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3K views 19 replies 13 participants last post by  BugHunter 
#1 ·
Besides good firing pins.....

DECENT SIGHTS!

Front sight collar with protective wings, keep it looking stock, BUT, with an AR15 front sight assembly housed within.

Rear sight. Again, keeping stock appearance, but with the standard A2 rear sight aperture and adjustment knob. Rear sight base should be contoured to fit the lines of the receiver, unlike the other aftermarket sight. Ideally, a larger mounting screw should be utilized by enlarging/threading the current tiny screw hole.

Be absolutely prefect.

It seems the market is severely lacking in quality, and well thought out components for the Mini....At least very LIMITED. Also appears there's a lot of cheap junk out there.

Too bad....Just rambling thoughts.
 
#2 ·
I'm with you on the front sights. There are a couple of companies offering solutions using SKS/AK/Galil threaded posts, but you either have to get one that's machined with a muzzle brake or buy a "package" with a strut, front sight, and brake. Alaskan Armory was making a front sight base that utilized AR front posts, but the website is gone, and no one seems to be able to get ahold of the owner...

I've found the Tech-Sight rear sight to be a great swap for my Mini. Granted, you do have to use a tool of some sort to adjust the sight, but it is a vast improvement over the, well, caveman-designed Ruger part.
 
#4 ·
I fitted a Milled M1 Carbine rear sight to my Mini14 ranch Rifle. I like it. I have Tech-Sights on my 1022 i am sure they would be good on the Mini as well. If i could put a AR type front sight on my Mini i would be all over it.
51
 
#5 ·
This has been the only bone I have to pick with my mini. I would love to put some decent tritium sights on it but the only one available that would even fit the bill is XS and I'm not very impressed with the design. Frankly, the rear sights on ALL minis suck royally, they get the job done, but are far from what they should/could be.

Lionhart has it right on the way they should be.
 
#6 ·
Besides good firing pins.....

DECENT SIGHTS!

Front sight collar with protective wings, keep it looking stock, BUT, with an AR15 front sight assembly housed within.

Rear sight. Again, keeping stock appearance, but with the standard A2 rear sight aperture and adjustment knob. Rear sight base should be contoured to fit the lines of the receiver, unlike the other aftermarket sight. Ideally, a larger mounting screw should be utilized by enlarging/threading the current tiny screw hole.

Be absolutely prefect.

It seems the market is severely lacking in quality, and well thought out components for the Mini....At least very LIMITED. Also appears there's a lot of cheap junk out there.

Too bad....Just rambling thoughts.
Good points here on the sights. My personal choice is Tech-SIGHTS Precision Shooting Accessories to replace the rear sights. For me the front post is ok though not ideal. I have a 58xx model. I plan to later put a scope on my Mini but want better iron sights if I have to remove the scope for any reason.
 
#7 · (Edited)
We shall see. Perhaps' this is something that I will work on. Something needs to get done about it. I am going to have some tool steel (Properly heat treated) firing pins made up first. These should be done in the next couple of months.

As far as the sights. Shouldn't really be all that difficult. Steel front sight collar, and a steel rear. Other than those two parts, and the retaining pin/rear sight screw, nothing else would be proprietary. Use existing off the shelf AR rear sight assembly/front sight assembly. Easy, peasy. I'm surprised that as long as the Mini has been out, nobody has offered anything like this.

What draws me to the current Mini Tactical is the clean appearance of it. I don't want to alter the looks, nor make it "TACTI-COOL" It's cool in it's own right.
 
#8 ·
Nice,old rambling thoughts there....

What Ruger done,is half ass mods to the factory minis.

They jumped into 1911s and AR types....but they be makin mo money so.....

We have needed better less expensive mags for yrs,and a better than 7 dollar barrel,and those atrocious sights,uuuuggghhh...

yeah a rifle with M1a for real type sights,good solid 1 size barrel,premium barrel,Lothar,Douglas,some body,say around.60-.650,threaded ....
I am still trying to find some one to machine a receiver to the spec to put on the M1A sights...
 
#10 ·
I've never had an issue with the front ("winged") sight on the 580-581s, but I know that others have expressed a desire to swap with something else. I'd like tritium, but I don't really do any low-light shooting with the Mini...

My only b*tch about the Tech Sight is the 5/8 MOA adjustment. Really? They're machining their own parts. Why not have the external click adjustment "notches" spaced in such a way to give a 1/2 or 1/4 MOA adjustment? It's not a big deal -- I'm happy with my irons being within 5/8" of the bull at 100 yds (because I can't shoot that precisely without a bench, anyhow :lol:), but it kind of threw me when I read the install/sight-in instructions.
 
