I have made a terrible mistake.

[RunningOnMT]

I'd love to have a Mini 14. Maybe not tack drivers but I really like the style of rifle...that is if it has the wood stock. They had a special addition out about a year ago I wish I had snatched up; wood stock, longer (20") blued barrel with flash suppressor, I believe it came with a thirty round mag but it might have been twenty. Was a tad bit too pricy for my budget at the time. Anyway, if I had one I'd go ahead and stock up on Ruger mags, even if only one a month. Then enjoy.

[RunningOnMT]

Originally Posted by LDBennett

Here's a rule I follow for all my semi-auto magazine fed gun, pistols and rifles:

FACTORY MAGAZINES ONLY

Some times that is expensive but it completely eliminates the risk of getting crummy non-working magazines as I have gotten before this rule was in place, that got immediately got trashed.

For those who want a higher than 10 count magazine, that's tough here in California as none can be sold with more than a 10 round capacity. Some legal eagle here told some sellers at gun shows here in CA that they could sell magazine repair kits for older grandfathered larger capacity mags. So they disassemble a larger capacity magazine out of state and send it to CA as magazine parts which they sell in a package as a disassembled magazine. Works for me!

LDBennett

LD, would it be a major felony for someone in a state with no restrictions to buy hi cap mags for someone in Cal? Is there any law for private individuals re shipping mags? I know businesses wont do it, but that goes into a whole trade thing that I'm not sure applies to individuals.

[GunHugger]

Originally Posted by soundguy

why?

my first hunting experiences came on that gun. plenty of florida deer fell to those guns between me and my step brother and stepfather.

nothing endemically wrong with the action of a properly functioning gun...

price and availablilty are as market demands. go try to buy a keltec KSG shotgun. sugested retail is 800$.. IF you can get one you will pay 1600$ or more.

everything else are user issues assuming the gun is 'correct'

Why?

In one word...PRICE.

It's a $400 gun.

For what a Mini costs today you can buy a entry level AR, a million more accessories, GI surplus 30 round mags for $10 or far better PMags for $14. AND far more accurate.

I have owned 2 Mini's and they weren't very accurate at all. I wouldn't have enough faith with one to shoot at a deer past 100 yards for fear of a poorly placed shot.

They are over priced IMO.

[ozo]

All the experts always cut down the guns they don't like.
I say that in a sarcastic way.....because it's the truth.
I get so sick of the way things are said...not
what is said.....
Everybody that is somebody important acts and speaks this way,
and you better listen to them...because they know....
[I don't know why I take the time to express...]
One day soon, I am gonna give up...it is futile.
I thought the thread was about the magazine...aftermarket.....
what a thread drift !!!!

[ozo]

The most common cause
of a mis-feed issue
with a Mini-14

Page10 in Mini-14 Owner's Manual

and......each[all, every] aftermarket
magazine I have purchased came with
a heads-up....this one from CTD.....

insert the magazine properly
or you may have a feed issue.

[ozo]

JEEZ.....!
I SWEAR I size these pics before I attach them.....

[ozo]

Originally Posted by GunHugger

Why?

In one word...PRICE.

It's a $400 gun.

For what a Mini costs today you can buy a entry level AR, a million more accessories, GI surplus 30 round mags for $10 or far better PMags for $14. AND far more accurate.

I have owned 2 Mini's and they weren't very accurate at all. I wouldn't have enough faith with one to shoot at a deer past 100 yards for fear of a poorly placed shot.

They are over priced IMO.

Hugger...hug this for a test....
and to your benefit, I am getting pretty old.[70]
You look at my junk line-up of Mini-14's
and you pick which one.
We measure off 200yds, you say go, I shoot at you.
Willing to take that gamble, or you say it would
just be a fluke...if I hit you ????
No malice intended.....but what 'hands-on'
experience do you 'personally' have ?
[In one word...PRICE.---GunHugger]
In one word....? Experience ? Hearsay ?
Overheard ? Guessing ? Military ? Forums ?

