Myself I would have nothing besides a Ruger mini 14 and a Springfield M1A1.Simply because of ruggedness and reliability.Sure other Ar's and such out perform on accuracy but myself Iam looking for a weapon that can take abuse and not have to be babied and cleaned daily.I have owned everything from HK to the good old Romanian Ak's and all have had problems.Anyways what does everyone else prefer?

This is not a Mini-14 friendly place.

If I was to have just one rifle, it would be a bolt action, .303 Enfield or a 8mm Mauser most likely.  You should never need more than one shot.

I would take more firepower any day of the week.One shot hell I would at least go with a Remington 700.

I like my Franken Rifle Bush Lower, Rock River Arms 16" Car a2 upper, Oly Arms 4 POS collapsible, Tango Down pistol grip.  I have put over 2800 rounds through my Ar before with out cleaning it... deffinately doesnt have to be babied

Sounds like a great gun.

Ruger mini 14 and a Springfield M1A are two of the most problematic rifles I ever spent time with. The M1A fed well but was surprisingly inaccurate.  The mini-14 I did'nt expect much out of, nor did I receive.  
I'd like to shoot a M1A "National Match".

I have a romanian AK that never misses a beat.  Surprisingly accurate.

Everyone results and opinions tend to differ.  With the AR type system I've had problems with a AR-10 (opposite the M1A, great accuracy but feeding issues) but would trust any of the AR-15 varients in my posession.

Someday I'll own a quality FAL.

My Type 99 jap 7.7!  Best dang rifle in the world!

No really it's a good rifle, but my PWA frankestein is a wonderful rifle too!  Never had a prob with it, but - and my Jap always goes boom, but so dang expensive to shoot.

AR > everything else.

Quoted: My Type 99 jap 7.7!  Best dang rifle in the world! No really it's a good rifle, but my PWA frankestein is a wonderful rifle too!  Never had a prob with it, but - and my Jap always goes boom, but so dang expensive to shoot.

I'm told that hte Action on the Type 99 Arisaka is actualy twice as stong as the action on a Mauser and the rifle is also more accurate then a Mauser. The problem came to be is tha the Type-99 gained a bad rep because of the horrid conditions they were being produced under from 1941+, Japan did not have the industry like the rest of the world did.  I saw a 1944 production one that looked like it was made with a chizzal and the reciever was supposidly 30% tin.  The rifle blew up first time it was fied back in WWII needless to say.

Quoted: I'm told that hte Action on the Type 99 Arisaka is actualy twice as stong as the action on a Mauser and the rifle is also more accurate then a Mauser. The problem came to be is tha the Type-99 gained a bad rep because of the horrid conditions they were being produced under from 1941+, Japan did not have the industry like the rest of the world did.  I saw a 1944 production one that looked like it was made with a chizzal and the reciever was supposidly 30% tin.  The rifle blew up first time it was fied back in WWII needless to say.

Yes indeed the Japanese action is a VERY strong.  The rifle can be quite accurate, and many of them have chrome lined bores to help against corrosion from salt water.  I was fortunate that my rifle was very clean, besides having a broken firing pin (which was a real pita to find).  I have seen several conversions from the 7.7 x 58mm jap round to anything from .223 to .30 - 06.  

As to the quality of the rifles, after 1943 the Japanese were really pushing their production limits.  A way to tell about a late model rifle is the front site - early models were adjustable and had AA wings!  Later rifles were equipped with non adjustable straight sights.  The butt plate also disappears in later models (it was metal).

I don't get to fire my rifle often due to the fact that ammo is $40 for a box of 20 shells!  It's a real shame, this is a fine rifle to shoot!  The metal butt plate is a real pain though, after so long one's shoulder will become nice and bruised.  This rifle being my first bolt action (or gun for that matter) I now use to straight bolts and find turned down bolts ackward to operate.

A good website to use for identifying the marks is here.

This website is a really great tool for Japanese ordnaces of WWII.

