Home Forums Hunting & Shooting AR and Tactical Rifles Anyone else just prefer Minis?

I've had them both. I still have them both. They both have their time and place. It would be cool if someone would come up with an affordable and fool proof side charger for the AR's. I'm sure in due time they will come. for folks in the banned states, the Mini is about the best you can do.

I certainly hope Ruger has stepped up their game with the 583 series and are making the Mini's worth the money for those folks who have few choices.

kwg

I got a side charger, port side.

Side charger is simply a preference, over the many years we shot them all, side or rear charger never made a bit of difference to us.

A side charger on the right side is better for lots of reasons. It's easier to operate, to clear, and in a pinch you have a straight pull bolt action if you need one. You can get a lot more leverage on it too.

I fell in love with the mini about 20 years ago or more but found out she is a faithless whore! Won't group no matter what.

I used to cuss AR's but they sure do grow on you over time.

No love for the Ruger, but I love my M1 carbine if I want to plink. The AR still gets the nod for more serious or accurate work.

I had a factory folder in the 80s. I put a scope mount on it, and it was pretty clear it could not hold a good group. I tried working with it but it never shot well. I traded it on a Colt HBar in 1986 when they came out with 1/7 twist. I don't regret that trade.
Back then, Ruger was supposed to make a real M14 clone in 308. It was cataloged, but never sold.

The only thing 'wrong' with recent iterations of the Mini 14 is the price. I've never seen one that was picky and they will in fact feed ammo that will choke an AR. This 580 Ranch Rifle was a tack driver with loads it liked. In this case it was Sierra’s 65 grain BTSP ‘Gameking’ #1395 bullet over 25.0 grains of H4895, with Winchester Small Rifle primers and an OAL of 2.250”. The first three rounds of the 65 grain Sierra load made this 100 yard, 3/4” group. I was certainly glad to see it, but suspected it might be a fluke…


I cranked the scope down a couple of clicks and fired another...



Needless to say, I used that load on several coyotes, groudhogs and one button buck at about 170 yards. It killed everything I turned it on and a second shot was rarely needed. If you like the Mini and don't mind the tariff, by all means buy one. They are great utility guns that feel like an actual rifle when you sling and shoulder them. Unless you're one of these guy who thinks he needs six 40 round magazines to go to the mailbox, you'll be happy with it.

As to the price argument, I agree. But, then again, what do other wood and steel firearms cost today? In that respect, the Mini is pretty much right on target. We've been spoiled over the last few years by a plethora of cheap ARs. The AR is really benefitting these days from economy of scale and the fact that they are so easy to manufacture.

The newer Mini's have the heavier profile barrel and they group much better. They'll still typically be 2MOA rifles, but honestly what will you be shooting at with a Mini that 2MOA will not do the job? And if we're being honest, most rack grade military AR's are 2-2.5 MOA, and no one ever seems to complain about them.

This notion that everyone will shoot 1MOA in the field just doesn't match reality.

The Mini isn't a military rifle, and you shouldn't think of it as such. It's a civilian sporting rifle that just happens to be the absolute best non-military sporting semi-auto out there, so it can double as a defense rifle in a pinch, and it will do it well. You just can't expect to pump 500 rounds through it in 30 minutes without any issues.

For a general purpose semi-auto rifle, the Mini is just fantastic. The traditional layout means it's slim and thin. The AR's and other military style rifles are really tall height wise, which makes them less convenient to slip behind the seat of a truck and stuff like that.

I think the newest Mini's with the flush mount five rounder and factory irons are some of the coolest little rifles ever built.

But their price is excessive at this point.




Dave

My 188 series Ranch Rifle has been turning in top flight performance since the nineties. I have never had a failure with it. It eats milsurp ammo, Godless Commie steel case ammo, and hand loads, with equal ease.
It will give two inch or less accuracy all day long. Cold or hot. Back in the day, it killed a number of turkeys, and a lot of hogs.
Yeah, I have AR rifles also, and really like them too. I would not feel under gunned in a pinch, with either.