Ruger mini-14 ranch ??

B

Buck_358

New member
Ran across a mini 14 (.223) all blue \ walnut ranch rife used with a 20 round clip.
Never had a semi-auto style rifle in the past…it caught my eye.

What’s the good \ bad \ & ugly??

Tks to all

B….
 
For some reason i really like the ruger mini 14. They feel really good to me. I have owned a couple in the past but none currently. I guess the good for me is the feel of the rifle, and the bad would most definitely have to be the accuracy. The last mini i bought was 2 summers ago. I took it out to a friends house out in the sticks and set up a split log 50 yards out in the field. I had 60 rounds of some type of Russian crap ammo to shoot up that day. I went prone with the rifle and started to shoot at the log. I fired all 60 rounds at that log and never hit it once. Not even a scrape!! I had to sell that rifle. I know it was crap ammo and i was shooting it just about as fast as i could but i still should have hit a log at 50 yards. I havent bought one since then, but i sure do think about it a lot! Lee
 
Gotta love the Mini 14 for durability.. It does however lack in the Accuracy Dept. The newer ones are reported to be more accurate, I have a 196## series I believe, and it wears a 3200 Bushnell Eite. It will hit where you point it for the first 2-3 shots.. as the barrel warms up it starts to get worse. After a few more shots you are lucky to hit a 10 in Paper Plate. I have since added a home made Barrel strut that helps alot with the "whipping" of the Barrel.

If you accept it for what it is, Truck Gun, Plinker, its great. You wont win any contests with it, but for a SHTF rifle, Id grab it before any other rifle.
 
I had one and at the time didn't know that they more often then not shot MOB (minute of basketball) @ 100yds. And from what I hear I had a good one it would hold a sub 10" at 100 yards with crap ammo until it got really hot then it struggled to hold a 10" group @ 50ft

The newer ones cost nearly as much as an AR15 and are very accurate but for another 100 bucks you can get more versatility out of the AR15 vs mini 14 and similar accuracy without the hassle/eyesore of the harmonic tuner that comes on the new ranch target rifles
 
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I have had a couple also. I love the look and feel of the Mini and I love the company. However, I can't bear to own a rifle that isn't accurate. I suspect you will feel the same way after you shoot one for awhile.

Get and AR!
 
I owned one, I still think Bill Ruger owes me for that. Cost me too much money and never shot well at all. It would function any ammo you fed it so if you happen to have several thousands rds. of .223 ammo and didn't care where the bullets landed, this thing was your unit.

The new tricked out unit doesn't fool me at all...still the same POS under the camo paint.
 
I bought one at the end of last year.It will shoot 2" to 3" groups at a hundred yards depending on ammo. Good enough that I know it's me if I miss a yote.
 
I bought one before they came out with the ranch model, I've always loved it. I shoots as well as I can with the factory peep sight for the first 4 or 5 shots. It is by far the worst shooting rifle I own. However, as was stated, it will digest any kind of ammo. I used it as a "boat" gun up in Alaska, and it served me well. I still take it out calling if it's raining and I'm going to be hunting the brush, where the longer shots might be 20 yards and there won't be a second, and when a scope will be more of a hinderence than not.
 
I must own a freak one in a million, mine shoots well for a mini. It may be over MOA but at 100yds if you shot 10 at a 10 pie plate you will have ten in the plate but you do have to let the barrel cool after 3 or 4 shots to do it. Bottom line if you want a blow crap up quick rifle the are a blast to shot and you can feed them anything and they will shot it and spit it out. I love mine and for what I have in it I could buy 3 for the price of one AR at todays prices.
 
I agree... Id be willing to bet.. if you had a few cases of ammo to fire, and had an AR and a mini 14, you had no time to clean the weapon.. the Mini would keep firing while the AR had to be pampered. I never see posts of Mini's FTF.. But I do the AR. It is what it is.. a durable, reliable, not soo accurate Plinker ! Thats why I Keep mine.
 
The new 580 series with the thick barrel are a totally different gun. They are all shooting 3" groups at 100 yards with about any ammo. With a few simple mods you can do at home you can get them to shoot moa at 100 yards.
 
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Hmm.. I see an aquatics suit,and what looks like railing on a boat. I see a connection, not a Gay dude or Dudes.. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
 
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The new 580 series with the thick barrel are a totally different gun. They are all shooting 3" groups at 100 yards with about any ammo. With a few simple mods you can do at home you can get them to shoot moa at 100 yards.



Ditto! I just bought a 2008 580 series and absolutely love it. And contrary to some peoples imaginations you cannot get an AR for $100 more than a mini. The mini is like the Timex watch of semi autos, minimal maintenence and it will keep on shooting. Eats any ammo you put in her too. For what I bought my mini for I will take it over an AR. For really accurate shooting I have bolt guns. Give one a try. Just research and the Ruger website for serial numbers and get a 580 series mini made in or after 2008. You can also get a good trigger job from Bill Springfield for $35 and that includes return shipping. All you have to do is mail him the trigger group.
 
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