IMPORTANT! M&P15-22 CONSUMER SAFETY ALERT AND INSPECTION PROCEDURE

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  • WebSnyper

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    Aalso posted this in the INGO safety recall listing, but in case some people don't see that posting here as well.

    I currently don't trust the serial number checking page, as my gun was manufactured before Feb, 2019 and showed it was not applicable, as well as the fact that the page says it is a temporary staging environment, makes me believe it may not be 100% reliable. I was able to place an order for the gauge using the same serial number, so hopefully that works.



    Received this from S&W a few minutes ago:

    DESCRIPTION - Please Read This If You Have A M&P15-22 Rimfire Firearm.

    PRODUCT AFFECTED:
    ALL models of M&P15-22 rifles and pistols manufactured before February 1, 2019.

    STOP USING YOUR M&P15-22 UNTIL IT HAS BEEN INSPECTED AND YOUR BOLT REPLACED (IF NECESSARY).
    Smith & Wesson has identified two M&P15-22 firearms from recent production on which the breech face counter bore depth was not within manufacturing specification. In those firearms, the lack of depth may allow the bolt, upon closing, to crush the rim of the case, causing the round to fire, cycling the bolt, and potentially resulting in multiple discharges without depressing the trigger. This issue can occur in the following two scenarios:

    1) With a loaded magazine in the firearm and the bolt locked to the rear, depressing the bolt release to allow the bolt to drop freely may ignite the round as the bolt closes without engaging the trigger and with the safety selector in either the safe or the fire position, and may also result in multiple discharges.

    2) With a loaded magazine in the firearm, bolt in the closed position and a round in the chamber and the safety selector in the fire position, depressing the trigger will cause the round to fire normally, however as the bolt cycles, the next round may be ignited by the bolt crushing the rim of the case as it closes, causing multiple discharges.

    We believe that these are isolated incidents, however, any unintended discharge of a firearm has the potential to cause injury. Therefore, we have developed this inspection procedure to ensure that all products in the field are safe to use. We are asking customers to perform the following procedure and to refrain from using their M&P15-22 until the bolt has been inspected and replaced as necessary.

    DESCRIPTION OF THE PRODUCT INVOLVED:
    The out of specification condition has been found only in bolts that were recently manufactured. While our investigation suggests that the incidents are isolated, we have established this inspection procedure as a precautionary matter to ensure that all M&P15-22 firearms in service meet our design specifications. We are asking consumers of all M&P15-22 firearms manufactured before February 1, 2019 to inspect their bolt for this condition.

    REMEDY/ACTION TO BE TAKEN:
    The bolt from your M&P15-22 must be inspected to determine whether it exhibits the condition identified in this notice. To determine whether your firearm is affected by this condition, please inspect your firearm by following the inspection instructions provided here.
    DOWNLOAD INSTRUCTION MANUAL | VIEW INSPECTION VIDEO


    CLICK HERE FOR FAQ FACT SHEET
    If you are uncomfortable in conducting the bolt inspection outlined here, or are unsure whether the condition described in this notice applies to your bolt, please send your bolt to Smith & Wesson for inspection and replacement if necessary.

    If you want Smith & Wesson to perform the inspection, send your bolt to Smith & Wesson for free inspection and replacement (if necessary).

    If you want to perform the bolt inspection yourself, contact us for the free M&P15-22 BOLT INSPECTION GAUGE Part Number: 3012155 OR place an ORDER ONLINE to receive inspection gauge.

    If the bolt from your firearm is affected by the condition outlined in this notice, please send the bolt to Smith & Wesson. If necessary, your bolt will be replaced at no cost to you. Your bolt will be returned as quickly and efficiently as possible. All shipping and replacement costs will be covered by Smith & Wesson.

    To determine if this consumer advisory applies to your M&P15-22 firearm, please utilize our
    SERIAL NUMBER VERIFICATION TOOL

    Website For More Information: MP15-22SafetyAlert.com
    Email: MP15-22SafetyAlert@smith-wesson.com
    Customer Service Phone: 1-800-713-0356

     

    d.kaufman

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    Thanks for the heads up. While i dont think mine is affected by this being as its probably 4 years old and has seen probably 5k rounds or more, I'm gonna contact them and get the gauge anyway if possible
     

    Vigilant

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    I this the same one from a ways back that led the Appleseed or some other .org, to ban the 15-22 from matches, or a new one?
     