All my AR's kick the Mini-14's ass......
They are constantly accurate beyond 1000 yds,
and the mags only cost me $5......
I get so sick of the 'expertise'.......
Guilty, thread drift to the max !
[My apologies for being a senile old fart...
not my fault....old asphalt !]

[01brian]

Originally Posted by ozo

Hugger...hug this for a test....
and to your benefit, I am getting pretty old.[70]
You look at my junk line-up of Mini-14's
and you pick which one.
We measure off 200yds, you say go, I shoot at you.
Willing to take that gamble, or you say it would
just be a fluke...if I hit you ????
No malice intended.....but what 'hands-on'
experience do you 'personally' have ?
[In one word...PRICE.---GunHugger]
In one word....? Experience ? Hearsay ?
Overheard ? Guessing ? Military ? Forums ?

All my AR's kick the Mini-14's ass......
They are constantly accurate beyond 1000 yds,
and the mags only cost me $5......
I get so sick of the 'expertise'.......
Guilty, thread drift to the max !
[My apologies for being a senile old fart...
not my fault....old asphalt !]

ozo, this us pretty confusing. Are you for mini's?

[zant]

Originally Posted by ozo

Hugger...hug this for a test....
and to your benefit, I am getting pretty old.[70]
You look at my junk line-up of Mini-14's
and you pick which one.
We measure off 200yds, you say go, I shoot at you.
Willing to take that gamble, or you say it would
just be a fluke...if I hit you ????
No malice intended.....but what 'hands-on'
experience do you 'personally' have ?
[In one word...PRICE.---GunHugger]
In one word....? Experience ? Hearsay ?
Overheard ? Guessing ? Military ? Forums ?

All my AR's kick the Mini-14's ass......
They are constantly accurate beyond 1000 yds,
and the mags only cost me $5......
I get so sick of the 'expertise'.......
Guilty, thread drift to the max !
[My apologies for being a senile old fart...
not my fault....old asphalt !]

SOMEBODY loves Ruger Mini's...Every Mini I've shot incld AC556 would do 2-4" at 100yds and as they say that's good enough for gov't work.If you like it,buy Ruger mags when you can.Politics aside,Ruger made a handy little rifle and should have sold hi-caps to general public...he probably would have sold 2 or 3 times as many rifles if the mags were 9-11$...

[Jim K]

I don't think there is anything inherent in the Ruger design that results in the Mini-14 not being especially accurate. I think Ruger just never spent the time and money needed to tune those rifles, plus there has been little demand for improved barrels, better bedding and the whole accuracy tuning game. Basically, the gun has been treated as a medium power plinker, not a rifle worthy of a place on the target ranges. Of course if the money were spent to "accurize" the Mini-14, it would no longer be inexpensive.

The AR-15, on the other hand, has had millions of (mainly) government dollars poured into making it an accurate rifle even though the first ones were not especially accurate.

Jim

[ozo]

Originally Posted by Jim K

I don't think there is anything inherent in the Ruger design that results in the Mini-14 not being especially accurate. I think Ruger just never spent the time and money needed to tune those rifles, plus there has been little demand for improved barrels, better bedding and the whole accuracy tuning game. Basically, the gun has been treated as a medium power plinker, not a rifle worthy of a place on the target ranges. Of course if the money were spent to "accurize" the Mini-14, it would no longer be inexpensive.

The AR-15, on the other hand, has had millions of (mainly) government dollars poured into making it an accurate rifle even though the first ones were not especially accurate.

Jim

yeah, what Jim said....
and the mini-14 CAN be tuned....

[ozo]

Originally Posted by 01brian

ozo, this us pretty confusing. Are you for mini's? In addition, I don't think it's appropriate to speak about shooting at other members. Just my .02

Yes, us pretty confusing.

Me...for mini's...?????
You can bet you fresh mountain air I AM.....!!!

