The Rimfire Report: Smith & Wesson FPC 22LR First Impressions

Hello and welcome back to another edition of The Rimfire Report! This ongoing series is, of course, all about the rimfire firearm world. Today, we’ll be covering a recently released firearm that I first got my hands on during a media event earlier this summer, hosted by Smith & Wesson at their Maryville, TN facility, as well as the Windrock Shooting Range and Training Center. There, we got to test out many of Smith’s new firearms, as well as some historical pieces from the personal collection of firearms historian Michael Helms. Of the rimfire offerings on display, two in particular stood out to me, with one of them being the M&P FPC 22LR. The rimfire variant of the very controversial M&P FPC 9mm, the FPC 22LR, has a lot of features that might appeal specifically to those who like to take a “backpack” gun with them on hikes, property checks, or even camping. Let's check out what it’s got to offer from the first 1,000 or so rounds I’ve fired through it.

More Rimfire Report @ TFB:

• The Rimfire Report: Did the U.S. Military Sleep on the American-180?
• The Rimfire Report: Federal Classic 40 gr CPRN - Still Good?
• The Rimfire Report: The Five Most Affordable Rimfire Pistols Worth Buying

The Rimfire Report: Smith & Wesson FPC 22LR First Impressions

Chambered in .22 Long Rifle, this blowback action rifle blends the familiar ergonomics of the M&P handgun series—including the recognizable grip and flat-faced trigger— with tons of other features that set a new standard for features in rimfire rifles. The rifle has a 16.25-inch barrel that is threaded 1/2x28 and comes with a metal thread protector. A Picatinny rail runs along the entire length of the handguard, and M-LOK slots make up the real estate at the 3, 6, and 9 o'clock positions.

Its unique side-folding design allows the FPC 22LR to collapse from 30.4 inches to a highly portable 16.4 inches, without disturbing any mounted optics. Additionally, onboard magazine storage in the stock accommodates two extra 20-round magazines, so that you’re able to fend off hordes of rock chucks or just keep the plinking session going. An interchangeable backstrap system, reversible magazine catch, and quick-release tabs for the folding mechanism round out a package that’s as handy as it is practical, with three magazines included and a weight of just over 65 ounces. Together, these features alone make the FPC 22LR a compelling next buy for a newer shooter looking for a lightweight rimfire platform that can accommodate modern optics along with a modern magazine capacity.

On The Range

So far, I probably only have a collective 1,000 to 1,250 rounds through two different copies of the FPC 22LR. The first session was with the copy at the Smith & Wesson event, and there we were able to test out its speed in a small course of fire that involved 6 target arrays, as well as a steel plate rack. It’s here where I found out there were things I both liked and didn’t like about the FPC design. Let's address the biggest feature first - the folding mechanism. Folding the firearm is certainly not the worst way to have a more stowable gun, and the FPC’s solution is robust, reliable, and extremely easy to use, if not a bit on the beefy side.

Deploying the FPC 22LR from a backpack can be a bit challenging if you include a suppressor, and the deployment method is not intuitively fast like unfolding a stock and flipping off the safety. Instead, the FPC design has almost a completely alien manual of arms, which will require a lot of practice to become proficient with in high-stress situations. That being said, once Hop and I figured out how to quickly deploy the FPC 22LR from a backpack in one fluid motion, we discovered that the entire task from the draw took only about two seconds or less.

On the reliability side of things, the FPC 22LR was virtually flawless. I had one bolt over base malfunction using Remington Standard V, which we already discovered has a pretty atrocious extreme spread - likely the cause of that malfunction. Aside from that, Remington Standard V, CCI Mini Mags, and a handful of random Aguila ammunition all ran flawlessly through the FPC 22LR. When this gun is suppressed, it's a riot to shoot, and accurate enough to do work and have fun with all in the same session.

My Initial Thoughts

I have gone back and forth on both liking and disliking the FPC design. While it’s extremely bulky for my liking, the oversized folding controls are pretty nice for getting the gun up and running quickly. The length of pull is adjustable, which is something that is just now coming as a feature to a lot of folding stocks. Speaking of the stock, the FPC 22LRs stock holds two spare magazines in it and although the release mechanism is disturbingly easy to bump and the magazines are oriented in the wrong direction (at least how I reload mags) the fact that you can carry around 60-rounds of 22LR in just three magazines is great even compared to my very favorite Ruger 10/22 X-22 Backpacker which can hold 40 in its stowed and ready to go configuration.