Mini-30

[Buckeye!]

Looking to purchase a new Mini-30...Do they shoot cheap Russian ammo well????

 

[Watergoat]

No.

 

[Ruger Nut10]

Most don't, but I tried different brands and found a few mine will eat.
Silver Bear 125SP, and only the Wolf 154gr SP. I used the new steel cased Hornady and it did well.
Alot of no fire, 1 in 10 of most steel cased stuff.
Mine is an older Mini 30 and I am not sure what the new versions will do.

 

[Anonymous]

I had an older 90's vintage Mini Thirty, and while it was pretty reliable with the cheap steel cased ammo, it wasn't particularly accurate, but the gun may not have been accurate in general, I never tested it with "good" brass ammo.

I really wanted to like that Mini Thirty because it looked cool, but I had some failures that were not ammo related, and I couldn't hit anything with it, which or may not have been ammo related.

I personally wouldn't want any gun chambered in 7.62x39mm that didn't like the cheap stuff because brass cased ammo is quite steep in price. I guess if it was used for hunting, and not for plinking or target shooting, it wouldn't matter as much.

I prefer the SKS and AK platforms for 7.62 general shooting since they are not picky about ammo at all.

 

[Fasteddie]

I have a new Mini 30 and it's not very reliable with any berdan primed ammo.

 

[blume357]

I would save the cheap commie ammo for cheap commie guns.... like the SKS or AKs....

Georgia Arms sells 7.62x39 ammo brass cased for 30 cents a round.

 

[Anonymous]

30 cents a round isn't bad at all. Every time I see brass cased locally, it's like $12-15 for a box of 20.

 

[Buckeye!]

I like my cheap commie SKS...and it eats everything fed to it ..and it is accurate......guess
i'll just keep my accurate ,reliable and cheap commie SKS..

 

[Anonymous]

I have a Norinco SKS M, it's a model that uses detachable AK mags from the factory. I find it quite accurate, more so than either of my AK's, and I like it much better than the Mini 30 I used to have.

 

[Buckeye!]

89grand...

thats Sweet

 

[Three50seven]

The one my dad has shoots Wolf without a hitch. But....he's not trying to win any bench rest matches with it either.

 

[Anonymous]

89grand...

thats Sweet

Thanks.

SKS's are fun guns, and I prefer them and AK's over Mini 30's, but that's just me. They were designed around the 7.62x39mm.

 

[chefrob1]

i've got and older mini and i have only shot cheep russian for years and it hasn't given me too much problems as long as i have good mags.....i just got 2 ruger 20 and can't wait to see how they do.

 

[Buckeye!]

Seems like over the years I have always had a SKS stuck in my closet or safe...I really like the fixed 10 round mag...that set up functions great..and still allows you to shoot in the prone position..

 

[oregon73]

I personally wouldn't want any gun chambered in 7.62x39mm that didn't like the cheap stuff because brass cased ammo is quite steep in price. I guess if it was used for hunting, and not for plinking or target shooting, it wouldn't matter as much.

You've got a really sweet SKS there, 89 grand, but I've got to ask, if you're not hunting, plinking or target shooting, what are you doing? LOL

Back to the topic, my "older" Mini-30 doesn't like the steel cased stuff but I don't mind feeding it quality brass cased ammo. It's quite accurate (definitely accurate enough) and very fun to shoot!

The Ruger 20-round mags are awesome, BTW.

Rob

 

[Anonymous]

I plink and target shoot.:wink:

I said the brass cased stuff isn't that expensive if the gun was used for hunting as you wouldn't be going through many rounds, but is too expensive for plinking and target shooting.

 

[oregon73]

Oh yeah, right. I need to read more carefully.

:wink:

Rob

 

[Xranger J]

I had an older stainless Mini 30 and it never failed to shoot anything I put in it. The problem was it patterned rather than grouped. It was OK for hunting at say 50 yards or so but both my cheap SKS and my saiga would far out shoot it. I traded it off as I originally got it for my daughter to shoot but she insisted on shooting the 30/06. It was a nice looking gun, I just wish it shot a little better. From what I have read the newer models are a little more accurate but maybe a little more picky about what they will digest..

XRJ

 

[Richbaker]

Hard primers in the Russian ammo, the Mini needs a stronger hammer spring....

 

[Fishman777]

I've heard that the Mini-30 was designed for .308 bullets, not the Russian .311. If you shoot the cheap, Russian ammo, you will increase the pressure in your gun to unsafe levels.

I've heard that the reason for the ignition issues is to prevent people from shooting the Russian ammo that could elevate the pressure and damage the gun, and the user.