off topic: Ruger Mini 14

Mini's are great for certain purposes. I'd say you could hit a CD at 50 yards pretty consistently.....but it probably won't get much better than that. They're VERY reliable however. Very tough.

If you want an AR in CA, all you need is a bullet button and 10 round magazines. All NFA rules apply in regards to barrel length and all. Must be OAL of 30'' I believe.
 
Get a mini 14. Great fun gun. It will shoot fine, and be reliable and more importantly, you can take it out and shoot it without stressing constantly about it.


You might want to look at a M14 as well. It will look similar to the Mini-14, but is a very powerful accurate platform. A tested and loved battle rifle. You mag capacity is going to be limited in Cali, so you might want to have 10 rounds of .308. Make the 10 really count!
 
calguns.net is a great resource if you were wanting to get another AR in CA. it's been invaluable for me. Also, some dealers have been doing group buys on lowers, like $80 each if you buy three, stuff like that. So you can build em out and pick and choose your parts. I didn't have a problem building mine, and the only hassle was the 10 day wait for the lower :)

The Mini-14 is nice looking.
 
I STILL want a mini 30 though :D. Was just drooling at Greg's 14.....a thing of beauty!
 
My Mini-14 would fail to feed. I sold it for an H&K 93. Bruce now has it. :)
Good luck.
 
I feel for your plight. I teach, and they could not pay me enough money to move to CA. I had a friend once whose company moved him there, and I watched as he sold his AR15, FNFAL, and Steyr Aug with tears streaming down his face. makes me sad thinking about it. DSArms does make a very nice CA model FN FAL rifle that loads from stripper clips that looks very nice and you''ll have longer range and knock down.
 
high desert said:
Believe me I do stand up for my rights and recently had a situation where I followed through exercising my rights against a government agency and the only ones to get satisfaction were the lawyers involved. It cost me $5,000 to pursue, money I could use now, but I felt it necessary to follow through and the outcome remained the same. If I was to have this rifle (AR) impounded what good would it be to me. How much would you spend to get it back vs let it go. As I get older I have learned not to let my hard headedness create unnecessary problems. More like pick and choose your fights. I was just hoping to have a firearms discussion and not get into all these other issues. Besides what can an AR do that a mini-14 can't?
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Good to know and sorry you went through that ordeal. Some times doing the right thing doesn't always feel like it and that stinks. I wasn't telling you to intentionally pick any fights nor was I trying to "bust your balls". I was however trying to encourage you to research your options further on your own over taking the "confusing" advice from guys who want to sell you guns, ie dealers, since some are knowledgeable while others are just in it for the money. The way I understood your posts, that seemed to be the biggest issue as to why you were considering settling for a gun you seemed less than thrilled with in the past. The people that taught me the most in life encouraged me to do my own research and think for myself rather than just believing everything I am told so I tend to encourage others to think the same way. I apologize if my attempt to help doesn't read that way.

Back to the rifle, there is nothing wrong with a mini 14 and it will go bang when you pull the trigger if it has no mechanical issues and stays lubed. Family and friends have had several that I shot plenty, but I never really cared for them enough to buy one.

If you wanted a little bit cheaper (around $500 if you are patient/lucky) and lighter .223 rifle that is Cali legal and very portable, the Keltec SU16CA is a pretty impressive little rifle that folds in half with the removal of a takedown pin. Many people don't care for the brand based on complaints about entirely different older guns, but I think it is a bit undeserved. They offer a lifetime warranty and their customer service has been top notch when I have called them (not for warranty, just information and additional parts to upgrade). It will fit in a backpack when folded, is very accurate and has held up very well to several thousand rounds so far. I picked up a second one that wasn't the Cali version so that I could shoot it when folded if necessary. The only thing about it I don't care for is the flat top being polymer instead of steel, but the iron sights it comes with work very well out to 300 yards no problem. I have had 3 of their products now and am looking for a 4th soon. The third one I have is the pistol version, the PLR-16 and it is my favorite by far due to being the most portable and most fun, but also the most expensive, but it is my truck gun when I travel. They all use AR mags too.

Good luck in your search for a new rifle!
 
Like everyone else I played around with the Mini 14 about 30 or so years ago. They could be had anywhere for about $165 out the door. I had a few of them.

I spent quite a bit of money trying to make a couple of them shoot well. About the only thing I learned was while they look like a mini M14 they aren't. You can improve them some but they will never be consistently good shooters.

