I'm waffling.. 15-22 or dedicated .22LR upper?

[Tram]

Ok.. I tried to order a 15-22 through the fun store a few months ago and that's not working out.. I'm not sure if he's just selling them before I get them or whatever, he's known as a quasi-shady dude..

Anyway..

I've been eyeing a dedicated upper, instead of the 15-22.. I'm "this far" from picking up the CMMG M4 LE..

Just thought I'd see what you guys thought..

 

[piston22]

For what it's worth... I looked very hard at a CMMG 22 upper for my lower to somewhat match my 5.56 M4 upper. By the time I upgraded it to get the full functionality and options I wanted out of it and after having to pull teeth from sales and technical support to answer my questions I went with the M&P 15-22. I could just about buy 2 for what they want for just an upper. If I matched it exactly with the rails then 3 M&P's for the price of just an upper. Seemed kind of stupid to me. Don't know much about the CMMG complete 22's other than they seem over priced as well.

 

[Tram]

What options were you looking at?

I'm thinking about going with the stainless bolt, stainless collar and the milspec upper.. It's coming to $422.. I'll probably pick up 3 or 4 magazines but that's a moot point for either gun..

The MP 15-22 is $428 with free shipping at Bud's, but it's an entire gun, so I'd have to ship it to my FFL.. That's another $30, so it's more like $458 + mags..

 

[Incredible Me]

I would say get a .22 rifle.
It's cheap, good reputation and handles like a normal AR, so why not?

 

[Rustpot]

The real question is;

Are you eventually going to get a dedicated lower for the .22 upper? If you answered "no way" you're lying (there will be a sale you can't pass up, telling yourself that you'll get it for the .22 upper now but it's really for your next real build. stop lying). If you answered "maybe" then get off the fence. If you answered "probably" or "yes" and you want to save cash, get the 15-22.

 

[murphydog]

I think that, unless you are motivated to swap the uppers on a regular basis, buying the 15-22 (from a reputable dealer) is the better option. Many are the "convertible" caliber revolvers, pistols, rifles with the multiple assemblies that stay, well, unconverted. Also, as you noted, the cost of magazines and other accessories for both are a wash.

 

[Tram]

I would say get a .22 rifle.
It's cheap, good reputation and handles like a normal AR, so why not?

.. but a CMMG upper is a .22 rifle and handles just like an AR..

The real question is;

Are you eventually going to get a dedicated lower for the .22 upper? If you answered "no way" you're lying (there will be a sale you can't pass up, telling yourself that you'll get it for the .22 upper now but it's really for your next real build. stop lying). If you answered "maybe" then get off the fence. If you answered "probably" or "yes" and you want to save cash, get the 15-22.

Probably.. Yes, I will.. I've got several lowers already.. I've got a DSArm's lower just sitting with nothing living on it.. It's need an upper.. I may already have a "dedicated" lower..

I think that, unless you are motivated to swap the uppers on a regular basis, buying the 15-22 (from a reputable dealer) is the better option. Many are the "convertible" caliber revolvers, pistols, rifles with the multiple assemblies that stay, well, unconverted. Also, as you noted, the cost of magazines and other accessories for both are a wash.

Yeh, an upper swap isn't a big deal.. 30 seconds if I take time to take a swig of sweet tea..

I dunno.. We'll see.. Right now the 15-22 is going to be more expensive of the two for me, so I may just go with the upper..

 

[chuck s]

I've had subcaliber devices, dedicated uppers, and a S&W M&P15-22. My wife's son has the insert, I quickly sold the dedicated upper, getting ready to take the M&P 15-22 to the range later today. No conversions to to and less expensive than the dedicated uppers I'm seeing.

-- Chuck

 

[Incredible Me]

In my search I was completely focussed on a dedicated .22 platform, but yesterday i fired a few rounds with a .223 with a .22 bolt kit. And it was great aswell, might be a good option.

Draw back is that the rifle (Oberland arms) is twice as expensive as the 15-22 and then the bolt kit will set me back another $400,00. So i’ll probally go for the 15-22.

 

[Brett248Vista]

Me personally, I'd never run filthy 22 ammo through a Direct Impingement AR. I'd much rather keep the AR it's native caliber and have a second, dedicated platform that was designed for the round that's it's chambered in.

But that's just me!

 

[Incredible Me]

Well I can understand people in Holland doing it to train cheap.

1000 rounds .22lr costs about $ 100,00
1000 rounds .223 costs about $ 450,00

But in your shoes i would get the 15-22

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

Well I can understand people in Holland doing it to train cheap.

