Ruger Mini-14 Review!

It's got a wooden stock. If the pull length is too long, get your saw out and remedy it. You can even change the contact angle a bit to suit. Take a small amount and test it first, you can always take more.
When you get it where you like it, sand the butt plate to match.

Good job!!!!

I found the Ruger-branded 30-round magazines are hit or miss for quality. No issues so far with the 20-round magazines, but some of my 30-rounders will not accept more than 15 or 16 rounds before they jam while loading. I suspect they subcontracted those to a different supplier than for the other magazines they sell under their brand.
Otherwise, excellent review!

I am in Upstate New York. The Mini 14, - 580 series is in darn near every house up and down my street. Get the Hoague Overmold Stock.

The Mini-14 and Mini-30 are some of my favorite rifles. I enjoy shooting the Mini and never get tired of it. It's not a tack driver and it doesn't do certain things as well as an AR...... BUT it is easy to carry around and it is extremely fun. If I want to do some longer range shooting or some real target shooting I won't use the Mini but when I want to have a day of fun, I prefer the Mini. Good job on the video. 👍

who makes that rail you have on top?

I bought one and the bolt has a lot of play is that normal ?

Thanks for the review!! I’m finding myself strangely drawn to the mini even though, if SHTF, I would 100% be grabbing my BCM AR.

Still, there’s something about this gun that just allures me. What kind of role would the mini 14 excel at? Varmit gun? Back up minimalist gun?

Thanks again for sharing

Great gun. I have a mini 30 and love it.

The issue mentioned with the rifle moving around under recoil is something you get on the M14, Mini 14 or Mini 30 because the charging operating rod/charging handle are on the right side of the rifle and so it swings slightly to the right with each shot. As for the open action that is completely a non event in real world use, the action proved fine in both WW2, Korea and Vietnam. Yes dirt can get in, but it falls out too. The magazine cost is always raised, but nearly every firearm I own has a proprietary magazine, so I don't see that being an issue for a firearm I want. The Ruger ones are very good quality and should last a lifetime. I don't have anything of equivalent quality in my AR mags, my M14 mags from Checkmate would be similar.

You can bring the mini 14 to the range in Ny ?

I really regret getting rid of my stainless Mini 14 due to financial reason around 30 years ago.

Just bought my first mini 14. Owned a mini 30 before and didn't care for it. It tended to jam even when shooting super hot loads in a factory 5 round mag. I have also shot mini 14s for years. To this date, between my Marlin Camp Carbine and Ruger Mini 14, ghe biggest issue i have between the two of them really is just releasing the dang bolt. Neither has an auto bolt release and you have to pull back on the charging handle. More often than not i find myself trying to release the bolt only to find nothing happens or i drop the magazine

The m1 was used all over the world in ww2. It always performed.

Super thorough Vid! Great Job!

Dang man. No love for the M14? 😁

It's not a Mini M1A.

It's a Mini 14.

M1A hasn't seen 1 minute of military service, and strictly a civilian commercial copy of a US Rifle, 7.62mm, M14

Great video. Well presented and to the point 👍

I have the exact same model. My state"ALLOWS" AR-15 but I didn't want to rub the libtards because I shoot in a blue blue area.

20 rounders only, that's my motto

Some people at my range here in New York shoot non compliant ar 15s with the pistol grips and detachable 30 round mags. Can they get arrested if caught?

I myself was shocked when I saw how they have neutered the AR-15 in New York, by having a welded or pinned permanently a 10-round magazine one has to load it with stripper clips from the top by pushing a pin to separate the upper receiver from the lower, if you want a detachable magazine you have to have no features no threaded barrel no collapsible stock no pistol grip in fact no grip. Which makes the mini-14 the perfect replacement !!!

Heaven carried an M14 I found it not to be an issue the advantage of an open chamber is clearing jams it has an advantage over close Chambers like the AR-15 or some of the more so-called modern rifles and an advantage in how quickly you can also clear debris what you do not have and some of the more modern rifles !!!

