Did the Mini-14 Have a 223 Rem Chambering Period? ~ Never Ask Again!
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- Опубликовано: 29 сен 2024
- I'm a factory trained Ruger Armorer who knows the answer firsthand. I will tell you the history of the rifle and cartridge markings, and will provide proof for the only correct answer to that persistent question, once and for all! It's all about U.S. history.
Хобби
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A Bean Supper in a Submarine 🤢🤢🤢💨 Lol You Made My Day With That One Mr Gunblue 😂😂
Might increase the buoyancy of the vessel...
Lol, immediately hit “like” when I saw that
@@ErikHenrichsen😅😮😮😮😊
Instantly added to my lexicon 🤣
Gives a new meaning to "emergency blow"....
WOW THANK-YOU!! You just saved me from a nightmare. I was given a 1975 Mini-14 in 1977, and was assured by my father-in-law & brother-in-law that in spite of the markings, it loved 5.56. I've shot nothing else in it for 45 years, although I haven't used it much in the last 10. I just bought a new one for my grandson yesterday, and I took mine along for a new sight at the most reputable gun store around. Then, I picked-up some range ammo on the way out.
The two gunsmiths (a Vietnam and a Gulf vet) reacted in horror, and pointed to the .223 marking, explaining very expertly (and loudly) that the 180- series was chambered ONLY for .223 and only the 580- series was made to handle 5.56. I felt outgunned standing there in the store surrounded by good old boys all nodding in agreement, and I sadly bought some .223 wondering how I may have damaged my beloved weapon over four decades.
This morning, I stumbled upon your video, and I actually almost cried. The pronouncement had been like a sucker punch yesterday, and you info came like awaking from a bad dream this morning. (What an amazing coincidence!) You can bet we'll watch a great deal of your stuff over the next months, and will support you the best we can.
Both Both
You were being attacked by Fudds.
This, straight from the Ruger Factory Manual: "The RUGER®MINI-14®RIFLESare chambered for the .223 Remington(5.56mm) cartridge. The Mini-14 Rifle is designed to use either standardized U.S.military, or factory loaded sporting .223 (5.56mm) cartridges manufactured in accordance with U.S. industry practice."
Seems pretty unambiguous to me!
In 1995, I was in a Militia group. My group leader's son had a Mini - 14, and all he ran through it was 223 ammo. Thanks for helping to clear the confusion from some of my friends.
Just when I thought I knew everything about AR’s, you come along and show me that I didn’t know a thing. 80% of what you said in this video was new to me. Thank you for what you’ve done for our Country, and thank you for teaching me something that I couldn’t learn on google.
Thank you.
Your quite right, before i got to my basic training ihad never seen a m16 rifle only pictures of them used in Viet Nam. I still like my mini 14Gb...
Excellent video as always 🎉😊!!
Educational and informative. Thanks.
The initial surge of AR popularity was during the Assualt Weapons Ban. Once the ban ended, the floodgates opened.
When he got out of Vietnam it wasn't called a ar 15 it was a m16and when first mad they were junk
The tolerances we're to tight.many of our boys were found dead with their gun in their hands.later they re worked the design and changed the front cover and then called it an at 15
For a number of years Colt claimed to have a patent on the M-16 and kept other countries from making copies of it. It was discovered that Colt did not have a patent and was sued by a number of companies and Colt lost. M-16 style rifles were then made by everyone on earth.
6:07: Are the references here to ".223 Remington and .223 Remington Magnum" meant instead to be references to ".222 Remington and .222 Remington Magnum"?
Uh Yeah, you can go back under your rock now. sleep tight.
I've had my Mini 14 close to 40 years now and never had an issue with it. I keep it clean and I use Ruger factory mags.
I half half a dozen mini 14s 30 year speed have M1A have colt H bar served in the USMC zero and i mean zero problems all great old rifles
Thanks so much for clarifying this old question. I have a 181 series, and have often had near-arguments with gunshop experts who don't want to sell me 5.56 ammo for my Mini 14.
Good background and some info that I did not know. Ruger really took advantage of inexpensive ammo, the mini-14 for the 556 and later mini-30 in 7.62x39. Bought my first AK before the first Gulf War and my first AR and a Mini30 in the year after I completed that deployment. The Clinton AWB in 1994 did a lot to peak peoples interest in the AR, AK and other then forbidden fruit firearms.
Roberti-Roos Ban in California sent a shockwave of interest in AR-15s across the Nation in the late 1980s, then came the Clinton/Biden/Feinstein Crime Bill/AWB.
Sir, you cleared up an argument I've heard for over 30 years...thank you!
@@jefftaylortaylor5836 Thank you. Unfortunately, the argument persists because folks simply don't open their owners manuals. This knowledge, apart from the history behind it, was always available.
AR 15 started coming around when in 1997 they were starting to be used at the NRA national matches. At the time I was still using the M1A in 308 and we found that the AR could be fired with less recoil which made it more popular and quicker to get back on target. I got mine a bushmaster in 1998 and started building my own a few years later. Good talk thanks,
Did the same. Started a year or two later than you with an M-1 from CMP and then realized the AR was more accurate, easier to shoot, and a lot cheaper shoot and to reload. I built up one from parts kits so I could get a free floated match barrel and it took months to get them.
The AR-15 started coming around in the mid 1970's with the growing survivalist movement..
I got a Bushmaster in 1986 , at Benning's school for wayward boys
Purchased my first colt in 1991
Colt SP-1s, Sporter IIs, and Carbines were very popular on store shelves in CA in the 1980s, along with Hk91s, Hk93s, Hk94s, Uzis, SAR-48s, Mini-14s, but no real AKs to be found, with maybe a few Mitchell exceptions.
