Military rifles just plain get used and abused. You should have seen the hunk of junk M-16 they gave in Afghanistan.

OMG! That's impossible. (sarcasm)

My LGS actually got a shipment of five of the new Sport IIs yesterday. They were gone by midday today. The price was $619. I'm still happy with my original so I didn't grab one. That plus I have just bought a new LCP (at a really low price) a week or two ago.

I was able to handle one and it felt like a "sport". I like the looks a little better with the FA & DC. For my use, I don't really need either. I still prefer function over form. I'm a lover of the humpback J-frames, after all.

Ah, you're Air Force... ya wouldn't know what to do with a good one anyway!

If financial prudence is the name of the game, yes, research and try out different configurations to figure out how to buy the rifle already in the configuration closest to what you want.

But, what I learned about ARs from my very first (a Sport), while tinkering and disassembling, assembling, swapping parts, etc, is invaluable.
As far as the Sport II is concerned- I swapped to an upper with a dust cover and forward assist at zero net cost. Bought an upper for $50, sold the old Sport upper for $50, and learned a lot about working with various AR barrel nut/handguard/gas block parts.
Changing to a free float setup cost me a net $30 for handguard and gas block after selling the stock plastic handguard/front sight gas block/delta ring assembly.

It's just money. The things you learn along the way are priceless.

I try to use the exact same rationalization to justify about $7,000 in modern sporting rifle education. It doesn't work.

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-John

Doh!!! That hurts! May I have a hurt feelings report to fill out? LOL

I was a comms guy... they didn't trust us with one very often!

A lot of truth there.

Picked up the last two the LGS had yesterday for $619 each, decided with all the stuff Obama is going to try I want a couple more. He is the premier gun salesman in the country, probably wouldn't have done it if it wasn't for the constant threats. Hope they are nice rifles, this is an AR I have no experience with. But heck, it's an S and W.

I realize it is irrational, but when I saw the announcement of the Sport II I immediately said to myself "I want one."

Do I "need" it? No. I just want one. Oh, well. Who needs money anyway?

Same here. I'm waiting for my lgs to call and tell me he has one

I'm new to ARs and got a Sport II today. Can't have it until Christmas (per my financial manager, i.e. significant other) but I can wait. I was looking for an entry-level and the Sport II fills the bill perfectly. Good price, some $$ left over for "stuff" and I'm a happy camper...

After reading this and other threads, I believe I did good! :-)

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Gary

Well that just swayed me back to the M&P. I was set on the Ruger because you got more options for the same price, even if they are not important options. Now that the Sport II has FA and a dust cover with a treated barrel, I'm all in.

I was looking at one today. Went in looking for the AR556 but they are sold out everywhere. The Ruger still has the cold hammer forged barrel, the milled front site post (Sport is cast) and the 1:8 twist over the M&P. But how much difference that makes I'm not sure...

I remember reading certain accessories would not work with the Rugers, and that there was a small recall on some of their disconnectors. Not that I was looking to purchase, was just reading up on them for knowledge. Can't remember what accessories wouldn't work on the Ruger, but if you're seriously considering one, maybe try to dig up that info.

1:8 is a good general purpose twist that will shoot just about everything but the lightest and heaviest bullets. It seems most people shoot 50 - 62 grain bullets, so 1:9 is perfectly fine for them. It just depends on what you want to send down range out of your rifle.

For the front sight, milled is better that cast for durability but I'm not sure how much of a difference that would make for most people.

What about the "cold Hammer Forged Barrel". Is that significant or just marketing?

They are reputed to be better. It's just another method of rifling a barrel. The process is supposed to be more uniform because of how the bore is made but I can't say much more beyond that. My M&P10 and Mossberg MVP seem to shoot pretty darn well and I don't think either one has a cold hammer forged barrel.

In theory, a CHF barrel is apt to be more accurate due to more uniform rifling... in actual use, especially in budget ARs, not sure how much of that would apply.

The CHF process also increased the hardness of the metal, where S&W uses a salt nitride process to increase hardness.

I doubt you will see much difference in accuracy between these two barrels. I would probably give the longevity nod to the Sport due to the barrel treatment, but if you shoot enough to wear out either barrel, the cost of a replacement is significantly less than the cost of ammo used.

I purchased one today locally I paid under 600 for it I think it was 590.00

Wow that means "here we go again" Last run (2012) on AR's inflated the prices to double of what they are now & than there will be a run on 5.56 ammo = shortage & higher prices.

Oh those prices and shortages will happen soon ,if the Obama administration has its way.

