I took my new S&W mp15-22 for it's first outing today. The first thing you notice is the light weight of the gun. Even with a full magazine it probably comes in under 5lbs. Although the upper and lower receivers are mainly polymer it feels sturdy and tucks nicely into the shoulder.
The controls are simple. Push in a magazine, pull back the charging handle (which opens the bolt), press the bolt release, turn the safety to Fire and you're good to go.
The magazines are very easy to load. They have follower buttons on both sides. Hold the magazine upright with your thumb on one button and index finger on the other and pull down as you load each cartridge.
My main goal was to sight it in and to determine what ammo it likes. I fired 300 rounds at 25 yards:
CCI Blazer - 200
Win 333 - 75
Fed Champion 525 - 25
Overall, everything cycled well. I had 3 FTEs, one with the Blazer and 2 with the Win 333. A pull on the charging handle cleared the case. To me this is quite acceptable, especially for a brand new gun.
The sights turned out to be just about dead on. My first three shots of Blazer tore one ragged hole into the X ring. 25 round groups from a sandbag produced groups of between 1.75" and 2.00" with the Blazer. The Win and Fed groups were slightly larger, ranging up to 2.5".
Shooting offhand the groups were larger, generally around 3" to 4", though that includes a few fliers and subgroups that probably had more to do with me than the gun. I'm sure someone with better vision could do much better. The front post always looks fuzzy to me, so it's hard to be really precise. At some point I'll mount a scope to really test the gun's accuracy.
There is a slight, but perceptible, recoil. (Usually I don't notice any with a .22 rifle.) However, the force pushes directly back and it is extremely easy to hold the gun on target. There is also a noticeable spring-like noise as the gun fires. I presume this is the sound of the recoil spring being transmitted down the hollow tube of the butt stock.
Field-stripping is very simple. Remove the magazine, close the bolt, push the pin on the receiver through until it stops, pivot the upper receiver down, then pull out the charging handle/bolt assembly. The action and bore are then easily accessible for cleaning.
Conclusions: The gun is well made, cycles well, is fairly accurate and easy to clean. It is also big fun. If you get one prepare to buy a lot of ammunition.
The controls are simple. Push in a magazine, pull back the charging handle (which opens the bolt), press the bolt release, turn the safety to Fire and you're good to go.
The magazines are very easy to load. They have follower buttons on both sides. Hold the magazine upright with your thumb on one button and index finger on the other and pull down as you load each cartridge.
My main goal was to sight it in and to determine what ammo it likes. I fired 300 rounds at 25 yards:
CCI Blazer - 200
Win 333 - 75
Fed Champion 525 - 25
Overall, everything cycled well. I had 3 FTEs, one with the Blazer and 2 with the Win 333. A pull on the charging handle cleared the case. To me this is quite acceptable, especially for a brand new gun.
The sights turned out to be just about dead on. My first three shots of Blazer tore one ragged hole into the X ring. 25 round groups from a sandbag produced groups of between 1.75" and 2.00" with the Blazer. The Win and Fed groups were slightly larger, ranging up to 2.5".
Shooting offhand the groups were larger, generally around 3" to 4", though that includes a few fliers and subgroups that probably had more to do with me than the gun. I'm sure someone with better vision could do much better. The front post always looks fuzzy to me, so it's hard to be really precise. At some point I'll mount a scope to really test the gun's accuracy.
There is a slight, but perceptible, recoil. (Usually I don't notice any with a .22 rifle.) However, the force pushes directly back and it is extremely easy to hold the gun on target. There is also a noticeable spring-like noise as the gun fires. I presume this is the sound of the recoil spring being transmitted down the hollow tube of the butt stock.
Field-stripping is very simple. Remove the magazine, close the bolt, push the pin on the receiver through until it stops, pivot the upper receiver down, then pull out the charging handle/bolt assembly. The action and bore are then easily accessible for cleaning.
Conclusions: The gun is well made, cycles well, is fairly accurate and easy to clean. It is also big fun. If you get one prepare to buy a lot of ammunition.
