Mini-14

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The Mini-14 is a small, lightweight semi-automatic rifle manufactured by Sturm, Ruger. It is chambered to fire the popular Remington .223 cartridge. The Mini-14 employs a simple, rugged version of the Garand breechbolt locking system, with a fixed-piston gas system and self-cleaning moving gas cylinder.

One reason for the popularity of the Mini-14 it does not have the menacing appearance that is associated with the AK-47 and M16. This resulted in most variants of the Mini-14 being specifically excluded from federal and many state bans on so called "semi-automatic assault weapons", even though the Mini-14 was functionally equivalent to other banned firearms.

1 History
2 Variants
3 Controversy
4 Mini-30
5 Other calibers
6 Technical data
7 Trivia
8 External links

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History

The Mini-14 moniker comes from the rifle's cousin, the M14 rifle, which is a larger weapon chambered in the .308 Winchester cartridge. Available in a variety of finishes from stainless to blued with synthetic or hardwood stocks and has a standard 18.5 inch barrel.

Since its introduction in 1974, the Mini-14 has won many fans with small game hunters, ranchers, law enforcement, security personnel and target shooters. While not as accurate as most bolt action rifles, or the more expensive AR-15 design, it is more accurate than the AK-47 and SKS designs that it generally competes with in the civilian market. It is a very rugged and robust design which addresses some of the M-14's shortcomings with a self cleaning gas system, which employs an approach more similar to the legendarily reliable AK-47. Since the Mini-14 is not generally accurate enough (without accurizing) for use on varmint animals (such as groundhogs) at long ranges, its hunting utility is generally used for small to medium sized games and predators, such as coyotes and whitetail deer. In some areas, it may be used by fishermen to shoot turtles which are believed to eat or kill the fish in their fishing ponds. This is not considered a safe practice due to the probability of a ricochet from the surface of the water.

The Mini-14 has stiff competition from the much cheaper SKS rifle (a Chinese SKS can be purchased for around 1/3 the cost of a used Mini-14). The SKS is somewhat less accurate than the Mini-14, but it is chambered in 7.62x39, which is a superior deer hunting cartridge--the .223 is considered an absolute minimum, and many areas prohibit deer hunting with calibers under 6mm/.25 caliber. The Mini-14 does have the advantage of a detachable magazine, compared to the fixed 10 round magazine of the SKS, and much better peep sights, but for the difference in cost the SKS can be fitted with an inexpensive scope and scope mount.

In 1983 The Bermuda Regiment replaced its British made L1A1 SLR's (7.62mm) with the wooded stocked Mini-14 20GB (semi automatic only). Again it was the fact that it did not look too threatening, and the unit price which swayed the purchasing body.

In 1993, the wooden stock of the Mini-14 was replaced with a choate black fibreglass stock complete with pistol grip.

Ruger made significant design alterations to the Mini-14 in 2004 which changed the receiver and front sight configuration. All new Mini-14s come with integral scope bases, and use a ghost ring rear sight and a winged front sight similar to that used on the Ruger Police Carbine.

Image:Ruger.JPG

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Variants

Variants of the Mini-14 rifles are available in blued or matte finished stainless steel, with wood or composite stocks. There is also a variant called the Ranch Rifle that has scope bases integrated into the receiver, and an ejector that ejects the brass at a lower angle to avoid hitting a low mounted scope. Both the Ranch Rifle configuration and the stainless steel variants are more expensive than the standard rifle.

Two militarised versions was also produced:

1. The K Mini/14-20GB which featured a fiberglass handguard, flash suppressor and a bayonet lug.

2. The AC-556, identical to the K Mini/14-20GB, but in addition came with selective fire and optional folding stock

While these are not sold to the United States military (which has standardized on variantes of the M16 rifle), both the civilian and military variants are popular with police departments as a medium range weapon to fill the gap between handguns and shotguns and sniper rifles.

Some K Mini/14-20GB's originally sold to US Law enforcement agencies have become available at times in the civilian market. Often these carbines carry dual serial numbers and are more desired by collectors due to their LE background. Likewise the factory flash suppressor and bayonet lug are more rugged than the typical aftermarket and adds to the appeal.

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Controversy

After a spate of high profile shootings and incidences with the Ruger Mini 14 rifle, along with a number of unsavory associations the Mini 14 had gained with militias and extremist movements during the late 1970's and early 1980's, William Ruger expressed a highly unpopular position (amongst firearms owners, users and enthusiasts) by stating his personal views on the "sporting" nature of certain firearms.

In his letter to members of the House and Senate on 30, March, 1989, Mr. Ruger stated in whats come to be known as "The Ruger Letter":

"The best way to address the firepower concern is therefore not to try to outlaw or license many millions of older and perfectly legitimate firearms (which would be a licensing effort of staggering proportions) but to prohibit the possession of high capacity magazines. By a simple, complete, and unequivocal ban on large capacity magazines, all the difficulty of defining "assault rifles" and "semi-automatic rifles" is eliminated. The large capacity magazine itself, separate or attached to the firearm, becomes the prohibited item. A single amendment to Federal firearms laws could prohibit their possession or sale and would effectively implement these objectives."