100 rounds .22lr costs about $ 100,00
100 rounds .223 costs about $ 450,00

But in your shoes i would get the 15-22

What kind of .22's costs $100 for 100 rounds??
Me-I'd get a Ruger 10/22

 

[Incredible Me]

What kind of .22's costs $100 for 100 rounds??
Me-I'd get a Ruger 10/22

oops, forgot a 0
(no not 10 bucks per round)

 

[dpsix]

Are the 22lr AR's produced by Colt, S&W, etc built on a standard AR lower or a look alike?

 

[Brett248Vista]

The Colt's are nothing like a real AR. The S&W uses the standard AR Fire Control Group. The dimensions of the upper and lower receiver are slightly different to prevent swapping in larger caliber upper receivers. But the parts and functionality is the same, sans the dust cover and forward assist.

 

[tacticool22]

They might look alike, but they are nowhere near the same thing. Colt is built by Umarex, the airsoft company. It is a great LOOKING rifle at least. I just found out the H&K 416 D145RS is also made by Umarex and they use the same mags as the Colt. The 15-22 is the thing to get.
The GSG 522 has been marketed very well. I will do some research on those too.

 

[scootle]

Yeh, an upper swap isn't a big deal.. 30 seconds if I take time to take a swig of sweet tea..

I dunno.. We'll see.. Right now the 15-22 is going to be more expensive of the two for me, so I may just go with the upper..

Are the dedicated .22 uppers for the milspec AR lowers really just swap and shoot? I thought there were other small details with the hammer springs and other lower mechanicals that had to be adjusted or swapped to make everything work properly? Honestly, I do not know the answer since I'm pretty new to all this stuff still.

I sort of had to go through a similar debate since a .22LR anything to match the big cousins is just smart for ammo-economics when it comes time to put lead downrange and practice. In the end, the 15-22 was at a price point that was pretty hard to beat... and when I do build the full-size AR, I will effectively have two complete rifles for my trouble rather than 1.5.

But I'm not in the situation you are with a "spare" AR lower sitting there staring me in the face...

Good luck!

 

[dpsix]

I put together a dedicated 22lr upper several years ago. Shortly thereafter I completed it with it own AR lower. Such a 22 AR cost as much as an AR-15 5.56 because it is an AR-15 with a 22lr barrel. Whether such a gun is worth the extra cost over the current Colt, S&W, Mossberg is an individual thing. I would quess both types function equally well.

 

[Brett248Vista]

Jody,

I've handled the Umarex AR's and it's my assertion to this day, that Umarex took a readily available aluminum airsoft upper and lower receiver (I own these components) and designed base metal parts that fit inside to shoot a .22LR round.

The airsoft metal bodies are very close to the dimensions of the real steel counterpart and look the part, but just like the Umarex 22's the bolt catch is for looks only.

The 15-22 is the rifle to get, if one desires a rifle that truly functions like an AR, not just looks like an AR.

 

[Tram]

Are the dedicated .22 uppers for the milspec AR lowers really just swap and shoot? I thought there were other small details with the hammer springs and other lower mechanicals that had to be adjusted or swapped to make everything work properly? Honestly, I do not know the answer since I'm pretty new to all this stuff still.

From what I understand - yes.. With the CMMG I am looking at - you could be shooting a .22LR upper and in 15 seconds be shooting 7.62x39 and then switch all the way back to 5.56x45..

The CMMG upper is an AR upper made to run with .22LR.. It's not a cobbled together unit..

M4 LE .22 LR Evolution Upper w/F Marked FSB, www.cmmginc.comCMMG Inc. AR15 Rifles, Parts and Accessories. .22 LR Dedicated AR-15 Rifles, Dedicated AR 15 9mm Rifles and Uppers, Tactical Bacon

But I'm not in the situation you are with a "spare" AR lower sitting there staring me in the face...

If the lower were not staring me in the face, it might be a different situation..

The airsoft metal bodies are very close to the dimensions of the real steel counterpart and look the part, but just like the Umarex 22's the bolt catch is for looks only.

The 15-22 is the rifle to get, if one desires a rifle that truly functions like an AR, not just looks like an AR.

The 15-22 could be said to be a higher dollar airsoft model when compared to a real steel AR upper chambered in .22lr, couldn't it?

This same discussion is being discussed at Arfcom and it's about 50/50 some guys prefer the polymer 15-22, some prefer an actual AR..

I was all set for a 15-22.. I had planned on SBRing it, etc and then I started looking at lowers, etc and see no reason to SBR a 15-22 when I could SBR an AR lower and run a 10.5" 7.62x39, a 10.5" 5.56x45 and a 5.5" .22LR..