I'm thinking about getting a Ruger Mini-14 Ranch Rifle and want to know if anyone has one or has any knowledge of their quality. Thanks!

Another has strayed from the flock, I don't think you will like what you will hear...

That being said, I like everything about them except for the sights, mags, and barrel.  

sights=junk
mags=$$$$$$$$$
barrel=chunk of steel pipe w/ front sight attached

just my opinion--if Bill and his boys fixed that I would like them alot better, carrying one makes me feel all warm and fuzzy like I am toting around a baby M1a.

Important note : the new production .223 Cal Mini-14 will no longer accept after market 20 and 30 mags !

Quoted: Important note : the new production .223 Cal Mini-14 will no longer accept after market 20 and 30 mags !

NO WAY! Really?  That is crap, how'd they change them and why?  

Buy an old one, if you must.  I just sold my last one to my father in law.  The AR is a better rifle.  I used mine to shoot dogs on the farm.  Okay rifle.  No complaints.

Quoted: Quoted: Important note : the new production .223 Cal Mini-14 will no longer accept after market 20 and 30 mags ! NO WAY! Really?  That is crap, how'd they change them and why?

Apparently changed the width of the magwell liner and where it connects to the receiver .

P.S. You can still get a new one that takes large cap mags from Ruger if your a dealer or leo , you just have to ask specifically .

I don't understand how the rifle could accept standard 5 round mags either if this is the case! They are just as wide and lock up the same way. Could this be a new model that takes a different mag or maybe even a single stack? I'm not flaming anyone but this doesn't seem to make any sense. Think of any other rifle...an AK for example. We know we can buy 5 or 10 round mags for these but in order to build the gun to where they couldn't accept hi-caps, you would have to change the entire design. The only way I could see this happening is if they made the guns to where the mags seated so deep in the mag well that a curved mag wouldn't fit. But I still can't see that happening either without a major change to the rifle.

But even if Ruger did do something to them and the dealer can still order hi-cap capable models, then just have him order one of these. Or get an old one. They can't be illegal since it's not illegal to have a post-ban weapon of any kind that will accept hi-cap mags (unless it is some foreign design that requires American parts to be legal).

As far as the Mini-14 goes, I like them. It is true that an AR will do about anything as well or better than a Mini, but I still like them. They aren't target guns but are accurate enough for me. The one I have is very reliable with the PMI and John Masen mags I use. Pro Mag also has a new 10 round mag that works fine in them also. What I like about the Mini is it's simplicity and reliability. An AR requires much more attention to cleaning and ammo choices than a Mini. I fired about 3k rounds through mine once without any sort of maintenance and it didn't miss a beat. My Mini is reliable with PMC ammo where the AR is not. And then they are cheaper than any AR except maybe a Hesse which is a pile of garbage.

I own both an AR and a Mini-14 and I like them both. It is important to know that both have their strengths and weaknesses. The barrels on Mini's do tend to heat up faster than an AR and accuracy isn't as good. But it compares pretty well to the older AR's with the skinny barrels. You can still hit stuff with them anyway.

Another problem with the Mini-14 is lack of parts. Many people have said that you can't get parts for these in an emergency because you have to send them to the factory for service. Well as of yet I haven't needed any service. I have had more than one of these guns and put many rounds through them and carried them considerably without any breakage.

I have often heard that the sights are fragile and break easy. My opinion is that if a person abuses these guns enough to break the sights off, then they are probably so abusive they would damage any rifle. Besides, if you get the standard model and not the Ranch which has the flip up rear sights (Ranch is intended more as a scoped gun) then you get a rear peep sight similar to that found on an M1 or M14.

Are these guns as good as an AR? No. But for the difference in cost, many will choose the Mini anyway. It is a decent little rifle as long as you understand what it can and can't do. It is nice IMO to have an alternative to the AR. Many people can't afford an AR and the Mini fills that gap just fine. And they also have a chamber that is compatible with mil-spec rounds, a feature some AR makers don't use.

I will be interested in trying the new Armalite AR-180B as well. I don't expect it to perform like a new Bushmaster heavy barreled rifle or a Colt Sporter, but that doesn't mean there isn't a place in my safe for one. My guess is they will compare pretty closely in performance and accuracy as an SP1 AR.

There are many types of rifles out there that were made for similar jobs....the AR, AK, etc. While some are obviously better than others, that doesn't mean any of them are bad. Pick and choose guns based on your requirements and particular taste. The Mini's I have tried pass my performance requirements and I actually prefer them to AK's. The stock fits me better and the gun just feels more comfortable. I tend to shoot it just as accurate as my AK if not better.

