Home Forums Hunting & Shooting AR and Tactical Rifles ruger ranch mini 14

Bought it last week - got a good deal. Always wanted one. Came with a 4X Weaver K4 scope. Taking it out today to see how it does. Opinions on the mini 14?

The serial number is 187. Does it have a 1:7 twist? I have read on the internet that the 187 does, then read somewhere else it has something else.

I have a 187 that has served me quite well for quite a while. It always fires when asked to do so and is sufficiently accurate to be very usable out to as far as I care to shoot. It does not like some of my reloads, but neither do several AR's and a M700 Rem. I think I got a bag of Remington SP bullets that were very problematic. My reloads that shoot well in the AR's and in the M700 also shoot well in the Mini 14. It shoots Hornady 40 grain V-Max and 55 grain Montana Gold FMJ quite well.

I also have a 4X Weaver on mine.

I generally use either it or a Mini 30 as my tractor rifle. One or the other can always be found in the cab of my Kubota.

What'd you pay for it? I always thought they'd have a niche if they were $450 or less.

Guuner,
I paid $675 for the gun, a gun strap, the Weaver 4X scope and rings, 5 mags (a 40 round, 32 round, 30 round, a 10 round, and the factory 5 round), and 300 rounds of ammo. Delivered to my town.

I hope it works for you, but I'd have got another Del-ton for a little less!

Mini 14s are like women. If ya don't ask too much of them, you might not be let down.

Took the mini 14 out today. It performed about like a 27 year old, semi-auto carbine should do. Was hitting the 8 inch target at 150 yards quite a bit of the time. Sure was fun. Not let down.

Before I check but running a rod down the barrel and counting revolutions, anybody know what the twist rate might be?

Way less accurate than an AR on average. The newer ones are better, supposedly, but I can't attest because I've not had one in a number of years. I probably owned a half dozen of them or more prior to this millenium. They're not as easy to accurrize as an AR and there aren't as many accessories. The clips are significantly more expensive. When a cheap AR is better and costs less...why the Mini 14? They were very popular around here way back when and for a long time, but you seldom see one anymore.

Some info (no idea how accurate)here:

http://www.thehighroad.org/archive/index.php/t-67087.html

Ruger had the chance to make a huge impact on the .223/5.56 home defense/assault/tactical rifle market 30 years ago and let it slip out of their hands. They have made some improvments over the last 7 years but they have lost the mojo. Ya snooze and ya lose.

Ruger has done a lot of other projects that have made their stock holders happy but the Mini fell through the cracks into near oblivion. kwg

Seems like I have seen this topic before? we should have a sticky on the mini 14.

I have a friend that clued me into the mini 14 niche, he was opposed to "black rifles" but wanted a 223 semi auto.
In asking around I gotten the same response from several Mini owners.

I had one years ago that would do an honest inch at 100 yards with handloads. Now what it would have done with a hot barrel, I don't know. I though they were illegal where I was moving, and sold it. Dumb mistake. I have a 180 series now. The 180's take different stocks from all the others, and are a pain to customize.

I still think the big thing with all those similar Ruger rifles, is the idiotic slick buttplate is guaranted to slip on your shoulder, which does nothing for accuracy.

The new Mini stocks are straight with a padded butt. I don't see it as useful with a .223. I do like the looks of the new models but I already have 3 Mini's so I cannot justify another one. If you are looking for something other than an AR style the New Mini's should work for you.

Promag makes some nice magazines that are about 25% less than the factory magazines. I have 2 and they work as well as the factory ones. They are still more expensive than the AR magazines but the price is going in the right direction. kwg

I love everything about them except the sub par accuracy. For many jobs, I like the Mini better than the AR. I may try the new series out to see if they have improved the accuracy.

Mine always shot better with the lighter bullets. 50 grains show the most promise with a faster burning powder. kwg

Just don't poke one out the driver's side window and fire one. I took a quick shot at a coyote like that but only once as I thought my windshield had been busted by being hit with the ejected case. About a month later, a friend did the same thing but his luck ran out and it did break the windshield.

That's true for sure. The ranch gun really flings them.

you can change out the gas bushing, and it really tames the eject issue.

I get a little tired of the mini-14 bashing. No, mine isn't as accurate as my Rock River A2; but where I live, 50 yards is a long shot. If I had to grab one to run out after some problem, it would be the mini 14. It will work, and handles like a real rifle. They've been around for a while, so Ruger must be doing something right.

I'm very unlikely to be heading into a squad assault situation, more like a coyote problem.