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Just got a new Mini-14, question time!

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swenis

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May 19, 2005
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Hey guys, I just recently picked up a virtually new Ruger Mini-14 Ranch (brushed stainless) from my cousin a few days ago. I must admit that prior to this gun most of my gun knowledge comes from .22 plinkers and shotguns so I'm at a bit of a loss. For some reason I really want to replace the stock, and I'm probably going to pick up a Hogue Overmold stock soon. Is this a good choice? Also, I need to pick up a scope, but unfortunately I don't have a limitless amount of money at my disposal. Are there any good scopes for target shooting that can be had for around $120 at most or not?

I also have a semi-vain question. The rear peep-sight has a small chip in it where the blue is gone. How should I go about repairing this?

Thanks guys! :p
 
Mini 14 sights

maybe they've improved recently, but the Mini 14's I knew had sights that worked loose and vibrated, making them useless but for in your face distances. As for covering the bare spot, use cold blue or remove the sight.
 
Mini 14 sights

maybe they've improved recently, but the Mini 14's I knew had sights that worked loose and vibrated, making them useless but for in your face distances. As for covering the bare spot, use cold blue or remove the sight.
 
Are there any good scopes for target shooting that can be had for around $120 at most or not
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Before everyone starts in about how target shooting with a mini is not a worthwhile venture, let me say welcome to the board and congrats on your new mini! You'll find it a wonderful rugged rifle. Rather than buy a hogue stock or a fancy scope, I'd reccommend you first buy a couple of quality magazines for it and a bunch of ammo to get aquainted with it! :D

After you've put a few hundred rounds downrange with it, then, go ahead and decide if you wanna scope it and put a nice aftermarket stock on it. I just say this because you might buy them first and then be disappointed with your purchases after you get a lot of trigger time in. I think you'll probably appreciate your mini a lot more in it's oem trim rather than in "sniper" trim.

I have one, love it, and am contemplating buying another just because. They are fine rifles. As far as the rear sight arpeture, cold blue would work. Heck, if it is small enough and no one will notice, you might be able to just use a sharpie.

Anyway, every chance you can, buy a few boxes of ammo and run'em through that rifle!
 
The rear peep-sight has a small chip in it where the blue is gone. How should I go about repairing this?
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By a replacement from Ruger (it's not a peep, by the way), or intall a peep sight made for The Ranch Rifle by Williams (a better option, IMHO, if you're going to be actually using it).

I've read that some people have had good results with M1 Carbine rear sights on the Mini.

Check out the Mini-14/30 forum at http://www.perfectunion.com .
 
If you scope it, I personally wouldn't go higher than a non-variable 4x. Out-of-the-box mini's generally aren't tack drivers (my 188-series Ranch shoots about 5.5 MOA from a cold barrel, though others have reported 2 MOA or better) and a 9X scope is frustrating. The reason I suggest a fixed-power scope is that mini's are hard on scopes due to the heavy op rod banging around, and unless your variable is a really expensive one, the zero will probably shift. (I had a 3-9x Simmons on mine, and it shot better with iron sights than with the scope due to zero shift). I'm tempted to throw a cheap Wal-Mart 2.5x scope on mine just to see how it does, when I get some extra change.

I really like pistol-grip stocks rather than straight stocks, and had a Choate "E2" style stock on mine for many years before switching to a Butler Creek folder when the AWB expired.
 
Welcome to the world of the Mini!! They are really fun rifles to shoot and with only a little work, make them into pretty decent shooters.

The link to the Perfect Union Forum will provide some great tip on you r Mini. Visit the Accurizing section in the Mini-14 forum for some really good info.

I agree with getting some "quality time" with your Mini. You can find very good and reliable hi-cap 10, 20, or 30 round) mags from either John Masen or Pro-Mag. Wolf ammo is cheap and is great for plinking. Ammo selection will play a part in accuracy, so try a hundred or so rounds of different brands to see what works best (mine seems to be more accurate with Sellier & Bellot 55 gr FMJ and WWB 55 grain is the next closest).

Factory Mini's tend to be scope eaters if you buy the really low-end scopes. You can add a smaller gas port bushing and a recoil buffer to pretty much cure that.

