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Old January 25, 2013, 10:32 AM   #1
lcpiper
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Quality .22LR AR

I am considering an AR style .22LR and I am looking for a quality rifle. I have seen some of what GSG offers and for the most part they look too cheaply made to even consider. Too bad too because some would be neat to have if they would stand up to some use. I was checking out the MP5SD version and a piece just broke off in my hand, cheap plastic crap.

I have seen Colts, SIGs, H&Ks, and some others, any suggestions?
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Old January 25, 2013, 11:49 AM   #2
BillyJack3
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If you're not just looking for an upper receiver conversion for an AR lower, then the S&W M&P15-22 should be at the top of your list. These look AND function like an AR15. Many of the others don't function as such. Yes, they are polymer but have a very solid feel to them. I have thousands of rounds down range with mine and it's been amazingly reliable.

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Old January 25, 2013, 11:53 AM   #3
4V50 Gary
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Spike's Tactical but if I had to buy another I wouldn't mind S&W either. The S&W comes with more fancy stuff for the money.
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Old January 25, 2013, 12:36 PM   #4
CharlieDeltaJuliet
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M&P15-22'a are great. I owned one and it functioned flawlessly. I only sold it when I bough a couple of CMMG AR-15's in .22lr. I only did this so I could interchange the uppers. The ones I bought were Quebec-A(not sure if it is still being made). It is a multi caliber lower with a dedicated upper. I think I paid $450 for it in 2011.

You will see from many of my other posts, I swear by S&W. if you are looking for an AR in .22, the M&P15-22 would be the best choice for most.
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Old January 25, 2013, 12:38 PM   #5
BarryLee
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M&P15-22'a are great.
Never owned one, but a guy let me shoot his at the range and it seemed like a very nice gun.
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Old January 25, 2013, 03:33 PM   #6
nixfix
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+1 on the M&P 15-22. Bought one just a couple of weeks ago, put over 700 rounds through it last weekend. What a blast and very accurate.
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Old January 25, 2013, 03:33 PM   #7
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S&W 15-22's are great. They are made almost entirely of plastic, but still don't feel "cheap".

I picked mine up used, so have no idea on what the actual round count is, but I've put around 3,000 rounds through it in the last few weeks, and it's been perfect.

The only downside to them now, is you'll likely pay through the nose for mags, and finding ammo can be challenging at times. Mags were $20. Now, I frequently see them for $50 - $70.

The only thing that mine MIGHT be replaced with, is a dedicated .22 AR (as in, using a real AR lower, upper, etc).
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Old January 25, 2013, 03:52 PM   #8
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The S&W M&P is a nice rifle. BUT, I would go with the SIG 522, if you can find one. The mags used in the S&W are proprietary. The SIG uses the more common Ceiner type and the upper is aluminum vs the plastic. But as you said, you want an AR type and the S&W is much nicer than the converted airsoft guns like Umarex and ATI. The S&W can use regular AR trigger groups so you can put match triggers in them if you wanted. Haven't heard much about the Mossberg offerings, they look kind of odd.

Not sure what your budget is but if you already have an AR, I would go with a dedicated upper and you can use your lower that you already have. If you just want to plink and accuracy is not super critical you can just buy a conversion kit that replaces your bolt in your AR. CMMG makes a great one, they also make dedicated uppers and complete guns. There are other manufacturers as well.
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Old January 25, 2013, 04:05 PM   #9
MrBorland
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Quote:
if you already have an AR, I would go with a dedicated upper and you can use your lower that you already have.
If you want a quality and accurate upper for your lower, check out Compass Lake's .22 upper.
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Old January 25, 2013, 04:22 PM   #10
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May I suggest... that you buy a rifle that uses metal magazine feed lips. Black Dog Machine used to make plastic lips for it's 22lr mags. I wore a dozen of them out after approx. 50,000 rounds. Black Dog makes metal mag lips now... so does CMMG --- don't know about S&W. The mag plastic follower's, must be of good quality. I think Ruger makes the best magazines for the 10-22/SR-22 variety.

I have almost given up on my dedicated 22lr AR-15 uppers, due to constant misfeeds, stovepipes, and a few oob's {out of battery detonation} to boot. It might just be due to the worn out mags.

I do like my Ruger SR-22 rifle --- which is a souped-up tactical looking 10-22.
The scope receiver bolts and the bottom reciever bolt --- have to be properly lock tighted in; or you'll have constant POI shifts.

The front trigger guard button safety on the SR-22, is a bit slower than an AR-15 safety. It is of sufficient weight for offhand target shooting, hammer forged and free floated barrel.

I stripped one of the top reciever bolts on my SR-22 --- sent it back to Ruger --- and they gave me a brand new SR-22; in no time at all. I can only say good things about the Ruger Repair Department. The Ruger metal lipped mags are very dependable... and I especially like the 10 round tri-mag adapter.

Do not overuse the blue Loc-Tight on the scope reciever bolt's, or you'll freeze up the firing pin and bolt.

Last edited by Erno86; January 25, 2013 at 04:32 PM.
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Old January 25, 2013, 04:22 PM   #11
Quentin2
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The S&W M&P15-22 is a very nice rifle, I love the one my buddy has. I went with the Colt M4 22lr and have been quite pleased with it. It and the 15-22 have been reliable with Federal and Winchester value pack from Walmart. Both have held up to long shooting sessions. Each has advantages but no major complaints with either rifle.
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Old January 25, 2013, 08:19 PM   #12
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Can't comment about the others but I really like my Sig. My only complaint, if you can call it that, is that given the weight it seems like it should make a much bigger Boom when the trigger is pulled.