In addition to the furor amongst hunters, sportsmen and shooters caused by "The Ruger Letter", Mr. Ruger made additional comments during an interview with NBCs Tom Brokaw that angered 2nd Amendment proponents even further, by saying:

“No honest man needs more than 10 rounds in any gun…” and, “I never meant for simple civilians to have my 20 and 30 round magazines….”

This position, coming from an important firearms manufacturer such as Mr. Ruger, caused outrage in the shooting sports community and led to a boycott of Ruger products that is still practiced by many firearms purchasers to this day. "The Ruger Letter" is widely accepted as being the genesis for those parts of legislation that were drafted 5 years later in the now defunct Federal Assault Weapons Ban which prohibited the manufacture of any magazines holding over 10 rounds of ammunition for civilian sale.

While it is unknown what the true motives behind "The Ruger Letter" really were, it is widely speculated that his position on magazine capacity was more a matter of smart business than one of individual philosophy. Given the legislative climate regarding firearms during that time (the late 1980's/early 1990's), the prospect of an outright ban that may have impacted one of Rugers most popular and profitable models (the Mini 14) was a very real possibility. By taking preemptive measures to shift the focus from the "guns" to the "magazine capacity", this would allow Sturm, Ruger Inc. to continue production with their Mini 14 line of firearms for civilian sale. Any legislation regarding magazines would have had zero impact on their bottom line, given that Ruger maintained a company policy refusing to sell Mini 14 magazines over 5 rounds (which wouldn't have been affected), even prior to the 1994 legislation mandating such.

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Mini-30

Beginning in 1987, Ruger also began manufacture of another variant of the Mini-14, called the Mini-30. It is chambered for the Russian 7.62×39mm, used in the AK-47. Many states prohibit hunting of deer with calibers smaller than 7mm (.223 Remington being virtually identical to 5.56 x 45 mm NATO). The 7.62x39mm has nearly identical ballistics to the venerable .30-30 Winchester, which has probably taken more deer-sized game in North America than any other caliber. The Mini-30 is unique in its ability to fire both .308 inch American and .311 inch Soviet Bloc bullets. It does this by using a .308 inch barrel, and a tapered throat that can swage even the steel jacketed Soviet .311 bullets to fit the bore. The Mini-30 was popular for its ability to fire surplus Soviet Bloc ammunition, allowing inexpensive plinking, plus the ability to reliably take deer sized game when loaded with commercial hollow point bullet hunting ammunition. The Mini-30 is available only in a configuration similar to the Mini-14 Ranch Rifle, with integral scope bases and low angle ejection.

However, the significantly lower price of the SKS, and the availability of commercial Russian hollow point and soft point bullet ammunition using .311 bullets, made the SKS and not the Mini-30 evolve as the "poor man's deer rifle" that is gradually displacing the .30-30 lever-actions.

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Other calibers

Some earlier Mini-14 rifles were chambered in the .222 Remington cartridge, which was the basis for the development of the military 5.56x45 mm NATO and the civilian eqivalent the .223 Remington. Since the .223 Remington is dimensionally equivalent to the 5.56x45 mm, civilian firearms chambered in that caliber are highly restricted in countries that restrict or prohibit firearms that chamber military cartidges (such as Mexico). By chambering the Mini-14 in the similar but not interchangeable .222 Remington caliber, the Mini-14 could be sold in those countries.

A larger version of the Mini-14, called the XGI, was developed by Ruger in .308 Winchester and .243 Winchester, but while it was advertised in 1985, it never entered production due to accuracy problems.

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Technical data

Caliber: .223 Rem/5.56x45 mm NATO, .222 Remington (discontinued), 7.62x39 mm (as Mini-30)
Length: 946 mm (37.25 in)
Weight: 2.9 kg (6lb 6oz)
Barrel: 470 mm (18.5 in)
Rifling: 6 grooves, right spin

Commercially Available Magazines And Capacity:

5 (standard factory issued with all new rifles),
10 (Rarely Encountered Factory and Aftermarket)
20 (Factory and Aftermarket),
30 (Discontinued Factory and Aftermarket)
35 (Discontinued Aftermarket)
40 (Discontinued Aftermarket)
90 round drum (Aftermarket).
100 round Beta type drum magazine for the Mini-14 has been announced, and is now available through Betaco.

Prior to 1994, even though there weren't any legal prohibitions on magazine capacity at that time, Sturm, Ruger Inc. elected to refuse public sale of any Mini 14 magazines holding over 5 rounds. In 1994, with the help of Bill Ruger himself, this Ruger company policy became Federal law with the passage of the Federal Assault Weapons Ban that prohibited all citizens from purchasing newly manufactured magazines that held over 10 rounds of ammunition. Bill Ruger was on record as saying that "no honest sportsman needs more than 10 rounds" and his letters to elected officials at that time were instrumental in the drafting of the Assault Weapons Ban. As a result, Ruger was subject to a boycott that had a direct financial impact on the company, with a number of hunters, shooters and sportsmen refusing to buy Ruger products to this day because of their assistance and complicity in the now defunct Federal Assault Weapons Ban.

With the expiration of the Federal Assault Weapons Ban in 2004, Ruger still refuses to sell 20 round magazines direct to consumers and continues to mark them "Law Enforcement Only" even though there is no requirement to do so.

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