Yes in the last half hour I have decided I MUST HAVE a Type-99 in a moded caliber, still reading up if it’s safe or not. Only ones I have seen are .30-06, which isn’t bad seeing that round is readily available both new and surplus.

Why the AR15 of coarse....

FAL - IMO, the mini 14 and mini 30s are the worst guns Ruger ever put out...  ANY AR-15 varient will outshoot, and be more reliable than a mini-14... Furthermore, a $300 Romanian SAR-1 is TWICE the gun a mini 30 ever thought of being...


  - georgestrings

If I could have only one rifle? DSA SA58. The best of all worlds.

Quoted: . . I have seen several conversions from the 7.7 x 58mm jap round to anything from .223 to .30 - 06.   . I don't get to fire my rifle often due to the fact that ammo is $40 for a box of 20 shells!  It's a real shame, this is a fine rifle to shoot! . .

This is a bit off-topic, but we had a bit of discussion about the worthwhilness of reloading ammo in the reloading forum. Some calibers the availability of ammo very wide and therefore the cost would be very low, whereas some of the more obsecure rounds it would be very costly. I would like to point out that reloading 7.7x58mm Jap would be extremely worthwhile once you acquire the cases, I would probably venture a guess, 30¢-40¢ per round to reload.

Seeing that to purchase each round runs for about $5 from what I've seen, casings alone cost $3 a pop.

Well I have seen many Ar's completely lock down and fail to feed and fire when they were not cleaned.Likewise since 1983 my first mini 14 has never failed to fire the sorriest cheapest ammo on the market.And yes it has went over 1000 without cleaning and any problems.Of course it is not as accurate as any ar but it is more reliable and I have no doubt it will fir every time.On another subject the Mini 30 is the biggest piece of junk ever made.
Only problem with the mini are the mags.But since Sept.13 brand new 20rd leo mags can be found for $40 brand new in box and i have yet to have a factory Ruger mag give me any problems.
Bottom line is do like me and buy both the Ar and the mini befor some sorry@SS PERSON LIKE TED KENNEDY (JOHN KERRY) COMES INTO POWER AND OUT LAWSA EVERYTHING NOT TO MENTION THE UNITED NATIONS COMPLETELY TAKING OVER AMERICA JUST LIKE EUROPE!

Quoted: Myself I would have nothing besides a Ruger mini 14 and a Springfield M1A1.Simply because of ruggedness and reliability.Sure other Ar's and such out perform on accuracy but myself Iam looking for a weapon that can take abuse and not have to be babied and cleaned daily.I have owned everything from HK to the good old Romanian Ak's and all have had problems.Anyways what does everyone else prefer?

I know that in Highpower competition, the AR is much more durable than the M1A. This is both with respect to parts breakage, and maintaining accuracy (M1A accuracy requires a solid bedding, and this loosens with repeated firings, to the point that the USMC team used to rebed their M1As after 800 rounds).

The skuttlebutt I've heard on Mini-14s is that they are not up to longer term service use in police service, which explains why the CHP has switched to ARs.

I would have to say my FAL , but it is my latest rifle too.

My 7.7 Japanese I picked up at a auction really cheap because the "collectors" said the sporterized (sp) stock and turned down barrel lowered the value...so $15 dollars!  It looks like a Rem. 700.  The barrel is tapered and it has what looks like a modified '03 stock and bolt turned to a smaller diameter and bent.  It surprised me how well it shot with open sights and has killed several deer.  The damn shells I picked up (NORMA) when I bought it cost $22.00...the down side.

"Bottom line is do like me and buy both the Ar and the mini..."


Uh, no thanks... I think that between my Bushmaster, SAR-1, FAL, and soon to be built FAL carbine, I'll be all set... I wouldn't mind owning a quality M1A, but I DO have an HRA M1 Garand - so it isn't all bad... Sorry, I'm just not at all impressed with the mini-14 - and even though I own a few of their handguns, IMO Ruger's politics SUCK!!! If I buy another Ruger, it'll likely be a Blackhawk in .45Colt, 7 and 1/2" barrel - to compliment my Super Red Hawk .454Casull...

