If you have a modestly modified AR15 then simply a dedicated upper may make sense. Or if your lower is heavily modified but the upper is reasonably standard, then a dedicated upper may make sense.
• If you run a plain-jane vanilla M-4gery then it makes sense to buy a 15-22.

I'm just trying to be objective. A dedicated 22lr-AR makes a lot of sense in some situations. It makes very little sense in others.

 

[TRWXXA]

Just got a Chiappa dedicated 22LR upper ($269) Gonna put it on my Bushmaster lower and take it to the range tomorrow, along with my 15-22. It should be fun to compare the two.

 

[whispers76]

+1 the SW MP 15-22 is a nice little gun for the price. Accurate, and no malfunctions in almost a year of owning.

 

[victor 1971]

I Love my M&P 15-22. Every once in a while I shoot into a nice steel target box I welded together myself in my basement. Bad day at work? Take it out on the box! Costs next to nothing to shoot and doesn't make much noise. Forget a real AR, That's what my AK is for!

 

[TRWXXA]

The final score...

Chiappa M4-22, 53
S&W M&P15-22, 100+

The 15-22 was tack-driving all day. Only had a couple failures to feed in the first dozen rounds, then it ran like a champ for the rest of the day.

The Chiappa was doing great. Not a single FTF... until the 54th round. Then it refused to feed.

I'm not a gunsmith (but I play one on TV). However, I suspect this may be why:

Something tells me that the little c-clip might not be up to the task of holding the bolt mainspring rod in place. Chiappa should look at S&W's bolt assembly design -- except for a couple of small details, they're nearly identical.

S&W M&P15-22 FTMFW!!

 

[zonfather]

another 15-22 recomendation.

id stear clear of the conversion. the rate of twist is all wrong. it may feed fine but it will more than likley pattern not group. either dedicated upper or the 15-22

I've pretty much ruled out the conversion kit. Dedicated upper or full 22 AR.