Training with whatever rifle you have is important and with that you can overcome any obstacles due to a lack of ergonomics !!!

Either remove the rubber butt pad or put some duct tape over it !!!

The minis have a long history and heritage !!!

I think you can still grab those heat shields in such a way as to cause a malfunction. It depends on how you grip it.

Its a wooden stock ??? cut it shorter...simple

Party your problem with controllability if you don't know how to use the sling

Dislike your video because I am sick of gun-lovers playing the victim card. Your information is fine, but loose your ‘rude, dude!

Nice mag change.

Awsome gun love mine

Ive been looking for a sling on my mini 14 ranch thanks for the video!

I like the way you work threw your videos, I will defiantly be back to watch more.

I carried in the military and as a civilian I've had AR-15 and mini 14s, I had nothing but problems with my AR-15 but I have never had a single problem with my mini 14 and the difference in accuracy is not enough to concern me !!!

Your 30 rounders will be illegal in PA very soon.

Try wrapping the rubber recoil pad circumference with plastic electrician tape. I find it slips with clothing and FIXES the gripping problem. Nice design rifle.

These things are becoming way too expensive. Had I bought one, I'll need to pay extra to kit it up, and that's just an accu-strut and tech sight.

Some say that the Mini 14 has accuracy issues, well, it was never designed to be a competition match rifle however, I took mine to a very good gunsmith who polished out the action and brought the trigger down to a crisp four pounds. I can now live nicely with about a consistent two inch group at 100.

Hey man what primary arms red dot is that exactly?

A new trend, seen in Washington and being adopted elsewhere, is language in “assault weapon” laws that include nearly every semi-auto rifle. The law says “semi-automatic, centerfire rifle with at least one of the following features”

It then lists typical features of semi-auto rifles. My Mini might now be banned because, based on the language, enterprising gun grabbers could interpret “barrel shroud” to include the Mini-14 hand guard. But there is no question about my Ruger PCC — the threaded barrel is a no-no. On the other hand, the threaded barrel on my Henry is perfectly acceptable. Makes perfect sense, yeah?

I have a new mini 14 and a AR-15 I love the mini 14

I have like 16 of those tapcos i got 6 or 7 years ago for my 2 mini’s. Glad I got them when I did they do run reliably

