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cbsweeney Member
Joined: Jun 18, 2010 Posts: 197 Location: New York
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Posted: Fri Mar 25, 2011 6:11 am Post subject: My old mini-14 |
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I have a mini-14 that I bought about 15 years ago. Anyone who has one knows they are fun to shoot, but the accuracy is like throwing a hand full of rice at a target . On mine , anyway. A friend of mine told me about some inexpensive modifications that will improve the accuracy on the older models. It seems Ruger has made some changes in the last couple years, and the newer models shoot much better. So, I bought a muzzle brake, evened the gap on the gas block, bedded the action, and polished the trigger. My groups at 100 yards went from 4-5 inches down to about 2 inches. It's almost as much fun as having a new gun!
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_________________ Give a man a fish, and he will eat today. Teach a man to fish, and he will sit in a boat and drink beer all day. |
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Suzanne Super Member
Joined: Jun 27, 2009 Posts: 3323 Location: Eugene, Oregon
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Posted: Fri Mar 25, 2011 6:21 am Post subject: Re: My old mini-14 |
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Cool CBSwee !! but what do mean that you evened the gap on the gas block? Just curious. Was it angled? and to what extent did you bed the action? Pretty nice groupings!!
Suz
_________________ May the moon keep you centered,
May the sun keep you dancing,
And the stars shed light on your dreams. |
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cbsweeney Member
Joined: Jun 18, 2010 Posts: 197 Location: New York
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Posted: Fri Mar 25, 2011 7:33 am Post subject: Re: My old mini-14 |
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Suz,
My friend pointed out to me that on some of the older mini's, the gap on the gas block may not even. I checked mine with a spark plug feeler gauge (real scientific, huh) and it was off. One side was .027, and the other was .032. I loosened the screws and tightned it up using the feeler guage to get the gap even. I don't know how much of a difference it made, because I did all the changes before shooting it again. I bedded the top of the stock where the action sits, under the stock reinforcing bracket, and the where the lugs on the action meet the wood stock (in front of the reinforcing bracket). I don't have any pictures while I was doing it, but I could take one of the finished job if you're thinking about doing it.
_________________ Give a man a fish, and he will eat today. Teach a man to fish, and he will sit in a boat and drink beer all day. |
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Pumpkinslinger Super Member
Joined: Sep 22, 2007 Posts: 5001 Location: NC foothills
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Posted: Fri Mar 25, 2011 7:44 am Post subject: Re: My old mini-14 |
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My Mini-14 is a 180 series that I bought about 30 years ago. It will generally shoot into about 2" if I do my part. It may not be a tack driver but it ALWAYS works, which is what I bought it for. I've taken loads that my AR couldn't digest and the Ruger gobbled them right up.
CB, I've seen those same tuning tips for the Mini-14 elsewhere but haven't tried them. I need to break the old rifle out and check those things.
_________________ Mike
"I ain't no better than anybody else, and there ain't nobody better than me!" Ma Kettle |
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cbsweeney Member
Joined: Jun 18, 2010 Posts: 197 Location: New York
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Posted: Fri Mar 25, 2011 11:52 am Post subject: Re: My old mini-14 |
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Pumpkinslinger,
Mine is a 196 series, and the groups it used to shoot were pretty humble. I never had an issue with reliability, it shot everything I fed it. Sometimes 200 rounds in a day, and not a hiccup. I love the gun, I was just hoping it would shoot a little better.
_________________ Give a man a fish, and he will eat today. Teach a man to fish, and he will sit in a boat and drink beer all day. |
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slimjim Super Member
Joined: May 16, 2009 Posts: 8314 Location: Fort Worth TX
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Posted: Mon Mar 28, 2011 8:27 pm Post subject: Re: My old mini-14 |
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I had an older mini-14 for many years. I sold it when I needed more room in my safe for an AR. The mini-14s reputation for accuracy is not that good and yours, before the mod, shot as good if not better than most, CBS. Often, they have trouble keeping a group under 7 inches. When I added the muzzle brake (by luck because I didn't have Internet to search back then), it stabilize the barrel and groups went to the 2-inch range. Mine had a 1:12 twist barrel and did best with 50 to 55gr bullets. (what is your twist?) I then started shooting Hi-power Matches so I could earn the privilege to buy an M-1 from CMP. The Hi-Power director wouldn't let me shoot in a match until I proved I could shoot at 300 yards. I had added a Williams peep-sight and shot a 6-inch group so they let me participate.
As you said, never a malfunction. That Garand-action is also doing well in Afganistan with the M-14s. The ARs are not doing as well with all the fine dust they have over there.
_________________ "To anger a conservative, lie to him. To anger a liberal, tell him the truth." - Theodore Roosevelt
"The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it." - Albert Einstein
Last edited by slimjim on Tue May 10, 2011 5:36 am; edited 1 time in total |
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cbsweeney Member
Joined: Jun 18, 2010 Posts: 197 Location: New York
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Posted: Tue Mar 29, 2011 4:55 am Post subject: Re: My old mini-14 |
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Slimjim,
My barrel has a 1:9 twist and I shoot 55 or 63 gn bullets. I tried everything from 40 to 77 gns in it. The middle weights shot best for me. Now, I find myself taking the Mini-14 with me whenever I go to the range, because I want to shoot it, instead of only once or twice a year to make sure it's still working!
_________________ Give a man a fish, and he will eat today. Teach a man to fish, and he will sit in a boat and drink beer all day. |
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slimjim Super Member
Joined: May 16, 2009 Posts: 8314 Location: Fort Worth TX
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Posted: Tue Mar 29, 2011 7:26 pm Post subject: Re: My old mini-14 |
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It always amazed me how simple and reliable the mini-14 is.
_________________ "To anger a conservative, lie to him. To anger a liberal, tell him the truth." - Theodore Roosevelt
"The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it." - Albert Einstein |
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TRBLSHTR Super Member
Joined: Mar 23, 2007 Posts: 1071 Location: Lower 48's-left coast(near portlandia)
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rblain Member
Joined: Nov 12, 2010 Posts: 34 Location: Vancouver, Canada
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Posted: Wed Mar 30, 2011 10:39 pm Post subject: Re: My old mini-14 |
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Hey Guys,
Kind of funny but i bought one yesterday. Cool lookin little gun. I can hardly wait to get it to the range. I wanted a non-restricted 223 caliber that I could take into the bush and plink with, this fit the bill perfectly. You can dress them up and give them a tactical/military look if you want for not a lot of money.
I've been all over the net looking info up on them. love the gun.
_________________ Damn Gun Registry!! |
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cbsweeney Member
Joined: Jun 18, 2010 Posts: 197 Location: New York
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Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 4:54 am Post subject: Re: My old mini-14 |
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rblain,
Congratulations! I'm sure you are gonna love it. I heard that Ruger made a few changes, and the newer Mini-14's shoot pretty well right out of the box. Let us know how it shoots.
_________________ Give a man a fish, and he will eat today. Teach a man to fish, and he will sit in a boat and drink beer all day. |
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