Eagle Arms EA-15s started showing up in the mid-late 1980s, followed by Quality Parts/Bushmaster.
I saw all of this first-hand as someone who frequented gun shops regularly.
I have a mini 14 now in part because of you! More Mini videos please!
I simply buy carbines/rifles with Wylde chambers and not worry about it.
Many years ago, I bought an old "SGW" Scheutzen Gun Works a.k.a Olympic Arms AR-15 A2 built in the mid 1980's. I just checked and it has both Caliber 223 and 556 on the side of the receiver. My memory is not the best, but I do recall 2004 when the AWB of the Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act sunset. There was a sudden surge in people buying rifles based on the A-15 and Kalashnikov patterns. The buying frenzy slowly died off until the Sandy Hook attack.
The AR-15 now is a huge political totem that is both reviled and cherished by different groups of people.
Somehow the AR-15 smells a little bit more like freedom than the Mini-14 ?
@@Jack-xy2pz How's that?
Great info.
This comment is slightly off topic but I always feel like I'm sitting in your presence, having a chat, while watching your videos.
The popularity of the AR platform has always perplexed me. The cartridge doesn't have much use for anything larger than a coyote, in my area (SE Wyoming). If I needed a weapon for war, I would not choose that cartridge. I know some folks like to use it for whitetails but I would prefer something with a bit more power...like 243 or 25-06 or 270 (my favorite).
I own an AR but it never leaves the safe. I only own one because the libs told me I shouldn't be able to have one.
PS: I like your snowblower! 😊
Same. And I have a double barrel shotty because of the current pres. Thanks uncle joe
Get a 6.5 Grendel AR upper. I'm not far from you in Utah and shoot the Grendels all the time. Awesome little cartridge.
The beauty of the ar15 is ubiquity. Like going to your neighbor to borrow a cup of sugar; and maybe a magazine and a few hundred rounds of 223/556.
@@afroghair6793 Yup. It's an easy design to be well-regulated by the local citizenry.
Thanks for all the background on the mini. I bought mine in the 80's and never thought about 5.56 versus .223, and just figured both were fine! As for AR-15's, I seem to remember they were available but very high priced, and that was the reason I went with the Ruger mini-14. When my state decided to outlaw black rifles in the late 90's while grandfathering in rifles owned before their cut-off date, that prompted me to add one to my collection!
Thanks for your service in Vietnam, and welcome home. Maybe we crossed paths over there! I started service with the Navy Seabees stateside my first year out of bootcamp, then went to Vietnam to serve with the brown water Navy in 68 and early 69 (we were a combination of Navy and the Army's 9th Infantry Division troops as a team), and then we went off to play with beach landing U.S. and ROK Marines in 69.
What did I think of the M-16? My Seabee battalion had M-14s when I arrived in early 67, but mid year brand new M-16s were added to the armory. We only went to the range once to try them out so I didn't have much experience to make any judgements about them other than they kicked a lot less than the M-14s. In Vietnam I never laid hands on an M-16, but rather carried or stood watch with a 1911 .45, M-1 carbine, 12ga pump, M-60, Ma deuce, or the king of machine guns of the era, our 3"-50's!
I did bring home a couple pairs of jungle boots, and spent a few years wearing them out, plus I bought a surplus green field jacket or two and wore them out, too, so hippies weren't the only ones wearing military garb!
Welcome home from a Seabee brother. CBMU 302 Detachment India NSAD Ben Luc, Delta region, 1970-1971.
@@waynehajek6346
soaringbob, Glad you made it out.
CBMU-302, Subic Bay 1978-79
"Done did."
☆
USMC started issuing camouflage beginning near the end of 1968, called ERDL(Engineer Research Development Lab). Made in brown or green background, or 'Highland' or 'Lowland', the green was used predominately in Viet Nam. When I enlisted in NR in 83 to be Corpsman w/1/25, we we were still wearing that pattern, which had been designed in 1948, btw.
Good vid. Thanks.
I must have had a different gun store than most. Mine was attached to a large police equipment store that catered to a large number of LEO in my area. They had AR’s,AK’s,H&K 91,93 and 94’s, AR180’s,FAL’s, M1a’s and more. Lots of SKS rifles as well and 70$ a case 7.62x39. It was the first place I saw a Dawoo rifle. They had Mini14’s too but since Bill Ruger didn’t trust civilians with 20 and 30 round magazines we couldn’t get those. Or so he thought. The store ordered them and sold them to whoever wanted them. Latest copies of the Shotgun News on the counters. Late 80’s. Good times
That's quite the alphabet soup. Police departments don't allow cops to carry any rifle on the job. All police departments have qualification regulations to keep vicarious liability lawsuits from suing towns and chiefs out of their fiscal britches. Maverick rifles... uh, I don't think so.
I get tired of that unfair blog mischaracterization. Bill Ruger was a very loyal and patriotic American, who sought to preserve the Second Amendment. Any gun company IS about preserving the Second Amendment. He was well aware of the attack on it and knew the enemy, who was stalking any opportunity to demonize shooters. He was trying to preserve sporting firearms as he knew them, and believed that high capacity guns would legitimize the liberal press and give anti-gunners more ammo than any magazine. It was merely a numbers game, and I'm not at all convinced that I couldn't withstand any conceivable threat that existed in those days with the 10 rounds that he favored. Things have since changed, but nobody was under mortal threat when he made his statements. It had nothing to do with his trust for Americans. He was fearful of further encroachment by government and was trying to keep an increasingly angry dog away from his beloved Second Amendment. History proved his fears were quite prophetic. Almost immediately, the gun culture took a turn that I sincerely regret.
