AR 15 or Mini 14

[Ash]

Not all other aspects. Reliability does not favor the AR. Indeed, the AR really only wins in the accuracy department. Everything else is subjective or as in the case of magazines, price related. Beyond that, there are legions of AR's that are markedly inferior to the Mini. Not all AR's are built the same. There are also mountains of bad AR magazines.

Compare, say, a Vulcan AR with USGI magazine to a Mini.

Yes, you do compare one manufacturer, Ruger, to a vast number with AR's, but that is in itself the issue. Do an apples-to-apples manufacturer to manufacturer comparison and there are AR's that cannot hold a candle to a Mini at the same price point. There are other AR's that are better by far, but cost significantly more (and so negate any advantage brought on by cheap high-quality magazines). There are also many really great AR's that cost the same as a Ruger. Preference these days favors the AR, that is fine, but exaggerations do not.

 

[gotigers]

Why we don't see mini 14's in 3 gun?

Why did most police dept's go to the AR?

I've seen many ARs shoot a 1000 plus a day, I've seen dozens of ARs shoot thousands of rounds over the years....I have seen only a very few unreliable ARs.

Most unreliable ARs come from owners bubbaing parts and uneducated smith work. Considering the millions of ARs sold vs the smaller number of minis sold, you're going to see more AR issue just because of the statistics.

I've shot mini 14's, I like the mini 14, I would like to own one, but not at a price over $500.

I have 2 $800 ARs one i built and one bought in the last 3 years, that are always reliable and shoot close to MOA.

Different guns for different jobs.

Some of the comments in this thread are just laughable. sorry to be a negative, but wow.

 

[Ash]

You don't see mini 14's in 3 gun for the same reason you don't see hiking boots in a basketball game. The reasons are subjective. And that is ultimately where the issue lies. You wouldn't buy a Mini for more than $500. Fine, quite fine in fact. I wouldn't buy an AR for more than $500. It's preference. Find an AR that has the features I seek in a carbine. Find just one. You won't. It does not fill a role that I prefer. But, that again is subjective and my rules are in no way superior to an others - yet neither are they inferior.

How about this, why is it in norther Alaska you see more Mini 14's than ARs?

The AR is not unreliable, but it does not beat the Mini in that department at all.

Compare a Mini to, say, an Olympic AR. Compare it to a Vulcan. What about Battle Rifle Company since that name is out there?

Your Ferrari might be a far better machine than my Cherokee, but drive through the swamps with me and see which one shines best.

As far as laughable, care to share which comments you find laugably wow?

 

[yzguy87]

I say get the rifle YOU want. I personally have an AR. I like it! It is very accurate and plenty reliable and then some for me. I am a recreational shooter and I have almost 1k rounds through it. I haven't had any failures so far of any sort.

I have no doubt that the rifle you choose will serve you well because both rifles are great designs!

 

[Robert]

I have both. I like both. My AR is for hard work and competition, while my Mini is more of a fun rifle. I have an older, 1980's Mini with the thin barrel, and as long as I don't over heat the barrel it is a very accurate rifle. Just as accurate as my AR. But my AR is my favorite.

 

[REWTEX]

I always read these threads and I finally decided to give my experience. I have a couple of both and in my experience, an AR close to the same price range as a mini is not any more (or as) accurate than the mini. I like them both but I don't see the mini as being inferior to the AR, just not as modular. I've shot both for years and I have to say the mini wins in reliability. The magazine price is higher and more limited for the mini, but personally I don't need a lot of mags for either as I mainly use them for hog and coyote hunting. There are a bunch of dead coyotes from the last 25-30 years that would tell you that mini 14s are accurate enough.

 

[ID-shooting]

This debte will never end, just like AK vs. AR, 9mm vs. .45, 308 vs. 30-06, and so on. AR vs. Mini all boils down to which appeals more to a persons style and intended use. For me, I much prefer the classic Garand/m-14 styling over an AR. Even at that I have two, Mini-14 that my wife prefers and a Mini-30 that I like better, but that is a whole other debate.

I hated my m-16s I had in the Army BTW. That said, I was given an A1 upper and will build it into an XM177 clone once things settle down.

 

[briansmithwins]

Originally Posted by briansmithwins
Can we add dust and mud to the test? I'd bet my AR against any rifle that wears its guts on the outside like the Mini-14.

How far is Nampa from Portland Oregon?

BSW
You bet we can. Lock the bolts open, toss in a handful of sand shake once and go at it? Any day.

About a 6 hour drive.

I prefer not to fire sand and gravel down my bore. Besides, who runs around with a empty rifle with the bolt open?

