Colt v. S&W: Very unscientific range report:

[someguy]

Gents... 

observations thus far:

Took the Colt and the S&W out to the range.

guns were new out of the box, cleaned w/ CLP then wiped down and re-assembled.  FCG, bolt, bolt rails, etc were lightly lubed w/ CLP.  Bores were mopped then wiped dry w/ the OTIS kit.  (They were both dirty by the way w/ the first mop, clean after 3rd pass)

I only brought Remington Golden Bullet, 36 gr HP, box of 550 for this test.  This is what our area Walmarts all carry (when they have it) and the whole purpose of this gun is to run it cheep, on easily and generally available ammo.

Both guns were run w/ available sights.  no upgrades no additions, no mods.

This is a standard range w/ a burm at 75 yds and 100 yds.  There are steel human size silhouettes at both 75 and 100. 

Colt:  

Fit and finish.  The colt looks good, and feels nice in the hand, the weight is right.  the recvr and rail is metal.  For me, the gun looked and felt OK.  the stock is sloppy and loose.  there is some movement between the upper and lower recvr.  I was also disappointed  with the dust cover not staying in close position (pops open all the time), and also that the mags want to drop out even after tapped in.  (they drop out or easily pull out when grasped, sometimes dropped out for no reason at all) After opening and closing the gun and generally handling, i did not really care for the complexity of the action, the non functioning charging handle, and the sleeved barrel.  As a gun, it looks and feels fine, as an AR clone, it's only skin deep.  That being said, no real issues that would bother me in fit and finish.

Rounds Fired:  Loaded the mags, 3, and did the first mag standing, off hand, slow fire on the 75 yd gongs.  100% accuracy.  no misses.  I had  4 failure to feeds in the first mag and two primer hits but failure to fire. 

the second mag was standing, off hand triple taps on 5 gongs randomly called out by a spotter, both at 75 and 100 yds.  all hit easily, but again had 3 FTF and 3 no fires. 

the third mag was fired from a solid rest on the bench.  I knew i could hit the gongs, so wanted a bit more accuracy testing.  There was a coke can atop the first burm, at approx. 80 yds.  I was able to hit it approx. 50% with groups appearing all around it, within 1-2 inches. 

Not bad really, this is 80 yds remember, iron sights and all rounds were likely within 3 inches.  coke can is dead at any rate. 

Trigger.  the trigger is a single stage trigger, and in this gun seemed heavy. seemed to exceed 6 lbs in my estimation.  it was acceptable w/ some stacking and creep, but i suspect with time and maybe some polish it would smooth right out.

Takedown/Cleaning:  As expected,the gun was filthy after the 3 mags.  it cleaned up easily.  The FCG is non standard, however the parts cleaned up easily.  the bore was clean after the 4th pass.  If you are the guy that like to take all the bits out and clean them, this is not the gun for you.  This gun is too complex.  It is built to spray down w/ cleaner, wipe down and shoot.

S&W: 

Fit and Finish.  Outa the box, the gun felt very light, approx. 5.5 lbs the specs say.  This gun and it's rail are polymer w/ a thompson center steel barrel.  It is solid, not a sleeve type.  Back up iron sights are steel and seem to be very heavy duty and well made.  they easily adjust and can be taken on and off without any trouble.  The fit of the gun is very tight, the upper lower fit has some space between but the pins are super tight and there is no movement between the upper and lower.  In my hands, eyes closed, this gun feels and functions exactly like my RRA.  The safety snaps into place, the bolt release snaps the bolt shut, the charging handle, while having a slightly shorter pull then my regular rifle, feels exactly the same.  the stock is not as sloppy but does have some play in it.         

Rounds fired:  Same drill/same routine.  Mags hold 25 rds.  3 mags loaded. Mags loaded easily and seated w/ authority.  The first mag didn't miss a beat.  no FTfeed, no FTfire.  All rounds on target.  The second mag had 2 FTfire.  The rounds were inspected and showed primer hits.  The last mag had no FTF or FTF.  This was the accuracy round.  I placed another coke can down range, same distance of 80 yds.  I could not miss with this gun.

Trigger:  Trigger was estimated at between 5.5 and 6 lbs.  single stage.  compared to my duty rifle, a lot of creep and stacking out of the box.  I prefered this trigger to the Colt however and know a bit of polish would fix this. 