They are what they are. If you like what they are you will be very happy. If you like a reliable rifle that holds it's zero and shoots good groups in any climate you will likely find the Mini 14 to be more of a plinker's toy than a real rifle. Which is what I see it as.

There are so many proven platforms out there I wouldn't build a Mini 14 knowing what I know today. But I don't live in California and I don't have to deal with the restrictions that those that do have to deal with.
 
AZTimT, no offensive taken. You just wanted to be sure I wasn't a sheeple and I preach the same philosophy. The better you know the laws means you don't have to take anyones b.s. I did go to a local gun store where the owner is also a gunsmith. He has a variety of rifles including AR's and Mini-14 and M1. While I was discussing rifles with him one of his customers standing near said "I have that mini your looking for and would sell it". The gun shop owner said "this guy has the model your looking for and I have no problems if you want to buy from him". It showed me that the gun store owner had no agenda. After talking to this guy about his mini-14 it appeared to be the older version and I decided to pass. After further discussions about how things work in my area AR vs Mini-14, I decided to purchase the mini-14. The gun shop owner said that the mini-14's trigger will take a tune up well. Hopefully between the redesign and new parts and a trigger job I can get something that can hit a softball at 100 yards on a consistent basis.
 
I like the Mini's. Accuracy has been the issue in the past, but from what I've read on some of the gun forums it seems the newer design is much more accurate, reducing group sizes to acceptable (but not bolt-action) levels.


One thing that was mentioned above that deserves repeating... USE ONLY FACTORY MAGAZINES in the mini series rifles. The aftermarket mags, even by reputable makers do NOT work (in my experience) and will only cause you frustration and cause you to lose confidence in an otherwise sound rifle.


Good luck on your choice... Moving sucks but a man must go where the jobs are nowdays.
 
high desert said:
Believe me I do stand up for my rights and recently had a situation where I followed through exercising my rights against a government agency and the only ones to get satisfaction were the lawyers involved. It cost me $5,000 to pursue, money I could use now, but I felt it necessary to follow through and the outcome remained the same. If I was to have this rifle (AR) impounded what good would it be to me. How much would you spend to get it back vs let it go. As I get older I have learned not to let my hard headedness create unnecessary problems. More like pick and choose your fights. I was just hoping to have a firearms discussion and not get into all these other issues. Besides what can an AR do that a mini-14 can't?
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Hit what you are aiming at? :)
 
A more expensive option is to go the M1A route. 10 rounds of 308 from a reasonably accurate rifle can be a compelling fight stopper. I was in a gun store yesterday and ARs and similar 5.56mm rifles are reasonably priced. At least in the Redwood City area. Also, look in to the off list loophole for California. I am not a lawyer or anything like that so I'll leave my opinion and interpretation of the law out of the discussion but It is doable. And BTW was kidding about the mini 14. I personally am not crazy about them but they are a good rifle.
 
high desert said:
Hello, I have recently moved from northern nevada to northern california. I sold my AR-15 and all accessories before we moved because the model I had was not cal compliant and would cost a lot to make it so. You can purchase an AR-15 here, but they are too expensive. I am now starting to consider what my options are for a replacement rifle for under $800. I did own a mini -14 about 20 years ago for little while and didn't care for the way the recoil caused a muzzle flip to take the target out of your scopes view. Since I already have a lot of .223 ammo I am looking for a reliable rifle as a replacement and wanted to be sure that there is not something I might have overlooked. Your comments are welcomed.
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You might want to hold off on buying the Mini-14. Check out Calguns.net. A lot of shooters in CA are building their own compliant AR-15's. You might be able to build one for $800 if you educate yourself on the process. Take your time and check things out.
 
I'd check out Kel-tec's su-16 it's lightweight ergonomic and shoots AR15 Mags and folds up into a very compact package.
 
What accuracy are you wanting to get? I read through most of the posts and didn't see that. I went through a carbine course several years ago and two LEOs used old style Mini 14s that were from their arsenal. They both passed the class just fine with no problems out to 100 yards. I have read several articles about the new Mini 14s being designed to be more accurate and that they were. I also believe Ruger mags only which is the reason I don't own a Mini because I didn't want to fool with those mags. Also a friend has a Mini 30 in 7.62 x 39 that scoped throws a pattern not a group. It is old style pre 06 and I believe it is .308 bore and the Russian ammo is like .311 and that is why there is little accuracy. Not my rifle though so I can't say for sure.

Just what I have learned, read over the years, hope it helps. I have never liked the ergos of the Mini 14. Check to make sure how easy you can get Ruger mags before you buy the rifle.
 
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