I lived through the terrible changes from the wonderful gun culture of my youth. We kept guns in unlocked walnut furniture glass cases in the living room. Every Sunday afternoon, folks tuned into African hunting episodes with Robert Stack shooting dangerous game with a .458 Winchester Magnum on the American Sportsman, on ABC! In the 7th grade, I built a bedroom gun rack from a three ring binder in the Junior HS wood shop. That would incur an FBI investigation now and a local news reporter's snooping around with a TV camera. HS kids in my town brought target rifles to school to store in the Principal's office and walked or took the school bus with them without even a gun case. That would be imprisonment for the Principal now. That's the America Bill Ruger grew up in, too. In the 60s, walked from my house to the local woods with a .22 under my arm through the city streets, and mothers would call out, "have fun and be safe!". Mattel sold millions of toy guns that were advertised on TV and given at Christmas. I owned a Mattel Tommy Gun and a holstered pair of "Fanner 50's" that I played with outside with my friends when I was 8 years old. I took my Daisy everywhere after I turned 10, and every boy I knew had one. It stood in my bedroom. Guns were beloved by Americans. That's the America Bill Ruger was trying to preserve. Whether he was mistaken in his personal approach to the matter or not has nothing to do with trust for Americans, and it's quite unfair to paint such a broad brush. He created guns for Americans. The First Amendment comes just before the Second and he was using that right, whether others agreed or not. Factually, if it wasn't for his introduction of the Mini-14 and the introduction of an otherwise military caliber, tons of surplus 5.56mm ammo would have been dumped into the ocean, and the .223 may never have caught on.
"Police departments don't allow any cop's to carry any rifle on the job." What did I miss? Plenty of cops are issued AR 15..
@@GunBlue490 I never said the police carried anything. The gun store was connected to the building that housed the police supply store. There were always police officers in the gun store. Local, sheriff’s department officers, state troopers and others. I’m just relating what I saw. I don’t know what firearms they bought or what some of their personal feelings were, I just know the store carried a multitude of different firearms types. You were the one that said no one was interested in those types of firearms back then. I also knew the owner personally and knew his feelings about the second amendment. As far as Mr. Ruger is concerned I think he made it pretty clear that he didn’t trust ordinary Americans to be in possession of standard capacity magazines for their firearms. If he did he would have allowed them to be sold. No matter to me, as I said I never had any problem getting new in the white box 20’s and 30 round mags for my Mini. That’s just the way it was. Once again I never said those officers carried anything but I can say this. Up until then I didn’t have much use for police. I saw them as the enemy but those men I met during that time changed my mind. They took the time to talk to a young guy like me and I’m proud to say many of them were my friends.
I experienced the same America you did. My Dad kept his guns in the same kind of cabinet you described. Bought it at Sears. It held a prominent place in our family room for years. He even let me store my Johnny Eagle big game hunting rifle in the cabinet alongside his real guns. When I was old enough I got my first “real” gun the way most boys back then did. A Marlin single shot .22 on Christmas Day and it spent many days with me on the range and in the woods learning the skills and responsibilities of firearms ownership.
You see, I grew up in the same America you did and had the same experiences. To bad that America is gone now. I really wish it wasn’t so.
@@GunBlue490The problem is he missed the core reason of the 2nd Amendment. It was not for hunting, it was so people could band militias and be on the same playing field as the troops of the federal government.
@@GunBlue490 many of the Idaho State Police and Idaho City Police Officers carried AR-15’s in their Patrol cars when I was in High School and rode around with them. That was 1975-1978.
I’m not sure what they carry now, as those I rode with have long since retired.
I love the information about the Mini-14. I bought my first one in 1982. I traded it in on an Arma-Lite National Match AR-15 in 1998. I’m still kicking myself over that one. Nothing worse than saying good-bye to a gun!!!
As a Vietnam-era veteran, I can totally agree with all you said about those days. Only hippies wore the OD uniforms they bought, and none of us wanted anything to do with owning an AR. Great video!
Exactly. Archie Bunker's meathead son in law wore a field jacket. It represented some weird perspective by draft dodging hippies. I never could fathom it.
When I was coming up it was the poor kids that wore Army-Navy Vietnam era clothes. Usually the jackets and boots they weren't trying to be tough or steal valor it was just that their parents were poor and those clothes were cheap and tough.
Veterans, as soon as they do anything right, their benefits will be cut. Remember that. Probably explains their lack of interest. 😉
A good friend of mine bought a Colt SP-1 as soon as he got back from Vietnam in the early days, then went to college in Texas, then got commissioned in the Army, went SF. He was in Vietnam before 1965 build-up, doing OTB stuff in Force Recon. He had a very interesting career.
@@LRRPFco52 Absolutely!
The United States is slowly moving to the Metric system ... inch by inch.
I think these arguments persist because they can. We're lucky enough to live in a developed country where we have very comfortable lives, and have plenty of free time to argue about all sorts of philosophical meanderings: AR vs AK, .9MM VS .45ACP, Whopper vs Big Mac, .223 vs 5.56. Love hearing your perspective on things. Keep em coming.
I bought my first AR-15 (a Colt R6600DH) in 1986. They weren't unpopular or hard to find at all back then. Also, the first AR-15 (a Colt SP1) I ever shot was purchased by my father in 1971. He was the furthest thing from a Rambo wannabe you would ever meet. He bought it because he thought it was super cool, high-tech, and fun to shoot. Maybe things were just different up there in the deep blue northeast.
