M1 Carbine vs. SU-16 vs. Mini-30 vs...?

Status
Not open for further replies.
M1 Carbine. You can get 15, 20 and 30 round mags for a SHTF situation.

You forgot that we are talking about someone living in CA. 10 rounders are about all that can be had at a decent price.
 
You forgot that we are talking about someone living in CA. 10 rounders are about all that can be had at a decent price.

10 rounds still aren't bad for someone who lives in another country...:rolleyes:
 
FYI in California you can have 10+ mags if you owned them before the magazine ban went into effect.
So all those genuine GI 15 or 30 round mags that are NOT "date stamped" that you bought in the 1980's and thought you lost but suddenly "re-discovered" in your garage are infact perfectly legal.... :cool:
 
Ramcharger is that really true? If I have an old 15 round clip I always had, since the 80's... it would be perfectly OK for me to use it on a target range in California with no hassle from BATF or anyone?
 
Ramcharger is that really true? If I have an old 15 round clip I always had, since the 80's... it would be perfectly OK for me to use it on a target range in California with no hassle from BATF or anyone?

Let's see...burden of proof is on you. BATFE agent says you're lying and just bought it.

Really want to risk that in that state?
 
As another CA resident (just went through the Rancho Bernardo fire), I'll put a plug in for the Ruger Mini. For almost any conceivable SHTF scenerio a homeowner might find themselves in, the Mini in one caliber or another will work just fine. It's tough, reliable, easily maintained, and will hit a man sized target between arms length and 100m. If you feel 5rd mags are puny buy more and reload quickly. I guess you like the Mini or hate it. I like mine. A Marlin 336 in .30-30 will also work.
 
You want a Mini, I'll sell you one for $500...I can get'em covered with dust for about $350 or so at any gunshop here (less, at some of them), they won't even take them in trade anymore! :D

Why would someone buy a rifle that's inaccurate as soon as it heats up, when a Saiga 5.56 is $259, is accurate and as reliable as an AK?

Even an Olympic Plinker Plus AR is less than a new Mini!
 
If a Mini is intended for hunting, the heating up is not at all important. For home defense, any of them will do just fine for minute of torso. Seems simple enough to me. :)

Art
 
I have Ar15s, had a Mini 30 (with reliable 30 rd Thermold mags)....

But my go to rifle for around the house is my M1 Carbine with JSP cartridges.

That said, why are you ruling out an AR15?

YES, you can still have an AR15 in CA. One that even can have a removable magazine (as opposed to a detachable magazine).

YES, it's legal. Firearms attorneys have said so and defended it in court already.

NO, you don't have to break open the upper to load 10 rounds.

And best, if you already own hi cap mags for it, you can legally use them.

Go read this first, then decide: http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/showthread.php?t=56818
 
Get a Mini 30

I own a WWII Winchester M1 Carbine that I inherited from my father. I love to shot this gun and it is by far one of the easiest there is to carry when scouting through rough country over long distances. It is good for deer at close range and would have no problem stopping a man if the need should arise. But, after trying to find ammo and then paying through the nose for it the last few times that I have found it, I have come to the conclusion that it is time to retire the M1 for something more practical. I have looked at many different guns and have finally decided that the Ruger Mini 30 will be my next gun purchase.:D
 
Usable at 300 meters
Click to expand...
That's a real problem there. The M1 Carbine would be very difficult to use at 300 meters. It has too much bullet drop and loses energy quickly. With a 100 yard zero, the M1 Carbine would be about 50" low at 300 yards.

The Mini-30 is better, but still not flat shooting. With a 100 yard zero, the Mini-30 would be about 24" low at 300 yards.

In contrast, an AR15 with a 100 yard zero is about 12" low at 300 yards.

You can see ballistics data here: http://www.federalpremium.com/products/rifle.aspx

In addition, the Mini-30 has a much louder muzzle blast in my experience, and it is hard to find reliable large capacity pre-ban magazines for it.

Decide if you really need 300 yard range, because it significantly limits your choices. The Mini-30 would be fine out to 150 yards. The M1 Carbine fine within 100 yards or so. If you need 300 yards, I'd look at something chambered in 5.56 Nato.
 
