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Posted: 1/4/2005 5:25:31 PM EDT
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Are the mini 30's reliable with cheap ammo, and what mags are decent? Also on the Mini 14 can it be modified to accept AR mags? I've got a SAR1 and not real excited by it but like the cheap 7.62x39 ammo. I've always liked the Ruger mini's but never owned one. During the ban mags were holding me back from any real interest but now I imagine someone will be making decent mags? I waffle alot on whether or not I'll like the SAR enough to keep it, it's been reliable but just not a rifle I'd consider a "go to" gun. I dont really know why I dont enjoy shooting it more but I find myself looking for a replacement rifle. I would like an M1A eventually but I'm thinking the mini might fill in for now... 
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| Buy an AR15 and keep your SAR1. A Mini-14 cannot be modified to accept AR15 mags. The cheapest Mini-14/30 mags that work are PMIs and they are around $30 each. You would be wasting your money on either a Mini-14 or Mini-30 because both rifles are POS, have piss poor accuracy and even the cheapest mags will still cost more than AR15 mags and AK47 mags. I had a Mini-14 and a Mini-30 and I am glad I sold them both. |
| I have a mini-14, and have had NO problems with accuracy at all. I shoot 5 shot groups @ 3MOA using wolf 62gr.have |
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I had a pre-ban Mini-14 with a folding stock and a stainless steel Mini-30. I sold both and am of the opinion that Ruger makes a very poor product, on top of the fact that I NEVER found an aftermarket 30 round mag that would function properly in either of these rifles. I don't believe that I have seen any new mags for either that wern't around a year ago. They're all garbage. I HEARD that THERMOLDS were good, but I never saw one to know first hand. I shot expensive, down to cheap Wolf ammo and never had acceptable performance from either rifle. Poor accuracy, poor reliability, all around bad experience...especially from the Mini-30. I suppose the Mini-30 was far worse than the Mini-14, however, I WOULD NOT EVER buy another of either. Recoil on the Mini-30 was also clearly greater than my AK. There are plenty of other superior options out there in 7.62 and .233. Don't opt for the Chrysler "K" Car of the shooting world. Sorry to hear you don't like the SAR. I enjoy my WASR, even if it is cheap. I like your M1A idea. Save up for that and/or get an FAL or cheaper (and different) CETME. 308 is a trip! Whatever you do, DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY ON THE MINI. I promise you, you will be disappointed. |
| My Mini-30 was the biggest pos ive ever seen cant shoot surlpus 7.62 because barrel was .308 while surplus 7.62 is .312 increased pressure would blow teh action out the bottom. what good is a cheap rifle when you have to use expensive us ammo. this was the only rifle i have ever sold |
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Owned 3 Mini-14s - Reliable - but very inaccurate. Sold all of them. Might buy one again if Ruger ever wakes up and makes one with a heavier, more accurate barrel. On the magazines - I had some 30 round Thermolds that worked great. However, if I were choosing between a Mini 30 and an M1A - the M1A wins hands down. |
Not going to disagree with you,I think minis can be more accurate than people think especially if you reload for them,but more accurate than ANY ar?I have a stock 20" bushmaster,only mod is a accuwedge,and it shoots better than 1/2 moa with 55gn hornady vmatch over 25.0 gn of win 748 all day long.BTW this was the only bullet I could get to shoot well in the two minis I owned,but they would shoot them well untill the barrel heated up.The Mini-14 is the best design for a autoloading rifle IMHO,just poorly executed by ruger.I am waiting for the upgrade ruger is rumored to be making on the new mini,will be waiting for the reviews but if they improve the barrel,I will own one again  eta: sorry,Mr beams products havnt improved my reading comprehension this evening,I transposed more reliable with more accurate than any ar.Still have my fingers crossed that mucho improvements are in the pipeline for the newest mini |
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I've had a Mini 30 since they came out. I bought it as a backup hunting rifle not as a pseudo assault rifle. It was made for US made ammo and such is stated in the owner's manual. No factory hi-cap mags were ever made for the Mini 30. The only hi-caps available were aftermarket of dubious quality. I do have one 30 round USA mag that after considerbly tweaking work reliable. I also have a couple plastic 18 round Eagle mags that works but are flimsy. I have shot all kinds of ammo through it including surplus ammo. I've never had a failure with the factory mags. My Mini 30 is no tack driver but is far more accurate than any of my AKs or SKSs that I have. Though not a great fan of the 7.62x39 as a hunting round I have killed 4 or 5 deer with it over the years at distances out to 100 yards. Funny that some would call it a POS. I am a big fan of AKs and SKSs but hold up the Mini to one of those and then tell me which is a POS? |
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Like some of the guys above my mini-30 didn't like surplus foriegn ammo. It ate US stuff up no problem but there were a lot of FTF's with foriegn surplus ammo and even Wolf. My mini-14 was alway reliable with just about any ammo but with both rifles accuracy was not their strong point. A lot more hi-cap mags available for the 14 than the 30. I have a couple of hi-cap 30 magazines that function OK but I wouldn't trust my life to them. Sold the mini-14 and willing to sell the mini30 if anyone's interested..  I like my 6920 a whole lot better than any mini
