first time gun owner with m&p 15-22, should have gone with .223 instead?

[lucky29tds]

keep the 15-22...

drop 189.00 on a hi-point 45 and your family will be fine...
i was unsure about the hi-point gun being so cheap but i ended up with one and love it..
best customer service ever,... i bout mine used, they sent me all new parts, box, locks and told me the gun has a lifetime no questions warranty.. original owner or not...
my 45acp hasnt jammed even once on me
you can find them for 130 if you look around..

 

[cyphertext]

Now that you bought the M&P Sport, you will appreciate the 15-22 even more! They are identical in operation and you can shoot all day at the range with the .22lr. Let your wife start with the .22 and after she builds some confidence, let her try the Sport.

 

[acropora]

ok im taking bids for the mags i can get,lets start at $40 and go from there jk but seriously my LGS does have them and they are only $25 ea.i plan on grabbing 4 of them myself.

 

[TacoDaTugBoat]

the 38 special is my primary home defense gun with +p hollow points. with the revolver i dont have to worry about safety switches or things jamming. the rifles are the secondary guns or the guns the wife will grab while i engage the intruder. she will most likely go with the 15-22, i am betting.

This is what I was getting at earlier. The rifle is not useless by any means, but I would grab the .38 first.

 

[Majorlk]

If in doubt about a 22 LR go to the Local DA and ask how many murders they have put in prision that used a 22. I would bet a bunch. Several months back a man shot another person in the head with a 22. The victem "fell like a sack of taters". DEAD !!!!
Never doubt the power of any firearm

I don't know whether to laugh or cry. Please list all the military units and law enforcement agencies that have .22 LR firearms as duty weapons.

 

[Ghost_Soldier]

So in other news... I just stubbed my toe. Enough with the debate! It will never end haha.

So which is better, 9mm or .45ACP? j/k

 

[Dikinalaska]

It will work, I would not want to stand in front of a rimfire rifle while the shooter unloads 20+ rounds. With that said I think you really need to see what the difference is, not on a video but at the range. I have had the opportunity to set up water jugs and compare defensive rounds. The most interesting target we put up were heads of cabbage. The .22 rimfire leaves a nice hole, an impressive trama chanel. The 9MM and 45 cal destroys the head. My .308 rifle makes cole slaw. There is nothing left but small shredded pieces. I own the 15-22 and love it, I would not hesitate to use it if the need arrised, but it would not be the first thing I reached for. I also would not recomend selling it unless that was your only option for purchasing a larger caliber rifle, better to save some money and have both.

We did the same thing with various calibers on fruit/veggies and by far the most impressive was a .17. Made it rain applesauce! Not saying smaller is better, just if you get a chance to shoot a .17, do it.

 

[Dikinalaska]

keep the 15-22...

drop 189.00 on a hi-point 45 and your family will be fine...
i was unsure about the hi-point gun being so cheap but i ended up with one and love it..
best customer service ever,... i bout mine used, they sent me all new parts, box, locks and told me the gun has a lifetime no questions warranty.. original owner or not...
my 45acp hasnt jammed even once on me
you can find them for 130 if you look around..

After watching the video on YouTube of them putting a hi-point through h*ll and still running fine, I would have no problem with one of them, except they're SO ugly IMO.

 

[acropora]

S&W said they no longer will make them until they know what happens in washington.

if you can get the 25 round mags for msrp buy them all up and make at least 400% profit! that is what they are going for at gunbroker.com.

im not trying to sell gun parts and if i was i wouldnt be trying to rape people just to make a few bucks.to me its just wrong for the LGS or private sellers taking advantage of the media hype and speculation to make money.we have enough wrong with this country right now without me or anyone else profiting off of tradgeties!if thats what you want to do than by all means do it,but i have some morals.

 

[Gunzilla]

Just get the 5.56 too and use the .22 as your trainer....cheap practice and all the muscle memory works with the 5.56.

 

[hogrider05]

A mobster's favorite weapon, a suppressed .22 one shot behind the ear.
I've seen it a thousand times in the movies.
I'm in the shot gun for home defense camp. Chances are your wife will only have to shoot it once, shouldn't have to have any follow up shots.

 

[miniion]

I think your 15-22 will be a good companion for a long time. I sure do love mine, the attached pic is of a 454 Casull cartridge shot at 70 yards. Observe the dent. Any person that is able to place a few of those shots in a vital area...well, you know the rest.

That being said, my Ruger P89 guards me at night. Just more convenient.

 

[ukm@p]

I did some field testing to see what the .22lr would do (real world) I acquired a fresh dead ram from a local farmer and shot it in the head from 15 yds a distance that is probable if not a bit further than you would expect in a home defences situation I used a cci standard velocity round and it punched a clean hole through the head and stoped at the rear of the skull the brain tissue was massively disrupted and if you consider that a rams skull is considerably thicker than a humans and designed for taking high impact blows I would say it would certainly put down an intruder provided you posses the ability to shoot accurately during a high stress situation.

