[sonofsarge]

My local dealer has one of each. Ruger Mini 14 in .223, and a Mini 30 in 7.62x39. Same price. Which would you choose?

 

[longtooth]

Personall I would choos the 30 for a personal defense rifle. Never have been a fan of .223 for PD. For paper & varment hunting I would take the .223 for economy, range, & flat tragectory.
My .02cents & some think it worth about half that.

 

[AutoMag]

If I was choosing by ammo cost and availability it would have to be the 7.62X39. Either one though will serve you well!!!:smile:

 

[the judge]

Which One?

The bigger the hole that the bullet comes out of, the bigger the hole it makes going in! I dislike the .223/5.56mm cartridge and will always go with the .30/7.62mm or better, when I have a choice. David.

 

[gottripletsNC]

The mini 30 used to be 30 carbine IIRC, but now I hear they come in 7.62x39 as you have stated. Had my choice, I would go with the mini 30 in 7.62x39, you can get the ammo as cheap, and as readily available as the 223, and have much more punch.

 

[azmick]

depends

what is your use going to be? mini 14s are like a pit bull. i think you could drag one behind your truck untill the bumper fell off and not hurt it. well, that may be a stretch, but you get the idea. accuracy with them is, ,,, utilitarian, yes, that word will work. i have seen sks and ak rifles that would shoot as well as a mini 30 and none in 223 that could be called a tack driver. nail hammer, yes. twist rate for the mini-14 is a 1 in 9, so heavy bullets is what it wants {perfect for a "ranch rifle" for some odd reason}. and everything here is my opinion. with it and a quarter, you can not get a cup of joe any where.
Mick

 

[Bud White]

Honestly Neither

 

[Blackhawk]

I would not mind having the mini 14 for range use but they really seem to be overpriced in my personal opinion.

 

[Ridgerunner665]

Honestly Neither

As somebody who once owned both...I agree with Bud.

For just a few dollars more you can get a low end AR 15 (Bushmaster, Remington R-15, or one of the other less than perfect AR's) and have a much better rifle.

I prefer the 223 over the 7.62x39 for several reasons...the main one being, flat shooting.

 

[Bud White]

I agree i have never been impressed with the 7.62x39 .. a lot of the probs are that the barrels are 308 and most bulk ammo is 311 and the round is pretty weak not that the 223 is a giant cannon

 

[Ridgerunner665]

.. a lot of the probs are that the barrels are 308 and most bulk ammo is 311 and the round is pretty weak

Those are reasons #2 and #3.
#4 is that Ruger Mini 14's and 30's are just not accurate...I will not own a rifle that wont shoot 1.5 MOA.

 

[busdriver72]

What are you expecting from the gun? Also, look at the price factor as opposed to what you want to do with it. If it's just for plinking, you might save money by getting an SKS (Yugo) and go with 7.62x39.

 

[OD*]

The mini 30 used to be 30 carbine IIRC, but now I hear they come in 7.62x39 as you have stated. Had my choice, I would go with the mini 30 in 7.62x39, you can get the ammo as cheap, and as readily available as the 223, and have much more punch.

The Mini was first chambered in 223 (1974), then in 7.62X39. They haven't been chambered in .30 Carbine, yet. :wink:

 

[gottripletsNC]

Well, I stand corrected, but I thought the mini 30 was originally a 30 carbine.

Oh well, I am wrong more than I am right LOL

So an M1/M2 carbine is technically the only production gun in 30 carbine then?

 

[OD*]

Honestly Brian, I don't know what all was chambered in the .30 Carbine. Ruger chambered the Blackhawk single action revolver in .30 Carbine and AMT had the AutoMag in .30 Carbine.

 

[gottripletsNC]

Dan if it wasn't for me, you'd have to pick on Hunter ALL the time. See, Hunter owes me, cause I am constantly giving you something to correct me on. :notworthy::rofl: