Mini 14 as emergency battle rifle

[Tomac]

I've owned several Mini's and all were reliable and nothing shoulders faster for snap shots for me than a Mini. That being said I no longer own one. Why? Spare parts & decent mags are difficult/expensive to find, accuracy goes out the window as the bbl heats, difficult to scope easily w/a decent CQB sight. Get an SKS or better yet a cheap AK. Ammo? That's a non-issue 'cause if you have as little as 500rds put back in an ammo can it's very unlikely that you'll use it all in aimed fire w/o either: 1) getting more weapons/ammo from the other side's casualties, or 2) becoming a casualty yourself. I'd take/use a Mini if I had no other choices but would swap it out the first chance I got.
Tomac

 

[Dave Markowitz]

First off, I own and like a Norinco SKS, a Russian Saiga AK (converted to take standard AK mags), a Colt AR15, and a Mini-14. I've shot all of them a lot. Ain't nothing wrong with a Mini-14 for the use intended by the guy who started this thread.

If you can find a good condition Mini-14 for $400 or less, get it. Also pick up some PMI or Ruger 20 or 30 round mags. The Ruger mags are now available, with the sunset of the AWB. Fourfourmag.com is listing them for $32 each.

When I bought my 182-series Mini-14 used, it was missing the gas port bushing, unbeknownst to me. It still functioned for 50 rounds. Since replacing the bushing, it has not missed a beat in several hundred rounds. My Mini will eat cheap Wolf .223 like candy, while my AR-15 occasionally chokes on it.

I replaced the factory front sight with the Eagle HK-style front sight/flash hider unit. This made a big improvement in sight picture, and eliminated the big fireball from XM-193 ammo. I bought a Butler Creek folder at the last Valley Forge gun show and one of these days will have the time to install it.

My Mini-14 is an utterly reliable, rugged rifle that I would not hesitate to bet my life on under severe conditions.

 

[rbernie]

Let's try asking the question this way - if you could get a used Mini14 Ranch rifle with one stock magazine for $400 or a new Saiga in .223 for $250 new, which would you take and why?

 

[glocksman]

its pretty evident who has used a Mini 14, and who just says they have. For anyone to go on about a Mini being unreliable, or jamming just shows that they have no expereince with one, and are most likely just blathering away with info form other bogus replys.

I don't appreciate being called a liar.
I had a Mini and I got rid of it precisely for the reasons decribed. I will note that it functioned flawlessly with the supplied 5 round magazine, but it was totally unreliable with several brands of aftermarket hicaps.
If you don't believe me, you can go take either a long walk off a short pier or a flying f@#$ at a rolling doughnut.

Your choice.

 

[jimmyp50]

Saigia is the best choice. The gas piston-bolt carrier of the Ruger is not chrome plated and will rust in place if fired and used in the field under moist conditions and under conditions in which a user might not have time to clean it. i.e. "an emergency". I have personally had this happen to me. The barrel will rust as well. All stainless steels rust as well, just not as fast. Chrome bore + Chrome Gas system = reliable under "emergency" conditions.

 

[Dienekes]

Amen. Had an LEO Mini-14 do the same trick of corroding up the piston. Had to do the old boot heel immediate action drill to get it open.

Owned my first and only Mini in 1983. Am mostly into service gas guns of .30 cal., but my mildly tweaked Yugo SKS @ $150 seems to fill the same niche as a Mini for a lot less outlay.

BTW the Mini is a carbine at best. Not even close to a "battle rifle".

 

[dave3006]

This is ridiculous, who doesn't clean their guns after shooting them? If you don't clean it, you deserve it to rust shut.

Ridiculous. I have been shooting for 25 years. I have never failed to clean any gun after shooting it. It is called discipline.

 

[itgoesboom]

Dave,

Unfortunatly, in a all hell breaks loose situation, you may not be able to clean your firearm right after shooting. That is definatly a worse case scenario, but since that is what you prepare for, you better consider it.

I like the Mini-14 rifles. I just wish that Ruger would fix a couple of the issues.

For the intended purposes listed, I can think of a few rifles that I would prefer to have instead of a Mini-14. SKS, AK, SAIGA or even the Kel-Tec SU-16.

I.G.B.