This guy is a Fudd.
Yup. AR-15s and other semi auto military rifles were very popular in the 1980s in the Southwest US from what I experienced.
I also call BS on the 'only hippies wore OD', the south pretty much lived off of milsurp for basic everyday uses.
In the 70s while in the army you could buy civilian m16 from the rod and gun club for under 200 bucks. We carried CAR15s in central America. Lots of people had ar 15s in the 80s
I totally agree, I was buying ARs in Alaska which is also "Blue". I went to high school in the Boston area and the accent is unmistakable. I don't find his story that credible regarding the availability or demand for ARs in the eighties. I've been in the Aviation industry for 40 years and NOBODY is shoving the metric system down my throat, not unless they just don't want to fly. He needs to get out of the garage more I think? A man you ask what time it is and he tells you how to build a watch.
I think it can be argued that the North Hollywood Bank of America robbery in 1997 precipitated the interest in AKs and ARs. The suspects had the LEOs outgunned and out-ranged. That incident was the impetus for my agency (and many others) to begin equipping officers with ARs. And, unfortunately, because of lower costs for Norincos, the criminals began acquiring AKs.
The 5.56 NATO Colt TDP chamber has a minimum go gauge of 1.4646 and the 223 commercial has a minimum go gauge of 1.4636..The 5.56 also has a longer throat than a 223 to match the longer bullets used by the military like the 62 grain and tracer round to prevent pressure problems....The 223 Wylde uses the same head space gauges as the 5.56 chamber except the throat is a little tighter yet long like the 5.56 throat..
Not so. A .223 Remington is not at all limited by bullet lengths. That's a rifling twist issue. A .223 with a fast twist will handle the same bullet lengths as a 5.56 NATO rifle.
The 223 has a shorter throat than the 5.56 and a shorter minimum go gauge..Using 5.56 spec ammo in a 223 chamber AR-15 can cause pressure and reliability problems..@@GunBlue490
You are correct. The 5.56 throat is a little longer than the .223. The Wylde falling in between. This allows 5.56 ammo to be loaded to slightly higher pressures than .223 ammo. Weatherby used the same long throat theory in their rifles. The Wylde chamber was developed to allow the use of longer bullets, such as the 80gr Match King. These bullets would be seated to an overall length that would allow for maximum powder capacity in match loadings. The trouble was they had to be single loaded as they were over magazine length. If memory serves, the .223 is loaded to about 55k psi and the 5.56 is loaded to about 62k psi. Is that enough of a difference in the shorter throat of the .223? As a side note .223s often have a 1/12 twist rate, while the 5.56 will use a 1/7, 1/8 or 1/9 twist. The faster twist will work with most bullet weights but the 1/12 has limits. Good shooting!
I didnt really want an ar15 untill the government told me i didnt need one.
Back in the fall of 1988 two of my buddies walked into Dick's Sporting Good's just outside of Syracuse, NY. One bought a Ruger Mini 14, the other bought a Colt AR15. Both rifles were brand new and were sitting on the shelf.
These arguments persist because REAL men don't read owner's manuals or things like instructions. I like sarcasm.
That and some are just morons
They were never rare in North Texas gunshop racks, got my first SP1 in 1976. And it was a .223 Remington, not 5.56. And would crater primers and show pressure signs with 5.56
It was $400 brand new.
Actually interesting, that we in Germany are not much behind the US with the Popularity of the AR-15.
The first imports of Olympic Arms AR-15 to Germany started before 2003, don't know the exact year, but they still had to be modified to comply with our back then "Assault Weapon Ban" (Endet 2003)
Not too much later, Oberland Arms started the first manufacturing of AR-15 components and assembly of AR-15s in Germany.
Now we have 4 large manufactorers of real (DI) AR-15 and a few custom shops.
Not to bad for our smal market, I think.
I've seen some video on questionable poorly fitted parts from the Colt custom shop it was a 1911 military spec in 45 acp brown coated covering, the fit barrel bushing to the barrel was slacker than it should have been, it must of affected the accuracy of this high-end pistol, the fit slide to frame rattled without a bullet being discharged down the range, thumb safety didn't feel positive, they talked about the flange magazine well, had at the bottom a gap you could pass a sheet of paper through, it cost over 2200 dollars and came directly from the Colt custom shop.
This video is on You-tube makes a legitimate argument for not now buying a colt 1911, what on earth is going on?
I understand Colt has changed hands, no one can sell on their reputation alone, standards and quality control seems to be wanting for another phrase that comes to mind. Colt at one time meant to the most part excellence and reliability built into these fine guns, USA stood for something then, I sure loved to shoot my "Gold Cup" and it was extremely accurate and well made with tight fit tolerances, how does these things happen, Colt was a giant in the industry, hmm sad.
As a young man in the early 80's I bought my first 1911 Gold Cup the build quality was excellent, tight Bushing to barrel fit, tight slide to frame fit, positive click as you thumb hit down the thumb safety, there are several video's on poorly fitted pistols and revolvers, the Colt Anaconda 44 magnum had a review his revolver he took the stock grips off to see the inside workings, there was chunks not grinded down but it looked like it had been chiseled down, hmm the video camera picked it up in great detail, what a untidy mess under the stock grips, then he tried to put the grips back on it, he was going on about the grips being difficult to align them due to poor engineering.
I had a few good years in the Tyne Valley Gun Club as vice chairman all that meant really was life membership, 40 odd years ago yes it was fun and I shot a lot of ball 230 grain down range, yet the slide remained reasonably tight after 2000 rounds, can you tell me what's happening to their brand, have they no pride in their workmanship.
