Which M&P15 ?

[labnoti]

I have $1000 gift good for Smith & Wesson only. I'm interested in an M&P15. I am sure to change the upper to rifle-length 6.5 Grendel (20" Odin?), because I reload that already and not 5.56. What model should I get and why?

 

[<*(((><]

M&P Sport, sell the upper and buy something else with the $400-500 extra. I assume it can be used on multiple S&W firearms? Maybe an autoloader or a wheelgun to finish out the balance.

No sense in buying a premium S&W if you are getting rid of the upper anyways, the lowers are all going to be very similar between all their models, minus some minor changes that can be rectified for low cost and ease in the future if need be.

Personally, I think every gun owner and especially those who own AR's should own a 5.56 upper. Very affordable to shoot without reloading for it.

 

[ColoradoMinuteMan]

No reason to get anything other than the Sport if your goal is to use only the lower. You can adapt the lower however you want. If it was me and I didn't want anything S&W off the shelf to keep I'd just find something that's easy to resell and then purchase or build the AR15 of my choosing. I've never really understood buying something complete with the expectation of then customizing it, but I guess it make sense if you need to use the $1000 credit. There's nothing special about any of the M&P lowers with the exception of the competition model. In that case it has a 2 stage trigger of unknown manufacture.

 

[labnoti]

I agree with your reasoning about the 5.56 upper. I would probably keep it but don't intend to shoot it in the immediate future.

 

[labnoti]

What about the Viking Tactics with the Geissele Super-V? VLTOR vs. CAR buttstock?

The main difference I see on the lowers is the forged-in trigger guard vs. the one with the pinned loop.

 

[AlexanderA]

Get multiple S&W stripped lowers and sell the excess. I like the S&W lowers because of their "classic" markings. They are certainly worth more than Anderson lowers.