M&P 22 Compact tumbles rounds

[JAMMAN]

Hi,

We have a M&P 22 compact which gets decent reviews just about everywhere I read.

Less than 100 rounds into it it starts shooting right extremely.

Last 50 rounds or so completely unable to point, buts about a 1" long tear in paper.

Instructor asked to shoot it and confirmed there was something wrong.

Looks like lead caked at the end.

Borrowed an identical rental gun, shoots little round holes with a good degree of accuracy.

This seems unusual. I know it can be cleaned but has anyone else had one mess up that quickly? Have only shot FMJ so far no bare lead.

And why don't the firefox spellchecker work on this board? I'm going to have to be careful here to not appear like a total idiot.

Thanks-
Jim

 

[Bkreutz]

Hi,

We have a M&P 22 compact which gets decent reviews just about everywhere I read.

Less than 100 rounds into it it starts shooting right extremely.

Last 50 rounds or so completely unable to point, buts about a 1" long tear in paper.

Instructor asked to shoot it and confirmed there was something wrong.

Looks like lead caked at the end.

Borrowed an identical rental gun, shoots little round holes with a good degree of accuracy.

This seems unusual. I know it can be cleaned but has anyone else had one mess up that quickly? Have only shot FMJ so far no bare lead.

And why don't the firefox spellchecker work on this board? I'm going to have to be careful here to not appear like a total idiot.

Thanks-
Jim

No such thing as .22 FMJ, the closest is the coated bullets, but they will still lead the barrel. 100 rounds seems quick, but again, that depends on the ammo. With the difficulty getting .22 ammo it's hard to shoot only quality ammo but see if you can find some CCI, I think you'll find it shoots much cleaner. First step is you need to clean the lead out of your barrel, until you do you will have the accuracy of a spitball. There are a number of lead removal products, can't really recommend any because I haven't shot .22 for a few years. Good luck.

 

[JAMMAN]

OK sorry for the mistake on the fmj, I'm using CCI mini-mags and it seems very early for failure. Our 380's and 9's have FMJ on the package and look similar in appearance as the 22's though obviously a different size.

And thank you for the reply.

The 22 belongs to my wife because she couldn't pull her 380 slide. I took it to my CCW class because it seemed more accurate from having shot them both. I will probably buy the 9C for my personal companion not the shield though.

Thanks again-

 

[MichiganScott]

Sounds like lead fouling to me. If it continues after removing all the lead, contact S&W. Use the search function on ways to remove it.

 

[dullh]

You have to keep them clean. My 22 Compact has not done that yet, but I clean mine after every shoot. I use Norma Tac-22 which is all lead but, depsite that, it seems to be very clean. I still clean after every shoot though....

If you ever get the urge to join the NFA family and screw a silencer to you front of that thing you will ruin the can if you don't get this tumbling bullet thing figured out...

 

[hoc9sw]

First, at 5K rounds I've not had any keyhole issues. But with ammo such as Thunderbolts, a cleaning at 100 rounds would be called for. I've pushed it to 300 CCI LRN standard velocity a couple of times.

I clean mine after each range trip. Give the barrel a good brush with Hoppe's #9, the usual routine for any handgun.

I would clean it, try 50 rounds of a copper wash solid point, then do a quick field strip to check for leading. If there is anything significant, I'd call SW cs. I can't say that I even have an idea what might cause it.

 

[JAMMAN]

Cool thanks for the replies, i'll look up some of the products mentioned in the posts (Norma Tac-22? Hoppe's #9?) and thanks for the tips.

The range instructor said he had only seen one clog up like that once before and it was an issue that S&W took care of. Hoping it was simply a couple gummy rounds that my wife put through it before I took it to class.

Thanks again, can't wait to get the 9C already looking at "mods" for it especially those green sights.

 

[chiro972b]

If the barrel is not observably leaded, something is wrong. My 22 compact is the most accurate pistol I own. It is crazy how well I shoot with it compared to my other guns. So far, that statement holds no matter what crappy ammo I have run through it. I have probably 1500 rounds through mine and it runs like a champ. I do pretty much clean it every time or at worst every other time I shoot it.

If you can't get yours sorted, I hear S&W's techs are pretty good at fixing issues.

Best of luck

 

[rstriegel]

Lead fouling M&P 22 Compact

Brand new gun. Fired approximately 100 rounds of Winchester 555 hollow points. Went to clean the weapon and couldn't even get the rod to go through. After lots of research I was finally able to get the brush and rod through. Used lots of solvent and brushes. Not using the Winchester 555 anymore. Will try something else next shoot and report.

 

[RGVshooter]

Brand new gun. Fired approximately 100 rounds of Winchester 555 hollow points. Went to clean the weapon and couldn't even get the rod to go through. After lots of research I was finally able to get the brush and rod through. Used lots of solvent and brushes. Not using the Winchester 555 anymore. Will try something else next shoot and report.

Jeez, sounds like it needed a good cleaning... .22's are dirty no matter the brand, some worse than others but they're all dirty. I bring a bore snake with me when I bring my 22's to the range & run it thru every now & then to keep it running, then a good cleaning at home after every range trip. Don't over lube it...Just 1 drop is more than enough.

 

[Out West]

Once you get that barrel clean, check out the rifling. These compact 22 barrels will often have rough bores. Mine has lots of chatter marks running across the lands. It shoots OK (definitely not my most accurate pistol), but it leads up fast.

I own lots of S&W pistols and have never seen barrels like I've seen in the 22 compacts. I read somewhere that the bores are electrically etched. Not sure what that means, or if that accounts for the rough bores, or even if it's true.

This much I do know: rough bores will cause more leading issues than clean smooth bores.

 

[CB3]

This much I do know: rough bores will cause more leading issues than clean smooth bores.

Correct.

Buy some bore paste that is a mild abrasive. Clean your bore well, then polish it smoother using the paste on 8-10 patches, running each patch back and forth in the bore 6-8 times.

Then clean the barrel again.

The smoother bore will lead less quickly.

 

[dsk]

I had to do that to the bore on my M&P 22C as well. When new it leaded up very quickly. Even now it will still lead up but it takes awhile longer. I won't even dare use plain lead bullets in it anymore.

 

[Walt Sherrill]

The only time I've had that problem with ANY .22 was when using lead bullets -- including some pricey Winchester target rounds. (I had a Ruger Government model with the long barrel that was showed gigantic rips in the paper targets -- like the bullets were hitting sideways! Cleaned the barrel -- after finding a lot of lead build-up, and used different ammo -- and I had shot LESS than a full box when the problem appeared. Haven't used that ammo since, and haven't had a problem with leading in any .22 since then.

 

[rstriegel]

This is a follow-up on my lead fouling of my new M&P 22 Compact. Perhaps there was something in there when I bought it. Or perhaps one of the Winchester bulk hollowpoint rounds broke up in the barrel. But after intensive cleaning, I took it back the range and this time fired 100 rounds of Winchester Super Speed Round Nose Copper Plated through it and it came back looking clean as a whistle. Yes, I am confused. I took the remainder of the 300 plus rounds of hollowpoints and fired them through my Mossberg Blaze 22LR and didn't see any sign of lead fouling. Perhaps the fouling of the S&W 22 compact was just my bad luck. I suggest anyone purchasing a new one, carefully inspect the barrel before going to the range. I really love the S&W 22 Compact, but I will watch it closely and report if any further instance of fouling. Oh, and no more hollowpoints through the pistol.