If you spew the [Mini-14 isn't worth a damn after 100yds...
not accurate.....wouldn't trust shooting at a deer with one.....]
mentality.......why would you think it was inappropriate
of me to offer a 'test' to your absolute knowledge of the lack
of capabilities of the test weapon..????
If you are certain it won't perform....and run amuck saying so,
why would you not participate to be fired at....at that incapable
distance.......if you are so sure ?

Not necessarily YOU, Brian,......but IF you read the entire
thread, and comprehend, you understand me.
Just my .07

[Jim K]

Yep, the Mini-14 can be tuned, but I don't know anyone who does it, or at least specializes in it. The difference is that the AR was adopted by the U.S. armed forces, making it THE gun for service rifle matches, and for thousands or millions of people who want to make it shoot better. That, in turn, resulted in a proliferation of after-market parts and a whole lot of folks who have gone into business solely to improve the AR. (Some do, some don't, but that is another story.)

There is now a Mini-14 Target Rifle; I have not seen one and don't know how well they shoot, but they will be hard put to compete with the AR rifles.

Jim

[ozo]

All I really care about......
concerning this thread....
Did Unknown get the knowledge he
was seeking...???
Did he figure out how to put the mag in?

[01brian]

Originally Posted by ozo

Yes, us pretty confusing.

Me...for mini's...?????
You can bet you fresh mountain air I AM.....!!!

If you spew the [Mini-14 isn't worth a damn after 100yds...
not accurate.....wouldn't trust shooting at a deer with one.....]
mentality.......why would you think it was inappropriate
of me to offer a 'test' to your absolute knowledge of the lack
of capabilities of the test weapon..????
If you are certain it won't perform....and run amuck saying so,
why would you not participate to be fired at....at that incapable
distance.......if you are so sure ?

Not necessarily YOU, Brian,......but IF you read the entire
thread, and comprehend, you understand me.
Just my .07

ok. Thanks for the clarification. especially at the end. I offered no opinion, you just confused me. I can see you are wound a bit tight tonight...i like my mini 14. I like ARs too. I like FN's and M1A's. I like green eggs and ham.

Too bad, I liked you. So long.

[Unknown]

ok so.....despite the discussion going on between ARs and minis, im all for it. i hate AR's and that is why im an AK guy. and im not starting an argument there, just a point of reference. which is to also state i know how to load a mini, i thank all who have posted and made sure more people than me know how to load the mini, this one knows exactly how to rock in a mag properly, but thats some good lookin out, thank you.

furthermore, id like to reach back out to the nice guys who have helped me so far and ask as calmly, and politly as i can after spending the last 3 days on this computer, and on the road

DOES ANYONE KNOW WHERE THE F**K I CAN GET A PROPER FUNCTIONING FACTORY RUGER 30RND MAG?!?!

sorry, but my patience is incredibly thin after finding out, there are 2 different makes - of factory ruger mags. after finding a 20 rnd at bass pro, looked on the back of the mag, same exact design as the pro-mag that dosnt work in my mini, just the rectangle block and no notch. if no one knows what im talking about, the only design that seems to work is the design featured in snakes picture on the first page.

this is becoming a nightmare, any one in southeast texas wanna buy a 581 mini, never fired, cussed at plenty?

[Unknown]

i figured some pictures of my ever evolving headache. from left to right, Ruger 5rnd, no-name 30rnd, Pro-Mag 30rnd.

[Unknown]

the first is of course the back of the perfect fitting, perfect feeding Ruger 5rnd.

second is the back of the incredibly worked over no name 30rnd. punching that big ass hole it it seemed to help greatly actually! but the follower and spring are just beyond working with and its just an all over loss. 15 bucks down the drain.

the third is the back of all 3. again left to right, the Ruger, no name, Pro-Mag. notice, if you can, the back of the no name is the same damn config as the back of the Pro-Mag. quality first my ass. but ill give it that it does sit higher in the well and dosent jam as bad as the no name. and ill demonstrate.

