First Look: Smith & Wesson M&P Volunteer

Smith & Wesson has just expanded their popular AR-15 family with the M&P Volunteer series, featuring six new rifle configurations to choose from.

 
Smith & Wesson’s M&P family of AR-15 style rifles has been an extremely popular and affordable choice for many Americans since the series first launched in 2006. Used by both civilians and police, the rifles have become known as solid, yet entry-level ARs during their time on the market. Seeking to provide consumers with a more premium, feature-rich AR platform, Smith has just announced the line’s expansion with the new M&P Volunteer series. Beginning with six new rifles, the family will include three “Volunteer XV” and three “Volunteer XV Pro” models.

M&P Volunteer New Features

The three “standard” M&P Volunteer XV rifles will all have carbine-length gas systems and 16-inch barrels with 1:8 twist rates and an Armornite finish inside and out. For furniture, the rifles will include BCMGunfighter MLOK forends, B5 Systems Bravo stocks and B5 System pistol grips. They will also all feature flat-face triggers, chromed firing pins and A2 birdcage flash hiders.

The biggest differences between these three M&P Volunteer models have to do with their gas blocks and sights. The “optics ready” model (13510) will have a railed gas block and will include no optics of any sort, the “Red Dot Sight” model (13513) features the same gas block but will come with a Crimson Trace electronic optic and the standard M&P Volunteer XV (13507) will have an A2-style gas block with an included Magpul MBUS rear sight. MSRPs for the two models without a red dot will be $1,049 while the red dot model’s will be $1,099.

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M&P Volunteer Pro Features

There’s a bit more variation within the M&P Volunteer Pro series, but all three models feature some distinct upgrades over the standard ones. Most notably, all three Pro models have different barrel lengths and gas systems. Model 13516 will have carbine-length gas with a 14.5-inch barrel, although its muzzle brake has been welded in place to bring the total length to 16-inches in order to avoid regulation under the NFA. Model 13515 will feature a mid-length gas system and 16-inch barrel, and the DMR model (13517) will have rifle-length gas with a 20-inch barrel. All M&P Volunteer Pro models will also include a free-floated MLOK aluminum forend.

Like the standard M&P Volunteers, the Pro series will also include flat triggers and chromed firing pins, but they will also have Radian Raptor charging handles, PWS 556 muzzle brakes and folding iron sights. The two shorter-barreled Pro M&Ps will have MSRPs of $1,569 while the DMR version’s will be $1,599.

The M&P Volunteer rifles appear to be a solid addition to the M&P family, giving Americans more options for out-of-the-box upgraded AR-15s.

For more information, please visit smith-wesson.com.

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