One other good thing about the Mini-14 is the way it looks. If a person lives in California that may be the only semi-auto rifle of it's type that they can legally own. AR's and AK's are out of the question. They can still own the Mini by no doubt in part to it's appearance. It doesn't possess many of the evil features that politicians love to ban.

So if you want a Mini and find one at a good price, buy it. Use factory, John Masen or PMI hi-caps and it will serve you well. You can use the new Pro Mag 10 rounders also if you wish. These seem reliable. But just understand that the Mini isn't an AR. If you try to compare the two you may be disappointed in the Mini. Remember that the Mini serves the role of a budget AR, but a decent alternative anyway.

Now I realize I will probably get flamed by someone, but that's alright by me. Just because I have an AR doesn't mean I have to be 100% loyal to that type of rifle! Afterall I have a Ford and a Chevy and as far as I can tell one doesn't get jealous of the other! But I like both of them for what they are and use their differences to my advantage.......one goes better in the snow and ice while the other is considerably speedier.

Quoted: I will be interested in trying the new Armalite AR-180B as well.

I believe the new AR-180B may be the best gun 'value' around today.

As to the Mini-14, the rifle has an excellent design but Ruger chooses to use a barrel that costs about $8.00 and that does not allow for much accuracy.

Maybe of passing interest to some, the same guy who designed the original ArmaLite AR-15 (James Sullivan) also designed the Mini-14 for Ruger.  (No, Eugene Stoner did not design the ArmaLite AR-15.)

Quoted: (No, Eugene Stoner did not design the ArmaLite AR-15.)

What???  Were the hell did you hear this??

Sgtar15

Quoted: Quoted: (No, Eugene Stoner did not design the ArmaLite AR-15.) What???  Were the hell did you hear this?? Sgtar15

Sgtar15,
Stoner didn't believe in the 5.56mm cartridge for military use.
He only designed two 5.56mm weapons during his career - the FARC which was never produced and the Stoner 86 which may be about to go into production.  (The '86 design was modified in the mid 90's before Stoner passed away.)

The Mini-14 has some good points.  Its fun to shoot, it is reasonably priced and it looks less scary than an evil black AR.  They usually work fine.  They are not very accurate, throw brass to hell and gone if you reload, and high cap mags are a problem.  I would recommend saving a little more money and getting an AR15 or maybe an AR180B.  Watch-Six

Quoted: As to the Mini-14, the rifle has an excellent design <clip>

I agree, if Ruger had put alittle money into the thing, it could have been a great little rifle.  Instead he skimped on parts, which is a real shame

Quoted: Sgtar15, Stoner didn't believe in the 5.56mm cartridge for military use.

From what I read Stoner did believe in a small military cartridge.  In the 50's it was being shown that this was the way to go, but the US military was the ones that were really against it.  The Armory was stuck on the M14 and its 308 round while Europe was already pushing for a smaller .270.

Eather way, Stoner had more to do with the AR15 than anyone else.  That is why he was listed as an official consultant before any changes were made.

Sgtar15

PS Most of this info is from MISFIRE by William H. Hallahan

I was told that the new Mini-14 does not except old 20 and 30 round mags when I bought one  September '01. I had bought several 30 round mags before the ban knowing that I would buy one in the future. All of the mags fit fine.  I think that might be a rumor. I bought the Mini before finding this site. I already had a AR that I did not use much. Since then I have used both alot. The AR is a better rifle and I hate to be PC but I let my son use the Mini Ranch for deer hunting. I do not think I would have let him use the AR.MIKE

Quoted: Quoted: Sgtar15, Stoner didn't believe in the 5.56mm cartridge for military use. From what I read Stoner did believe in a small military cartridge.  In the 50's it was being shown that this was the way to go, but the US military was the ones that were really against it.  The Armory was stuck on the M14 and its 308 round while Europe was already pushing for a smaller .270. Eather way, Stoner had more to do with the AR15 than anyone else.  That is why he was listed as an official consultant before any changes were made. Sgtar15 PS Most of this info is from MISFIRE by William H. Hallahan

I don't want to beat this to death but Stoner designed the AR-10 in 7.62 but not the AR-15 in 5.56.  (James Sullivan and Bob Fremont designed the AR-15 while at ArmaLite.)
Stoner designed the Stoner 62 in 7.62 but not the Stoner 63 in 5.56mm.  (Cadillac Gage brought in Sullivan and Fremont to design the '63.)

See the pattern ?  He just didn't believe in the 5.56mm for military use.



Edited to add:  James Sullivan not only designed the Mini-14 while at Ruger but also designed the Ruger Model 77 - a bolt gun.  Both the Mini-14 and the Model 77 have sold well over 1 million units for Ruger.

Stoner, Sullivan, Fremont, John Peck (AR-17), Art Miller (AR-18) - the guys were all with ArmaLite and these guys were GOOD !!

I have a stainless synthetic mini and its a great rifle I really like it It has gone around 1200 rounds without a jam all using wolf ammo and aftermarket hi caps I have had good luck with the westerns and they are cheap also. I got a ranch model and it costed $450 don't let all these die hard AR15ers get you down about the mini if you want a reliable cheap fun rifle get the mini and buy a few cases of wolf and have fun. I don't really care about 1/2" groups at 100yards.

I sadly bought a new Ranch rifle a few years back. POS wouldn't group better than 6 inches at 100yds. Magazines that will fit and actually function are either hard as hell to find, or hard as hell to pay for. You couldn't pay me to take another mini-14.

The mini 14 is a good gun with a bad rap I bought on about ten years ago when I wanted a .223 rifle and could not afford an AR. The only problem withe the mini 14 aftermarket high cap mags some work and some don't. I have had good luck with PMI and Madsens I also have bought cheap no name brands and replaced the spring with a wolf spring and a Ruger factory follower and got them to work fine.

If you cant afford an AR buy a mini 14.

Its weird that everyone complains about how hard it is to find mags but I have really good luck some really cheap ones like $15 i  have looked at and I thought no way in hell would it function but they all do.

Been there, done that, they suck.
Save a bit more and get an AR....

C.g.

Sportsmansguide.com has both the 20 and 30 rounders pretty reasonable

I have a ranch rifle,its a good gun. but I like my AR better. I would sell the Ruger if I could get what I paid (450.0)

Hey Raf , the answer is buried in one of these two links , one guy found out at a friends gun shop and the other called Ruger Firearms directly . So for verification you can call them yourself . Saturday I'm off to my favorite toy store to check it out myself . Apparently it became widely known on some other sites this week .


www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?ID=120121

www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?id=114840

Quoted: Its weird that everyone complains about how hard it is to find mags but I have really good luck some really cheap ones like $15 i  have looked at and I thought no way in hell would it function but they all do.

Those Ramline combo mags that are supposed to work in an AR15, AR180, and Mini work great in the Mini, but not worth a crap in the other 2.  I have found it to be the best aftermarket mag for the Mini.

Okay, I called Ruger this morning and asked them about the rumor of them having changed their mag well opening.  They said they have not changed it.   The mags that were tried by the Ruger bashers on here must have been deformed.  That last sentence are my words, not theirs.

Quoted: Okay, I called Ruger this morning and asked them about the rumor of them having changed their mag well opening.  They said they have not changed it.   The mags that were tried by the Ruger bashers on here must have been deformed.  That last sentence are my words, not theirs.

I wouldn't call myself a Ruger basher exactly, but I did try to get a new Pro Mag to go into a brand new Mini 14 and it did not fit. It is quite possible that the magazine was deformed, and if Ruger has not changed their magazine well, I apologize for furthering an internet myth. There was another member here that had the same problem inserting a high cap mag into a new Mini 14 though. Anyhow, I will be visiting the gunshop (Northeast Gun and Pawn in Baltimore) this weekend and I will try and find another mag or two to try in this same Mini.

i wouldnt mind having a .223 in a garand-type action. much as i like my AR, i will never become accustomed to having to disassemble the bolt carrier assembly as routine maintenance.

so the question for me is, "what does it take to make a mini14 an accurate rifle?". better barrel? who sells them, and how much?

no matter how much you polish a turd, a turd is still a turd.  

get an ak variant in .223 instead of the mini :^)!!!  i dumped my mini for the romanian sar-3 (.223) and have never looked back.  plenty of low cost, high qualilty, reliable mags (hi caps too!) out there.  

Quoted: no matter how much you polish a turd, a turd is still a turd.   get an ak variant in .223 instead of the mini :^)!!!  i dumped my mini for the romanian sar-3 (.223) and have never looked back.  plenty of low cost, high qualilty, reliable mags (hi caps too!) out there.

mik, some areas of this free land dictate a Mini-14 type weapon.  Some people simply like the Mini-14.  For these folks, a decent and floated barrel makes for a very fine rifle.

I've been hearing the no more hi-caps capability rumor for about two years now.  My buddy just got a brand new stainless Mini-14 Ranch Rifle.  It takes hi-caps.  Let's just hope that this rumor doesn't eventually become reality.  I'd say that it won't becuase Ruger does still sell an awful lot of Mini-14's to law enforcement agencies.  Ruger would have to be making two different versions of the same rifle.  I don't see a profit being made that way.

MOA Mini anyone?


Accuracy Rifle Systems- the originator of the accurate Mini-14.

Clark Custom Guns- of accurized pistol fame.

Connecticut Precision Chambering- a long-time accurizer of 10/22s and High Standard pistols. Top flight work here.

Accuracy Systems- I don't know anything about these guys.