Colt1911 warmest regards, the sport of shooting in competitions alas got canned in the UK I just watch others shoot on You-Tube these days since they reformed the part one firearm license many years ago.
I'm badly disabled so I have to get others to type messages, but I wondered what Colt is doing.
Metric is nice! But i use Imperial too! 😂
Salutations Sir!
🖖🏻🇫🇷😎🇫🇷😎🇫🇷🖖🏻
Just wanted to comment that your channel and Hickok45 have the best content and always enjoy the info sharing you produce. Life is good 😊
Saying that you couldn’t find an A.R. 15 on the shelves in the 80s is just not true!
This man clearly did not grow up in Texas or come near a gun store in central Texas. The gun shows were absolutely sick with AK 47 and eight or 15‘s as well. I have great respect for this man. He’s passed on much knowledge, but he must be in a blue state somewhere in the Northeast , which ironically is where most of these guns are manufactured. I got my first A.R. 15 when I was 16 years old for Christmas. I spotted it on a father-son outing to the gun store just prior to hunting season circa 1983. Happy shooting.
Well sir you almost got it right but you forgot about good onle Walmart. I worked there in the gun counter from 2012 to 2016. During this time I would carry two types of ruger mini 14s one $200 more than the other. The more expensive marked 5.56 Nato and the cheaper marked 223. After asked several times what the difference was I called my ruger representative. Apparently through his surprise Walmart orders special made guns at a cheaper price and had lesser quality barrels in them that was not rated for 5.56 and they say 223 rem only on them unlike other ruger mini 14s. Check into it before you jump to a verdict. Unless rhe rep was full of Bs which is possible.but Walmart does get special made guns at a budget to sell them cheaper just FYI.
I feel one of those 'what is the difference between 5.56 and .223' internet debates brewing. LOL.
There is a difference, read above..
Always great to hear you talk about American history and how it relates to the hobbie I enjoy that so much. God bless you sir and thanks for making awesome videos! 👏
Good to see you again Sir! I got my first AR-15 (DPMS Lite 16) in 2008. It was a FOMO (fear of missing out) purchase. Gun channels and some of my buddies were saying Obama would instantly declare them illegal, so I had to have one.
I’ve never liked the AR-15 but I do own a couple mini-14s ranch. I prefer sporter style. They’re 586 series and both have 5.56 stamped.
The Mini-14 has a few attributes that I've always appreciated compared to AR-pattern rifles: slimmer and more compact-more"traditional" appearance,a simpler design,a receiver made of steel,rather than melted-down beer cans.👍
This rifle is still demonized today by the anti gun movement...unjustly. Glad to see you again. missed out on your silver pigeon by $25.00. Say high to Benny, God Bless.
Had a mini 14 in eighties. Great gun. does not reeat in accuracy. Now a tack driving AR is 500 bucks.
Back in the 90s I shot lots of 5.56 mm out of the Ruger Mini-14 I never had any issues
Similar to the Vietnam my Dad told me that he had no interest in the M1 Garand when he came home after WWII, however this all changed by the 1960s when I was a young teenager and he began to say that the M1 Garand and the 1903 springfields were the greatest rifles ever made.
...my late father wanted an M1 Garand...hr got one of the first M1 Carbines that the government surplussed out in the early 60s - I was only 12 or 13 at the time and didn't appreciate the collectibility of those guns...never thought to look at the maker of various other features...around two years after he passed away in 1984 I bought one of the Korean imports from an FFL at Pratt & Whitney in Jupiter, FL - it was in sorry condition, but over time I restored it to shootability...
1973/4 dallas gun show.... could buy an ar15 for $215 new in the box
I think the point of this conversation, is that morons not only argue with others ,they argue amongst themselves. I think the ban and talk of it sent it's popularity through the roof. I remember a friend bought one in the early eighty's. His son melted the barrel off the thing. What a great way to waste wheel barrow loads of ammo. What was funny is he wouldn't let me shoot it but he let his son empty clip after clip . I thought it was complete lunacy. And still do by the way. To me that is not recreational shooting, I guess it's all in how you were raised. Also gunblue there were a lot of vets protesting. I know it was a terrible time I was there but the stupid hippies were right it was a lie top to bottom start to finish. Just sayin. Thanks for what you do, and keeping the politics off your channel. It's getting to the point of saturation. I wish for the old days when you only heard from them a couple months before an election. Lol those days are gone!
Geez mini 14s look great. Do you guys remember mini 14 in crocodile dundee 2? I think it had chrome on it or something
...and in Canada a hunting cartridge for big game (deer or larger) has to be 0.23 or bigger. I love this! I was always told I could shoot 223 in a 556 because the 556 can handle higher pressure than the 223 but because of casing shoulder angle/head spacing you could run into problems with a 556 in a 223 chamber. Now lets talk 223 wylde.
The cartridges are identical in everything except the somewhat higher 5.56mm NATO pressures. There's no difference in case dimensions whatsoever. The NATO chamber uses a longer freebore (leade) to allow some forgiving bullet jump, and is tested to greater pressures. I may cover the Wylde matter at some point soon.
@@GunBlue490 Thanks!!!
The NATO/military brass is thicker in the web compared to commercial223 cases to handle higher pressures. The outside dimensions are exactly the same..@@GunBlue490
@@89fingerslouieXRP You are correct, and @GunBlue490 nailed it in the difference. I handload for a 5.56mm AR platform, and also own a Remington 700 SA in .223. The 5.56 will shoot it all, the .223 has it's 'pet' loads because it will spike pressure with its short freebore.