Here's a pic of my new Sport II. Nice quality AR, and yes, I like that it has the dust cover and forward assist. I know those features really aren't a big deal functionally, but I wouldn't buy an AR without them... Heavy barrel is nice, and the 1/9 twist works for me.

I expect this one will shoot as good as my original M&P 15 that I sold a few years ago... I sold that gun to a friend that wanted it more than me, at the time. Figured it never hurts to have an extra AR lying around. And I just like being able to buy one if I want one, not sure if we will always be able to do that in the future...?

Attached Images

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NRA Life Member

Some websites like buds say the barrel is chrome-lined, Others don't. Anyone know which is right?

The barrel is treated by salt nitride bath to harden the steel and protect from corrosion. This process is also known as Melonite, or Tenifer... similar processes, but different chemicals are used to achieve the same end result.

The nations premier gun salesman (Obama) announced yesterday that starting Monday he will start looking at gun control c--p again. Looks like he plans to use his executive order to enact some sort of legislation. I ordered my Sport II last Monday and 500 rounds of ammo yesterday. I plan to buy a few more magazines and as much ammo as I can afford before the SHTF and I can't get it anymore. FYI I got mine from Kentucky Gun Co. for $609.99 with free shipping. Since I ordered it at least 4 other forum members I know of have also ordered from KY Gun. I think they still have some in stock if anyone is interested.

Yeah, I watched the video of his "Happy New Year" speech. I have a feeling the court system is going to be very busy for years to come after he leaves office. Especially since Congress doesn't seem to have any interest in jealously protecting the powers they are given.

That's 5 from Ky Gun....
Ordered last night. Finally my stash of PMAGs from the last few months will get some use.

The Army tested various twist rates with the new and old 62 grain bullets. They found that the 1:9 gave better accuracy but didn't stabilize tracers so they stuck with 1:7.
I'm wondering if the Sport II uses a Smith barrel. I thought all Smith barrels were made with 5 lands and groves. Anybody Know?

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Foster Positivity.

5R rifling is not the norm... 6 lands and grooves is. The MOE Mid, the VTAC II, and the M&P 15T are currently the only rifles with 5R rifling in the lineup. The Sport had it when it first came out, but has since transitioned to a traditional barrel.

By the way, those 5R barrels were not made by Smith. They are made by Thompson Center.

Well, I am trying to not buy any new guns, but I may have to buy the original Sport before it disappears from the market.

I do like the dustcover, but would really like an AR without the forward assist.

Good luck on that... the original Sport has been gone for a couple of years.

I got the Sport (not the Sport II) for Christmas. Prices jumped right after the shooting of course so I ended up getting hosed on the price (yes I get to pick out my own presents from my family ) I was told then that the Sport was discontinued and from what i could find at the time it looked like there would be fewer chromed parts on the Sport II. I had no way of knowing for sure at the time and being someone that prefers the bird in the hand blah blah blah I went for the original. I got it for $650. A week earlier they had been $500. But I wasn't sure I would ever see one again. No one had them. And I wanted something to wave around on Christmas so... I'm perfectly happy with what I have. I feel like a FA is something you use if you're very, very desperate and can't spare 2 seconds to clear a round that didn't feed perfectly. if you keep your rifle clean that really shouldn't happen anyway. But what do I know. I'm anxious to find out more details on the Sport II so I can find out if the info I found was wrong concerning the lack of chromed parts in some places that were chromed before. No matter. I would have almost certainly picked the older version over the new anyway. I've bought too many early production guns only to wish I hadn't later.

At this point I'm more than happy with what I have. I think it's a fine rifle and those people that swear you need to spend $800 to get a good semi-auto should have a look at my SKS I bought for $100 23 years ago. No it isn't an AR but it has worked almost perfectly every day of those years and what problems it had were ammo related.

I expect this S&W to be as good as every other S&W I've owned or shot. They seem to work just fine for me. I have a 629-2 I've had for many years and I still count on it for black bear protection and soon wild boar protection. They are moving into the area slowly but surely.

That's interesting. This is the first I have heard of some parts not being chromed like before. I would bet that they still are, but if not I guess they would cut something in order to add the FA and DC. I decided to go to S&W's website, and I don't feel it is too conclusive. The Sport II says it has a chromed firing pin, while the Sport shows a chrome-lined gas key and bolt carrier. But for all I know, it could just be a discrepancy between the two webpages on S&W's site.

I have not heard that the Sport II is any different from the Sport, other than has a forward assist and dust cover.

As far as being afraid of buying a "early production gun", S&W has been making ARs for years... and an AR that includes the FA and dust cover are not new to S&W, so any fear about this being an "early production gun" are unwarranted.

