An “Under-appreciated” Rifle

Thank you for tuning in to the latest edition of “Guns and Things Involving Shooting With Spencer.”

Let’s say you are a hipster, and you are looking to exercise your Second Amendment (2A) rights. Maybe, in your hipster brain, you have decided that you would like get yourself a rifle that can be used for home/personal defense, hunting, and general plinking without much, if any, modification. Even though you are a hipster, you are still pragmatic, and your rifle can’t be so obscure as to be cost prohibitive. It must fire a readily available round, and have some aftermarket support. Bonus points if it has a small, but rabidly dedicated following.

AR-15’s are obviously too mainstream. Kalashnikov pattern rifles are out of the question for the same reason. An H&K 33/53/93 pattern rifle would be okay, but their aftermarket support is almost too expensive, and they don’t have very many options if you want to add optics. Kel-Tec carbines would be almost perfect, if it were not for the fact that they are nearly impossible to find, even for the hipster who is willing to go the extra mile for a rifle with, reportedly, substandard performance.

So where do you go, you hipster you? Fear not, I have your rifle:

What you see in the picture above is the Ruger Mini-14 and Mini-30 “Ranch Rifle.” Here’s a rifle that is pretty affordable, very reliable, ruggedly built, and all sorts of other good stuff that indicates it is a rifle of high quality. The attributes that indicate to me that it is a relatively desirable “hipster gun” are that it is less common than AR-15s and Kalashnikovs, can be found firing less mainstream cartridges like 6.8 SPCII or 300 Blackout or in more common calibers like .223/5.56 NATO or 7.62x39mm Russian, and have a fan base that is much smaller than that of the ARs, AKs, or even H&Ks, but is loudly proud of their chosen rifle. The price of modifying and maintaining the rifle is not too terribly costly either. It is more than both the AR or Kalashnikov pattern rifles, but less (much less), than that of any H&K rifle.

So what is the Ruger Ranch Rifle? Well, simply put, it is a scaled down version of the M14/M1A that fires an “intermediate” round like .223/5.56 NATO. It utilizes an operating system that is basically copied from the M1 Garand of World War II and Korean War fame, although tuned for the smaller cartridge. It feeds from a detachable box magazine that holds anywhere from five (5) to ninety (90) rounds. There is a select fire (fully automatic) version that was developed for military and police use, although that version, the AC-556, did not gain widespread acceptance due to the availability and ease of use of the AR-15. The AC-556 was, however, the weapon of choice of the “A-Team” from the 1980’s TV show. Or rather, the semiautomatic Ruger Mini-14 was the weapon of choice of the A-Team, and the sound editors transformed the rifles into fully automatic through movie magic.

Look how retro and bad ass that rifle is. Just look at it. I bet that a few of you out there are considering getting one, even if you are not a hipster. For good reason, I say! So let us take an in-depth look at the Mini-14 from the perspective of a first time buyer, who is looking for a suitable rifle for defense that doesn’t look to “scary.”

Let’s look at the base rifle, the Ruger Mini-14 “Ranch Rifle”:

What do you see? Or, more tellingly, what do you not see? You do not see any of those “scary” characteristics that have been demonized on other rifles, namely the AR-15 and AK-47 Modern Sporting Rifles (MSR). It has a straight, classic styled wooden stock, it does not have a pistol grip. It has a flush fitting, 5-10 round magazine, no scary “high” (standard) capacity magazines. The rifle does not even have a flash hider on the muzzle. These features may make this rifle appealing to those of you who are worried that certain political events may end the civilian ownership of certain parts of certain rifles. That is not to say you cannot have those things straight from the factory:

Even if you decide to purchase a model that has the standard, straight stock without the flash hider, but still want higher (standard) capacity magazines, you can readily find reliable magazines on the market. The magazines are, however, much more expensive than magazines for ARs or AKs, but they are waaaaaaay less expensive than the magazines for H&K33/53/93 rifles. I think the factory magazines from Ruger run about $40 for a 30 round magazine, but there are others out there for less. These features, along with the availability in several calibers make this rifle a good option to those of you who want a MSR that doesn’t appear too aggressive while still maintaining similar capability for things like defense or action shooting competitions.

But what about if you want to buy one rifle, that will cover hunting as well as defense and action shooting? Well then there is the Ruger Mini-30. As it’s name implies, the Mini-30 is a beefed up version to handle a higher powered caliber. A few years ago, Ruger manufactured Mini-30’s that fired the 6.8 SPCII, which is sometimes considered the best “All-Around” cartridge for a MSR. Ruger has since stopped producing this version, however they can be found on the used market. The current Mini-30 fires the 7.62x39mm Russian cartridge, which it shares with such rifles as the AK47 and SKS, among others. Outdoor Life once referred to the 7.62x39mm as the “best accidental white-tail deer cartridge.” Cheap and easy to find, A Ruger Mini-30 would provide you with a subdued looking MSR with a bit more punch. Be careful using this rifle for home defense though, 7.62x39mm Full Metal Jacket will punch through several houses before coming to a stop, God forbid it be put into use.

Ruger has recently come out with a version of their Mini-14 “Tactical” that fires the relatively new 300 Blackout. If I was a person who was only ever going to buy one MSR, and I wanted to be able to use it for home defense, competition, and hunting, this is the rifle I would choose. 300 Blackout is still an up and coming cartridge, and as such it is a bit more expensive. I am, however, relatively sure that it is here to stay, and will become more common, and therefore cheaper, with time. It has similar ballistics to the 7.62x39mm, and therefore, with the right bullet, is more than adequate for wild game up to White-Tail Deer sized. The 300 Blackout also fits inside the same magazines as the .223/5.56 NATO cartridge, which simplifies finding magazines.

Assuming I have convinced you, I am sure you are wondering why this particular post. I recently acquired a Mini-14. Or rather, I should say I acquired this:

Those are the major components of a Mini-14, minus the stock. I hastily removed this rifle from its stock because the stock it came with was ugly as sin. I acquired it from a guy who claimed it was not “as good” as another MSR. As the rifle was not in a home that was appreciating its capabilities, I gladly adopted it into a new home. I am going to be putting this rifle into something better looking.

Do you have a firearm you are curious about? Let me know and I will do my best to help you out. If I haven’t convinced you to buy a rifle or other firearm yet, let me know so I can try even harder.

Shoot straight, stay safe,

-Spencer

Have several hours? Try watching these videos on the Mini-14 by a guy who has more time on his hands than I do.