What you describe seems to be dependent on the area of the country you lived in at the time. From 1978 to the 90s i saw AR's in all gunstores in my area as well as large numbers of M1 carbines and M1 rifles all of which were in high demand. The mini 14 was there in the 80s it was not as popular till the after market 20 rounds mags came out. In the mid 90s sales of ar and mini14 dropped very low due to price point on sks and ak type rifles.
Oh also I get the biggest kick out of the picture of you and your bro in the suit and hats. Lol you guys look like Meijer and lucky headed to Cuba lol. All you need is a cigarette between your fingers . Your the best on the tube keep up the good work. I look forward to every video. Oh and a great quote quote, without debate there is no democracy. Take care . Hope you and your family including Benny are healthy and happy.
We have a couple of the SP serial numbered Colt's from 1975. Nice old rifles for what they were designed for.
Thank you for this very enlightening video.
I did not know until today that you had served in Vietnam. Your cool factor is totally off the charts now. 😎 My father-in-law served as well. In fact, three-quarters of our Bible study group is Vietnam vets.
I believe Desert shield and storm ARs began raising interest. Operations in middle east sent many troops out, then ARs in many forms began really to become popular. But I remember thinking the M16 was easy to shoot when it would shoot ( I had nothing but trouble with them my entire career). I also remember everyone complaining they were being issued a .22 rifle that would explode on a stick or frond. I saw rounds exploding on sand being blown in the air. I have to say though, shooting an AR or Mini is a whole lot cheaper than 30-06 .308 and 30 USC. And the only thing I even slightly miss from that era is the security of the oven they called a helmet. And I might be the only one in the world on that!
Sir would you do a vid on your vietnam experience. Thank you in advance and your service.
Great topic! I've had this argument several times. I always said the same thing about the manual. I took a trade on one of those target models w/1200 rounds of 223. Never been shot
Found my '77 manual....cover page, page 1 and 13 just like you stated...keep videos coming, very informative
Great Vid as usual sir!! Glad you brought this up. A buddy of mine and I were in s shop in 74 and the owner had just gotten one in. We were sold on em right away, because we both loved the Garand and I had shot the M-14 in the service. A month later we both had mini's. I'll still take that mini over an AR any time!
Another fact many shooters might not be aware of: In the early days, Ruger chambered a few Mini-14's in .222 Remington. Not very many of them around. They turn up occasionally at gun shows.
They were made for European countries that prohibit civilian sales of military chamberings. Those few examples were over-runs of French and some other export productions.
@@GunBlue490 Interesting. I actually heard the original cartridge the scaled down AR-15 was .222 Remington before they decided they needed more punch and developed the .223 Remington. Funny how the chamberings would've changed had the .222 Remington been kept.
@@GunBlue490 That is very interesting. I have an old 60s Model 70 in .222 so that makes me think maybe I should keep an eye peeled for one of those rare birds. Love your channel - great video.
The original AR-15 was chambered for the 222 Remington..
I was in the early 80s about 10 years after they rifles introduction. I remember seeing a couple of those rifles in the gun shop I worked in. They were superb rifles. Just says that many 14 was for what it was designed to be I happen to own a Mini-14 in a short, folded up close-quarters engagement rifle. But I also understand that the ammo, the 55 grain Full Metal Jacket. Is only effective in the first two hundred yards and I don't even plan on firing it but about half of that distance or less. But remember. When you shorten the barrel on a 556 or 223. It gets blisteringly loud quite quickly. If you put a muzzle brake on it, you'll have to take a drill and can't those ports forward at least five degrees or you're going to pay for it with your hearing.
Always wanted a mini 14. Never got one. In my later years, i got an M1A.
US ARMY 1974-77 MP CORP. CUt my teeth on M-16a1,1911a1..love em,My mentors were in country Vets.
My brother in law humped an M60 in Vietnam in 1970, but he bought a Colt AR Sporter in '72. I shot the thing and wasn't impressed by it. Too plastic-y for my tastes. I'll take my Mini, thank you.
Enjoyed the talk Gunblue. Just an FYI that as a student of history, you should be aware of this- "Russian GRU defector Stanislav Lunev said in his autobiography that "the GRU and the KGB helped to fund just about every antiwar movement and organization in America and abroad," and that during the Vietnam War the USSR gave $1 billion to American anti-war movements, more than it gave to the VietCong,[27]" -Wikipedia
Yes, I was always aware of that. Meddling in American affairs is their game, because it's always easier and cheaper to subvert and convert a people from within than to overtake them by force. It's a concern that the FBI was once very devoted to years ago, which is no longer apparently the case.
@@GunBlue490 Rightly said. The FBI was purged of American patriots starting with Bush Sr. and Bill Clinton and was completed by Obama. Now they are nothing more than Praetorians helping to purge America of "counter-revolutionaries" (i.e. anyone opposed to their Marxist insurrection).
If you look in your owners manual, under ammunition, you will see that it states the Mini14 is rated for standardized US military (5.56mm), or factory loaded .223 sporting cartridges.
The only one specifically excluded is the Target Model.
Thanks for the video I learn so much from you all the time
1st great looking dog.
You are absolutly correct. I called Rugar just to make absolutly cleat about a 1983 Ruger Mini 14, 223 Cal, stainless (early guns are called the Ranch model)
I asked is it OK to shoot (XM855 green tip (.556) OK to shoot in this gun, Rugar said, the only thing to be careful of, Make sure the bullet casing is NOT STEEL, check with magnet, steel Receiver: bullet will wear out the barrel sooner).
