S&W 22 Compact - Accuracy Problems

[Smaug]

My wife just bought her first gun, a S&W 22 Compact. The one with the threaded barrel. We took it to the range last night to put it through its paces.

Ammo was the bulk CCI HV that comes in the 300 round packages. It is marketed as being for 22LR ARs. Bullets are round nose, 40 gr., advertised velocity is 1200 fps. (out of an 18" barrel, I'm assuming)

Try as I might, I could only shoot maybe a 4" group at 10 yards. Wife's groups were maybe 5-6". (she's a new shooter)

We came home a bit disappointed, as we're better shots than that. I brought the guns downstairs and we went to bed. This morning, I went to lock them up and I noticed the barrel nut had shot loose. Could that alone account for the gun being inaccurate? I don't want to Loctite it on, because it has to be removed for cleaning. I don't want to take it off, because the barrel doesn't align well with the slide with it off.

Next time, we'll try again with the CCI bulk ammo, but will check the barrel nut often. Then, when that's gone, we'll try some other ammo.

If you have this gun, will you let me know what ammo you've found it "likes"?

 

[Jonny2guns]

The wife and I each have one of these, for that distance and with bulk ammo off hand that is pretty good accuracy. That's more than accurate enough to pass any CCW course. Have never tried finding any ammo more accurate.

 

[9mmepiphany]

I would attribute the poor accuracy more to the quality of the ammo than to a loose barrel nut. A loose barrel nut will affect the harmonics of a barrel, but not to the extent stated in the OP...certainly not at 10 yards.

My default .22LR ammo for testing new pistols for accuracy and function is CCI MiniMags. It is only after function has been proven that I move onto the more expensive ammo

 

[Smaug]

Thanks all.

I googled up a couple reviews, and The Word is that it can be accurate, but requires good ammo:

M&P 22 Compact at the Range
Okay, lame safety features aside, I still think the M&P 22 Compact is a great little plinker, which was confirmed after taking it to the range. The trigger breaks at about 6 lbs, which is on par with the more recent and much improved centerfire M&P triggers. When handling and shooting the 22 Compact, it just feels like an M&P, despite being a slightly different size than any of the existing pistols in the series. Accuracy wasn’t too bad, either. Like I said in the Sig P938-22 review, these lightweight compact .22 LR pistols aren’t a replacement for the more traditional target pistols, but for what its worth, I didn’t have any trouble shooting inch-sized groups at 20 yards using match grade ammo and a bench rest.

Accuracy

Accuracy was tested from 10 yards. Storms were headed through the area, so I kept the accuracy session as efficient as possible. I was less concerned with the groups the M&P 22 Compact would produce than I was with how frequently I might have to clear malfunctions. Because of this, I recorded every single round fired from the gun during this test. Federal Champion .22LR HP, Remington 22 Golden Bullet HP, CCI subsonic HP and Gemtech silencer subsonic .22LR were shot for accuracy.

Top honors went to the Federal, shooting 1.34 inches. The Remington Golden Bullet shot 1.37 inches, followed by the CCI subsonic at 1.69 inches and 1.83 inches from the Gemtech subsonic. It might be worth noting that the group sizes correlated directly with the velocities from fastest to slowest. With more patience and concentration, I believe the groups could be even better.

I would be happy with sub-2" groups at 10 yards for this gun. Happier with sub-1", but that match grade ammo isn't cheap.

I'll report back on how she runs with different ammo.

 

[dweis]

I had the 22 Compact for plinking about 5 years ago. I shot CCI mini-mag 40gr round nose. Had few ammo problems since CCI ammo is generally very good, not perfect. I found my POI was mostly left and low of the POA. It was a consistent problem. I’d been shooting pistols for 50 years. I was sure it was not me. So I bought a laser bore sight and put the gun in a vice aimed at a point 25 feet away. The red dot of the bore sight was Wes low and to the left of the POA.

I examined the gun and came up with with a thought. I felt it possible that the fixed barrel of the blowback design could have been attached off center. I sent the gun back to S&W. It came back and shot straight enough that I knew the variations were me. Nor sights (good ones) are a really helpful tool. I check my edc with one after ever range trip.

 

[jstert]

my go-to rimfire pistol is a ruger sr22, not the s&w m&p compact, but these are similar platforms. my go-to ammo is cci minimags, with aguila and winchester copper plated h.v. in 2nd place, and cci standard in 3rd place. i have given up on any federal bulk 22lr ammo. far be it for me to advise on shooting accuracy, but 4-6” groups at 30’ seems a bit loose. after 1000 or so rounds i became soda-pop can (i.e. 2”) accurate. so my guess is that shooter, platform and ammo must all be dialed in with more shooting range time. i would love to try the m&p compact 22lr, but i’m already too heavily invested in the sr22. please keep at it and don’t be discouraged!

 

[sigarms228]

Did you try shooting from a rest? Pretty much everything I have read about the M&P 22 Compact is that it is as accurate as typical centerfire combat style hangun. I can shoot mine fairly well usually 3 inches or less at 7 yards but it is on the small side for me and the trigger is OK but I shoot my center fire pistols consistently better as they fit my larger hands better. I also shoot my Browning Buckmark Camper much better but it fits my hands much better, is a more accurate pistol even with cheap bulk ammo, and has a far better trigger.

 

[Pete D.]

Y’know for a little gun with a four inch barrel……you should not expect much….especially with the ammo that was chosen. The best groups shot, the inch sized group at 20 yards, are more what I would expect from a decent gun. Note, though, that they were shot with match grade ammo. Match grade ammo is invariably standard velocity. Yes, you can spend a great deal of money buying and testing match ammo from Eley, Lapua, RWS…..in the long run, though, testing ten or twelve brands and types of .22s may show you a cheaper, effective, affordable option.

 

[Smaug]

UPDATE:

I took it back to the range yesterday with two other types of ammo: Remington Target (standard velocity) and CCI MiniMag hollow point. (in the 100 round plastic box) They're both several years old.

The Remington Target was a bit more accurate than the CCI bulk ammo I shot last time. but still not what I expect. I was surprised to have no problems with reliability, either, even though it's standard velocity, 40 gr.

The CCI MiniMag hollow point was MUCH more accurate than the CCI bulk and notably better than Remington Target. It was shooting into maybe 2" at 7 yards standing offhand, which was probably as good as I was holding it and seeing. This one is worth shooting from a rest later, but for now, this is my go-to ammo. Not as expensive as the fancy target stuff, not as cheap as bulk, but reliable and accurate.

My wife and I are going back to the range tonight and she will try it with the good MiniMag stuff. I'll also try the solid point MiniMag tonight, but in other guns, it doesn't shoot as well as the hollow-points.

 

[gobsauce]

The Word is that it can be accurate, but requires good ammo:

That applies to most firearms.

 

[Smaug]

That applies to most firearms.

Especially rimfires.

 

[Smaug]

Wife really wanted to go shooting tonight. How lucky am I?!

We bought some fun targets and had at it.

Know what’s funny? She’s a better shot than me with the S&W 19, which I prefer, but I’m a better shot with the M&P S&W 22, which she prefers.

We did this duel tonight. I’m on the left. She did the blue target in the middle; I did the buddy and head shots, since I didn’t have a matching blue target.