Ruger Mini 30 Opinion?

Ropinfool · Apr 6, 2020

Anybody have one? I want one but have heard they aren't very accurate.

Blank · Apr 6, 2020

A friend has one in SS for his boat gun down in Texas. Uses it to shoot hogs out in the swamps and marshes. Got it cheap, and uses cheap ammo. Even in 7.62x39 the recoil is moderate and the 18.5" barrel is loud. Not nearly as nice as a Mini-14. Guess it would be OK for a truck gun to bounce around.

Homer · Apr 6, 2020

Identical to a mini 14....other than chambering. Groups the same in my case....neither will ever be a less than 2 minute shooter...

But very reliable.

Bluehair · Apr 6, 2020

And fun. My mini wouldn't be near as fun if I was trying to aim.

Stonefly · Apr 7, 2020

I took one in trade for some tinwork, years ago. Would shoot ALMOST as good as an sks. It had a big scratch on the butt of the stock. I sold it to a guy that said he had looked all over for one. About a month later, I saw it in a pawn shop while browsing for a new pistol, wanting to spend the money,i got from the rifle. Then, about 2 years later, a freind tells me about a rifle, i was interested in, for sale in a different town 30 miles away. I go to check it out. And next to the remington i came to look at, is the dang ruger with the same scratch in the stock.....

Ropinfool · Apr 7, 2020

thanks, maybe I don't want one after all lol.

Ropinfool · Apr 7, 2020

maybe the smith&wesson mp10 then?

Captain_coues · Apr 7, 2020

If you’re after a 30 cal, consider FN. I’ve always wanted to get one of these but I’m a lefty. It’s supposed to be accurate too. They have different versions you can find out there that don’t look like kid toys.

FNAR™ Competition | FN® Firearms

The combination of battle-proven durability and competition-tested performance makes the FNAR™ Competition the ultimate competition autoloading rifle.

fnamerica.com

RELH · Apr 8, 2020

If you want information on the Ruger mini-30, go to the Ruger web site forum and search under semi-auto. I have one and do not plan to sell it off as I am satisfied with the rifle. Accuracy is around 2 inches at 100 yards with good ammo and not that Tula junk Russian ammo. some of the other cheap Russian ammo is very good on accuracy. PPU ammo is very good on accuracy and they offer soft point ammo that can be used for hunting and is re-loadable.
RELH

BeanMan · Apr 19, 2020

They are nice reliable rifles. My Mini 14 Tactical shoots 1.5” groups with a red dot scope but they are not bench rifles. With a few mods they can be slightly better. Check out the forum Perfect Union Mini page. There are a couple of guys who really know their minis. I like their ergonomics better than my AR’s.

stinky · Apr 20, 2020

I don't know...but I had a Mini-14 and loved it. W/iron sights it would shoot a 10 round group, w/iron sights, at 50 yards, that you could cover w/the top of a coke can...the rim (about 2").

Expect it to never jam (like an SKS).

ce61 · Apr 20, 2020

I picked up a Upper in 7.62x39 for my ar15. Works well and shoots decent.

deadibob · Apr 21, 2020

I can't speak for current Mini-30 barrels but most accuracy related problems with the older mini-30's are because the 7.62x39 cartridge uses a .311" diameter bullet and the Rugers were barreled with the tighter .308" bores. Between squeezing the bullet down the barrel and the junk russian ammo that most people run in these, you haven't got much left to work with.

Ropinfool · Apr 22, 2020

thanks for the replys, do you guys ever have any jamming problems with the mini 30?

BeanMan · Apr 22, 2020

Ropinfool said:
thanks for the replys, do you guys ever have any jamming problems with the mini 30?

Nope, as long as you use Ruger factory magazines. It would be nice to be able to use cheaper aftermarket mags, some people buy Ruger followers and change that out in mags.

There are a couple of easy mods which will help out accuracy:
Change out factory gas bushing for a smaller one.
Put 1911 buffers on the front and the back of the op rod. ~harmonics~
Bed or credit card shim, the factory stock/action is very sloppy.
Don’t use Tula or Wolf steel ammo, They are dirty, slower, and less accurate. The ‘bear’ ammo is pretty good stuff, esp Silver Bear, Golden Bear.
Measure your firing pin protrusion if it has problems with light primer strikes with steel ammo, factory pins vary, .038-.042 will fire any ammo reliably. There are cheap fixes for this. Go to the Firing line mini 14 and 30 page on Perfectunion.com or Rugerforum.net and look up Sandog’s and COSteve’s posts, they are very knowledgable about mini 30’s.
*Don’t put an aftermarket “Stronger recoil spring”, it won’t make the firing pin magically long enough to stop light primer strikes on Tula or Wolf ammo.

BeanMan · Apr 22, 2020

deadibob said:
I can't speak for current Mini-30 barrels but most accuracy related problems with the older mini-30's are because the 7.62x39 cartridge uses a .311" diameter bullet and the Rugers were barreled with the tighter .308" bores. Between squeezing the bullet down the barrel and the junk russian ammo that most people run in these, you haven't got much left to work with.

This has not been true in a very long time. 1992 on.