YouTube vid soon

 

[gdauth]

In my opinion a .223 is a lousy choice for home defense. You are better off with a pump shotgun or a handgun. One problem with a .223 is over penetration, with rounds passing through walls and possibly injuring members of your family or neighbors. A .223 is more suited for distance as opposed to "work" in the confined spaces of a house. With a hand gun you can have better control and mobility if you know how to use it. With a shotgun your aim can be a little off, but it will still be effective. A shotgun will also have a psychological effect on the bad guy. Looking down the barrel of a 12 ga can be very intimidating to the bad guy which can give you an edge. However, no weapon is useful if you don't know how to use it and if you don't know what its limitations are. You should get training and spend a lot of time at the range. The latter has a bonus, I at least find it both relaxing and fun.

 

[Kayback]

Gdauth, then why are more and more SWAT units switching to shorty 5.56mm platforms?

The 12 guage and the sub gun are being phased out all over the world for 5.56mm or 5.45's.

Your aim CAN'T be a "little off" with a shotgun. Over typical household distances the shot will all be a tight little wad.

This is a 25 yard shot with #1 buckshot, 15 pellet.

Like you said, work with it. Practicing with a 5.56mm rifle is easier on the shooter than a 12 guage.

5.56mm penetration is not a problem is you use low penetration low ricochet rounds......

KBK

 

[Dikinalaska]

Your aim CAN'T be a "little off" with a shotgun. Over typical household distances the shot will all be a tight little wad.

I was going to say this exact statement, but figured it'd open a whole other can of worms. While there's many things to consider, specific ammo, type, barrel length, chokes, etc, I completely agree with you.

 

[Col. Plink]

The M&P 15-22 would not be my first choice for home defense, or even my second, but neither is my AR. You will get more range time with the .22lr due to cost over any other round. If you are just starting out, more range time should be your primary focus.

Ditties on cyphertext's comments. I use a Glock 9mm and a 12ga. pump shotgun for home defense. I bought an AR-15 before my 15-22, but I am not going to take the AR-15 to the range very often. The 15-22 is something to take on every trip to the range. I am really glad I bought mine and would consider buying another. I'd like to do one in OD Green.

 

[Buckskinner]

I have both. I've had AR-15's for several years, love them, very accurate out to 400 and beyond and have killed I don't know how many coyotes with it. But, really like the 15-22 and shoot it more often than the AR's simply because of cost of ammo and my kids like to shoot it. If I were starting over I would start with the 15-22.

 

[Straightshooter2]

Not sure if you watch the news at all but recently in Florida a women shot a guy that broke into her house and she shot him 5 times in the face and neck with a .38 special. He then left the house and attempted to drive away, I think he only made it a few blocks away. If a guy can turn around and leave and drive his truck for a few blocks after taking 5 .38 special rounds to the face and neck. What makes you think a little .22lr is going to do any better?

I haven't read all the thread so if this has already been covered, sorry.

Not to pick nits but it was in Georgia, just a few miles from me. The hits from the .38 were in the jaw, both lungs, stomach and liver but I haven't' heard what .38 loads were used. She apparently missed with one of the six. Not bad shooting for an adrenaline surging mom who had only practiced on targets. The shots put him on the floor and he was begging her to stop shooting him. This allowed her and her two twin 9 year old daughters to escape (even though the .38 was empty). I have heard the 911 tape from her husband's call and he was coaching her through the shooting. The intruder made it back to his car but only drove a couple hundred feet before hitting a tree, got out of the car and collapsed in a driveway. Paramedics took him to the hospital and I know he did survive a night or two. I don't know if he's still alive or not. BTW, she hit him five times and there were four exit wounds

The point is, no weapon is going to be perfect. Most centerfire weapons are very loud in a closed space, some have heavy recoil (shotguns and big bore rifles), some are too bulky to use indoors well (hunting rifles), handguns can be difficult to use and hit the target without practice. Semi-autos can jam (fail to feed, stovepipe, etc) plus some dismiss anything below a .40 (such as a 9mm) as ineffective. I don't. Rimfire weapons, as someone noted can fail to feed or fail to fire and do lack the kinetic energy of a larger centerfire round. So basically anything less than a phased plasma rifle is a compromise. In various spots in my house I have a 9mm, a .357, a Colt .45ACP and a 12 ga.(no I'm not paranoid, there have been home invasions in our area). However, if I were standing at my gun safe when someone broke in and the only weapon loaded was my or my wife's M&P 15-22, I wouldn't be that worried about it. The key is practice with whatever will be your HD weapon because there is no substitute for hands on range time.

Actually I would be a little worried if I had to use my wife's 15-22. What do you tell the police when they ask why you shot an intruder with a pink rifle?

CW

 

[gunfighter48]

One single 22 bullet nearly killed President Reagan! You can find many many instances where the lowly 22 put the bad guy away. Not my first choice but I wouldn't want to be shot with one!!!!!!!!