 

[jimmyp50]

Dave3006, I am 52 years old and have been shooting guns since I was 10. I do not have a gun in my collection that is not cleaned when used whenever possible. There have however been times when I could not clean a gun right after use.

This is part of the original post: Because of that, I hate to drop huge dollars on an AR-15. I want something that will not cost a lot to put in the safe, but that will work reliably should I need it. I want one that needs minimum maintenance, and that will prove rugged in adverse conditions. The Ruger seems to fit the bill

If anyone wants to wax poetic about the virtues of the mini-14 and spend their money on one I am all for it. However you cannot deny reality unless you are a Democrat. The Mini 14 is a fine gun from Ruger and it makes them a lot of money, it is enjoyed by those that buy it, is a lot of fun and works well if you can keep the gun dry and clean. However people who ask questions about it need to understand what it is designed for, a casual plinker or varment gun, at any rate a "sporting" gun of some sort. The Remington 7400 is another fine sporting gun, I have seen at least 3 of them in my life that would fire and not eject the empty due to rust in the chamber. The latest rifle by Benneli the R-1 features a chromed chamber although the barrel is not chromed, I know because I had one. I have seen bolt action and lever action hunting rifles with rust in their barrels. The only adverse conditions for any of them was just that they were used for hunting in the rain.... and the deer were not shooting back. Any gun that you want to work under "adverse conditions" had better be designed for "adverse conditions". The SKS and AK varieties are not perfect, they are in my opinion poor in accuracy and hard to shoot with their open sights but at the same time they have been counted on to deliver the goods even with corrosive ammuntion by the worlds military for years now.

 

[hillbilly]

Looking at the way you phrased your question, it sounds like any gun might become your "emergency battle rifle."

An emergency happens. You need a gun. You grab the closest one.

If that's a single-shot H&R Topper shotgun in .410, then that becomes your default "emergency battle rifle," or at least that's my thinking

However, if you are looking for the following:

1) A rifle
2) That's cheap
3) That will go bang every time
4) That has cheap and readily avaliable magazines

Then I think your choice is clear......

An AK-47 clone.

Romanian SARs go for less than $300 quite commonly.

Used AK mags are getting down to around $5 a piece, with the death of AWB.

Ammo in 7.62X39 is so plentiful and cheap that no one actually bothers to reload the stuff.

hillbilly

 

[MrMurphy]

I've shot dozens of Minis over the years. They're not bad, but as noted, do have "problems easily fixed by Ruger" which Ruger has chosen not to. Not to mention the magazine thing.

The M14 works just fine with a mag release. The Mini generally does not. Same system, different manufacturer.


Before I blew $500 on a Mini, I'd spend the extra $100 and get a Armalite AR180B. Much better ergonomics and sights, it takes AR magazines, and the design is very reliable. It's the same one copied by the H&K G36, XM8, HKM4, and SA80, and was designed to be an improvement to the crap-blowing-everywhere design of the M16, a few years later.

Without a trimmed barrel, better iron sights and a better mag release, I wouldn't take a Mini unless it was the only rifle available. AK or SKS, anyday, I have more experience with them and they're proven reliable performers under all conditions.

 

[Pete1953]

I have a Mini 14 that has been a problem since I got it. I have 3 Ruger 5 round magazines and the bolt hangs open on the magazine follower after the last shot. I have to manually pull the bolt back and lock it open before I can drop the empty magazine. I have sent it back to Ruger, they changed the follower and said it worked. It still doesen't work right. Any suggestions besides lock it away and forget about it?

 

[mustanger98]

I have a Mini 14 that has been a problem since I got it. I have 3 Ruger 5 round magazines and the bolt hangs open on the magazine follower after the last shot. I have to manually pull the bolt back and lock it open before I can drop the empty magazine. I have sent it back to Ruger, they changed the follower and said it worked. It still doesen't work right.

The Mini-14's magazine follower actuates a bolt stop- a part in the left side of the receiver that acts like the slide stop in a 1911. If your rifle is working right, the bolt isn't catching on the magazine follower, but rather on the bolt stop, and that means the bolt is behind the follower and not directly on it. The bolt is supposed to lock open after the last round. Mine does this; it works just like it's supposed to.