I know they've been making AR's a long time. But it is a new model and there's no real way to know if they have changed things until the guns have been on the market a while. Sorry but I disagree that my concern was unwarranted. I didn't say it was likely but I'd just as soon not be the one that finds out the hard way. I have plenty of other ways to waste money.

That's one of the things that made me wonder. It just seemed strange they would change the wording of their description. I certainly didn't know the truth about this and never thought I did. I'm just a bit paranoid about such things but mostly I just like to buy what I know is good. I don't believe I'll have a need for either a FA or a dust cover and I actually like the rifle because it doesn't have those things. The only dust mine is likely to collect is from sitting in the corner waiting for that fateful day I might actually need it. I hope that day never comes but I feel better having this gun even though I actually had that need covered already.

It wouldn't have mattered for me anyway. The only choice available to me was the one I got. It was something that needed to be available for Christmas. I'm not knocking the Sport II. I have no knowledge of it yet other than the few reports I've seen here just recently. No one was talking about it before that I saw (probably just didn't look in the right places) and I couldn't find any M&P15 Sport on the net or in any local stores except the one I got. I'm perfectly happy with the way things worked out except I wasn't too keen on the price jump right before the gun was bought. Dang idjits keep shooting people and driving up the prices. I wish they would stop (obviously because they're killing people - not because of the price - I tend to joke at times but I'm new here and I didn't want people getting the wrong impression).

I guess the question here is does the Sport II have the chrome lined bolt carrier? I'd just like to know because that's what made me wonder. It doesn't matter to me now. I might end up with another model some day but that's not likely to be soon.

FWIW here's another place that made me wonder. The ad content is not copied straight from the S&W web page.

https://www.impactguns.com/smith-wes...188868104.aspx

Notice it mentions the "Chromed Firing Pin" but says nothing about the other parts that were advertised as being chromed on the Sport (I).

It may be a "new model" but in no way is it something new that S&W is putting out to market for the first time... it's like when economy cars started coming with power windows as standard for the first time.

Also, the Sport has had the same parts making up the BCG as the rest of the S&W lineup... what makes you think they would change that now? I would be very surprised if anything has changed, but I have asked S&W support so that we can kill this rumor before it gets out of hand.

What rumor? I plainly said it was my paranoia and more than that it was all I could get. Gee I'm not out to kill off S&W here. I'm just a person that's cautious about buying stuff very early on. I've been burned on that before. And sometimes companies take a giant step back. I've not seen S&W do that personally but I can point to a few people that would say they did that on certain stuff. I'm not making any accusations though. Never intended to. I plainly said I did NOT know. Gee you guys are touchy. I ASKED a question about the bolt carrier. That's hardly the start of a rumor. I bought one of their rifles when I finally decided to get an AR. I've been shooting for 50 years. My dad had a whole collection of S&W revolvers. He had one hid every place you looked. I'm not down on the company in any way. You make it sound like I stepped on someone's toes. That certainly wasn't my intention. BTW when economy cars first started coming out with power windows a company named Honda did it. They took the Toyota and added luxury. I bought several Toyotas way back in those days. I bought my first Honda not long after I saw that they had made them upscale. But thanks for the history lesson anyway. Dang you can't say anything on some boards without someone making a federal case out of it. I bought one of their rifles. I think that sorta proves I like what they're doing. It certainly isn't the first S&W I've owned either.

Look I tried to be very open and honest about my thoughts. I never made accusations. I talked about my concerns. But I get the feeling my drill sgt. is trying to make me eat dirt for daring to bow down to the temple of S&W. Get off my back. Go try to force someone else to think what you think. This isn't Paris Island.

CJ, you are new here, so I'll cut you some slack... the thing is, S&W has made changes in the past to the Sport that were not well received. The first one being that they changed from a 1:8 twist, 5R rifled barrel to a 1:9 twist barrel on the Sport.

So when you start saying that "it looked like there would be fewer chromed parts on the Sport II", you have started discussion in that direction... inadvertently starting rumor perhaps, but a rumor none the less.

There is a lot of BS out on the net about these rifles, so I prefer truth to fiction on this site, so that potential buyers will have the facts. This is why I have posed your question to S&W. If they say it is true, you will see me come back to this board and let everyone know.

This will be my last post towards you on this subject, as I don't want to get the thread locked, nor do I want to start the new year with a warning from Phil.

Look I tried very hard to make it apparent that it was just ME and my concerns. But what you said about the original Sport (which I knew about) is an example of how a company can change things for the worse. A lot of people complained about those changes just as you said. The difference in the rifling and the barrel material made people wish they had bought earlier.