Takedown and cleaning:  EASY!  open the upper, slide out the bolt, spray it off, soak, wipe it down.  FCG is standard AR.  As expected the gun was filthy, but the bolt wiped down easily and looked unfired when i was done.  the bore scrubbed easily and was clean by the 3rd pass.

IMPRESSIONS: 

Both guns seem to be good guns. 

but the S&W was the winner for me for the following reasons:

Reliability.  Granted, this was a very unscientific test, and three mags do not convey lifelong reliability (most guns just get better with time)  outa the box, the S&W was the winner.  and for the record, i handed both to line shooters who proceeded to empty the box of 550 shells.  The S&W never hiccuped again.  the Colt continued to be a picky eater and continued to have issues with the mags dropping out.  This is a deal breaker for me.  I'm sure Colt can probablyfix it, but i've seen other posters w/ the same problem. 

I don't care how good a deal a gun is, if it won't run, and it's not historically important, i don't need it.

Accuracy.  Again, unscientific, but i hit better w/ the S&W.  This could be the weight, the balance, or it could be that real steel barrel.  When the barrel was hot, i was still hitting the coke can 100% of the time at 80 yds. 

Takedown/cleanup:  The S&W wins hands down.  This thing is so easy to strip and clean. 

Upgradability:  I can drop a NM two stage trigger in the S&W in 10 minutes.  I can put any bolt release, or safety switch in it, i can put a variety of stocks on it, i can thread the barrel and run a suppressor on it, (rumor is that threaded barrels are on the way)

price.  paid $460 for mine at Tri-Cities Gun-Depot Elizabethton TN. tricitiesgundepot@gmail.com  These guys rock.  The mags are high quality and only $20.  The Colt is running $550 to $600 and mags are more as well.

I am not the best shooter on the line, however, my duty rifle has the EOtech 552 on it, and that's like cheating.  With these .22 ARs, the open sights were very adequate.  I suspect a red dot sight would make all the difference in the world to both of them.

Gents, this is just my opinion thus far.  More time on the guns may cast new light here.  I do not dislike the colt, i just like the S&W better.

The bottom line is, any 22 that simulates your main rifle is a good thing.  buy one, shoot the hell out of it. become proficient in malfunction drills, hitting while moving, lying prone, on the side, on your back.  learn to fight with it.  these are amazing training tools. 

lastly, i gotta say that i love the 22.  i can do 80% of what i need with it.  and it will repel borders if needed.  I know i have no desire to be on the business end of any 22.  i feel very confident that i could hand this rifle to someone in my home, even my 10 year old, and she could keep a couple of badguys very busy while i moved to a key position. 

Thanks for reading, sorry so lengthy. 

I'll be adding the GSG review at some point. 

I will be adding red dots also and f/u w/ some thoughts. 

The colt is up for sale. 

   

     

 

[imschur]

Great post someguy. Thanks  :thumb:

RIP coke cans

[Microgunner]

Thanks for the review. I own a Colt and like it but I just gotta get me one of those Smiths too.

[rodent.22]

Great writeup- yes the Colts DO NOT  like the Remington bulkpak ammo, my pump Winchester doesn't either. I own the Colt but also gotta look at the S&W....haven't seen one yet. Would ya take $20.00 for the Colt? LOL ;D

[someguy]

Great writeup- yes the Colts DO NOT  like the Remington bulkpak ammo, my pump Winchester doesn't either. I own the Colt but also gotta look at the S&W....haven't seen one yet. Would ya take $20.00 for the Colt? LOL ;D

probably not, but thanks for the kind words and the offer! 

[asmurff]

I'd say that was a range report with all the important details after all they're .22s and you addressed the most important aspect of range report on .22s the fun factor.

[Longitude Zero]

Great report.  Well reasoned/logical conclusions.

[SPEAR-99]

New to the .22 world, armed with a SA-XD 40, 5". Love it, just ammo is too high for daily drills.

ANYWAY....

With the Colt you might have to adjust the screw at the rear of the 'bolt'. This has been brought up on other sites.

I am planning to purchase the S&W 15-22 this week. Of course the only ammo they had at Wally World was REM Gold. We'll see if this gives my the same issues as for you.

Like everyone else, your info has been GREAT!!

Thank you

[44terryberry]

I have a Colt, runs nearly 100%,and have none of those problems.. Love it!