Opinion Ruger Mini Thirty

[LuckenbachTexas]

I'm considering one of these for a up to 200 yard everything rifle. I've heard newer models ain't bad.

I'm a pretty darn good shot, What can I reasonably expect for accuracy?

 

[gramps]

I had one and thought it extremely heavy, with recoil worse than my .308 bolt gun.
gramps

 

[Passtime]

I guess recoil is subjective. I have a Mini -30 and I consider the recoil to be light. I like mine. Fun to shoot and it is accurate enough for me inside of 100 yards. I can't see any farther than that anyway. Nice firearm in my opinion.

 

[DGW1949]

I'm considering one of these for a up to 200 yard everything rifle. I've heard newer models ain't bad.

I'm a pretty darn good shot, What can I reasonably expect for accuracy?

The problem that I have with the Mini-30 is two-fold;
The price ya gotta pay for good 7.62X39 ammo is about 2X the price of good 5.56/.223 (Mini-14) ammo.
The .30-cal 20rd mag is a bit too long for my uses, Ruger don't make a 10rd, and most aftermarket mags are junk.
Other than that, they are OK guns.....not great, but certainly a step above "ain't bad".
If nothing else they are amazingly reliable, even with minimal care under harsh conditions. Leastways, they are if ya stay away from junky mags and cheap Russian ammo (some of which the Mini won't even ignite on a consistant basis).

Out of the box accuracy will depend on how lucky you get with Ruger's spotty QC and what ammo you use.
I've owned two in the past, and worked with "a few" others. I could get the worst of the bunch to hit a milk jug at 100 yds most of the time while using South African mil-surp (brass) ammo. On the other hand, the best one would consistantly put 3 shots inside a 3" circle at 200 yds....but.....that was after it had been tuned, bedded, and when using match-prepped handloads.

Stuff to look out for before plunking down your money:
A canted front sight. This is easier to see when looking from the muzzel end.
A canted gas block. This is perty-easy to see with the rifle upside down.
Try to push the rear sight from side to side by pressing hard on it's rear with your thumb. Most of them will move about if you push hard enough. If it does, it'll give you some idea of how your POI will change as the thing vibrates around from recoil.....which it's going to do sooner or later due to Ruger's mickey-mouse sight mount.
Pull the trigger group and check for fore and aft movement and/or general slop where the barreled action sits down into the reciever. This takes about 30 seconds and might save ya a lot of grief....because a rifle with sloppy bedding aint going to group at distance. Also take note of how much force is required to re-latch the trigger group. It should take a fair amount, but no so much that the vein in your neck pops out.
Move the safety to the on position, rack the slide to cock the hammer, gently return the slide to battery, and then slowly work it back and forth just far enough to insure that the bolt is being lifted/retracted/returned smoothly without binding or "catching".
You can check all that in less than two minutes, and most of it is checking for QC issues.
The rear sight thing is just a bad design, pure 'n simple. Aint much to do there but fix it or replace it with something more stable.

Hope this helped somewhat.

DGW

 

[hickoryhillbill]

I have had a 189 mini 30 for 6 yrs and recently bought a new 582 model. My wife loves it for the soft recoil. I have been getting 1-2in groups at 100yds with reloads. As an experiment I have been using .308 bullets in my reloads. The 582 is much improved over the 189. But this is just my opinion. My 183 mini 14 I have had for 28 yrs and have 0 complaints.

 

[LuckenbachTexas]

DGW1949,

Thanks for taking the time. I researched these things and you have successfully talked me out of one. The good ammo price is a biggy!

 

[DGW1949]

DGW1949,

Thanks for taking the time. I researched these things and you have successfully talked me out of one. The good ammo price is a biggy!

I like the Mini-30 concept because I'm a big fan of the Mini platform and I like the 7.62X39 cartridge (a lot).
FWIW, I also agree with hickoryhillbill in that the 582-series is an improvement over the older models. Matter of fact, I went back and forth about buying one myself. In the end though, the ammo situation (which realy hasn't changed much in the last 15 years) was the deciding factor in me going with a Mini-14 instead.

I had a 1000-rd case of Federal .223 shipped to my door just last week. Total cost was under .38 a round and I didn't have to drive all over town looking for it. No way could I have afforded to buy that much .30 cal......
.....just sayin'.

DGW

 

[mohavesam]

I had one I found LNIB in 2003, forget the series number. It was stainless & hardwood and I used it for three seasons stalking and driving the swamps and cornfields of MI. It was plenty accurate for deer in those hunts, and I brought home four using Federal SP box ammo. One was a particularly nice shot with the big doe erupting behind me and I missed the snap shot but hit her well coming up the other side of the draw. A second hit was not needed, as she stumbled and fell over ten yards past the hit. It was handy and fast, and more than accurate enough for 100-yard venison.

I never used cheapo Com-blok ammo in it and it easily shot into a 6" circle every time offhand using the front post and my smaller peep sight. I did not use the slippery buttplate but did use a slip-on Decelerator pad, just for the added inch of LOP it gave me and the more tacky contact. Other than de-burr the fire control parts a tiny bit, I never did any other fireside 'smithing at all.

I also never did any spray-n-pray plinking with it, as I treated my rifle like a rifle, not a bullet hose. The Federal SP, Winchester FMJ white-box, and I recall some green box softpoints were all the factory ammo I ever shot. For a time, I kept a loaded twenty-rounder in it behind the headboard, living only 20 miles up-river from a 3000-inmate maximum security prison.
It never, ever, had a FTF and seemed quieter than a Mini-14 to me. I liked the example I had, and I'd buy another if I ran across such a deal.