I think your miss reading. Ruger told me "the bullet" casing is NOT STEEL. They are not talking about the cartridge case. (ie brass). I hope this helps@@redrider7730
DPMS and Rock River Arms was selling AR-15’s in ‘07. But yeah, not that many manufacturers like there are now (2023).
'07 is yesterday in the history of the AR-15.
I turned 18 in 1974. That year I got my first AR15. A colt, I wanted it because everyone I knew had one. The local gun shop had a hard time keeping them in stock. Two out of every three pic-up's had one. But it is Kentucky.
Thanks very informative. Good to know my ranch can use 5.56 as well as 2.23. I have often wondered and didn't get a users manual as I bought it used.🙂
ruger.com/dataProcess/serialHistory/manuals.php
@@GunBlue490 thank you
USReloading is looking for a writer,you sir would be a great person to pen articles
thank you and welcome home brother...semper fi
A buddy of mine took me to my first gun show in 1992. In those days finding AR's we're like finding hens teeth. They were not a well sought after item.
My target version mini 14 with harmonic balancer on the barrel doesn't have the thumb hole stock. It has the regular hogue overmold monte carlo stock. The thumbhole stock version might have been more popular, but in my state (Connecticut) we couldn't legally buy any semi autos with a thumbhole stock so I got stuck with a regular stock. By the way the target version is VERY accurate. Shooting from a rest using my handloaded ammo I get sub 1 MOA with it.
I’ve had three rugers and they all were horribly inaccurate. The mini 14 seems to have that reputation and I can certainly understand.
@@jamescampbell9533 Yeah, aside from the "target" version mini 14 that has the heavy 1 inch thick barrel and harmonic balancer on the end that's adjustable I also have one of the older pencil barrel standard ranch versions and that one is nowhere near as accurate as the target version. At least with factory loaded ammo, but it does much better with handloaded ammo that's loaded down to around 2200 ft per second. For some reason, at least with the one I have it prefers the downloaded weak ammo. Doing that gets me 2-3" groups at 100 yds. The target version is in another league of it's own getting sub 1" groups at 100 yds.
Early 80's Millers Gun Center had a rack of CAR 15s. Mine is an SP 1 from 77.
An excellent video. Things about the Mini-14 I never knew. In my family, we have both the Mini-14 and the AR-15. For me, I prefer the AR. 😊
Each of them are great, having several of both is best!
Thank you for this info. You know how to relax , kool !
I've run 855 and 193 in my 1977 mini for years and I'm still here with the correct amount of fingers. It's never been a problem. That rifle eats everything from the trash steel case that i could afford as a younger guy, up to mil-surp back when it was cheap and plentiful. I never had a "spontaneous, rifle-initiated field strip" in my life with it. It'll run 5.56 all day.
We were forced to use the metric system. They just didn't tell anyone. Two liter soda bottles, water bottles are 16.9 fl. Oz. (500 ml). The cars we drive are built in metric, even Teslas. Ironically, illicit drugs come here in kilos, and pharmaceutical drugs are dosed out using metric.
At least we don't use hands, stones, or British Whitworth, so I'm okay with it.
I'm trying to get back a mini that was purchased by my father new by him in the late 70's. I rember getting to shoot it, anyway I know where it is so hopefully i get first dibs on it one day.
I cut my fatigue pants off to shorts to wear on the river when I got out..I don't think I ever shot a Mini-14 until 1976 and I wasn't impressed...the ergonomics were terrible and the rounds were expensive. I was a munitions troop in the USAF, we referred to the round as "five-five-six" on the job, and I had a few friends with various 223 caliber rifles...all varmint rifles as best I remember.
The AR was all over the PNW/Seattle area in 1990. It was hugely popular.
They were about $1K each.
The perspective on the lack of popularity for AR-15s when they first hit the market is very interesting, since the explosion in popularity for the rifle almost entirely came from the Assault Weapons Ban. Before, people didn't really care about them. Suddenly, when a massive gun control legislation came along restricting people, people's interest got piqued and a lot of companies started producing them in quantity, which of course drove down the price and increased availability and aftermarket parts, which further led to people getting it and it spiraled into the gun becoming the dominant force today. So congrats, gun control idiots, you played yourself.
You sound young,
@@TheSummer750 Well, I am. lol
Born right on the cusp between Millennial and Zoomer. I do have a fascination with history and historical firearms, though, hence why I really like channels like this. Gets a perspective that may be lost for guys my age.
@@gameragodzilla Notice the adults talking in the comments, and then you had to chime in.....
@@TheSummer750 Learning is best as a two way dialogue.
@@TheSummer750You don't have to be a dick to him.
Two things that made the ar-15 popular
1- democrats yelling ban them
2- RUclips LoL 😂 Great info. Thanks for sharing
They are doing more than yelling now.
Listening to this guy talk, is like watching grass grow!
AR15 was available at my LGS in the 80s, thats when i gought mine. They were everywhere in thw 90s all around Tulsa OK.
Guy paints a colorful story that moves as fast as paint drying!
I couldnt take it anymore.
I'm quite a pale one and stumbled over someone going to matches in the death valley wearing a particular hat. He was so happy when I asked about it. It has a mesh that keeps the head cool and some have a pad that is dipped in water for a few minutes and slowly evaporates cooling further. Look for a Tilley air-flow hat. Left a like as always for the constant good quality.
