mini 30
Sure. I'm a fan, have been for a long time. I've had one since about 1990 or so, the Clinton era. Back when introduced, gun scribe Ross SEYFREID wrote an article in Guns & Ammo describing the Mini30 as "a modern .30 cal saddle rifle, a very useful rifle". SEYFRIED wrote a lot of articles that steered my gun purchases and that was one. Mine is blue steel and wood stock. The carbine came with the poly upper handguard, but I located a wood upper handguard from a very early Mini14 and put same on my rifle. I installed a Wiliams peep on it, despite the fact that in Ranch Rifle configuration, it came with a folding peep from the factory. I used the rifle with the Williams peep 'till I started having trouble with iron sights of any kind at about age 55. The rifle is now 'scoped with a Leupold 1-4x. The scope went back to Leupold and had a German #1 reticle installed (back when Leupold did such things).
The carbine has been shot fairly extensively, bamaboy and I even shot it in local outlaw 3-gun matches for a season 'till we got an AR. I have used it off and on in my whitetail rifle rotation for years, but have only taken two deer with it, where it performed as needed. As long as Ruger magazines were used it has been ultra reliable. When Ruger released the 20 rd box a few years back, the Mini-30 took on a new dimension. I'll add here that the 5 rd box is a pain in the neck afield. The paddle type mag release is exposed if the 5 rd box is utilized, and that paddle has a tendency to get tripped (in my use anyhow) inadvertently. I've not lost a magazine, but I've come dang close. I have given serious thought to taking a Dremel to the factory paddle and shortening it by 1/4" or so.
The 20 rd box is awkward in the field, but the 10 rd version might be ideal, though I don't have one.
Concerning reliability, there has been much chatter, and many examples, of Mini30's not reliably firing steel case import ammo. I can state that my rifle has NEVER displayed such problems. Back when you could buy a 1200 rd case of Chinese Norinco 7.62x39 for $100, it all went bang, so to Wolfe or any other former com-bloc commercial ammo I,ve fed it. These days it only gets brass cased reloads. My deer load used a 135 gr Sierra single shot pistol bullet, regrettably no longer produced. Nowdays the Hornady 125 gr SST has proven a satisfactory replacement.
Though I take pride and care in my firearms, the Mini30 has not been babied and has had several mishaps. On one occasion, some corrosive ammo got mixed in with my non-corrosive. I swabbed the bore (fortunately) but did not do the gas system. Upon next use, a week or so later, I could not get the action/bolt open. Hosed it down with WD40 and after a few minutes, hit the bolt knob with a mallet. That did it. Cleaned up the system, the Mini never faltered. In another sad story, I left the rifle on the roof of the truck and drove off. It fell out on the county road, lay all night, and got run over at least once (cased). I got the rifle back the next AM, a good neighbor found it at dawn. No damage, though a 20 rd box got crushed. Rifle never stuttered and is as accurate (?) as ever. Suffice to say it is a rugged design.
Early in its introduction, there was chatter about the bores being .308 dia and .310-311 ammo would burn the bore up. There MAY have been a few .308 dia Mini's, dunno. I have shot both .308 and .311 projectiles through mine without incident. At least one gun scribe back in the day stated that the Mini30 had a very long leade and throat intended to squish .311 Euro bullets down to .308 without risk. Again, dunno. I read now that Ruger states all their x39mm rifles are .310-311.
The Mini in all calibers has never been a precision rifle, but accurate enough. Five round 100 yd groups in mine have logged 2-3" inches, plenty good enough for my use. My rifle shot Winchester 125 grain FMJ best, but I never bought the stuff in any quantity.
So.........should you get one?
I think the 7.62 Soviet is a useful cartridge. Nearly as powerful as the old 30-30, moderate recoil, I really like the cartridge and it suffices for the way I hunt whitetails. Once ultra affordable, these days, really cheap steel case is starting to dry up. I read that we may see steel case alternatives, but I have not seen the fruits of that discussion as of yet. Fortunately, I have a fair quantity laid in, as I have two other rifles so chambered. Others may not be so fortunate. Point is, that 7.62 Soviet is not as cheap to shoot as it once was (really, what is?). A local big gun shop has cut back on it's AK pattern rifles for that very reason. They just weren't selling like they used to, and it is likely all about the lack of cheap steel case. But if you are not a high volume shooter, are a reloader, or well financed either way, ammo availability will not be as much as an issue as it might be for others.
I firmly believe that the Mini is a VERY positive choice ahead of the AK or the SKS. It's only rival may be the discontinued SIG 556R (well, I saw a CMMG rifle that took AK mags yesterday....a mere $1700!) Ruger offers solid support, try that with your wonky WASR. The Mini also offers easy scope mounting, not so easy with some Klashnikov's. Available in stainless steel and synthetic stock, such models will be somewhat carefree (note SOMEWHAT) . Out of the box, the Mini has a far better trigger. It is as accurate, likely more accurate than any of the AK/SKS family. The only edge the AK has over the Mini is magazines. AK mags are still plentiful, somebody said you could take your AK to the moon and still find mags for it. And AK mags are near indestructible. The Mini uses proprietary mags and they ain't cheap and may be a bit flimsy if subjected to abuse. But if the 5-rd sporting box and a couple of the 10- 20 rd versions are all you want, cost may be acceptable. The fact that the American bolt rifles use the same mag will keep the Mini mags in the market for a while I would think.
And that brings us to cost. Mini's these days are not cheap. In fact, I have no idea how the Mini14/30 stays afloat. New Ruger has a reputation for nixing models that don't pay off. With the cost of AR's these days still reasonable (time being at least) and Ruger producing their own AR pattern, I don't see how the Mini14 survives. For the price of a new Mini, one could buy two intro AR's and a fair quantity of ammo. I suspect if the Mini14 goes, so will the Mini30. So if a fella really wants one, you'd better get it.
OK, that's it from 'Bama. You asked for it, that's all I have. Mines not for sale.
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