Would an SKS or Mini 14 be a good temporary buy?

Of the two, I would go with the SKS. I’d expect it to be more reliable and retain value. 7.62x39 is also half the cost of .223, which can be a big savings right now if you want to shoot it a lot.

That said, if you want an AR or AK, get an AR or AK. Buying something else as a stand in isn’t going to be the same and you’ll likely end up being unhappy with the purchase and buying the AK or AR anyway.

My recommendation is to figure out if you want an AR or AK, and then save up and get a mid- to high-tier gun. That will get you exactly what you want and you won’t have to worry about substandard parts or having to sell one gun to be able to get something else.

Don’t get me wrong, I have SKS and mini 14 examples myself but I’d probably add another AR before another one of them, despite my AR collection already greatly outnumbering them. If you can’t find the stuff to assemble an AR, your not looking very hard.

I think an AR would be one's best bet right now. Prices are somewhat steady and they are available. I thought the price on SKS's was way up. ? Maybe not. Anyhow, with an AR you can change uppers later if you don't like the carbines, or visa-versa, depending on what type of upper you start off with. I prefer the AK74 myself, but as far as I know prices on them are not reasonable at the moment. I have no idea if 5.45X39mm is even available right now.

As far as AR's go, I like the M16A1 and A2 best and over the M4. (talking semi-auto versions) Seems like not too long ago a couple of outfits were making A1 and A2 clones for really low prices. That's the deal I'd go for, but I know you young bucks like stubby little carbines that you can hang doo-dads all over. However, I think it would be a great place to start, you can always get a M4 type upper later, and hang doo-dads all over it.

It's a gamble that either gun will survive a comprehensive Federal AWB. They may survive local and state AWBs. The Minis may be subject to not being threaded, 10 round mags or that kind of local rule. Given the use of Minis in Canadian and Norwegian massacres, banning them is on the table. Antis are getting beyond the simple AR appearance. There are compliant ARs is some states of various degrees of weirdness.

Mini 14s are over priced for what they are and then there’s the high price of extra magazines.
When it comes to the SKS, you will be paying a lot for a used gun. For a little more you can get a brand new AR.
There are plenty of ARs on the market. I took this pic four days ago at the local shop.


If you can’t find an AR in your area, my buddy owns the shop and will ship to your local FFL.

Ditto, If you can't find an AR your not looking. I would never consider a Chinese made SKS over a US made AR. Cheaper ammo.... for how long?

I’d take the sks over a cheap AR any day. It’s been my experience that ARs don’t do well when cheap. So many have come to our rage with malfunctions you’d never get from a cheap SKs

PSA is currently selling ARs for as low as $399. That is less than either a SKS or Mini-14. There is no shortage of ARs so not sure why you think they are hard to find.

The Exile:

If this isn't a nosy question, which rifle would you prefer to buy for the long-term, instead of just a "temporary" SKS, Mini etc?
A new chunk of money can easily start "burning a hole in our pocket".

Have you already bought/stored some ammo for your preferred 'objective' rifle ---being well aware that many thousands of guns were acquired in 2020...right when many chamberings of ammo could not be found (even on the Internet)?

A neighbor (retired Army officer) on a whim bought his first AR a few years ago- without first reading at all about the brands.

His new ATI "AR" barely functioned at all, about 50% FT Extract, Eject, Double-Feeds.

* As I stood nearby and shot box after box in my ("A.R.M.") Maadi AK, I felt a bit of "Reliable Gun Guilt" awkwardness, and let him shoot a well-designed rifle.
Over 3,000 rds. have been used in that Maadi and only two instances of FTExtract/eject, caused by ammo. No other issue at all.

ARs are out there if you want them. Bud's is shipping out the Smith and Ruger standbys for $700, if that's a bellwether for price and availability.

As far as AKs... I have a Century and a Norinco SKS and I would take the SKS straight up. There's some better quality AKs out there that are superior to the SKS, but in a market where your run of the mill WASR is $800, all the good stuff is $1000+.

In a situation where I could buy a

$700 S&W Sport
$900 Ruger Mini
$1100 MAK-90
or $550 SKS

the Sport wins that for me easy, and the SKS takes second place. The MAK-90 is third, it's fun but not eleven bills fun. The Mini just isn't worth it at full retail.

MAKster said:

PSA is currently selling ARs for as low as $399. That is less than either a SKS or Mini-14. There is no shortage of ARs so not sure why you think they are hard to find.

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See I think the difference is that a cheap AR in my experience is not as reliable as a cheap SKS. A mid tier AR definitely is though.

Ignition Override said:

The Exile:

If this isn't a nosy question, which rifle would you prefer to buy for the long-term, instead of just a "temporary" SKS, Mini etc?
A new chunk of money can easily start "burning a hole in our pocket".

Have you already bought/stored some ammo for your preferred 'objective' rifle ---being well aware that many thousands of guns were acquired in 2020...right when many chamberings of ammo could not be found (even on the Internet)?

A neighbor (retired Army officer) on a whim bought his first AR a few years ago- without first reading at all about the brands.

His new ATI "AR" barely functioned at all, FT Extract, Eject, Double-Feeds.