I certainly didn't mean to imply anything by my question. If rumors start that easy it really isn't my fault. It was an honest concern but certainly not a claim.

Again I like their stuff. I'm really not all that new here. I just haven't posted much. I've posted on plenty of other gun forums and I've been shooting since I was 7 which was 52 years ago.

Again I like S&W stuff. I knew as soon as I first saw that S&W was making an entry level AR that I wanted one. It took me a while to get one because every time I'd get a little money I'd buy another gun.

I'm not here to knock S&W in any way. I wasn't out to start a rumor. I like their stuff. That's I bought "their" AR.

I don't want to cause problems. I don't want to start rumors. I'm not a troll or a flamer. It just seemed that no matter how many times I said I wasn't making any claims that it wasn't getting through that I bought one of their rifles very recently and I'm very happy with it. I'm not new to firearms. I'm not new to high capacity carbines either. I'm just new to S&W AR's. I know what I said. I said exactly what I meant and I just didn't want people reading stuff into my comments that were not intended. If asking a question starts a rumor then there's already a perception issue. Heck if I could hurt the sales of any firearm that easy I'd probably shake down manufacturers for protection money. (not really) But I wouldn't think anyone would take my question as a claim. Sorry I just thought there was some over reaction going on.

I'm all for keeping things civil and keeping the thread open. I didn't come here to start trouble. I came here to learn stuff mostly. I sure didn't intend to start any rumors. Can we just leave it at that and be friends?

Sure... but I still am going to try to get an answer from S&W regarding your concerns or questions. With the wording on the S&W site, it is a valid question. One that I would like to get an answer to without further speculation.

Also, I didn't mean new to the forum... just new to this section. I didn't know if you were aware of the history of the Sport. Sorry if that came across as offensive.

At any rate, I think you will enjoy your rifle. I have the old Sport as well, and have not missed not having the forward assist or ejection port cover.

I'm already enjoying it and I said once already (maybe in this thread - I forget) that I actually like not have the FA and I really don't have a need for a dust cover. If I ever do I figure I can pick up the parts of an upper I need to change that. But for now I like the sleek look of the Sport w/o the FA and the dust cover. I wish they had left off that piece of the upper that looks like it's a FA or where one should go. Maybe there's a reason for that being there. I would prefer it to be flat on that side to be honest. But if there's no difference between the II and the I (not really a I - I know that) except the FA and the dust cover I'm going to be glad I got the earlier model. That's just my preference. But I've seen where people have swapped out uppers and ended up with a dust cover and it didn't cost that much. If I ever see there is a problem with collecting dust or whatever I'll just swap a few parts out. But I don't expect to be out in the bush in VN any time soon and the same goes for the sand box. If I was either of those places I'd certainly want both the FA and the dust cover but in VN they didn't have dust covers anyway did they?

The piece you are referring to is the brass deflector. Not much of an issue for right handed shooters, but lefties appreciate it. Other manufacturers make an upper without it, a true slick side upper.

The early guns did not have the forward assist, but they did have the ejection port cover.

My Air Force issue Gau/5 (Air Force speak for M-4) back in the day was a slick side with the dust cover.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/CAR-15

I wondered why that was there. I figured it wasn't for looks. And yeah I knew they had dust covers way back when but not FA. But they were fighting in the jungle and in the mud and the muck all the time. They "needed" a port cover in a big way. Same goes for people fighting over in the middle east. Considering the early problems with feeding issues they needed a FA in Nam too. My rifle will spend lots of time in the living room corner awaiting the day I really, really need it. I'll have it out shooting it of course. They don't help you much if you don't practice using them. But not in the rain or in the mud or at the beach etc. etc..

With your description of the function of the deflector I believe I would want one if I was a lefty too even though mine ejects straight out. You never know when that might change quickly.

I bet if you look closely, you will see a little bit of brass on the edge of the deflector... the brass will hit that and then be thrown forward.

You're right. It has a mark or two on it. I really haven't had lot of time to shoot a lot to be honest. I probably will be locked in for the most part until spring. I will be doing some shooting soon to mount a sight and get it zeroed. I still haven't bought the sight I want. I'm just sticking a green laser on for now. I'm waiting on a 45 degree offset mount which should be here soon. That's certainly not going to be my permanent sight. It's just something I might use for a short while.

I believe the DC and FA are must haves on an AR. At the range where 99% of them will be shot, but the DC does allow you to keep water and mud out of the receiver, and the FA does aid in chambering a stubborn round, which does happen. I've used it more than once when I had AR's. People do buy AR's for possible civil unrest and bug out conditions. Highly unlikely, of course. But why not have the option?