Ruger Mini-14 or M-4? What is your opinion?

SPC Gary Basom — Sat, 25 Jan 2014 03:47:34 -0500

The Ruger Mini-14 is a good weapon because of it's simplicity and ease to clean,

the M-4 because of it's enclosed bolt and system are more time consuming and a little harder to clean. Both are capable of select fire. The M-4 and the Ruger

AC-556. The AC-556 would be easier to clean sand out of as the receiver is an open visible design and is based on the M-1 and M-14 designs. Just wonder what your thought are about this question.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 25 at 2014 4:52 AM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 25 Jan 2014 04:52:05 -0500

I'd say M-4 because it's all I know and what I came up on, but I'm intrested in trying new weapons as well

Response by CW3 Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 25 at 2014 5:16 AM

CW3 Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 25 Jan 2014 05:16:32 -0500

I only own ARs and I don't have any experience with the Mini 14s so take my opinion with a grain of salt. When I looked into the Mini a couple years back I found a couple of common sited problems throughout gun enthusiast blogs that among other things included two large faults that steered me away. One was that although the Mini has a tried and true design, it is not well suited for high volume firing (say 200+ rounds out at the range), there were common complaints about its accuracy and shot groupings past med range as well. The killer of the deal was that Ruger does not release firing pins and other crucial parts to many gunsmiths, if you have a major issue with your Mini, supposedly you will have to send it in for repairs. The AR is an extremely user friendly platform and parts and upgrades are way too easy to get your hands on. Again, don't just buy my word but that's where I stand.

Response by SSG Roger Ayscue made May 31 at 2015 10:53 PM

SSG Roger Ayscue — Sun, 31 May 2015 22:53:54 -0400

As a professional in the Firearms industry, I would say M-4, hands down. It is way way more modular than the mini-14.

I love the mini 14 for it's classic styling, ease of handling and I feel it is a dream to shoot and clean. HOWEVER, it is slightly heavier than the M4, is not as modular and does not lend itself in it's present form to adaptation.

The Mini-14 does not offer significant improvement over the M-4 to warrant the change over.

Just my opinion.

Response by LCDR Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 21 at 2015 8:03 AM

LCDR Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 21 Aug 2015 08:03:11 -0400

I know my scores on the range at over 100 yrds are by far better with the Mini-14.

Response by PO1 Michael Havner made Dec 1 at 2019 1:55 PM

PO1 Michael Havner — Sun, 01 Dec 2019 13:55:11 -0500

The M4 is definitely a more modern weapon with a lot more aftermarket add ins available. The mini 14 is a solid and reliable carbine. I own both an AR-15 style rifle and a Ruger mini-14. I like both. They both have areas where they shine. It really boils down to your personal preference and what you're going to be doing with the weapon.