Cowboy Blob's Saloon and Shootin Gallery

I'm not a real Cowboy, but I play one in the movies.

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Out of the Other Safe

"I pity da fool when a plan comes together!"

Yeah, I'm always the first to make an "A-Team" joke whenever someone brings a Ruger Mini-14 to a match...but I do it with a smile on my face and genuine concern for the shooter's progress in the game. My gun collecting started long before my gun-game shooting habit did, so when I first started to compete, I already had an AR in the safe...and a Mini-14 that got less and less range time thanks to the EBR that was so much more fun (and accurate). I haven't even been tempted to compete with it once, since I have only a 5-rounder and a 20-rounder for magazines.

I'm always curious when I see a Mini-gunner show up at a match...don't they know how cheap AKs are now? Chances are they have the Mini because it's always been in the family or it was all they find/afford when they decided to get into practical shooting. Okay, maybe they hero-worship Face and B.A. These are the shooters you need to pay attention to; not because they're likely to beat you -- they're likely to beat themselves, get discouraged, and maybe quit the sport. I have fun even when I do badly, because I know it's only me holding me back. I'm not sure I would enjoy it so much if my noodle-thin barrel started warping out of true from the heat of rapid fire (at least, that's the reason I heard for the 14 being only marginally accurate). So, I watch the rare Mini-gunner, offer encouragement, maybe advice, and maybe humor: "What do you mean, you suck? A-Team guns are designed to miss! I'm shooting a precision military weapon...I suck!"

Update: I've been edumicated by commenters! I wonder if the new barrels can be fitted to the old rifles? Not that I would bother....

Fits sez:
Ruger at long last addressed the accuracy issue, and all new 14's with serial numbers 580XXX and above have the new barrel that early word says is a tack driver.

Greg sez:
Indeed. Owners of the new 580 series are reporting about 2 -2.5 MOA, some even less, out of the box.

The older Minis are more variable. They can be made reasonably accurate for very little expense.

The Perfect Union BBS is probably the best site out there for Mini-14 tips, mods and discussion.

BTW, the barrel doesn't really warp out of true from normal rapid fire, it is so thin that it has a rather high amplitude. This results in poor groups and expansion from heating causes your POI to rise, worsening the problem.

6 Comments:

  • At 6:14 PM, Blogger Fits said…

    Ruger at long last addressed the accuracy issue, and all new 14's with serial numbers 580XXX and above have the new barrel that early word says is a tack driver.

     
  • At 4:18 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Indeed. Owners of the new 580 series are reporting about 2 -2.5 MOA, some even less, out of the box.

    The older Minis are more variable. They can be made reasonably accurate for very little expense.

    The Perfect Union BBS is probably the best site out there for Mini-14 tips, mods and discussion.

    BTW, the barrel doesn't really warp out of true from normal rapid fire, it is so thin that it has a rather high amplitude. This results in poor groups and expansion from heating causes your POI to rise, worsening the problem.

     
  • At 1:55 PM, Blogger Jay.Mac said…

    It's criminal that Ruger hasn't taken the time to introduce a really decent barrel and turn the Mini-14 into a true rival to the AR.

    The latest model has been sold with an adjustable barrel weight to improve accuracy- not a new barrel that fixes a long recognised problem that is no doubt affecting sales- but a sliding barrel weight.

    It's madness I tell you!

    It's got the Garand/M14 action that by all accounts is utterly reliable and it's only a hop, skip and a jump from there to someone producing "tactical" stocks like the SOCOM II for this weapon.

    A big boost in sales would surely result- and I'm sure a stock Mini-14 with a good barrel would still be a lot less than an AR.

     
  • At 1:57 PM, Blogger Jay.Mac said…

    Oh, yeah- and then they could sell it in 6.8mm SPC or 6.5mm Grendel.

    Heck, you could even mod them with Tapco T6 stocks (I believe they make one for the Mini-30) to turn the Mini-14 from a ranch rifle to a tacticool one.

     
  • At 2:00 PM, Blogger Jay.Mac said…

    I'm sorry- I just can't stop.

    Check out the Accu-strut for you Mini-14. Seems to do the same job as the new factory barrel weight. Clamps onto the barrel and stiffens it and draws heat from it. Supposed to be a big accuracy improvement for very little cash.

    http://www.accu-strut.com/

     
  • At 1:08 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Jay.Mac
    There are companies out there like ASI that will rebarrel and otherwise soup up your mini. It is not cheap, bit it will result in a sub MOA rifle.

    Regarding the target model with the barrel weight, I was under the impression that it had both a heavier barrel and the weight, but I haven't seen one up close yet. If not, I'd just buy the regular 580 series and add a nice muzzle brake. It should work just as well and look fancier.

    Rumor has it that Ruger is actually working on a 6.8 SPC
    http://perfectunion.com/vb/showthread.php?t=55654

    As for tactical stocks check this out:
    http://perfectunion.com/vb/showthread.php?t=56708

    Regarding CB's original comments, he is mostly correct. Super accurate ARs are readily available and that is what I would choose if I were doing precision shooting. Now, if the AR wasn't available I would probably try accurizing a mini-14 before trying the same on a cheap AK. I wouldn't know where to start accurizing an AK.

     

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