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I use my Mini for a house gun and my AR for my serious rifle. It goes ban everytime, is PC, and accurate enough out to 50 yards for what I use it for. Everyone has trouble with the 30 round mags, but I have found that 20 rounders seem to work very well... Raf, what kind of "tweak" did you do to yours? |
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The owners manual says the mini 30 has a gradual throating so that it can fire .308 and .311 bullets interchangeably. I've used wolf in it but not milsurp because I don't like using corrosive ammo in a weapon that has a gas system. It's as accurate as my winchester 94 and ballistically similar, I've never had a jam, malfunction or ftf with it. My mini 14 is about the same. I don't know what everybody is complaining about, but then again maybe I just got a couple of good ones. My 14 eats up any ammo it's fed, but I don't buy what some say that they are more reliable than an AR though. They definitely aren't as accurate stock, but they work for what they are intended for. I'd rather have a mini 30 than an SKS in my opinion. ________________________________________________________________________ My pistol and rifle are merely TOOLS, I'M the weapon 
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Ruger changed the Mini-30 barrel to the standard size during the early 1990's. Dennis Jenkins
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The PMI 30's work just fine. I even have some old 35 round Eagle Beta mags that work fine as long as you remember that they are made of plastic. I'm sure there are plenty of junk mags around.<G> Just retorquing the gas block seems to work wonders. Dennis Jenkins
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Retourquing meaning loosening the screws and retightening them? Thanks! |
| I like my mini-30 fine. It digests silver bear w/o a hitch. Open site accuracy is aboput 4". Its not sub-MOA like my accurized AR, but its plenty useful as a working gun. Only issu I have is finding good mahazines. The factory 5 round models are perfect. Eagle and USA absolutely suck. |
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Most people have had the gas block apart to install a scout rail or a gas block kit. Just loosening and retightening the screws would be an interesting experiment. Be sure and get an new allen wrench that fits. The screws are often staked. Dennis Jenkins Raf, what kind of "tweak" did you do to yours? Retourquing meaning loosening the screws and retightening them? Thanks! |
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Most important (to accuracy) was installing the action into a synthetic stock, and then bedding the action into the stock. Next was smoothing out the trigger. Lightened pull weight a little, but most important was a crisp trigger that breaks cleanly. Finally, I cryo-treated the barreled action, which helped eliminate stringing as the barrel heats up. There are a number of smaller tweaks, such as installing a Scout scope and mount, fiddling with the sights, etc. Nothing terribly expensive in itself (some labor only), but it does add up eventually. Re-torqueing is a bad choice of words. It implies re-tightening fasteners (to a specified tightness) that have been tightened before. In most cases, fasteners that have been once torgued should not be re-used for that purpose. Anyways, torqueing means tightening fasteners (almost always threaded fasteners) to a specified, repeatable tightness based on their size, composition, and application. |
You go that right. The eagle mags are disposable. You shoot them once, they break and you throw them away. The one USA mag I have I go to work by prying out the mag release slot in the back. It locks up and works most of the time. |
Would the Ruger factory synthetic qualify, or would a Choate or Houge be necessary? just thinking of what I could get for cheap off ebay or something |
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Just getting the action settled into any stock and then tightening the gas block screws evenly makes a big difference in MOST rifles. A lot of people have reported this and it worked for me. I have no "solid" idea what is happening here so I don't know what would happen if you just loosened and retightened the screws. I really think getting it settled into the stock and not in a bind is part of the deal though. I'm sure the bedding helps too but getting the action settled into the stock and retightening the gas block costs NOTHING except a little time. Dennis Jenkins
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This is part of a procedure, the goal of which is to ensure an even gap between the upper and lower halves of the gas block. The "re-torqueing" of the screws is only the final step to ensure the gap remains uniform front-to-rear, and side-to-side. "Re-torqueing" by itself would accomplish little, if anything. If ALL of the gas block screws are loosened sufficiently to allow the gas block to adjust to the stock, then some good may be done. At least until the wood stock warps a bit due to moisture. I suggest that one is wasting one's time unless one begins with a synthetic stock. Mods like the one above will have much more consistent results if the wooden stock is replaced. |
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I saw the NEW mini at the funshow yesterday. It has a factory synthetic stock and new sights. The front sight is a protected short post, much like an M1 Carbine sight, and sits more forward on the barrel than the old one. It is also not quite as long of a unit. The rear sight is a small adjustable steel peep sight, much like the Ashley Outdoors ghost ring apertures. Definitely an improvement over the hole drilled in a piece of sheet metal like the old one. I was impressed that Ruger is addressing the shortcomings of the Mini, and appear to be doing a decent job of it |
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