I'd say start with rifles loaded with a round in the chamber, muzzle taped, mag in. Apply dust and fire until failure. Clean and reset, apply mud and fire until failure.

BSW

 

[ID-shooting]

I prefer not to fire sand and gravel down my bore. Besides, who runs around with a empty rifle with the bolt open?

I'd say start with rifles loaded with a round in the chamber, muzzle taped, mag in. Apply dust and fire until failure. Clean and reset, apply mud and fire until failure.

BSW

Hahaha, who runs around with tape on the muzzle?

We get gnarly sand storms here, tossing sand in just speeds up the inevitable. But yes, for reliability only (shoot to stopage without cleaning) I will bet money on a Mini all day. For accuracy, I will nod to the AR. But, a Mini will still be "combat accurate"

Ever over this way, let me know. I dislike Oregon gun laws so I doubt I will travel the inverse.

 

[Ash]

Were the action design a problem, I'm pretty sure it would have shown up in North Africa, Italy, France, Guadalcanal, Iwo Jima, Korea, and Alaska, all places where the Garand was issued and it has the same action design features as the Mini.

Again, the AR is a superb rifle and I'm not going to knock it. But the Mini is a fine rifle as well.

 

[Dee]

Last year I was looking into an AR and planned to get my first one with my year end bonus but that ended up being crappy timing on my part as it turns out. At a gun show however I was able to get a newer model mini-14 tacticle for around $800 which seemed like a steal at the time. It had the plain stock and have since gotten an ATI folding stock and an ultimak top rail that replace the hand guard and red dot for it. Also got different brands of mags and they all run fine so far, I do like the factory 20 rnd mags the best though.

I like how in a couple minutes I can change stocks on it for a differnet look and feel and it has proven to be a very reliable, accurate and fun rifle to shoot. I have shot AR's only a few other times and thought they were also very nice but don't see what the mini looses to it. Still hope to get an AR at some point but not before I get another Mini. Thats just my experience, ymmv of coarse.

 

[JoelSteinbach]

Either way you will be OK, I have both AR's and a Mini, I prefer the AR.

 

[Bushpilot]

I've owned several AR's, several Mini 14s, shot many, many more of each and agree with what jmr40 said. Back when Mini 14s were $300 and ARs were $1000, they were a viable option and very popular. Now that Mini 14s are $800 and the price of AR's has dropped back down to almost what they were before the "gun ban panic," I can't think of any advantages in buying a Mini 14 over an AR. AR's generally shoot better, have better parts and accessory availability, better sights and sight options, more and better magazine options and in my experience have been every bit as reliable. Many times I have shot several hundreds of rounds through my ARs between cleanings without the slightest hiccup. The Mini 14s I've owned and fired have generally ran very well also but not perfect, or any better than the AR's, even with factory Ruger mags. While the AR's action may be more prone to malfunction when extremely dirty than the Mini, the AR is much better protected from outside dirt, mud and moisture. With out extra precautions, Mini 14 style actions are prone to freezing shut in cold environments. I like the Mini 14, as I do all the Garand style rifles but nostalgia and aesthetics aside, I can't think of any reason to choose a Mini 14 over an AR when they are priced the same.

 

[4v50 Gary]

I'll take the AR. More versatile as you can put a collapsible stock on it (good for cold weather when you wear more clothes, smaller women and youth), swap uppers to make it a varminter, carbine or with a few more things, even a pistol caliber carbine. It can be a platform for a low cost training tool (22 LR).

Best of all, the AR can be worked on by yourself at home. You don't need that many tools to work on one. The Mini-14 requires $600 worth of tools ('90s prices) that are sold only to graduates of Ruger's Armourers' School. Even with those tools, you can't swap out barrels like you can on an AR. You can't adjust headspace (try buying a Mini-14 bolt) either.

Don't get me wrong. I also like the Mini. It's just that the AR is more versatile and if you had only enough money for one of them, the AR is the way to go.

 

[Ed Ames]

Either can have a collapsible stock. The mini can also have a folding stock - not available for ARs due to the buffer tube.

The DIY aspects may or may not matter to the average shooter. I know someone who picked up a mini in 1983 (OK, don't know it was 83, but early 80s and 83 makes for easy math) and has been shooting it regularly (by his standards, may or may not match mine) ever since without doing anything but routine cleaning. He still uses the original magazine that came with it, though he now has others. Would I be happy with that? Not really. He is. Why would he care about what it costs to change a barrel? Why would he change anything about it if he's happy? As it is if anything goes wrong (headspace or whatever) he'll send it to ruger who will fix it for free.