#12 ·
Here's the deal on the firing pins. There are numerous (Read A LOT) of threads about pins breaking. Unfortunately the Glend Arms replacement that some are carrying have a bad rap too, and they are $30.00 a pop. I joined another forum recently because there was a current thread about making a better firing pin. An individual with over 20 years of experience as a machinist chimed in, and he's produced pins for a variety of firearms over the years. I contacted him, and I will be shipping him a complete Mini bolt later this month. I'm not sure exactly how many pins I'm going to have made. He told me that his will last a lifetime. I'm unaware of the cost. This is just preliminary. I WILL have some made. I just don't know how many.

No reason working on sights until I get some good pins. One could have the best sighting system on planet earth, but what good would it do you when (Not if) your factory pin goes tit's up?
 
#13 ·
Here's the deal on the firing pins. There are numerous (Read A LOT) of threads about pins breaking. Unfortunately the Glend Arms replacement that some are carrying have a bad rap too, and they are $30.00 a pop. I joined another forum recently because there was a current thread about making a better firing pin. An individual with over 20 years of experience as a machinist chimed in, and he's produced pins for a variety of firearms over the years. I contacted him, and I will be shipping him a complete Mini bolt later this month. I'm not sure exactly how many pins I'm going to have made. He told me that his will last a lifetime. I'm unaware of the cost. This is just preliminary. I WILL have some made. I just don't know how many.

No reason working on sights until I get some good pins. One could have the best sighting system on planet earth, but what good would it do you when (Not if) your factory pin goes tit's up?
Ive owned mini 14's for 30 yrs and Ive never had a firing pin break. Iv'e also been in the habit of not shooting junk ammo in them. Brass case/boxer primed = reliability. I don't see our military shooting russian steel case .223 in thier M-4's.
 
#15 ·
I too owned one back in the 1980's. Let's take your opinion that shooting junk ammo is the cause of pins breaking........No, I don't buy it. I'll tell you why. An AK firing pin is almost identical to a Mini-14. Not exact, but close. AK's don't have issues with broken firing pins. I don't know if the Ruger one's are cast, or MIM, or just low quailty stainless, or the heat treat is off, but something is making them break. They have broken on GOOD American ammo just the same. Even if (Though it's proved otherwise) that foreign ammo was the culprit. What does that say to the quality of the component, whereas hearing about an AK47/AKM/AK74 pin breakage is almost non-existent?

There are numerous, countless threads on this forum on broken pins using American ammo. Had absolutely nothing to do with foreign made Wolf/Golden Tiger/Silver Bear/ETC.
 
#16 ·
OMG! The whole firing pin issue that the internet rants about on the mini drives me crazy! I have fired over 10,000 rnd thru my 196 mini and never broke a pin! Pin breaks don't happen that often, I have witnessed a couple of buddies with less than 500 rds on AR's with pin that break.

IS THAT WHY AR PARTS ARE SO READILY AVAILABLE BECAUSE EVERYTHING WILL BREAK???

The mini is solid steel design, no tupperware, no aluminum, all steel!

I have all 3 of my minis scoped but I thought the sites on my 6.8 shot well and easy to target aquire for a fast handling carbine field gun.
 
#18 ·
OMG! The whole firing pin issue that the internet rants about on the mini drives me crazy! I have fired over 10,000 rnd thru my 196 mini and never broke a pin! Pin breaks don't happen that often, I have witnessed a couple of buddies with less than 500 rds on AR's with pin that break.

IS THAT WHY AR PARTS ARE SO READILY AVAILABLE BECAUSE EVERYTHING WILL BREAK???

The mini is solid steel design, no tupperware, no aluminum, all steel!

I have all 3 of my minis scoped but I thought the sites on my 6.8 shot well and easy to target aquire for a fast handling carbine field gun.
10,000 rounds just through one? What did a barrel replacement cost? Old Mini barrels are button rifled, and have a life span of around 7000 rds. Newer ones as we know are cold hammer forged, and can go upwards of 20,000+ rounds.

The rants drive drive me crazy as well.....Hence my decision to have some made. As it is, and from many reporting on this subject, and from the reply I received from Ruger, it has been an issue....Believe it or not. It seems though it has gotten more prevalent in the last 3-4 years. Perhaps' the method of manufacturing has changed?

Mine will be "Mil-Spec" quality. It will handle either American or foreign ammunition types. This is the way it should be.

As far as AR parts being available. This is a good thing. Unfortunately, this doesn't apply to the Mini, whereas one must ship there rifle back to have a new pin fitted. Some other parts are restricted as well. There are no restricted parts on an AR. Order what you please.

As far as my thoughts on sights. Yes, it's a possibility that I will have these made.
 
#19 ·
It's not the point whether the pins break, it's the point you or I can get one and install it. I'm sure the reason Ruger is so difficult with these issues is becuase they were sued and lost some money. Put a chain on the legal system and maybe Ruger will change their attitude. When you play lawsuit lottery, there is usally a winner and a loser. But, it's guarenteed the only winners will be the lawyers. kwg
 
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