Smith & Wesson M&P15

The Smith & Wesson M&P15 is Smith & Wesson's version of the AR-15, semi-automatic rifle. It was introduced in 2006.

History

"M&P" which stands for "Military & Police" is a name that Smith & Wesson has used since 1899 when it introduced the 1899 Model 10 revolver chambered for the .38 Long Colt cartridge. With that government order, the revolver became also known as the Smith & Wesson Military & Police.^[2]

The M&P15 marked the company's entry into the rifle market in 2006.^[3] Smith & Wesson's total rifle production has increased through the years since it entered the rifle market. In the past Smith & Wesson had marketed rifles and shotguns made by other manufacturers, but had not manufactured a long gun in house since the Second World War to fulfill a British army contract. Smith & Wesson made this entry into the long gun market because it was estimated in 2007 as a $1.1 billion market, 80% larger than the U.S. handgun market.^{[3][4][5][6][7][8][9]}

Design

Smith & Wesson's M&P product line was designed for military, police, and consumer markets, according to Smith & Wesson CEO Mike Golden in a 2008 earnings conference call with investors.^[10]

The rifle model is based on the AR-15. Smith & Wesson offers the M&P15 semi-automatic rifles in different configurations, tailored to specific shooting applications and styles. The rifle has different models that come chambered in 5.56mm NATO/.223 Remington, .22 Long Rifle, and 5.45×39mm. The barrels come with either a melonite lined or chrome-lined 4140 steel rifling, and 7075 T6 aluminum receiver with a hard-coat black anodized finish.^[11]

Variants

direct impingement

short-stroke gas piston

The rifle was unveiled at the 2006 SHOT Show, it debuted in two varieties: the M&P15 and the M&P15T. Both are basically the same rifle, chambered in 5.56×45mm NATO, with the T-model featuring folding sights and a four-sided accessories rail fore end. They include the standard direct impingement gas system. In order decrease cost on the original design both the dust cover or forward assist were omitted. These rifles were initially produced for S&W by Stag Arms, but marked and marketed under the Smith & Wesson name.^[3] Currently, Smith & Wesson makes the lower receiver in-house, while the barrel is supplied by Thompson/Center Arms, an S&W company acquired in 2007.

In May 2008, Smith & Wesson introduced their first AR-15 rifle in new caliber, the model M&P15R, a standard AR platform rifle chambered for the Russian 5.45×39mm cartridge, however the model was soon abandoned due to poor sales.^[12] This was due to cheaper surplus Communist Bloc AK-series weapons were already available and few shooters wanted an expensive AR-15 clone in a non-standard caliber that needed special magazines.^[13]

In 2009,^[14] S&W released the M&P15-22, chambered for the .22 Long Rifle cartridge.^[15] It had a 1-in-15" [1:381mm] barrel twist, a 10- or 25-round box magazine, and weighs 5.5 lbs empty.^[13]

The Standard model has an adjustable CAR-15 stock and comes with full-capacity 25-round magazines. The Compliant model (designed for the California market) has a CAR-15 stock fixed in the open position (with an overall length of 33.75 inches) and comes with 10-round magazines.^[16]

The Smith & Wesson Performance Center target shooting version has an 18-inch bull barrel threaded to take any AR-15/M16-style compensator, a free-floated forend, integral Picatinny rail system and ships with a 10-round magazine.^[13]

Smith & Wesson announced their first short-stroke gas piston action rifle, the S&W M&P15 PS and PSX (piston AR-15) in January 2009.^[17]

The S&W M&P15 Sport and S&W M&P15 Whisper were released in 2011.^[14] The Smith & Wesson M&P10, a version of the AR-10, was introduced in 2013.^[18]

Smith & Wesson's M&P15 Sport II was introduced in 2016. It includes additional features of a forward bolt assist and dust cover not found on the original M&P15 model.^[19]

Official users

• United States
  • United States Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigative Division^[20]
  • Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department^[21]
  • Maricopa County Sheriff's Office: M&P15 MOE Mid^[22]
  • West Virginia State Police^[23]

Reception

The M&P15-22 was "accurate, fast, reliable and fun to shoot" and "so easy to send multiple rounds downrange that one shot just never seemed enough," according to an August 2009 review in American Rifleman.^[15] The M&P15-22 was "a great first rifle for anyone, including a budding AR enthusiast," according to Gun Digest in 2014, noting "Not only does it look and feel exactly like an AR-15, all the controls are in exactly the same place and they all work exactly the same."^[24]

Smith & Wesson's M&P Sport led Breitbart News' reviews of "Six Great AR-15 Rifles for Your Christmas Wish List" in November 2016, noting "The gun is simple, dependable, and accurate. And it is one of the least expensive AR-15s on the market."^[25]

See also

• 2012 Aurora shooting
• 2013 Los Angeles International Airport shooting
• 2015 San Bernardino attack

References

External links

• Smith & Wesson webpage on the M&P rifles