 

[Jackal]

Seriously folks, what it boils down to between the Mini vs AR debate is preference for a traditional rifle over a EBR. My 580 series Mini's, one standard blued and the other the target model, both are reliable and just as accurate as any AR in their price ranges. The standard Mini's price point is about the same as a DPMS Oracle. My standard blued will do 1.5MOA with decent ammo and trigger control. My Mini target is just plainly a .5moa rifle all day long. Heck, it will even put 5 rounds of Wolf inside an inch when I do my part. Truly, scary accurate and has never malfunctioned once, even with my poor cleaning habits (about every 500rds). I would pit it up against any AR on the market (for that matter, most bolt actions too) in an accuracy/reliability debate.

 

[briansmithwins]

The reason I specified taping the muzzle and dirtying the rifle with a loaded chamber should be obvious. Any rifle with a bore full of mud is just going to explode when fired.

I'd be okay with sealing the muzzle with a condom, like they did in Saving Private Ryan.

BSW

 

[Jackal]

I'd be okay with sealing the muzzle with a condom, like they did in Saving Private Ryan.

It'd have to be a Magnum, I have a bull barrel...

 

[mtrmn]

LOVE the mini. Love the AR more.

Mini accuracy--mediocre. The new ones and target models may be OK. Mine was old--bought in about 1982 or so. Best it ever did was 1.5" at FIFTY yds, or 3 MOA. That was with me reloading for it over a span of about 20 yrs trying to find something it liked.
Reliability with any ammo you can find--excellent.
Parts availability----let's say you need a new bolt, like I did. Doesn't take long to find out there are NONE available, not even from Ruger. They say you have to send the gun in for factory fitting. So I did. Never saw my old faithful mini again. They contacted me saying it wasn't worth fixing and offered me a new gun instead--but I had to pay a special price lower than dealer cost (over 400) for the new one. I went ahead and did that, received the new mini and got my FFL to just sell it new in the box. I'm now dubious of a company that can't repair their own weapons, especially when I have all confidence that I could have fixed it myself with a set of headspace gauges and a little patience if they'd only sell me a bolt. Oh yeah-I DID open the box and remove the bolt from the new mini--looked identical to my old one, so no design changes likely.:banghead:

AR bolts? I can literally drive 4 miles to town and pick one up at my LGS, or order ever how many strikes my fancy online. Along with EVERY other part of the gun.
Ar accuracy--It is universally agreed that I own some of the sorriest POS AR's
available. (Blackthorne kit guns) Every one will easily do 1" 5-shot groups at 100 yds with ammo it likes.
AR reliability--IN MY OPINION the mini wins out under adverse conditions and sorry ammo. (That is, as long as your bolt doesn't develop cracks)

Sorry about the rant, but availability of parts is something not considered many times when we consider a new gun purchase. It became very important to me all of a sudden-lesson learned.

 

[308win]

I have both; if I had to grab one and go it would be the Mini. Have not had one malfunction and there are plenty of reliable magazines - John Masen comes to mind.

 

[Beentown]

Were the action design a problem, I'm pretty sure it would have shown up in North Africa, Italy, France, Guadalcanal, Iwo Jima, Korea, and Alaska, all places where the Garand was issued and it has the same action design features as the Mini.

Again, the AR is a superb rifle and I'm not going to knock it. But the Mini is a fine rifle as well.

Pretty sure the M4 is used by soldiers in all those places currently

I have owned many of both. The Ruger was my first center fire, semi auto. Fun firearm with looks I like. The AR is a superior platform in almost all ways for most people.

The Ruger is still a classic...kinda like a Chevelle of yesteryear. Looks great, sounds great. Just can't perform with even today's grocery getters let alone today's high performance cars.

 

[hentown]

<...Pollytickal stuff removed...>

As to the Mini's being simpler, that's just pure, unadulterated b.s. Try field-stripping a Mini in five seconds, like you can an AR. Try finding a variety of aftermarket trigger assemblies that also can be installed in a few minutes for the Mini. Plenty available for ARs!

 

[Art Eatman]

I've no clue why I would ever be in a hurry to field strip a Mini or an AR.

I've enjoyed four Minis and am on my fifth AR. For my primary interests of hunting and plinking, they're as near equal as makes no nevermind. Good truck guns.

 

[Ash]

Beentown,

Eh, yeah, the AR has been everywhere. The statement was that the open action of the Ruger made it inferior. Yet, that action has been proven across the entire world. No need to roll eyes, I was not commenting on the AR, merely pointing out the Mini does not have a reliability problem nor is there a likelihood of trouble based on its action.

 

[Skyshot]

I own both, love em both, the AR has the accuracy edge, the mini is more fun to shoot and eats anything fed it.