Quality AR15s built by Armalite, Bushmaster, Colt, and RRA are typically stone reliable with a minimum of care, and very accurate...


"Well I have seen many Ar's completely lock down and fail to feed and fire when they were not cleaned."


What ARs are we talking about, quality rifles as mentioned above, or kitchen table builds??? Quality of ammo??? ANY maintainence done on them AT ALL??? You know, even a good truck needs it's oil changed once in a while - it really doesn't take much maintainence at all to keep a well built AR15 humming along happily...


"I have owned everything from HK to the good old Romanian Ak's and all have had problems."


OK, those firearms gave you problems, but your "faithful mini14" didn't??? I'm sorry, but that sounds like absolute bullshit to me... I'm not meaning to come off like an asshole, but I have a hard time believing your premise that the mini14 is a superior weapon compared to a quality AR15, or a good AK47 clone...


    - georgestrings

Quoted: Myself I would have nothing besides a Ruger mini 14 and a Springfield M1A1.Simply because of ruggedness and reliability.Sure other Ar's and such out perform on accuracy but myself Iam looking for a weapon that can take abuse and not have to be babied and cleaned daily.I have owned everything from HK to the good old Romanian Ak's and all have had problems.Anyways what does everyone else prefer?

   

Yep, have seen a many a QUALITY Ar lock down including Bushmaster and Colt.Had problems with my last Bushmaster handling Wolf ammo.And yes this was shooting 90rds and then cleaning after each trip.Also my 1981 HK-93 had problems handling Wolf.And I paid $1700 for the damn thing.If you ask me Hk is simply a name that has became popular.Ever notice how many complaints are made concerNing the MP5 jamming during rapid fire!If you ask me Hk is simply giving law enforcement a good price on there weapons.Not to mention how they have turned against the civilian market.
Back to Wolf ammo.Some call it junk but if your rifle cannot handle all ammo its not much of a weapon to begin with.
Anyways the Mini 14 is a reliable and effective rifle.It is not as accurate as an Ar but it makes up for it with reliability.Dont take my word go buy one for yourself.

Quoted: If I could have only one rifle? DSA SA58. The best of all worlds.

Nice!  short gas tube with para lower, How come nobody has thought of that before?  Is it an SBR?  

Oh and you guessed it, I vote FAL.  I love the AR, but I'd rather have a larger caliber that can go through cover instead of the 5.56, and the Fal is the perfect platform for the 308.

"Back to Wolf ammo.Some call it junk but if your rifle cannot handle all ammo its not much of a weapon to begin with.
Anyways the Mini 14 is a reliable and effective rifle.It is not as accurate as an Ar but it makes up for it with reliability.Dont take my word go buy one for yourself."

Don't worry, I'm not taking your word - I'll pass...  I've shot a few minis - compared to a quality AR15, they're absolute junk... Also, I don't mind spending a few bucks on Q3131A or M193 - I like to actually be able to hit what I'm aiming at... I don't mind feeding my SAR-1 Wolf, though - that's what it was made for....


  - georgestrings

Amen about Wolf ammo...put the cheap crap ammo in the AK where it belongs...ammo not meant for accuracy in a rifle not meant for accuracy....
If you want accuracy, either reload or spend the money to buy ammo that is intended to deliver results, not just go "bang".  
I was at the local pawn shop and they had just gotten a new batch of WASR's...they had test targest with them.  Impressive...these AK's had test targets were showing under 4" groups, presumably at 100 yds.  Bullshit.  I told the guy, "Hey man, what's this on the test target, powder burns?!"  
It's okay to go cheap, just remember that you get what you pay for.
Gotta disagree on the Mini-14 being crap, though.  I've owned 2 Mini's and 3 AR's.  They function reliably, they just don't deliver on accuracy.  If they would offer one with a better barrel or if there's a good aftermarket barrel out there somewhere, a Mini could be a great choice.  
The only really cheap ammo that I thought was pretty accurate was the Norinco stuff that I don't think is available anymore.  My SP-1 got along just fine with the stuff!  None of the Russian stuff is any good.