Piggy backing on this post, anyone think a Smith & Wesson M&P 15 Sport 2/3 would be a good purchase?
this post was submitted on 18 Mar 2026
6 points (100.0% liked)
guns
2696 readers
27 users here now
Rules (Under review):
-
- NO BUYING, SELLING OR TRADING of guns or accessories. Take that to Reddit and /r/GunAccessoriesForSale or Armslist.com
-
- Censor all personally identifiable information in posts including serial numbers on firearms.
-
- Any post or comment advocating illegal action will be removed and the poster warned. A second infraction will result in a ban.
-
- Unironically suggesting the SKS as a usable rifle in the 21st Century when there are things like the AK and AR that cost only a bit more might result in a ban, it depends on how we feel.
-
- Discussion of hunting is acceptable but please put "CW: hunting" in post titles. Debating the ethicality of hunting is also fine, but keep it civil and don't derail other people's threads.
founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS
Yeah, but I'd definitely go with the III over the II. Mid-length gas system instead of carbine-length, and the handguard is free-floated. So softer shooting and better inherent accuracy. Look for the best price on gun.deals
I've read good things about them and anecdotally a comrade just picked one up and is seemingly happy with it. Full disclosure though, I'm brand new to rifles and so is that comrade as far as I'm aware.
Your experience is valuable! About how many rounds have you shot through these guns?
I have home built several ARs and I shoot all of them at least 200 rounds per month
I'd say send it, I have yet to see a credible argument for the high instance of QC issues being anything other than a reflection of the volume PSA does. The AR15 is a pretty robust platform, especially in the milspec-like pattern PSA guns are built to. Many issues with PSA guns are not "gun no work" they're "professional inspection revealed manufacturing errors that will affect reliability after 10,000 rounds".
~~If you want I can post some basic function tests you can do on a new AR15, or go over to School of the American Rifle and watch some of his videos where he evaluates PSA's and guns that cost a whole lot more to know what to look for and what different things mean.~~
Please excuse me, I did not realize you are an experienced gun owner when I wrote my response.
Also, I think it'd be cool if the gun people on here like you and me could figure out some budget build that we could sticky in the comm. I was thinking a complete upper (upper, barrel, gas system, and handguard), a bolt carrier group, an acceptable cheap lower, a decent lower parts kit with a trigger that isn't terrible. And then maybe like some upgrades, like I like to put BCM BCG (because I really don't want the bolt to break) and LaRue MBT-2S trigger in everything.
I mean that would get someone a better rifle for the money then buying a M&P Sport III, or allow them to build a just-as-capable rifle for cheaper, right?
I think you make some good points with regard to saving money and incremental improvements, however these days if I'm going to recommend a practical rifle I think the consistency and simplicity offered by a pre built gun outweigh the potential savings of a hundred bucks or so or the inclusion of an improved milspec trigger for a new shooter.
My match experience has taught me that skills outweigh gear once you have an optic. Maybe as I age fudd tendencies are manifesting, but I feel that it is more important to develop the shooter and system as a whole rather than the weapon itself, in the current market and standard of production we have today.
An AR15 with M193/M855 is most effective at applying a high volume of accurate fire out to ~250 yards (which has been recognized as a decisive factor in infantry combat since the first imperialist world war) and it doesn't need much other than a durable optic, the right ammo, maybe a light, and 8 magazines to do that.
MBT-2S
I never ended up buying one as I went with a gamer cassette trigger (SLT-1) at that price point. Have you tried the Schmidt Tool milspec triggers? They are OEM for a lot of companies and they are readily distiguished by the circled S in the casting. They're $30 and smooth with a very workable, consistent rolling break and robust reset, probably 5.5-6 lbs if my finger is calibrated properly. Nice to have for someone who has limited funds.
I personally love build spreadsheets, however what's cheap and available changes fast these days as far as parts go.
I think the best way to achive what you mention with higher-end parts would be a complete BCM pencil upper and whatever the cheapest possible lower is on the day you buy the gun.
No worries, thanks for the advice. And I intend this thread to be for the sake of potential new gun owners looking for a first AR-15, so any thoughts and advice are welcome.