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So was at the range with my Mini 14 again yesterday. Hooked up with a shooting buddy, and one of the targets he brought along was a 12" steel gong that he set at the 300 yard line. I was playing around with my Mini at the 50 yard line, while he was banging away with his 7mm-08 on the gong. Seemed like just too much fun, so I said I wanted to try it. Now, I have a 2 MOA RDS on my Mini, and it's sighted in for 50 yards. At 300 yards, I could barely see the gong, and the dot covered most of it. But after a couple of shots to figure out just where it was hitting (surprisingly, pretty much dead on), I was ringing steel like I knew what I was doing .
Now I realize some of you are saying no biggie, but the truth is, guys, I've never tried shooting anything at 300 yards before, longest has been 200, and most of that was with a magnified sight. Granted I was shooting from a rest, but the idea that I could consistently hit a 12" target at that range with the "horribly inaccurate" Mini 14 just blows me away. To say I'm pleased with my Mini would be a serious understatement. And my shooting partner was mightily impressed, too, he's an AR guy, but felt he couldn't have done any better with one of his AR's. He also felt there was just something about the Mini that was more enjoyable to shoot than his AR's, I suspect he'll be shopping for his own Mini 14 soon .
So for those of you that have avoided a Mini due to its bad accuracy press, you might just want to give one a second look. And BTW, mine is a 181 series, built in 1979, so it's a 40 year old rifle. Although I have an aftermarket rail on it, I haven't added a strut. The only other mods are a smaller gas bushing and an extra power recoil spring. That setup gives me consistent 1" groups at 50 yards with a red dot, and I suspect that that's my limit with a non-magnified sight. I'll be putting a scope on it for my next trip just to find out. Later.
Dave
Now I realize some of you are saying no biggie, but the truth is, guys, I've never tried shooting anything at 300 yards before, longest has been 200, and most of that was with a magnified sight. Granted I was shooting from a rest, but the idea that I could consistently hit a 12" target at that range with the "horribly inaccurate" Mini 14 just blows me away. To say I'm pleased with my Mini would be a serious understatement. And my shooting partner was mightily impressed, too, he's an AR guy, but felt he couldn't have done any better with one of his AR's. He also felt there was just something about the Mini that was more enjoyable to shoot than his AR's, I suspect he'll be shopping for his own Mini 14 soon .
So for those of you that have avoided a Mini due to its bad accuracy press, you might just want to give one a second look. And BTW, mine is a 181 series, built in 1979, so it's a 40 year old rifle. Although I have an aftermarket rail on it, I haven't added a strut. The only other mods are a smaller gas bushing and an extra power recoil spring. That setup gives me consistent 1" groups at 50 yards with a red dot, and I suspect that that's my limit with a non-magnified sight. I'll be putting a scope on it for my next trip just to find out. Later.
Dave