Ok so here is my dilemma. I am looking at purchasing a Smith & Wesson M&P AR rifle. my problem is I cannot afford $1,000.00 or more for the rifle. I like the set-up of the S&W M&P15-22 MOE 811034 with the "cheese grader" look and mounting options and of course the ability to shoot at the indoor range without problems and the very cheap cost to do so because of the .22 caliber. But, I would like to be able to have a real AR-15 set up as well. I was looking at the other M&P models and trying to figure out which one is the same as the MOE but in 5.56/.223 then I would buy a .22 conversion kit. Is there a conversion kit to go the other way? .22 to 5.56/.223? I am so totally gettign pissed at myself since i cannot figure out which way to go.

I will be shooting the rifle plus, I want my wife and daughter to also be able to shoot, that is why the .22 comes in to play as well. please help me. If I could find even a good used 5.56/.223 at the right price I would even consider that. Any and all help will be greatly appreciated.

There is no conversion for a 15-22 to .223/5.56. There are, however, several ways to convert an AR-15 to shoot .22.

If an AR-15 and a conversion kit can fit in your budget, that would be my choice. Best of both world. If you can only do one, I would suggest the 15-22. It seems your intended use is target shooting. While a real AR is much "cooler", it is also much more expensive. You can shoot a 15-22 all day long for a fraction of the cost, and the recoil level will be much more agreeable to your wife and daughter. You can always get the AR-15 down the road...

I was in a similar boat, I got the 15-22 and the Sport. Best bang for thy buck.

Great answer. Why? Two, dedicated to the caliber , rifles are the best choice performance wise. Drop in conversions tend to lead foul AR uppers so a dedicated upper for the 22 is the next best thing to two rifles.