[Unknown]

and here is the Pro-Mag, loaded, first round, racked hard as if it fired. the round sits right against the edge of the bore. its as if the bore was chamfered or rounded off, every round would go in perfectly, buuuut i aint about to do that cause that could have some dire consequences. this is the norm though, sometimes the round will catch on the collar of the round as well but this here is the most common.

[Unknown]

Deleted

[cycloneman]

I have some aftermarket 30 rnd mags that i simply dont put 30 rnds in and they work fine. They will not insert with the full 30 rnds but will if you put 27 or 28 in them.

[GunHugger]

Originally Posted by ozo

Hugger...hug this for a test....
and to your benefit, I am getting pretty old.[70]
You look at my junk line-up of Mini-14's
and you pick which one.
We measure off 200yds, you say go, I shoot at you.
Willing to take that gamble, or you say it would
just be a fluke...if I hit you ????
No malice intended.....but what 'hands-on'
experience do you 'personally' have ?
[In one word...PRICE.---GunHugger]
In one word....? Experience ? Hearsay ?
Overheard ? Guessing ? Military ? Forums ?

All my AR's kick the Mini-14's ass......
They are constantly accurate beyond 1000 yds,
and the mags only cost me $5......
I get so sick of the 'expertise'.......
Guilty, thread drift to the max !
[My apologies for being a senile old fart...
not my fault....old asphalt !]

....whatever.

[RunningOnMT]

After all is said and done about this subject, I have a question; Why? Why would a company manufacture an aftermarket magazine for a particular firearm that doesn't work? Surely some R&D went into producing these mags, why wouldn't they have realized there was a problem? Has anyone bothered to contact these companies to let them know their product doesn't work worth a damn?

I was a QC inspector for several mold manufacturers and on occasion we had to duplicate other products. With modern CNC processes exact reproductions of existing parts is easily achievable. So why would a company like Promag produce a magazine for a particular firearm that had a functional detail that didn't match the original? It just doesn't make sense to me.

Of course we know that all brands of the same product don't always perform the same, but it has been my experience that this usually has to do with parts failure due to materials used. Companies try to maximize profits by making parts of cheaper materials. These materials may fail during use and malfunction, but that doesn't appear to be the case in this instance, rather this seems to be an intentional variation of a critical design feature..

I apologize for going off on a tangent but thing like this really get my panties in a bunch.

[zant]

cdnnsports.com has factory Ruger mags in the wrap 20 and 30rd......

[LDBennett]

Yesterday, 09:43 AM #27
RunningOnMT:

Is a package of repair parts for a magazine a magazine under the law? I have no idea how the CA seller got the parts to CA but suppose someone outside CA disassembled a bunch of magazines, threw them in a box, and sent them as repair parts. He could put some parts in one box and some others in another box so that both shipments had to be combined to be complete magazines. Is that a violation of the law if the seller never assembles them as a magazine? It turns out it is not a violation to posses 10+ round magazines but only to sell them. So the buyer does the re-assembly. Did he break the law?

What I saw was that the mags were disassembled and put back into the original packaging and re-identifed as a repair kit. Is that illegal? I don't even know if they were shipped from out of state or just old stock the seller happen to have? The sellers were the magazine sellers that usually have huge stocks of magazines on their tables.

The whole 10 round magazine law is stupid, passed by anti-gunners who are eating away at our gun rights in California one bite at a time just like the way you eat an Elephant. The bad guys will get large capacity magazines whether there is a law or not. Meantime the honest gun owners suffer and the anti-gunners get another bite out of our gun rights. DUMB LAW. But this is typical of the CA liberal Legislature. I applaud anyone who finds a legal loop hole in any of these anti-gun laws. They have successfully and legally bypassed the CA Assault Weapons Ban with bullet buttons and guns configured around the law. These AR's and other semi-auto gun are the hottest selling guns in CA today and they are legal. Manufacturers even make "CA Legal" version of these guns. Screw the anti-gunners.

LDBennett