Mini 14 reliability?

T

TacticalFriedChicken

New member
I am in the market for a .223 semiauto for plinking/small game hunting/fun/SHTF rifle.. I've heard the horror stories linked to the Mini-14's accuracy.. But how about the reliability? I figure as long as i can get within 2"-4" @100 yds I'm happy.. I just want a fun gun that's cheap to shoot. Has anyone had any failures to feed, extract, or fire with one of these? My 10/22 has flawlessly cycled through over 1000 rounds from Federal, Remington, and Winchester, without a single hiccup of any kind.. So that's pretty good performance from Ruger as far as I'm concerned.. Talk me out of this, if you can.. I don't want to regret this.
 
B

BCBR

New member
Rifle

Dont do it ,git u an Sks or some other.
I am mini fo teen po.
Seriously go to http://www.perfectunion.com/forums/index.php
Find the mini section an read till you are satisfied.
I have had a few problems with mine, broken extractor,no accuraccy at all,finding reliable good mags. That was before the Clinton ruger ban expired. :eek:
 
G

Get_Zapped

New member
I've seen some of the same problems also. Mags hang up alot. The one I had wouldn't extract some casings and you would have to knock it out with a cleaning rod. And again poor accuracy. They are made to just go out and shoot soda cans at short range.
 
C

Capt. Charlie

Moderator Emeritus
Funny, my experience has been the exact opposite. Mine is an older mini, and the accuracy does leave something to be desired. I've been told, however, that the accuracy problem is limited to a certain serial number run (sorry, don't know which ones) in which Ruger put too many turns in its rifling, which made bullet flight unstable. As to reliability, the Mini-14's action is based on the venerable M-1 Garand, which is probably the most reliable semi-auto action ever made. Mine has been through hell and has never failed to perform. I don't know about the newer ones, but the "pre-ban" mini's get my thumbs up.
 
B

bad_dad_brad

New member
A very reliable autoloader - just make sure you use factory magazines.

Accuracy is great for the first few shots. That is what it is intended for.

It is no AR-15 HBAR.

In the old days the Mini-14 was a great bargain, but now they cost too much. I have one of the first stainless models. Got it cheap. Won't sell it.

Find a good used one. The new Mini is just too pricey for what you get.
 
A

Art Eatman

Staff in Memoriam
I've had two blued and two stainless Minis. I grant they were older models, but reliability was absolutely not a factor.

The thin barrel heats up with longer strings of shots, so getting a tight group of more than three shots isn't really likely. I always mounted a Weaver K4 on mine; I regularly got three-shot groups inside two inches at 100 yards.

Art
 
I

impact

New member
I think the mini 14 and 30 are great guns! I have said thins in the past that the mini 30 is the best hog gun you can get. Sure the mini won't run with bolt guns for paper punching. But every mini I have ever had never let me down. Never had a failure of any kind. My mini 30 loves Wolf ammo and thats what I use for hogs.

Can't say enough good things about the mini! I do know that my SKS or AK can't out shoot my minis at 100 yards on paper. My Bushmaster varmint can out shoot my minis but not by much. I know a guy that put a after market barrel on a mini that will out shoot my Bushmaster. He has less money in his mini than I have in my Bushmaster!
 
L

LoadIt

New member
I have four Mini-14's and they have all functioned perfectly for me. Aftermarket magazines are hit and miss. I was lucky enough to pick up a couple of factory Ruger 20 round mag's at a gun show a few years ago. Wish I had more.
 
O

Omaha-BeenGlockin

New member
With proper magazines---the Mini is one of the most reliable semi's out there----junk mags get you junk performance.

Ruger factory and PMI are the only mags with a proven track record----but have had good results with the new production Pro-mags too.

That Pro mag statement holds only for the Mini---their pistol mags are absolute crap.
 
T

timothy75

New member
Yes mini's are wonderfull. Make sure you use factory mags only. You can buy LE 20's off the net and 5's anywhere. Accuracy is just fine for the uses you specified.
 
J

Jamie Young

New member
I have 3 Mini 14s.

One of them has over 20,000rds through it. I believe I've had less than 5 jamms using PMI and Ruger mags. All of the malfunctions were with out of spec reloads.

If you shoot good ammo in your gun, especially, the M855 round, you should be able to use it for riot control out to 600yds. ;)
 
D

Death from Afar

New member
I have owned a few Minis over the years. I have never had a problem with reliability providing the mags are good. As was rightly noted, junk mags, junk performance. If I had a choice I would get an AR over a mini 14, as they are AS reliable and MORE accurate after the third shot. I absolutly LOVE the mini 30, as the ammo is cheap, the caliber is great AND IT AINT AN SKS!!!! :cool:
 
M

mac762

New member
mini's good mags

The mini-14 will always "run" with good mags, good ammo, and a little maintenence.
And I,ve always heard of these accuracy problems but never seen any problem with the way mine shot. And I owned one of the old ones with the wooden handguard, one of the earlier stainless models, and a 90's model. They all shot as good or better than my ak's and sks's-except my old norinco-.223.
An ar-15 should always be more accurate than a mini-14. As long as the ar's barrel is at least 14 inches long. But if you're looking for a fun accurate rifle I would buy one of the milled reciever AK's. They are absolutely reliable and the magazines are cheaper, the round is good for deer. And they're far simpler to field-strip.
Don't be scared to buy a mini- oh by the way every ar I ever owned jammed at one time or another. Even my colts and the fn I had in the army.
And I can truthfully say I've never had an Ak jam or seen one jam.
 
C

cheygriz

New member
Using factory ammo, I never had a single instance of emptying a magazine without a jam. I would never use "mini-14" and reliable" in the same paragraph.

IMO, thje Mini14/30 series of rifles is the worst P.O.S. ever foisted on the American public.

Bill Ruger should have been ashamed of himself for selling it!

The cheap, junky Hi-Point carbine is more reliable!
 
D

Drakejake

New member
I have used factory 20 rounders and several different makes of 30s and 40s. I had to adjust the feed lips on a couple of mags. Other than that, everything has fed perfectly. I have shot Wolf ammo almost exclusively. So I consider my Mini extremely reliable. But Ruger always says to use the factory mags if you want their firearms to work properly. And Mini mags have become so cheap and available that one can now afford to experiment a bit with various after market products. If your Mini isn't reliable with factory mags, there is something wrong with that particular rifle. The design is extremely reliable, as proven by decades of use by civilians and police.

Drakejake

Drakejake
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top