I have a brand new, M&P 15-22, right out of the box and have conflicting information about cleaning. Some say I should clean, etc. before ever firing live rounds, while others say it isn't necessary. I know the rifle has been test fired at the factory, but am not sure whether it was cleaned some there before shipping it out. Should I give it a cleaning or not? Thanks!

KH

Imo, break it into main part, upper lower bolt carrier and handle.

Give it a good wipe down, and a look over, then pop a couple of DROPS in the bolt rails, small drip on return Spring maybe a tiny drip on tigger spring and reassemble, manually rack the bolt 3/4 times to work oil onto length of the rods then good to go.

I do this to mine and works great, other may have a different routine or idea but that's how I do mine and never had any issues whatsoever with it.

As I said at start, just my opinion.

Hope you enjoy the new addiction.

Rob

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Utrinque Paratus

They don't get cleaned before shipping.
I always clean and inspect a new gun to get out any metal bits and packing oil/grease, and lube per manual. No telling where or how long the gun sits prior to sale.

After that, how often you clean a .22 is up to you. Just don't scrub the barrel to death with improper cleaning: protect the muzzle rifling.
For a semi auto .22, the chamber needs to be clean to feed; the rest of the barrel, not so much.

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Science plus Art

The barrel definitely should be cleaned and you should probably follow the normal break in process of shoot 10, clean, shoot 10, clean, shoot 20, clean, shoot 20, clean. It may not be as important with your rifle that shoots lead bullets vs one that shoots copper jacketed bullets but it never hurts to error on the safe side.

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Doug

If it was test-fired at the factory, it will not have been cleaned afterward. That is intentional, so you will recognize that it was test-fired.

I tell folks to always field strip and clean / lube any new firearm. Couple of reasons:
- it may have been packed with a grease intended for shipping / storage that is heavier than what is needed for normal operation.
- you need to become familiar with the moving parts. If you have issues, and don't know how to deal with them at the range, your shooting session can get short quickly.

Some defend the idea that you should be able to shoot anything new from the box. I don't argue that they are wrong, I just like my scheme of things better. But then I've gotten firearms packed in cosmoline or something equally heavy from Europe.

Short answer? Yes.

Personally i like cleaning my 15-22.
My Anschutz 1417 is german made precision engineering and never needs ANYTHING doing to it..no fun there.

The 15-22 is a tactile thing, i enjoy taking it apart and giving it a clean...make sure the chamber face and feed ramp are kept clean, take the bolt apart, ensure the bolt face is clean, the rails are oiled and the FCG is free of gunk and grit. Baby wipe the whole thing clean and place lovingly back in the safe until next time. Same with the mags. I give the whole thing a thorough clean after every 200 rounds. I clean the barrel with a boresnake (with a straw over the ejector to prevent snagging) after every comp season.

Get to know the gun, get to enjoy cleaning it...it will still run even if it is not sparkling but personally i enjoy the process.
I would clean it.

It might not be necessary, until something goes wrong, then those folks will change their saying to well, its not normally necessary.

I'm not a trusting soul, so I ALWAYS clean any new firearm prior to shooting.

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FIDELITAS ET FORTITUDO

Just do what I do: disassemble it, toss it in the dishwasher, and use plenty of soap. No muss, no fuss.



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Good info here for myself too. Just purchased my 15-22 a couple weeks ago. Still haven't fired it yet. Bought 1000 rounds of federal the other day. Ready for the range now!

I personally always clean new firearms. I want to avoid any promblems that might occur when firing a new gun with shipping grease from the factory. I also like to know how the gun functions and get use to field stripping that particular firearm.

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Bishop

There's a ton of theses videos in the Notable Thread Index sticky at the top of the 15-22 section.

I bought a mp15 (.223) a couple days ago, the guy at the gun shop said at least clean out the barrel. If not, he claims, shooting it would the shipping grease in there will ruin the barrel.