Smith and Wesson FPC

[S Jenks]

the current gen cx4 has a top rail but also has huge ears around the iron sights that take up a lot of would be rail space.

I don’t own a CX4 and have no experience with this company, but this would be a nice factory option.

http://sierrapapacx4.com/index#/new-...-flat-top-rail

[Phaedrus]

I’m not asking for the best of the best like KAC sights or the Magpul MBUS Pro. I’ll be fine with some cheap plastic sights like B&T offers with their guns. Even Glock can put those crappy little sights on their guns so you have a gun you can shoot when you buy it. How come PSA can put a set of Magpul MBUS sights on a rifle they sell for $500 but FN can’t include a set on a rifle that MSRPs for almost $1900? What do a set of MBUS cost when you order them by the thousands? Would that really add a noticeable amount of money to the cost the customer pays for the gun? I’ll pay an extra $10-$15 so that my rifle has sights on it.

Honestly, I can't remember the last rifle I bought that came with sights. Probably gotta set the wayback machine to when I bought my Bren 805. In the last 40 years the only rifles I've had except the Bren that shipped with sights were my Mini-14 (pre-Ranch model), my Ruger 10/22 (early 80s vintage) and an old Gustav Mauser in 6.5 that was made before my grandpa was born. I've got several $2,000 carbines that didn't ship with sights so I don't see that as a big knock on the FPC. YMMV, or course. Is the the norm for rifles to have irons now? Few bolt guns do and I don't see a lot of ARs that have 'em.

[gato naranja]

Honestly, I can't remember the last rifle I bought that came with sights. Probably gotta set the wayback machine to when I bought my Bren 805. In the last 40 years the only rifles I've had except the Bren that shipped with sights were my Mini-14 (pre-Ranch model), my Ruger 10/22 (early 80s vintage) and an old Gustav Mauser in 6.5 that was made before my grandpa was born. I've got several $2,000 carbines that didn't ship with sights so I don't see that as a big knock on the FPC. YMMV, or course. Is the the norm for rifles to have irons now? Few bolt guns do and I don't see a lot of ARs that have 'em.

I am one of those curmudgeons who thinks a rifle or carbine without backup irons is Murphy's Law writ large, but I am apparently so wrong about so much - just ask my wife - that if anyone agrees with me they need intervention. Even 30 years ago, it was getting tough to find certain trad rifles with a set of factory irons. The 'scope became king and the old belt/suspenders standard disappeared except for dangerous game/extreme conditions rifles, and trainers/youth rimfires. With AR's, the full-length pic top rail and shaved gas blocks followed suit.

So few people can agree on what iron sights work for them that I can't blame any manufacturer for simply providing attachment points for same and telling the public that they are on their own. It is when there is no attaching point or even any way to cobble one that I get testy.

[314159]

Briefly shot the FPC at a local S&W event yesterday.

I wear a 35 inch sleeve and the long LOP was a trifle annoying and it is non-adjusting.

I liked the safety location forward of the trigger guard.

The balance felt a trifle muzzle heavy to me which might be a problem to some.

Even though it is a blow back action I thought it was soft shooting, this might also be due to the cheap generic ammo I had to use.

It worked with cheap generic ammo. "Flawlessly" for 5 rounds anyway.

The magazine storage in the buttstock was clever and loaded mags there would definitely help the balance issue. The release for the mags is on the opposite side of the mag you wish to remove.

I was crawling the stock and my cheek was tapped by the operating handle on the left side of the carbine on each shot. At first I thought it was reciprocating into my face but was informed that the handles do not reciprocate. Entirely my poor technique. Just something to watch and avoid, it wasn't even that annoying. People with shorter necks probably need not worry. Perhaps a higher sight mount would also help to resist getting too low on the stock.

[Zincwarrior]

I don’t own a CX4 and have no experience with this company, but this would be a nice factory option.

http://sierrapapacx4.com/index#/new-...-flat-top-rail

Yes they also makes trigger parts to give it a better trigger.

[Phaedrus]

I am one of those curmudgeons who thinks a rifle or carbine without backup irons is Murphy's Law writ large, but I am apparently so wrong about so much - just ask my wife - that if anyone agrees with me they need intervention. Even 30 years ago, it was getting tough to find certain trad rifles with a set of factory irons. The 'scope became king and the old belt/suspenders standard disappeared except for dangerous game/extreme conditions rifles, and trainers/youth rimfires. With AR's, the full-length pic top rail and shaved gas blocks followed suit.

So few people can agree on what iron sights work for them that I can't blame any manufacturer for simply providing attachment points for same and telling the public that they are on their own. It is when there is no attaching point or even any way to cobble one that I get testy.

I can't really disagree with the utility of BUIs on a rifle. But I kind of view them like the tires that come with a new car- enough to get you off the dealer's lot but almost certainly not great tires unless you're buying a specific luxury segment. For example, my Bren came sights that were serviceable but certainly not something you'd buy if they were on the rack next to Scalarworks sights or even Magpul. I used to have a Beretta Storm, forgot about that one for a moment; it came with sights but they were so abysmal that I honestly wish they'd have made the thing entirely flat top. There's no practical way to remove them and I expect they cost Beretta about fifty cents to make.

I do appreciate having irons but if they're gonna be cheap and sucky I'd rather the rifle be $25 cheaper and just skip 'em. My more "serious" carbines all have sights by Scalarworks, and I'm excited to see their new folding versions.

[Hambo]

The balance felt a trifle muzzle heavy to me which might be a problem to some.

Are we talking about the same carbine? I did not get to shoot it, but unloaded, with no spare mags carried, it felt like all the weight was between the trigger and the butt.

[Shipwreck]

The balance felt a trifle muzzle heavy to me which might be a problem to some..

I just picked up one of these on Friday. I find the opposite to be true. And, I've seen others comment the same. The gun feels lighter than it is, because most of the weight is to the hear. The front end is so light, IMHO. It's very easy to move around, between the light front end and the thin handguard.

[BobM]

I handled on in a Rural King yesterday. I would like to see the length of pull be a bit shorter but overall I liked it and will probably buy one. I handled a Magpul stocked Ruger 9mm carbine a couple weeks ago and liked it also but I have dozens of M&P magazines.

[314159]

In my defense, I did say "trifle".

When I unfolded it, which isn't a smooth process to the uninitiated, I thought it balanced forward. Now, I have to try one again just to see how off-bubble I am.