    WebSnyper

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    Thanks for the heads up. While i dont think mine is affected by this being as its probably 4 years old and has seen probably 5k rounds or more, I'm gonna contact them and get the gauge anyway if possible

    Yep, I bought mine back in 2011, and never an issue. I did put in an order for a chamber gauge to check it just in case, though I didn't receive the automated email they said I would get.
     

    indykid

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    I wonder, with ATF classifying anything that fires multiple rounds with a single pull of the trigger as a machine gun, since this can fire multiple rounds with no pull of the trigger, is it non-NFA? And not affected by the 1986 ban?
     

    d.kaufman

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    Just ordered my gauge. Figure better safe than sorry and I'll have it if i ever pick up another 15-22
     

    pblanc

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    This comes from a post from an Appleseed state coordinator that appeared on the Project Appleseed forum:

    I got a question about the M&P 15-22 still being banned at Appleseed. The timing was fortuitous as I’d just been digging deeper on it and found some additional info on why that probably won’t change.

    While other .22’s have had their share of random issues the M&P 15-22 has had a lot of verified serious safety issues that convinced the Appleseed Oversight Committee (AOC) to take the action they did to ban it.

    Here’s a quick rundown of the problems…
    1- Out of battery discharges. Lots of .22 rifles can fire out of battery if circumstances are just right but the M&P 15-22 has an excessively large number of occasions of this happening at Appleseeds. That large number of occurrences suggests an issue that goes beyond the usual problems of a blowback .22LR action’s vulnerabilities.

    In one incident a participant was injured when the M&P 15-22 beside her fired out of battery and fragments of the case penetrated deeply enough into her arm to require minor surgery to remove it.
    (Safety concerns are one reason I’m a fan of rotating firing lines vs. packing the lines with people inches from each other.)

    Here’s a YouTube video where a person shows it will fire when the bolt is a dime’s thickness out of battery. Most .22 designs prevent the hammer from hitting the firing pin when the bolt moves back that far.
    https://youtu.be/gRi_J0BP35w

    Here are a number of other videos Appleseed has compiled of occasions that made their way to YouTube about M&P 15-22s firing out of battery.
    https://youtu.be/rVfNN4dzx6k
    https://youtu.be/szAz5RVNXPw
    https://youtu.be/KwM6AxFthcY

    2- Firing with the safety on safe. A number of cases of the rifle firing with the safety on in unmodified rifles (all factory OEM parts) suggests a lot of out of spec parts or improper fire control group hole spacing.
    https://youtu.be/QvTFlNPEPso

    3- Hammer and trigger pins walking out. The AR-15 trigger and hammer pins are designed to be retained by a J spring in the middle of the hammer (hammer pin) and the legs of the hammer spring (trigger pin). The springs engage grooves machined in the pins so that both pins are trapped by spring tension.

    There have been multiple reports of runaway M&P 15-22s where they fire full auto without the finger touching the trigger. The cause has been traced back to hammer or trigger pins walking out of their holes in the receiver. That allows the hammer or trigger to tip and move freely without the trigger or disconnector stopping it.

    This would suggest that the M&P 15-22 pins and springs are not engaging properly creating an extremely unsafe condition. You can imagine the fun of a rifle emptying it’s 30 round magazine when you chamber a round in whatever direction the barrel happens to be pointing at that moment.
    https://youtu.be/iJ50bNgFntg

    As you know anecdotal stories is not the same thing as data but enough individual events begin to tell a story of a serious problem with the M&P 15-22. After reading all these stories and watching the videos I'm convinced Appleseed did the right thing.

    Based on S&W’s ducking of the issue the ban is expected to remain in place. As long as their attitude is “Problem? What problem?” no progress can be made. If that changes Appleseed will let us know.
     

    Meena

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    Received my gauge and all is good to go with mine also. I figured it was with all the rounds I have put through it and not one hiccup.
     

    d.kaufman

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    Got mine yesterday. Checked it today. All good like others have said. Figured as much since probably fired well over 5k rounds without issue
     
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