I had gone to 16"-18" .357 lever-action carbines as my primary utility/HD/vehicle longarms and was quite happy with them until my aging eyes made their iron sights too imprecise. Installing rear aperture sights mitigated the problem somewhat, but I finally came to the conclusion that an 18" shotgun with an XS big dot front bead or a carbine with an Aimpoint Micro were better alternatives for this shooter on the downhill slope.
When I still get the longing for another Mini-14, I justify it by telling myself that a Mini with a Micro would be more compact than an M4 clone with a Micro, etc, etc. BUT... then where do I mount the weaponlight I now like to have on an HD/SD carbine or shotgun? Once again the Mini's limited modularity stops me.
If Marlin/FG could make a 16" 1894CSS (that wasn't a QC POS) with a 1" long section of integral picatinny rail on both sides of the barrel band, I'd gladly go back to a .357 carbine.
Mr. niteowl77
Thanks for all that. As I just wrote in a post I love shooting my dad’s M1 carbine. I’d like to try out a Mini-30 if we can find one. I’ve fired my dad’s 30-06 and the kick isn’t all that bad; it has a nice shoulder pad on it.
Ruger Tactical model comes with an ATI AR type stock or a folder. You can get them aftermarket too, with rails for light, lasers...