So, I have an opportunity to snag one these up for $750, delivered. What are your thoughts on this rifle, and its chambering? The price i have seen for the round is about 10 cents a round, a huge plus for me over .223 right now. What are your opinions?
S&W M&P15R 5.45x39
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smartshooter.45
Member
i have been curious about 5.45x39 as well. a guy who works at my local gunshop said that the russians had good results with it in afghanistan. he said the round tumbles like crazy after making contact. the price per round really does make it more appealing.
RX-178
Member
Not a good reputation for stopping power, but has all sorts of other reputations. The Mujahadeen during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan called it the poison bullet because wounds from it were incredibly difficult to treat. Although the fact that they're describing people surviving being shot in battle for a number of DAYS afterwards is a little offputting.
What is absolutely not disputable is how affordable and available the ammunition is right now.
I personally already own an M&P15R. I'd say it's a great rifle (which I do believe it is), but a more accurate statement would be that 'it's as good as any other S&W AR'. I can't really tell it apart from any other AR when I'm actually at the range with it.
There is one issue that could be important though, and that's the fact that spare magazines were impossible to find when I first got my M&P15R. I don't know if that's still true, but at that time, literally every single magazine that S&W was getting was getting shipped out with a rifle. C Products started making a 5.45 AR magazine but their reputation for reliability wasn't very good at that time.
I decided to order one of the modular lowers from MGI military and put an AK74 magazine well on it. Problem with that is the lower and the magazine well cost about as much as the M&P15R did in the first place, so that's another thing to consider.
What is absolutely not disputable is how affordable and available the ammunition is right now.
I personally already own an M&P15R. I'd say it's a great rifle (which I do believe it is), but a more accurate statement would be that 'it's as good as any other S&W AR'. I can't really tell it apart from any other AR when I'm actually at the range with it.
There is one issue that could be important though, and that's the fact that spare magazines were impossible to find when I first got my M&P15R. I don't know if that's still true, but at that time, literally every single magazine that S&W was getting was getting shipped out with a rifle. C Products started making a 5.45 AR magazine but their reputation for reliability wasn't very good at that time.
I decided to order one of the modular lowers from MGI military and put an AK74 magazine well on it. Problem with that is the lower and the magazine well cost about as much as the M&P15R did in the first place, so that's another thing to consider.
atblis
Member
I always wonder if people who bring up the "poison bullet" thing actually think about what it implies. It means, the person didn't die from the mechanical wounding mechanism. Basically, the bloody thing didn't work! The Russians are headed back towards the 7.62x39 if that tells you anything about it's supposed lethality. Not to say it doesn't work at all, just that there's nothing magical about it. At the end of the day, it's still just a 53 gr bullet. It isn't going that fast, and generally doesn't fragment. M193 at close ranges is better.
That being said. Fun Round. Ammo's pretty cheap. Great plinker. Very mild recoil. Buy and shoot the heck out of it now. Having one in hand won't leave you poorly defended by any means, just don't believe all the internet hype.
Be aware that the available cheap ammo is somewhat corrosive.
That being said. Fun Round. Ammo's pretty cheap. Great plinker. Very mild recoil. Buy and shoot the heck out of it now. Having one in hand won't leave you poorly defended by any means, just don't believe all the internet hype.
Be aware that the available cheap ammo is somewhat corrosive.
W L Johnson
Member
And this differs from most small arms wounds how? Small arms are not death rays. Most people who die from small arms wounds don't die instantly.
atblis
Member
Yeah
What other round has the nick name "poison bullet"?
W L Johnson
Member
Unless I'm missing something, poison means something that will kill you.
atblis
Member
Quite being dense.
W.E.G.
Member
I've been tempted.
But the question you need to ask is, How much range time do you really think you are going to spend with such a thing, and how much storage space are you going to devote to storing another caliber?
I nixed the idea when I looked at my current storage situation.
I double-nixed it when I accepted the fact that I would rather spend my limited range time shooting other calibers.
But the question you need to ask is, How much range time do you really think you are going to spend with such a thing, and how much storage space are you going to devote to storing another caliber?
I nixed the idea when I looked at my current storage situation.
I double-nixed it when I accepted the fact that I would rather spend my limited range time shooting other calibers.
W L Johnson
Member
Back on target (pun intended)
I think the 5.45 is a fine round, despite what some may or may not think, I think the biggest worry is supply. Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't most if not all 5.45 imported? It's cheaper now than 5.56/223 but remember what happened to all that cheap Chinese 7.62x39 with the stroke of a pen.
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