The upside is it feels like a good solid rifle and not some tactified ( I made that up) cheapie kids beginner model .22.
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Old January 25, 2013, 08:33 PM   #13
spyderdude
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I have owned my M&P15-22 for almost 3 years now and have shot it quite a bit. It has only malfunctioned a few times and I go through a 550 round box of Federal .22LR in no time because I have 5 magazines for it. It is a great training aid for my Colt 6920 AR-15. I'm thinking about getting a Vortex Strikefire for the .22 because I have an Aimpoint PRO on the Colt.
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Old January 25, 2013, 10:16 PM   #14
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If you are going to buy a complete rifle and the notion of swapping uppers on a real AR15 lower does not appeal to you, then the S&W M&P15-22 is the clear winner. If the accuracy is not enough for you, you can buy a match barrel for it for about $250 or so. The Mossberg is not getting a thumbs up from me.

Conversions that use a chamber adapter in an AR-15 barrel are, to me, a waste and cause too many problems.

When you go to dedciated uppers, there is starting to be a good variety, but some divergence. If accuracy less than 1 MOA is required, then you are going to get a Compass Lake for North of $1K. If 2MOA, maybe 1MOA but excellent reliability is more important, then the CMMG, Tactical Solutions, Nordics, etc are in the mix. The Nordics were one of the best, but if they come back in stock in the next 6 months, I will be surprised. If that is the one you want, you will have to order a JP22 upper. Nordic is swamped. Tactical Solutions is more .22 focused so their inventory is not lacking due to centerfire product demand like Nordic and CMMG. You can get a Velocity upper (.22 focused company as well) from Sportsman's Guide for not much coin and they are serviceable, but not the most accurate. There are a variety of others with slight tweaks here and there, but that kind of covers the landscape on the AR22 category.

I still think that most people will be better served with a custom 10/22 over an AR22 (or a Marlin 795/7000 if you don't like Ruger). I have all of them, and I shoot the AR22 with the Nordic upper on my match lower to practice for 3Gun only. When I plink, go for accuracy or play the speed games, I grab one of the custom 10/22s and for the precision match, the 7000. Accuracy and reliabilty with very good triggers can be had in the $400 to $800 range with a myriad of options. They are easy to work and on you don't need special tools.
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Old January 25, 2013, 10:35 PM   #15
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I have 8 25rd mags for my S&W 15-22. I love it and so does my 10yr old son. I'm selling my 5.56 AR but I'll never sell the 15-22. Get one, you'll love it just like the thousands of owners that already have or had one.
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Old January 26, 2013, 07:16 AM   #16
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Love my M&P 15-22. And so does everyone that had ever shot mine at the range.
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Old January 27, 2013, 12:09 AM   #17
arizona98tj
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x2 regarding having people shoot my 15-22 going away with a big smile on their face. It's a great rifle for new small (think kids) shooters as well as those experienced with the AR platform.

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Old January 27, 2013, 10:42 PM   #18
dsd
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Not really an AR, but the Anschutz MSR RX22 (a SCAR clone) looks really nice. It does have GSG involvement, but trigger and barrel are Anschutz. A bit pricey but a potential interesting option.

Best,
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Old January 27, 2013, 11:04 PM   #19
JWT
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The S&W 15-22 is a great little gun. I've put thousands of rounds trough mine with no malfunctions of any type. It is very siimilar to it's 'big brothers' in the way it operates and the way it strips down. Accurate and lots of fun to shoot.

The quality is very good based on my use thus far.
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Old January 27, 2013, 11:18 PM   #20
TexasDuckHunter
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Sig 522

I to was in this position not to long ago. after ALOT of research and hands on experience i had narrowed it down to the M&P 15-22 and the Sig 522 (both come with a lifetime warranty which can't be beat!) one thing that the Sig has over the Smith is that it uses the same magazines as an AR15-22 conversion kit. What does that mean? well that means instead of paying crazy prices a magazine you can get one for 14 dollars! (that is when everything calms down again). Also some of the M&P 15-22s have problems feeding the cheaper ammo. and if you watch any review online regarding the Sig most will say it functions flawlessly. Which so far for me it has done.
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Old January 28, 2013, 10:24 AM   #21
Fishbed77
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I love my CMMG dedicated .22LR upper (on a PSA lower). It's become one of my favorite guns.

It's incrediby accurate and reliable, and I really like the fact that it's a true AR, as opposed to a polymer or potmetal replica.

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Old January 28, 2013, 11:19 AM   #22
lcpiper
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I was tempted to reply and give thanx on Friday but decided to let it run through the weekend. I am glad I did because I got some more replies I might not have otherwise. Thank You all, I'll sent pics when I find what I decide on
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Old January 28, 2013, 02:31 PM   #23
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I gotta admit, my favorite right now is my AR15 with a .22lr dedicated upper. I went with a CMMG 6.5" barrel and there is also a SS Sparrow mounted on the end. I'm using BD steel lip mags and I have extremly good reliability. Yes there are two tax stamps but worth it to me. I just competed in a rimfire "tactical" shoot and placed pretty well.


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Old January 28, 2013, 02:43 PM   #24
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I don't have a S&W M&P15-22, but I would really love to have one. Hopefully, politically, I can still get one in the future.
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Old January 29, 2013, 10:23 AM   #25
Chard
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S&W M&P 15-22
Don't let the polymer lower/upper bother you. Runs well and feels great in the hand. Great for kids and wives. Mags until recently were cheap and easy to load. Normally you can buy the whole outfit for the same amount as a 22LR upper.
Bushy Superlite and a S&W 15-22 MOE FDE
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