I have a Hogue Overmolded stock that is a very tight fit on my Mini to the point where I will probably not bed this stock. I would certainly recommend bedding the factory stock. I like the feel of the hogue and the stock length of pull is a full inch longer than the factory wood stock. Butler Creek makes a nice folder if you want something like that.

IMHO, the factory Ranch rear sight sucks, but with a little bit of Dremel work, you can easily adapt an M1 Carbine sight. Williams also makes a good rear sight that simply drops in.
 
Before you spend money on a scope you might see how much dependable magazines cost, an allocate some of that scope money for them.
I have found only Ruger factory mags to be dependable.
The only place I know that has 20 rnd Ruger factroy mags Is J&G Sales, $100!?!
 
The rear peep sights are loose on all of our Mini-14s at work. It bothers me to have to depend on a sight that you can wiggle around, especially when you might have to use the rifle to protect a brother or sister officer.
 
Now, before every goes about being "nice", and answering all of your questions, let me interject with near-cosmic advice.

Go sell you Yours. Yes go sell it. Sell it back to crotchety old Mr. Ruger so perhaps he will able to buy more copies of the Consititution and Supreme Court rulings as well as other writings by the Founders Fathers, Voltaire, Rousseau, Francis Bacon, and Emma Goldman (much less the writings of any other philosopher or theologian). Perhpas now, endowed with so much new information, he would tend toward siding AGAINST his customers and the very people who keep the shoot community alive.


Onto less bull?????: with the money from your Mini-14 sale you'll be able to buy either a CUR II ARK 74 or a SAR III is it SAR II is 5.45 or III in 5.45 - I forget?) . Regardless, getting the Ak 74 chambered in 5.45 will not only change the way you shoot, but it will bring every last one of your shots in my about an inch. The recoil is sweet, The trigger on my CUR II is an absolute dream, and once I put a 4x 16 Romanian PSO scope on the rifle, I've been putting in 2.5 - 3 MOA groups, and that's not even with everything perfect yet! I still have a long way to go until I get things in perfect order and this Afgan war bound, combat ready, AK 74 is still out shooting far too many guns that were designed to beat much tamer rifles built for retirment at the range.
 
Go sell you Yours. Yes go sell it. Sell it back to crotchety old Mr. Ruger so perhaps he will able to buy more copies of the Consititution and Supreme Court rulings as well as other writings by the Founders Fathers, Voltaire, Rousseau, Francis Bacon, and Emma Goldman (much less the writings of any other philosopher or theologian). Perhpas now, endowed with so much new information, he would tend toward siding AGAINST his customers and the very people who keep the shoot community alive.
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"Crotchety old Mr. Ruger" is dead, so don't think he'll be able to sell it back to him....

Only the tin foil hat loonies in our community keep perpetuating the myth of William B. Ruger being antigun.

He was the largest single contributor to the National Rifle Association, among other pro gun groups.

When congress was debating banning all semi-auto rifles, Ruger wrote a letter flippantly suggesting they ban high capacity magazines instead. Ruger's number one selling gun at the time came with high caps. A mistake perhaps, but it doesn't make him either Lenin or Sarah Brady.

By the way, Ruger was the first company to proactively take on the trial lawyers, who were the biggest threat to our gun rights in the last 20 years. Ruger spent millions to defend BS lawsuits, when most of the rest of the industry was just writing settlement checks.
 
Welcome to THR and Mini-14 ownership. I've had an older Mini-14 that I picked up used a few years ago and it's utterly reliable. I'll chime in with the recommendations above to check out the Perfectunion Mini-14 forum. There's a ton of good information there on how to get the most from your rifle.

With respect to magazines, the best are Ruger factory and PMI/Federal Ordnance, if you can find them. Pre-ban Thermolds have a good reputation. According to the guys at Perfectunion, the new Pro-Mags work very well also.
I have a bunch of PMIs, a couple Ruger LEO-only marked 20s, and several aftermarkets mags. Some of my aftermarkets work, others will need work to get running. If you read complaints that the Mini-14 isn't reliable, they can be attributed to aftermarket POS mags.
 
If you want to scope it, look into a recoil buffer and a smaller gas port bushing. The guys on Perfect union will know what you need.

Pro Mag 20 rounders go for around $15 a piece and they WORK! make sure to pick up a few.
 
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