CMMG Inc. is one of the best companies in the gun business you haven’t heard of. That being said, the Missouri-based weapons developer is slowly getting on the map as a premier manufacturer of rifles, conversion kits, and tactical accessories. In fact, up and coming enterprise was one of the surprise favorites at SHOT Show with their new Mk4 Precision Rifle in .224 Valkyrie and 9mm Guard AR-15. We wanted to take a closer look at CMMG and get to know them a little better.

CMMG History & Development

CMMG Inc. has been producing rifle parts and manufacturing their own proprietary AR-15’s since 2002 but have been only recently getting the serious attention. In true innovative style, CMMG was established when the Overstreet family decided the market didn’t have sufficient affordable AR-style rifles. As a result, Stephanie, Jeff, John, and Gretchen decided enough was enough. While they were relatively inexperienced, John and Jeff had already been selling firearms and accessories for a few years at different gun shows and expos across the country. At this point, the Overstreets still had regular day jobs and only traded guns on the side, that is until their enterprise became more lucrative than their 9-5 jobs.

Eventually, the family launched CMMG and continued selling products from rifle makers like FN Herstal and DPMS Arms. However, it didn’t take very long for the Overstreets to hire a team of engineers and begin crafting their own brand of rifles and accessories. What’s really interesting is that the up-and-coming company is dedicated to their hands-on approach that they manufacture all of the components that go into their AR-15s.

Similarly, the team at CMMG is willing and able to work with customers with all kinds of firearm-related issues. For instance, the Missouri family have helped countless people file the proper paperwork once they began marketing NFA compliant rifles.

CMMG Conversion Kits

CMMG is most famous for their remarkable conversion kits, more specifically for converting AR-15’s to chamber 22LR. While many people wonder why somebody would ever want to do such a thing, there are plenty of logical reasons to opt for the less-expensive and easier to manage .22 cartridge. It makes even more sense when you consider that their whole purpose for getting into the business in the first place was to provide more affordable shooting experiences.

cmmg conversion kit
CMMG 22LR AR Conversion Kit, Echo

These simple kits also allow AR-15 owners to easily switch from 5.56 NATO or .223 Rem to .22LR without needing a gunsmith. To sweeten the deal, they offer a 25-round mag with every conversion kit to start you off right. Likewise, they only use top-grade American-made parts and even take full responsibility in the event there are any issues with your product. Nevertheless, don’t expect there to be any problems; CMMG adds a nitriding finish to many of their products to ensure durability and longevity.

CMMG Uppers & Lowers

In addition to complete rifles, CMMG also produces some excellent uppers and lowers in a variety of calibers. While many of these were less affordable than I expected, they are still decently high-quality and well-worth their price tags. However, it’s their abundance of options which really gets me excited. For starters, CMMG has lowers with all kinds of grips and stocks for both rifles and pistol-caliber carbines.

Uppers
CMMG Uppers

Next, expect your jaw to drop when checking out their selection of uppers. In addition to their wide-variety of barrel lengths ranging from 8.5” to 24”, CMMG manufactures uppers for tons of different calibers. Besides for the obvious cartridges like 5.56 NATO, 9mm, 7.62×39, and 22LR, they also produce uppers for 308 Win, 224 Valkyrie, 22 Nosler, 300 BLK, 45 ACP, 458 SOCOM, and 6.5 Creedmoor.

CMMG Rifles

So, this is where it gets complicated. Although CMMG claims to be committed to providing affordable AR-15 options, their catalog doesn’t seem to corroborate that. In point of fact, they market their rifles from anywhere between $850 – $2,300; where’s the affordability in that? Now I wasn’t expecting Hi-Point prices but c’mon, $850 for their cheapest model? That’s up there with award-winning rifles from reputable companies like the Ruger MPR, S&W M&P Sport, and the Springfield Saint. Oh, and I forgot to mention they add an additional $100 for the Cerakote finish.

I’m not saying these aren’t great guns, I’m simply bothered by the fact that they claim to be providing affordable products when there are significantly better opportunities out there. Once I’m going to spend over $1,500 on a rifle, I’m gonna go with a sure thing like Alexander Arms, Bushmaster, Daniel Defense, or Sig Sauer.

CMMG Inc.’s cheapest rifle, the Mk4LE is a great looking gun and offers decent performance, but it’s nothing to write home about. While many seem to be interested in their .22LR variant, they do make the Mk4LE in 5.56mm, 300AAC BLK, and 9mm.

  • Model: Mk4LE
  • Caliber: 22LR
  • Capacity: 25
  • Barrel Length: 16”
  • Overall Length: 32” (Collapsed Stock)
  • Weight: 6.2 lbs. (Unloaded)
  • Sights: “F” Marked Front, MBUS Rear
  • Finish: Cerakote
  • MSRP: $850
cmmg mk4
CMMG MK4LE in 22LR

While the Mk4LE is their cheapest, the Mk47 Mutant is probably the most famous rifle in their arsenal. CMMG was spot-on when they coined Mk47 the “mutant”, considering it features designs from a variety of different rifles. For starters, the Missouri-based gunmaker went with an AR-15-style pistol grip, trigger group, and buffer tube but threw in an AR-10-style bolt carrier and gave it AK-47-styl mags. These unusual rifles chamber the high-powered 7.62 cartridge, which is probably why they opted for AK-style magazines.