30 Reasons why the Mini-14 is superior to the AR-15.

1. Exempt from a pending assault firearms ban bill in my state.
2. Beautiful looking according to my wife (my opinion as well).
3. Gas piston operated. Doesn’t fart where it feeds.
4. Easier to clean and inspect.
5. Weird difficult to clear AR-15 jams such as the gas tube jam and charging handle channel jam can’t happen.
6. Wide open breech for jam clearance access.
7. Upgrade path to 7.62 NATO by buying a companion Springfield Armory M1A-M14 makes more sense and is more popular than an AR-10.
8. WW2 lineage and classic looks.
9. 20rd mags are curved for more reliable feeding of the tapered rounds.
10. Magazines held much more securely in place.
11. Better stock trigger doesn’t need replacement or necessarily need honing.
12. Full stainless steel option.
13. No buffer tube spring twang ringing in your right ear.
14. Folding stock ready.
15. Standard sling mounts. I highly recommend a sling and “African Carry”.
16. No accessories needed to start shooting out of the box.
17. Can’t forget to extend a collapsing stock.
18. Butt stock less fragile.
19. More intuitive and ergonomic manual safety.
20. Low sight axis.
21. Often lighter when fully equipped.
22. Used by the A-team. Used by the Family Ties dad Michael Grossman and David Soul in the infamous Miami FBI shoot out re-creation movie. Silly reason, I know.
23. Mags gravity drop free faster because they are made of steel (when the release lever is operated correctly as in the manual).
24. Stock can be glass bedded to the receiver like a traditional bolt action rifle.
25. Costs twice as much as a basic AR-15, for one-up manship.
26. Faster (one second) presentation from shouldered African Carry to a sling-wrapped accurate aiming stance. The AR-15’s tacticool accessories, protruding 30rd mag, and pistol grip get in the way. In the sitting sling-wrapped stance, I shoot any rifle much more accurately than from the bench rest. So when people report their bench test results as the very best a rifle can produce, I am highly dubious.
27. Far more logical, easier to learn, and simplified manual of arms. I use a simplified manual of arms that makes the shooting operation of this rifle much more logical, intuitive, and easier to learn. Basically the left hand holds the fore end stock and presses the butt into the shoulder (usually with a wrapped sling as mentioned in the African Carry post) and the right hand does all of the manipulations: working the action, working the safety, trigger, and magazine removal/insertion. The AR-15 is designed more for the right hand to stay on the pistol grip. If you use an AR-15 manual of arms with a Mini-14 you’ll end up doing mag swaps wrong and not how it’s recommended in the owner’s manual. If I were to use my left hand, I would have to come out of my aiming set position, unwrap the sling from my left arm, and use my left thumb to press the mag release lever and then pull the mag out against resistance. Besides losing my sling-steadied sight picture, this means dropping your thumb off the lever mid process and the inner portion of the lever pressing on the partially loosened mag. Therefore you must rip the mag out with friction and mechanical resistance since it is engaged in front by a peg in the magazine retaining hole. This is bad form and not what the owner’s manual recommends. Instead one should use the right hand to apply constant forward pressure on the mag release lever and the mag will gravity drop free with no friction or mechanical resistance. This manual of arms is much easier to learn than newbies trying to figure out which hand does what with an AR and which ambi AR controls may or may not be installed on any particular AR. The logical and constant sight picture manual of arms for the Mini is very similar to a classic lever action rifle. Some people lower the rifle when working the lever, but the proper way is to have the left hand press the butt stock into the shoulder, maintain constant sight picture, and use the right hand for all manipulations.
28. Integrated scope rings are included and work well. The peculiar geometry of the AR-15 requires a proprietary 3rd party forward-offset scope mount for proper eye-relief. Cottage industries have been created to correct this shortcoming.
29. Included detachable 1913 top rail makes it optics ready, yet can be removed in case future laws focus on "tactical rails" being assault weapon features.
30. The Ruger 10/22 Takedown stainless rifle makes for a good survivalist companion rifle, a "Mini Me" for the Mini-14.

I like the rubber but pad

Shouldn't have your finger in the trigger guard unless you're ready to fire.

Stop wearing hoodies , they are for children. I find the stock very natural and comfortable. Reliable, accurate enough and easy to maneuver. Don't use steel case bullets. Price has become its only real issue.

Stumbled onto this video and I’m impressed with the quality in the content! I’m 59 and a retired Army Infantryman and grew up in south central Oregon on the edge of the Oregon High Desert and the Mini-14 has served well with ranchers and shooters to take out coyotes, rabbits and squeaks that dig holes in ranchers pastures where cattle can step in and injure a leg. I picked up a retired Texas prison gun at a pawn shop here in San Antonio for $700 and it’s nearly brand new, I nearly put my hand through my pocket to get the money out! Texas DPS used the Mini-14 GB variant which is the only Mini-14 I wanted to own, nearly all of my rifles are battle rifles so if it can mount a bayonet, I’ll buy it, lol. I will admit that the newer Mini-14’s are more accurate than my 185 series. And like others, I prefer to use just Ruger made magazines and I buy one now and then due to the cost and never use the Pro-Mag Mini-14 mags, they’re low quality and you’ll have to fiddle with them to get it to properly seat in the mag well. Of course, if Pro-Mag is all you have on hand, just tune each mag as best you can and run different types of ammo through it to make sure you got it tuned correctly.
Thanks for the video sir!

Very clear and well done with your review.

What kind of sling is that on the mini 14 ? & I like the scope affordable on Amazon to I see .I just got a mini 14 at Bass pro I ordered it very nice lot of fun .