In addition, the Mini-30 has a much louder muzzle blast in my experience, and it is hard to find reliable large capacity pre-ban magazines for it.
Click to expand...

Moot point if he's in Kalifornia.

Really, the best would be a Saiga in .223. .223 with good bullets (OTMs, HPs, etc) fragments well in close range engagements, so it does a lot of damage, stopping the threat quickly and reducing overpenetration. Typical pistol rounds overpenetrate worse than a good .223.

Also if you move out of Kali, you can convert it to standard AK configuration fairly easily.

My second choice would be a Saiga in 7.62x39.
Third would be an SKS.
The 7.62x39 has three good defense/hunting rounds for it:
The best is the Cor-Bon DPX loaded rounds. Very expensive, but they do the trick, and you probably won't shoot a lot of them anyway.

Next would be the Hunting Shack rounds loaded with Hornady V-max bullets.

Last would be Wolf Military Classic 124-gr HP. It shows good fragmentation, giving good stopping, and reducing penetration.

The other advantage of of the Saiga and SKS is the military sights. Zero them at 100, and you can set them to various ranges just by sliding the rear sight to the correct elevation. Might not be dead on, but will be close enough.
 
Revilo7:

For the Mini 30, a huge number of people have found most aftermarket higher-cap. mags to be troublesome or worthless, as with the three silver 15-20 rounders which came with my 30. For the Mini 14 and 30, only LEOs were allowed to buy the real Ruger factory higher-cap. magazines.
A scalper on GunBroker listed his Ruger 30-rounder for about $100.

But some newer mags are now hitting the market, i.e. Thermold, and seem to be doing really well.

You can check the real Mini website at "Perfectunion.com". They also have topics on the SKS and others.
Gunsmith evaluations have demonstrated that whether using older Wolf or newer, keeping your chamber clean will prevent brass from expanding into carbon build-up, which happens when stiff steel shells allow carbon to accumulate on the chamber wall.
 
But some newer mags are now hitting the market, i.e. Thermold, and seem to be doing really well.
Click to expand...
But he's in CA, so I think post-ban large capacity magazines are verboten for him.
 
.223 would be better for home defense than 7.62x39. I know of some people who prefer 7.62x39 because of its ability to go through walls and other things, which sounds like an overpenetration problem to me for a HD scenario. So of your list, a Mini-14 (yeah, it's not really on your list, but it's simply a different version of the Mini-30, and vice versa) might be your best choice. Also, check out the Saiga .223. However, as was pointed out before, a .357 lever action Marlin would also be a great choice. For your situation, those three would be my final contenders.
 
In California, if you use your legally registered assault weapon for self defense but the trial goes against you and your use of force is ruled to be a crime then there is a severe sentence enhancement for the use of the assault weapon. Stick with the M1 carbine.

As to effectiveness, we know that a 30/06 will reliably take out a bad guy at 500 yards and the carbine has the same diameter bullet and the same energy (at home defense range) as does the 30/06 at 500 yards.
 
M1 carbines are nice little guns. If you get one get a genuine WWII surplus carbine and then do a rebuild on it.

ruger mini14/30 could be good, but they do weigh about 2 more pounds that the M1 carbine or kel-tec, if that matters to you.

Have you looked at the saiga rifles? Very good rifles.
 
I just bought a su-16. From a purely practical perspective I think the light weight and folding stock makes it the best of the bunch listed. I plan to get a matching su-22 for cheaper practice as well. Some day I do want a mini-14 though.

Sent from my ADR6425LVW using Tapatalk 2
 
I don't know what kind of area the OP lives in, but regardless- wouldn't he have a hard time convincing the authorities he wasn't on the 'offensive' if he were to engage targets out to 300yds? I know, I wan't rying to stir things up, and I certainly don't know the state of affairs out there. Guess I was just wondering out loud.

If it were me, I think I would look at a shotgun unless he really expects to justify returning fire out to 300yds.

Bad: Looks old, uses funky ammo.
Click to expand...
Now that's funny... that's exactly what folks say about me!:(
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top