  • Model: Mk47 Mutant
  • Caliber: 7.62x39mm
  • Capacity: 30
  • Barrel Length: 13”
  • Overall Length: 32” (Collapsed Stock)
  • Weight: 7.4 lbs. (Unloaded)
  • Sights: N/A
  • Finish: Cerakote
  • MSRP: $1,750
cmmg mutant
CMMG MK47 Mutant in 7.62

While they have plenty of attractive rifles, none are as talked about as much as the Mk4 DTR2 chambered in .224 Valkyrie. They designed this powerful firearm to be their premier long-range accuracy and high-energy performance rifle. To up the ante, they added several premium features including a salt bath nitrided barrel, the Geissele SSA trigger, and 7075-T6 aluminum forged receivers. Nevertheless, I was disappointed to see that they only gave the Mk4 a 1:7 twist, but that’s easy to overlook.

  • Model: Mk4 DTR2
  • Caliber: .224 Valkyrie
  • Capacity: 10
  • Barrel Length: 24”
  • Overall Length: 44.5”
  • Weight: 9.2 lbs. (Unloaded)
  • Sights: N/A
  • Finish: Cerakote
  • MSRP: $1,700
cmmg valkyrie
CMMG MK4 DTR2 in .224 Valkyrie

Conclusion

At the end of the day, I was quite disappointed with CMMG. While I such high hopes going in, I can’t help but get caught up in their claim to be affordable when their products have such non-competitive prices. Nevertheless, CMMG rifles, accessories, and conversion kits are all very solid products.

We hope you enjoyed this Gunivore Company Overview!

Sam M

Sam is an avid firearms enthusiast who loves sharing his knowledge and experience with fellow gunivores.

Let us know what you think in the comments section!

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5 Comments

  1. Cmmg = poor quality materials at a premium price.

    They use 4150 instead of 4140 steel for the barrel. They use softer 6061 aluminum instead of 7075 for the upper receiver. And it is NOT hard anodized. They don’t use carpenter steel for the bcg. And mine had serious wear markings on the extractor tail new out of the box. And they charge the same as a mil spec quality rifle like bcm. Cmmg is NOT mil spec. Anyone who says they are is lying. And anyone who says it doesn’t matter is misinformed. They are poor quality rifles at mil spec prices. Go to Reddit to hear how common problems are with them.

    1. Yup, you are 100% correct there! Super disappointed with the quality myself. Even the machining is mediocre with mismatched surfaces and poor surface transitions. The worst part for me was the constant casing strikes to my 9mm Banshee Mkgs ejection port causing serious damage to the soft aluminum upper. The solution through CMMG was to add over 3ozs to the BCG. So much for the radial delay blowback! Also super disappointed the upper and lower are only 6061 and it’s like they are spray painted the black finish on! The color is rubbing and chipping off everywhere!

  2. The reason CMMG rifles are at that price range is because they are equal or surpass mil-spec. Their quality is top notch. And no other brand gives you mil-spec quality for the price. So CMMG accomplished what they started the company for. Then you take into consideration that some are designed for specific calibers, uses ( Carbine, Long Range, 3 Gun), and it makes sense. You won’t find a Long Range, 3 Gun, or Carbine rifle with mil-spec quality for the price. I have no complaints from CMMG. When I was young my stepfather had a CMMG M4 Carbine/5.56 NATO and it was great. It meets mil-spec material quality and durability. I’m a US Army veteran and have experience with M16 and M4 rifles. CMMG rifles meet or exceed mil-spec for a lower price. So for me the price is great. Their manufacturing materials exceed mil-spec because they use newer materials and practices not used in the 60s when the M16 was created and into the production of the M4, since then the military materials and manufacturing hasn’t changed. Some people will argue about the CMMG bolt and barrel. The CMMG bolt is 9310 steel w/ Phosphate finnish. This surpasses mil-spec Carpenter C158 steel in hardness and durability. They use it because its better material and new metallurgy. In the 60s Carpenter C158 steel was used because it was the best available at the time and cheaper to produce. As for the barrel. They now use a Chrome-moly 4140 Salt Bath Nitrided barrel. This makes the barrel more affordable while still giving you mil-pec durability. Nitrided barrels have more hardness and durability than chrome lined barrels, while also giving you better corrosion resistance, and accuracy. 4140 Nitrided barrels in AK type rifles have surpassed some cold hammer forged barrels in hardness. A 4140 Nitrided barrel will surpass 4150, 4150 CMV, 4150 Mil-Spec, chromed line barrels in durability, corrosion resistance, and accuracy. People debate and focus so much on mil-spec without understanding that metallurgy and manufacturing processes have surpassed the old mil-spec requirements which were the best in the 60s and were never changed since then even into the 60s-90s when designing the M16 Carbines aka CAR-15s, which then became the M4 Carbine.The Ruger and M&P rifles you spoke about don’t even meet mil-spec durability, and they’re more expensive. So for the price range of so many of their different mil-spec quality rifles in different configurations. No other brand can beat CMMG in price and quality. I myself will purchase a CMMG M4 Carbine in .300 BLK in the future. A 7.62mm, .30 caliber ballistics capable rifle with an M4 Carbine’s light mobility, accuracy, and durability. You can’t go wrong.

    1. Great comment. I was researching CMMG if whether i should buy their gun and your comment gave a much more in depth review than this article. Except based on my price comparison Ruger AR-556 MPR 350 Legend sells for $949.99 while CMMG Rifle, Resolute™ 100, Mk4, .350 Legend is at $1,049.95. I cant find any S&W M&P chambered for .350 to compare price.

    2. Thanks for stepping up and setting it straight.

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