Posted on 04/09/2019 4:55:27 AM PDT by w1n1
I'm not sure where you got that information, but you were misinformed.
Early Mini-14s were marked .223, but had 5.56mm NATO chambers and are safe to use with any 5.56 NATO factory round. It states this clearly in the instruction manual.
See the original manual for the first gen Mini-14 here:
https://ruger-docs.s3.amazonaws.com/_manuals/mini14-180.pdf
Ammunition:The MINI-14 is designed to use either U.S. Minitary, Commercial Sporting, or other .223 (5.56mm) caliber ammunition manufactured to U.S. indurtry standards.
You mean I cant shoot a .308 in my 30-06?
Yes very poorly written. They should have started with buy the chambered in 5.56 then explain why. I have a Sig M400 Nato 5.56 chambered from Walmart Black Friday special. I think the special was 700 to 750.
Love that rifle...
It's backwards from the 223/5.56 dilemma. .308 WIN has a tighter chamber dimension and higher pressure specs than a 7.62x51 NATO. Thus, more velocity. I have a Savage 110 Tactical rifle in .308 with a real tight chamber, and it won't chamber most 7.62x51 rounds. However, my HK91 in 7.62x51 NATO will shoot either.
I have a Garand. Got it for $125 from DCM before it became CMP.
The CMP had a station at the last Zombie Shoot we did. Mrs L decided she wanted to give it a try. The nice folks running it chuckled a bit when she picked it up. Thats a 30-06 there, maam.
After a couple of minutes of instruction she proceeded to put 8 out of 10 on a man sized steel silhouette target.
That shut them up pretty quick.
She turned to me and said I want one of these!
So we are saving our pennies. They sure arent $125 these days.
L
Yes, you can. You just need to install a firing pin extension.
They're available at Brownells for most rifle makes...
Ammunition:The MINI-14 is designed to use either U.S. Military, Commercial Sporting, or other .223 (5.56mm) caliber ammunition manufactured to U.S. industry standards.
No, not a firing pin extension, but the US Navy converted 30/06 M1s to 762 NATO via a chamber insert. They did not work out so well. So the Navy rebarrelled with proper barrels then adopted the M14.
Always preferred 7.62 myself.
FYI - my factory-fresh AR-10 would generate an ejection jam about 1 in 10 when I used .308, but ran like a sewing machine with 7.62. I tried several different gunsmiths who were puzzled, and fixed nothing.
THEN, I took it to a smith who retired from a career as a US Army armorer, and he had a 5 minute fix: he pointed out that when the rifle was made, a small amount of blue-ing gets into the chamber, which restricted, slightly, the chamber, just enough to screw up the .308 from ejecting regularly via the extractor. He lightly honed the chamber to remove the blu-ing, and then wiped it clean. We took it to the range and he and I then fired .308 rounds with impunity and consistency, and 7.62 without issue.
That was my experience.
I built my AR using a 223 Wylde chambering to avois this very issue.
“Early series mini 14s should not fire 5.56”
What constitutes early series?
I bought my Mini-14 in 1983 and all I’ve ever shot with it is surplus 5.56 NATO.
Erroneous information. All Mini-14s chambered for .223 are also factory approved to use 5.56 NATO, with the exception of the Mini-14 Target, which should only use .223.
In theory they are not interchangeable, but...........
Almost all modern AR type rifle platforms can chamber and fire both the .556 and the .223 Rem. Most ammo that you purchase from a store is .223 Rem. So the vast majority of the time there is not problem.
Where there is a problem is mostly for folks who have .223 Rem bolt action rifles or single shot Thompson Contender type pistols. If you have one of these and a buddy gives you some military surplus 5.56 ammo, then you “might” have a problem or might not depending on how strong the action is and how tight the chamber of your firearms is.
So is this a problem? It could be for a few, but not for most.
What he said! 5.56mm rifle and you are good for .223 as well.
I think it only becomes a serious issue when people reload without trimming back the case length.
I think it only becomes a serious issue when people reload without trimming back the case length.
Almost everything I reload gets trimmed to the recommended length. Its not worth the risk. The only exceptions are .38 and .44 Spl. Everything I have that shoots those are chambered for magnums. So case length isnt as critical. Although it can mess with crimping a bit.
L
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