Hi-Point Firearms started off the year 2025 with the announcement that the company would eventually be launching its new HP-15 series of AR pistols and carbines. Folks attending the annual SHOT Show in Las Vegas, Nev., were told that the listed prices for these ARs would start under $500. The company stuck to that promise with the “basic black” 5.56 NATO/.223 Rem. carbine, which has a suggested retail price of $499.99. It can be found at some retailers for around $50 less. The braced pistols, chambered in 5.56 NATO/.223 Rem. or .300 BLK, are available for $539.99.
The standard HP-15 models started shipping mid-year. But in November, just in time for the holidays, the company has expanded the HP-15 lineup to include models with upgraded finishes and furniture. When I put in a request for an HP-15 carbine for evaluation, the Hi-Point team kindly offered to send one of the first camouflage models to leave the factory floor. I gladly accepted the upgrade.
The HP-15 is a direct gas-impingement operated, M4-style semi-automatic that employs an M16-spec bolt carrier group. The flattop upper and lower receivers are forged from 7075-T6 AR aluminum. Assembled using mil-spec components, the steel parts are nitrided, while the aluminum alloy pieces are treated with a Type III hard-anodized coating.
Sporting a carbine-length gas system, the M4-profile, 16-inch barrel is made of 4150 chrome-moly vanadium steel. Although it is listed as having a 1:8-inch rifling twist rate, the gun I received had a barrel marked 1:7. The muzzle is threaded at 1/2×28 TPI and fitted with a removable A2 flash hider. The 15-inch long, free-floating aluminum handguard is a lightweight configuration with a full-length optics rail along the top, plenty of vents and several M-Lok slots for mounting accessories.
Unlike some budget-trimmed models, the HP-15’s upper receiver does have a spring-loaded dust-cover for the ejection port and a forward assist button. The charging handle is of the mil-spec variety. The lower’s controls and features are primarily mil-spec as well. This includes the straight trigger guard, magazine release button, bolt release and safety selector.
What I thought was an upgraded fire control group turned out to be a standard feature for all HP-15s. Made of stainless steel, this single-stage trigger group has been polished to provide a smooth, creep-free trigger pull that breaks cleanly with 5 pounds, 1 ounce of pressure. It proved to be utterly reliable and enjoyable to work with at the shooting range. Folks looking for a competition-style, extra light or adjustable trigger may want to swap this one out. I find this type of better-than-mil-spec polished trigger to be ideal for multi-purpose platforms like this one.
Now, let’s dig into the upgrades for this model. The most obvious of these is the hydro-dip finish applied over the anodized surfaces of the handguard and both receivers. In this case, it’s the Six-Color Desert Pattern camouflage (aka. Chocolate Chip) which was popularized during Operation Desert Storm in the early 1990s. The company is also offering a US Woodland (M81) camouflage for the carbine and pistols.
Hi-Point has its own hydro dipping facility which they use for its products as well for providing services for other firearm, game call and automotive parts manufacturers. This allows for hands-on quality control and reduces the dip finish costs by close to 50 percent. Those savings are passed along to customers. Any Cerakote finishes you see in the Hi-Point catalog are also applied in-house.
Unlike the black models, the camouflage guns ship with a set of metallic UTG flip-up sights. The front sight’s post is adjustable for height while the rear sight sports a windage adjustable dual aperture for close and long range shooting. The basic A2 furniture has been replaced with options from B5 Systems. The polymer P-Grip pistol grip is light weight and has aggressive texturing along the front strap and both sides for improved purchase. The lower receiver’s six-position, mil-spec aluminum buffer tube is fitted with an M4-style Bravo shoulder stock, the same one used by the U.S. Army for its M4/M4A1 carbines. Its features include a comfortable cheek weld, dual steel QD sling ports and a soft rubber butt pad.
Together, these extras shift the carbines’ listed price up to $699 and the pistols’ to $679. The carbine ships with one polymer 30-round magazine made for Hi-Point by the U.S. based Pyramid Plastics. This is the same company that used to provide the now-disbanded Anderson Manufacturing with its magazines, and the folks at Hi-Point are pleased with their performance.
For this evaluation, the HP-15 was topped off with a Swampfox Arrowhead SFP LPVO 1-8X 24 mm SFP III optic (ARH18241-GB; $419). The second focal plane (SFP), glass-etched Guerrilla Dot BDC reticle features 12 brightness settings for the green illumination. Powered by a single CR2032 button cell battery, it has a 30 mm tube, .5-MOA click adjustments and push/pull locking turrets with a zero reset. This optic was mounted onto the carbine using a Swamp Fox lightweight 7075 aluminum Freedom cantilever mount (FCM-30-M; $139).
At the shooting range, the HP-15 was put through its paces using a mix of 30-round magazines. They included two of the Pyramid models that ship with the carbine, along with translucent polymer magazines from Mission First Tactical (MFT) and Elite Tactical Systems (ETS). A well-used aluminum Duramag was thrown into the set to keep things interesting. Test ammunition included practice and match-grade loads in bullet weights suitable for the 1:7-inch rifling twist rate.
The rifle, magazines and ammunition all functioned flawlessly throughout the course of testing. There were two failures to feed with one magazine due to a certain gun writer not double checking to ensure the magazine was fully seated. Once it was slapped home, the gun worked properly.
For the formal performance testing, five bench rested five-shot groups for three loads were fired into paper targets posted at a distance of 100 yards. A Garmin Xero C1 Pro chronograph was used to measure bullet muzzle velocity averages for 10-shot strings. The .223 Rem. ammunition used included ADI World Class rounds (imported by Global Ordnance) topped off with Sierra Bullet’s 69-grain Match King open-tip match bullets, Federal Premium American Eagle 55-grain full-metal jacket loads and Winchester’s USA Ready 62-grain open-tip match. Here are the results:
Looking over the accuracy results, it’s helpful to remember that merely adequate mil-spec ARs tend to print five-shot groups at or under 3 inches at 100 yards. The mid-grade guns should be able to keep groups hovering around the 2-inch mark. The more pricey precision guns are expected to shoot 1 MOA or smaller groups at this range.
The 1:7-inch rifling twist rate is generally a better fit for middle-weight bullets although it can work with bullets ranging from 55 grains to 90 grains. In this case, the HP-15 was not all that fond of the 55-grain load, which yielded a group average of 2.85 inches. This is sufficient for some tasks but not particularly impressive. However, the accuracy improved noticeably with the 62-grain and 69-grain loads, which averaged 1.96 inches and and 1.65 inches, respectively.
The new Hi-Point Firearms HP-15 carbine is reliable, well-made and feature rich for its price point. The fact that the polished stainless trigger is standard for all models is a nice touch, since most mil-spec triggers lack the same clean feel as this one. This made the gun I worked with ready to use right out of the box as a multi-purpose AR for casual plinking, training, hunting and home defense. And the sub-2-inch accuracy potential means this gun is punching above its price class.
As the HP-15 was launching in 2025, two other low-cost model AR manufacturers went out of business. Del-Ton was closed as of April, and Anderson Manufacturing shut down in July with its assets purchased by Ruger. But Hi-Point has been in business for nearly 40 years, and there’s more than 6 million of its budget-priced firearms in the U.S. marketplace. It would seem that they stepped into AR production just as the niche opened up. Although some folks are not enamored with other Hi-Point models, AR fans looking for a less-expensive option should give the HP-15 series a closer a look.
Hi-Point Firearms HP-15 Specifications
Manufacturer: Hi-Point Firearms
Action Type: Direct-impingement, semi-automatic, centerfire rifle
Chambering: 5.56 NATO/.223 Rem.
Barrel: 16-inch 4150V chrome-moly vanadium steel; M4 profile, Nitride finish, A2 flash hider
Receivers: mil-spec, forged 7075 T6 aluminum; hydro-dipped finish
Magazine: polymer; 30-round detachable box
Sights: removable flip up, adjustable post front, aperture rear
Trigger: single-stage, polished stainless steel, 5-pound, 1-ounce pull
Overall Length: adjustable; 32.75- to 36.25-inches
Drop at Comb: .5 inch
Drop at Heel: .5 inch
Weight: 6 pounds, 4 ounces.
Accessories: magazine, lock, owner’s manual
MSRP: $699
Read the full article here