Mini-14 Tactical Rifle

Sandro_Bit

Sandro_Bit

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Hey everyone, I'm new here. Glad to be a part of this forum. I wanted some opinions/thoughts on the Mini-14 tactical rifle.

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I know older Mini-14's have known accuracy issues however the newer models have thicker barrels which theoretically should make them more accurate since they dissipate heat better.

I was looking into getting one of these as my first rifle. thanks!
 
My first rifle was a mini 14 target and i absolutely love it, although im wishing now i got the normal ranch rifle or the tactical (although i think it is restricted due to barrel length although i could be mistaken) solely because my thumbhole/10lb rifle is ghey for practicing off hand and kneeling and what not.
 
The Tactical Rifle version is currently not exportable to Canada for civilian use. Barrel is too short(16.12") , this alone would make it restricted. The other problems is it has a twenty round magazine (Ruger won't modify large body mags for export) and is has a flash suppressor (this last item is the big one that prevents export). This came out last year and I was right on the phone to my distributor and got the bad news. All other models of Mini-14 (with exception of the collapsible stock Tactical) are fine for export and are widely available in Canada. Phil.
 
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thanks for the info guys.


P of PDent said:
The Tactical Rifle version is currently not exportable to Canada for civilian use. Barrel is too short(16.12") , this alone would make it restricted. The other problems is it has a twenty round magazine (Ruger won't modify large body mags for export) and is has a flash supressor (this last item is the big one that prevents export). This came out last year and I was right on the phone to my distributor and got the bab news. All other models of Mini-14 (with exception of the collapsible stock Tactical) are fine for export and are widely available in Canada. Phil.
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i saw on the Ruger site that they made a 5 round mag for this gun, but not for the folding stock version. would it be worth it to mod it for an 18" barrel? + aftermarket flash suppressor at the end?

are the regular mini 14's accurate?
 
The newer ones are vastly improved over the older models. Not only do they do away with the paper-thin barrel of the older models, but they are made to to tighter tolerances which improve accuracy.

I have a wood-stocked ranch rifle, and I'm happy with it. Now if Ruger would bring back the old wood folders and make a tactical with a wooden Ranch stock, I would be happy.

buckbrush said:
I was watching an AGI Armourers course on the Mini-14, and the instructor mentioned that AR-15 magazines were "easily modified" to work in the Mini-14. This is news to me.
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I looked at an AR 15 mag, and it is possible, but you would have to do some careful modification and tuning to get it work reliably. In addition, you would have to forget about the bolt hold-open feature since the follower is a different shape.
 
You might consider a regular ranch rifle, maybe even in stainless and than put it in an aftermarket stock like a Tapco or ATI folder - if that's the look you're going for. I have the ATI Strikeforce on mine, so far so good. Love the gun too, it's too much fun to shoot. Not the most accurate, but I'm kind of old school and just like making it go 'boom' more than hitting a quarter at 100 yards.
 
I love mine. when I had a scope on mine I could hit a clay at 200 yards, about 3 out of 5 (on a good day). I made mine tacticool with folding stock , scout rail, and holosight. now I'm lucky to hit a clay at 100 yards. but thats just because of optics (4moa dot). get one youl love it. ruger clips work best, after market ones suck (at least the cheap ones).
 
mrsmitty said:
Regular mini 14's are minute of barn from what I have heard.
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Ahhh, there it is. Always know we're gonna see the barn line when someone asks about one of these. Seeing as my Mini-14 and my Tavor shot groups almost exactly the same size with the same ammo and the same scope, I guess that means Tavors shoot MOBarn also?

Anyways, to the OP, the Ranch Rifle is very similar to the Tactical and is a fun rifle. Probably not a tack driver out of the box, but if you're looking for a relatively inexpensive non-restricted .223 they're a good choice. Extra 5 round mags are available for $32ea at Cabelas.ca, and as was mentioned there are almost as many aftermarket bits and parts for these as for the 10/22.

There is a wealth of information on these rifles at http://www.perfectunion.com/vb/forumdisplay.php?f=86, and as an added bonus there isn't the usual bashing you get on the general gun forums.
 
If next months issue of Soldier of Fortune featured a SEAL team carrying Mini-14's you would see a significant spike in their sales...:rolleyes:

I have owned several, and if you keep them in perspective for what they are intended to be, they are a decent and reliable semi-auto .223. Keep them simple as they are intended, they don't shoot any better or are any more reliable decked out in cheapo tacticools stocks and the other add on crap.

I'm not sure about the newer models shooting better with the heavier factory barrels, I would like to see that myself. But the accuracy out of the older guns I had was always decent.
 
I love mine. Like the others have said, they are very reliable, and as long as you know their limitations, they will never let you down.



BTW, this is what UCSPanther meant by the Ruger factory folder(pic is of my rifle:D).
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I had a chance to try one out and I'm not a great shooter, but was shooting 6" groupings at 100 yards.

It was a fun gun, and the little .223 cartridges really fly out of the ejection port so be careful of the guy/gal to your right if there is one :p
 
mrsmitty said:
Regular mini 14's are minute of barn from what I have heard.
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If you don't really know what you are talking about, then why offer such crap. This is not helpfull at all. I started a thread a few weeks ago reporting on my accuracy results with a brand new out of the box Mini 14. Unfortunately, I only had two types of ammunition to test. Since then, all the local shops seem to be sold out of any heavier bullet or even match ammo. NATO ball .55gr is a disappointing 3" and premium .55gr hpbt is around 1.75" at 100 yds. I am dying to get my hands on more varied rounds for testing so that it resembles an actual test.

Just what size are your friggen barns ??
 
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