Ruger Mini-30 as an all around field rifle

[Fletcher Knives]

I know this is off the subject a bit, but has anyone contemplated the Carbon-15? I picked one up at the gun show recently. The thing weighs 4 pounds unloaded! The stock is quick release, so it's pretty packable.
As for levers, I saw today that Browning has developed a takedown BLR.

I bought the top of the line Carbon-15 97S before they were being produced by Bushmaster. It was a very good idea and from what I hear, Bushmaster has made it a really nice rifle. The one I had was made by Professional Ordnance, Inc. Unfortunately, before Bushmaster took the wheel, that gun had some serious reliability issues. You couldn't pay it to feed correctly. These days, they are great from what I understand. Still have all the things that drew me to it in the first place like weight and features, but now they work correctly too.

 

[mrostov]

Ruger totally retooled a while back to make the Mini-14 and Mini-30. They are the 580 series. Instead of a 'Ranch' rifle and a regular Mini-14, they are all 'Ranch' rifles with integral scope mounts but also with iron sites that are copied off of the M-1 carbine. The accuracy has also gone way up. They are now made in 3 calibers - .223/5.56mm (military 5.56mm chamber), 7.62x39mm (mil spec .310 bore), and the new 6.8mm SPC military round.

The biggest advantage of the Mini-14/30 vs rifles like the AK is that they are legal in many places that an AK is not. You can also get them in stainless steel, which makes then great for use in a marine environment.

So, if you are in someplace like California, and you want an intermediate caliber semi-auto, a new 580 series Mini-14 or Mini-30 is a far better rifle than an SKS.

 

[langston302]

sometimes i like to carry a little more punch....M1 carbine is my usual choice...but every now and again i carry this one...