Yeah, the part about instructors is relevant. Believe it or not some people don't go to class to learn but to prove how smart they are/rub shoulders with the instructor/win the pin/coin/etc. Reminds me of my 2014 "Advanced Pistol Marksmanship" class with Vickers where a dude with the front sight backwards (Yes, literally put into the dovetail backwards so he was looking at the rounded slope instead of the blade) on his Para 1911 argued with Vickers about the right way to install a 1911 front sight, and then ended with "Well, works for me." (Spoiler alert...it didn't work very well for him and he's one of the reasons the class sucked so bad and we had to spend the first hour of an "Advanced" pistol class working dry with brass on the front sight.)
For those that care to see the gun, here it is. However, after some additional thought, I think I'm going to move forward with the mods to turn in back into my preferred setup (which is pictured below, the MK18-ish thing). I realized I had $200 worth of gucci gear on an M&P15-22 and some holsters and other parts I can sell off along with that Aimpoint PRO to get the barrel cut, buy the rail, and put a T-1 on it. Not sure if I'll get all the way to a Geissele trigger, but we'll see. NOT because I want the more gucci setup (I mean, I do, but I could tell myself "no"), but because I have so much run-time with that MK18 that so many things are automatic and in dry work I still find myself fighting a little bit to get consistent support hand position after a reload and with the longer gun, transitions are a little more awkward. Does it work like it is? Yep! Will it work better for me as a MK18? I think so.