* As I stood nearby and shot box after box in my Maadi AKM, I felt a tiny bit of "gun survivor's guilt", and let him shoot a well-designed rifle.
Over 3,000 rds. have been used in that Maadi and only two instances of FTExtract/eject. No other issue at all.

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AK guys will always make up reasons why there rifles are so much better.

I never owned an AR, and I have owned an AK and an SKS. A time came when I needed to come up with some cash for home repairs and I decided to sell one of them. It turned out I like the SKS better due mainly to the accuracy question. My SKS was well more accurate than the AK. FWIW

daniel craig said:

See I think the difference is that a cheap AR in my experience is not as reliable as a cheap SKS. A mid tier AR definitely is though.

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I built a basic PSA AR carbide for a friend that just wanted an extra cheap AR. He was a big Colt fan. He put his grandson in an AR class where they would be firing 1000 rounds in two days. His Colt started to give him problems not log into the class. He just couldn’t get the Colt to run. He gave his grandson the cheap PSA and it ran 100% for the two day class.
Just because you pay a lot of money for something, don’t make it better.
I always find it funny that the people that don’t have much experience with the AR platform seem to know so much about them.

neither are a great value, or have been for over a decade. I like Mini's on their own, but what people miss out on is that the new proposed assault weapons laws will name both by name, in all ways. their value as banproof is over. With Bill Ruger dead, theres not even a corrupt lobby to change that. I have seen great deals on AR's in the last few months, and even a few decent AK deals. Both at 2/3 the price of an SKS/Mini. PM me if you want me to send you links when the arise. I saw AR kits for under $500 from PSA recently. I would recomend you sign up for alerts from: PSA, Midsouth, https://ar15discounts.com/, Primary Arms, and anyone else in the market.

Now if you want an SKS/Mini for its own sake, I would get on a dealer wait list and get a ranch rifle. The SKS is a good rifle, but handling sucks. The Mini is natural.

My buddy has been selling the Wise Arms ARs for over a year now. He has sold several hundred and has never had an issue with them. His prices have also come down due to his cost coming down. Wise Arms makes their own lowers and handrails. And their in Lacompet LA.

wbm said:

Personally I would not buy the Ruger Mini 14 unless you just want to pay a lot for rifle that is almost accurate....sometimes...if you are lucky! Now watch someone come along and tell you how wonderful and accurate they are...but keep in mind some people (actually almost 800K) liked Yugo's too.

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Here I am, to tell you just that. My Mini Ranch Rifle is very accurate by semi-auto's-that-arent-AR's standards. These of course weigh in over 7lbs, and don't point quite as naturally as the old ones. And the sights are a pain in the ass to adjust, and your not doing it in the field. I put more rounds in my 9mm AR in the first month than 13 years in the Mini. But it is nice to look at. Just wish it had a flash hider.

I would buy an ar or get a kit and a lower and put one together.for the money the mini14/30 and with the sks being collectable now an ar would be around the same money.

GunnyUSMC:
my only suggestion before buying any unfamiliar type is to spend a good bit of time reading.

That Wise Arms barrel shroud has a very cool look.

I am going to go with the buy an AR camp. I just saw an add for Colt CR6920's for $1000 bucks shipped to your FFL. I have also started to see Smith and Wesson M&P's for around $650. I think the market might be reaching saturation again and things like AR's and ammo are becoming available. If you buy a quality AR I don't think you're going to lose a ton of money if there is an AR crash like before.

I would also second what others have said about PSA products. I am not sure about posting links to companies with rifles for sale but PSA has some nice "Carbine Style" AR in stock right now. They also offer a few with a mid-length gas system which I like over the carbine-length gas system.

I have a Mini-14 and it is a good rifle. However if I were new I would skip the Mini and go for a Good AR. For what you are going to pay for the Mini, you can buy a quality AR that will be a better rifle with cheaper/better magazines and quality accessories. (That hurt to say, because I do love my Mini's.)

SKS'a are cool, but not in the league of the AR. They are big, cumbersome, and have a more difficult manual of arms to learn. They are pretty much an iron sight only gun unless you want to make it even more cumbersome and awkward by adding a scope.

Good luck and let us know what you choose.

GunnyUSMC said:

I built a basic PSA AR carbide for a friend that just wanted an extra cheap AR. He was a big Colt fan. He put his grandson in an AR class where they would be firing 1000 rounds in two days. His Colt started to give him problems not log into the class. He just couldn’t get the Colt to run. He gave his grandson the cheap PSA and it ran 100% for the two day class.
Just because you pay a lot of money for something, don’t make it better.
I always find it funny that the people that don’t have much experience with the AR platform seem to know so much about them.

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Obviously there are plenty of exceptions. I’ve got a lot of experience with ARs. Used one everyday in a previous job and have to deal with and fix them every day at my current job. I’m mainly talking about the ARs that are even cheaper than PSA. Ones from companies nobody has ever heard of.

Just remember, two is one, one is none when things get tight.
If you buy a less desirable rifle in the interim, don't be in a hurry to sell it... .

GunnyUSMC said:

I always find it funny that the people that don’t have much experience with the AR platform seem to know so much about them.

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Lots of opinions are acquired by a sample size of one, many are formed with zero experience.

As far as reliability, speed and accuracy there is a reason one doesn’t see a lot of AK, SKS, Mini 14 rifles in places like 3 gun matches and such.