Expected MOA performance of M&P 15-22?

[sd_shooter]

I've been plinking with my M&P 15-22 for about a year now, and whatever I do it never seems to get any better than about 3-4 MOA. I use an NcStar Mk III scope and Federal bulk ammo from Wally. Shooting is always from a rest, usually a rice bag on a portable picnic table (a little wobbly if it's windy, not as good as being prone on the ground.)

I also tried some Remington 'standard' lead ammo from Wally - it came in a plastic box with each round in an individual slot, so it's as close to 'match' ammo as I could buy that day. It didn't group any better. At least the gun cycled reliably, although it sure was soft to shoot.

I have the JP spring set to reduce the trigger pull weight and I've polished the FCG parts.

Is it the nut behind the trigger? Or is the gun capable of anything better under the proper conditions and with better ammo?

Thanks.

[Trapper]

I'd try ammo from several manufacturers and start testing at 25-50yds before moving out to longer distances.

[sd_shooter]

I'd try ammo from several manufacturers and start testing at 25-50yds before moving out to longer distances.

Since you've tried that approach, what 100 yard group did you achieve? And with what ammo?

[pennys dad]

Yes and no in regards to the nut - I mean this in a friendly way

i will add more notes in a bit. in a meeting

Here is what I know since I had this rifle in the past and shot it at an appleseed shoot.
Goal for an appleseed was 1in square or 1 moa @ 100 yards. To achieve this we shot @ 1 in sq targets at 25 yards with 1/4 moa adjustments. ( I hope I got all of that right).

Anyhow S&W M&P 15-22: with iron sights the rifle could produce 2 and 3in groups consistently with 5 shots.
I said could there where a few issue i had to overcome:
The 10/25 mag becomes an issue because it does not allow proper position of my support elbow (oh this was not supported firing with bipods or boxes or other - we use slings in prone, standing and sitting)
The front sight post was to thick which made 1 moa squares tough
There where a few other issues but I am pretty sure it was the lose nut behind the trigger (me :-)
I was curious if the distance from rear to front sight was an issue because it was short, but I never got to test it.
I think some can shoot riflemen with the 15-22 you just need 10 round mags.

I've been plinking with my M&P 15-22 for about a year now, and whatever I do it never seems to get any better than about 3-4 MOA. I use an NcStar Mk III scope and Federal bulk ammo from Wally. Shooting is always from a rest, usually a rice bag on a portable picnic table (a little wobbly if it's windy, not as good as being prone on the ground.)

I also tried some Remington 'standard' lead ammo from Wally - it came in a plastic box with each round in an individual slot, so it's as close to 'match' ammo as I could buy that day. It didn't group any better. At least the gun cycled reliably, although it sure was soft to shoot.

I have the JP spring set to reduce the trigger pull and I've polished the FCG parts.

Is it the nut behind the trigger? Or is the gun capable of anything better under the proper conditions and with better ammo?

Thanks.

[zrockstar]

I would start by having someone else shoot your gun and see if they get a better grouping. I would also try removing the scope to see what kind of group you can get with iron sights. Your problem could be due to the parallax of a cheap red dot. At any rate, you should try different ammo as suggested. Usually you can't go wrong with CCI Mini Mags in 22s, you can use that as a baseline to see if you can get better with different ammo after that.

[sd_shooter]

I would start by having someone else shoot your gun and see if they get a better grouping. I would also try removing the scope to see what kind of group you can get with iron sights. Your problem could be due to the parallax of a cheap red dot. At any rate, you should try different ammo as suggested. Usually you can't go wrong with CCI Mini Mags in 22s, you can use that as a baseline to see if you can get better with different ammo after that.

All right, I'm not asking "what can I do to make things better." I'm asking "how well does your 15-22 shoot?" The scope, ammo and trigger parts are just FYI since I'm sure most would want to know.

If everyone else also gets 3-4 MOA, then there's no "problem", it's a "feature."

[surfNshoot]

http://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/tactical-22-rifles/

These guys did some accuracy testing.

[scootle]

Federal bulk, assuming you have the 36gr copper-plated HP 525-pack cheapo stuff is far from high enough quality to make sub-moa performance, imho. It's just not consistent enough of a load.

The lowest grade ammo I'd consider if you are really looking for clovers is 40gr Federal AutoMatch, which is sometimes in stock at WallyWorld. This ammo performs very well in my 15-22. If I do my part, it can put holes in holes at 25 yds.

40gr CCI mini mag is consistent as well -- when initially setting up the 15-22, 1" groups at 25 yds was fairly easy, but that is still at least 3-4 moa.

This is all shooting with a bipod and a 1x 2moa red dot scope (no magnification).

[CSACANNONEER]

You're shooting bulk ammo from a mass produced plinking rifle with bottom of the line optics. If you want to shoot for percision, get a precision .22lr rifle, better optics and match grade ammo.

[pennys dad]

You're shooting bulk ammo from a mass produced plinking rifle with bottom of the line optics. If you want to shoot for percision, get a precision .22lr rifle, better optics and match grade ammo.

U mean, like a Marlin 795 with good glass

[zrockstar]

All right, I'm not asking "what can I do to make things better." I'm asking "how well does your 15-22 shoot?" The scope, ammo and trigger parts are just FYI since I'm sure most would want to know.

If everyone else also gets 3-4 MOA, then there's no "problem", it's a "feature."

I understand what you were asking, I wasn't trying to tell you anything you probably don't already know. But asking opinions on how a gun shoots, especially a 22, is going to vary greatly due to setup, shooting environment, shooter fundamentals, experience, etc.

You might find this of interest if you haven't seen it already:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiPgTlKYikM

[sd_shooter]

I understand what you were asking, I wasn't trying to tell you anything you probably don't already know. But asking opinions on how a gun shoots, especially a 22, is going to vary greatly due to setup, shooting environment, shooter fundamentals, experience, etc.

You might find this of interest if you haven't seen it already:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiPgTlKYikM

It's a Nutnfancy review of the 15-22. At around 21:30 he shows some 25 yard paper from the 15-22. In the description of the video he says:

Thanks. I guess my 15-22 is doing its job, I'll work on my trigger control and buy better ammo if I ever see it at Wally.

[scootle]

Thus far, my experience has been consistent with the Nutnfancy review with respect to the group size. First day out with the rifle to zero the optic and just the CCI Mini-Mag 40gr I was punching the 1" square at 25 yds with the red dot w/o too much trouble. Most of the spread is probably my fault too... so I'd expect the rifle can do a bit better. I know it did get tighter with the Federal AutoMatch 40gr... no pictures handy though, I'll have to snap some later on of that target if I can find it.

[G-forceJunkie]

Sounds typical with cheap, bulk ammo. While not answering your question, in my Savage Mark 2 bolt action, match ammo (Wolf MT, SK Plus, Federal) will group 3/8" at 50 yards. Wally world Federal bulk pack through the same rifle, same day, won't group under an inch. Thats a big (3x) difference.

[MrPlink]

3 moa seems to be the norm.
I've recently discovered that my 15-22 has no problem running sub sonic ammo, but I only got to test this at 25yds and I'm curious to see what happens if I strech things out a bit