I think the AR started to become popular after the L.A. bank robbery. The bad guys had AK's and the police had to go to local gun stores to get their hands on an AR to fight back. I had a Mini-14 at the time and carried that on duty. Our cheap department wrote to Uncle Sam and started to get issued M-14's years later. The 14's were way too powerful for regular police patrols. Then around 2013 our department switched to government issued M-16's with the auto switch taken out. I still have my Mini-14. She's a fine weapon.
The number one selling point of any gun is the availability of cheap and abundant ammo.
Think about this. 410 buckshot ammo cost on average $1 per round.
Meanwhile 12 gauge buckshot ( with double the shot and double the powder can be had for about 50 cents per round... about the same price as .25acp.
9mm is almost as cheap as good .22 LR
It's all determined by volume of sales.
That is why .556 NATO can be bought for 50cents per round... but .223 is $1.25 per round.
I remember asking the Scheels gun manager if they had any of those black rifles back in the day, maybe the late 90's or early 2000's. He said smugly, "we only sell hunting rifles." now go to the same store and there are at least 100 different "black" rifles and rightly so, it's what sells, I still love the old walnut and blued steel, but, I do have my share of PCC's and such. I counted the other night, and I have 7 folding rifles and many older military surplus with bayonets. It's part of our wonderful hobby. Thanks for the vid.
Always great stuff! Cheers, I finished a beer with you!
As an advisor, I often had my choice of weapons to use. Turned in my M-16 for a M-14 after two incidents of failure to fire after a bandolier of ammunition. The M-14 was heavier and was limited in the amount of ammunition you could comfortably carry, but it was very dependable and much more powerful. While providing security for the Corpsman in the villages around our camp, I carried a M2 carbine which was cut down by the armorer. It was very dependable also as both weapons were short stroke gas piston operated. I have never owned a "Black Rifle" since coming back.
I love that man
I bought my first AR -A Colt SP1 for $85 in 1978. Complete with sling, bayonet, a few aluminum mags. Can’t do that anymore!!
I shot 5.56 in a older Mini 14 and had no problem. But i stopped doing it because i thought i might damage it. Great now i can shoot both now without any worry, Thanks. Wish the first Mini 30 rifles could shoot berden primers with out worring about damaging the firing pin. Take Care!
5.56 worked fine in mini 14's and in ARs though you would get higher pressure signs on the base of the brass (the image of the ejector on the base of the brass.) In the late 70's and early 80's anyone shooting (not including military folks, maybe) viewed the 5.56 as just another name for the .223. Commercial reloaders used once fired military 5.56 brass to reload .223.
i bought my first ar15 in 1976 from a hardware store.
Yes, I did not hear where he lives, but that can not be in 90% of the geographical US. I was in the local hardware store frequently from 1962 forward, mostly for fiun, sometimes marveling at the rifles available. M1 Carbines in particular. By 1970, AR 180s began appearing. I was not old enough to purchase anything, yet.
A few years later AR 15s showed up. By 1980 they were very popular, but expensive. In the 1980s, prices came down, probably due to the great H&K G3 civilian variants.
The AR had become very popular by 1985, and more so after the Feds stopped importation og the H&KS in 1986. The ridiculous 1994 "assault weapons ban" targeted the AR because it was already the most popular rifle in the US. All that did was allow China to dump their surplus military rifles in the US market and help update their newly designed issue rifles with the cash.
Rock River was selling their high quality AR's by 1997. Great rifles.
I bought at 17 , through my father (GCA 68), in 1968, a Colt AR 15 SP1, 1:12 barrel. In my hand, it felt like a "Made By Mattel" toy. I was 17, thought I might get drafted, and wanted to be familiar. I've fired every sort of 223/5.56X45 ammo I could get my hands on. No problems. And I still have it. Not sure this 223/5.56 chambering controversy has any basis in fact.
All AR-15s made by Colt have a 5.56 NATO chamber, so it doesn't in your case.
You are correct. Most of the units were issued green jungle fatigues in Viet Nam.
However, my unit was issued camouflaged fatigues. In addition, we had Tiger striped and plain black fatigues. With that being said, "we stood out like a sore thumb" while in the rear echelon areas.
We also could carry any weapon we chose to depending on the mission. One time a 1940's Greese gun 45 ACP, an AK47, but mostly a XM21.
Your videos are the only videos I consider professional advice.
I was one of those dummies that paid the money for a Colt ar15 in the early 90s. Still have it. I remember that I had to order it. I purchased it because it was the only firearm I new how to shoot.
Marines M16 A1.
First time I saw a Mini-14 was from the TV show The A-Team. I thought it was a real neat looking gun but I didn't know what it was called back in 1984. When I tried to Google it on my McIntosh, it said Internet Service Unavailable.
I recall an AR showing up at the local gun store in the early 80s once. It sat on the shelf for over a year. The local police department finally bought it, so no one else in the community would buy it. Never seen another one replace it.
Very typical. Three dealers I knew wouldn't touch any military style gun for that reason, and that rule didn't change for many years.
A personal note, I went prairie dog hunting for the first time about 15 years ago. On my first trip I had a Thompson Encore in 22-250. One of the other guys brought an Match grade AR-15 with a 24” bull barrel. Needless to say his hit ratio dwarfed mine many fold. So much so that I acquired my own version of his rifle, a 13 lbs behemoth! I’ve already burned out one barrel on the gun and am on my second one. For me there’s just no better prairie dog gun out there! I later built a 300 Hamr from Wilson combat with a 16” barrel for deer and hog here in Texas. We don’t shoot out past 200 yards here much. My bolt guns are just collecting dust in the safe! I can’t say enough good things about those 2 ARs as my main hunting guns.