All posts tagged Mini 30 magazines

Mini 14 lover feedback on gun magazines!

promag magazinesI’ve been in the AR15 camp for several years after retiring my Mini 14 Ranch model that was probable my most used semi-auto.   I started out with Russian rifles like the SKS and then moved on to the 7.62×39 AK firearms.  I learned rifle skills with those rifles and quickly learned that my shooting abilities were better than what those rifles provided.  When the AR15 was first showing up at my gun clubs, i viewed those as the rich guy guns.   The optics that were being mounted on those guns cost more than what my new Mini 14 rifle cost.  I got good accuracy with my 1-9 twist Mini 14 with a Sightron 3-9×40 rifle scope.   Especially, if you compared it to the accuracy of 7.62×39 guns.   At longer distances like 200yd-500yds you will see that the flatter shooting 5.56 round will do a better job of getting hits.

I have retired most of my Mini 14 rifles to being hunting rifles since I have several opportunities to go on hunting trips in states that allow semi-auto guns to be used.   I have been very happy with the 20rd promag magazines that I picked up after some of the factory mini 14 and PMI magazines I had wore out.  It seems that many aftermarket magazines have improved and even though there have been some improvements to the mini 14 design, finding decent 20rd and 30rd magazines that function.   The Mini 14 is a very potent firearm if a reality check is in place and not trying to turn the gun into an assault rifle.   Considering the weight of the rifle, this might be the best balanced .223 carbine out there.

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Glock Factory magazines vs after market?

I remember almost 20yrs ago a company called USA magazines, and after the first Assault Weapons ban, that was about the only manufacturer I knew that made 30rd magazines for the Mini 14, but I had really bad experiences with them.   The majority of the problem was with the followers and this seems to be a pretty common issue.   If you move machinery from one location to the other and have any minor changes in the equipment, that slightly out of spec magazine is going to jam up in your firearm and that is pretty much what the problem is with after market magazines.   I have not the time or the energy to test out after market magazines because I actually started using them and then learned to only buy Factory mags but now that there is another run on firearms and magazines, some people are tempted to buy what they can.

Should you bother putting your money into something that is not a factory item?  If you don’t have any other options a brand like Promag magazines Promag magazines has a pretty good reputation and some of our customers have told us that they use them in their AKs and or in the Walther PPK or Ruger LCP we can give you that.  There’s nothing wrong with having a bunch of magazines that are in your range rotation but for primary use, i would stick with magazines that have been tested or just stick with Factory magazines.  Many companies stand by their magazines and have warranties so also do some research into that before you buy.

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Magazines that aren’t flush fitting

I have never really liked the feel of having a pistol magazine protrude out of the bottom of the gun unless it is because the gun grip is too small for me.  I’ve seen a few of my friends do this on their Glocks, namely the Glock 26 because it is such a small gun.   I did put an extension on a Sig 239 which is the  only gun I currently own that has this.   The first gun that I owned was a Colt 1991A1 and it only came with one pistol magazine.   It was a Colt magazine which i thought would be the best gun magazine to have, but that turned out to not be true.   After having a few problems with the slide stop not catching, I found out the magazine tab was bending and causing the issue.

I believe it was at a gun show that I picked up 2 Wilson Combat magazines and my Colt 1991A1 ran flawlessly with ball ammo.  The gun magazines really ran well with hollow point ammunition but I found the gun to be too picky with hollow point ammo that I pretty much gave up on worrying about it.   If you look at the velocity that a 45acp is flying at, I don’t think you’ll have massive over penetration issues compared to 9mm ball.   Wilson combat magazines have varying base pads and from my experience this is mostly a concern for competition shooters.   If the magazine drops free I don’t need to worry about gripping it and pulling it out for a fast reload.

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Often over looked firearms

There is much to say for using an M4 Carbine for home defense in comparison to using a handgun.   There are many people that are transitioning home defense weapons from handguns to carbines.   There are  pistol caliber carbines that have very good reputations for reliability and given that you are getting another 200-300 fps or more out of them from a handgun round, you are getting more punch and spank from your bullet.   One firearm that is starting to get a little more use due to ballistic improvements in ammunition is the M1 Carbine.

The M1 Carbine always had a good reputation for being reliable, lethal and handy.   The Mini  14 from Ruger has a bit of an edge over the old M1 Carbine, but it’s still a very potent and useful weapon.   When we are asked about gun magazines for this firearm for  home defense, especially in California, New Jersey and the un friendly States, Promag magazines makes a very good M1 Carbine 10rd magazine.   This is one of the best replacement magazines you can find for the M1 Carbine and if you look around there are some decent defensive rounds you can optain for this caliber.

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Did the M14 replace the Garand?

That is a sure thing, and in my opinion it was a big step forward for semi-autos.  It really is too bad the gun was not fielded during the Korean War because it would have made a difference for the USGI.   As much as the Garand was a useful weapon to the American Rifleman, it was quickly out dated in the battle field and from what I have personally witnessed, is not very versatile when it comes to being used by different soldiers.   Many Vets that I have spoken to did not think the gun was fun to shoot and couldn’t hit anything at 100yds with it.   I’ve seen that type of shooting before, it’s called “fear of recoil”.

When the M14 was first issued, it pretty much did in the M1 Garand and the BAR, but modern warfare made the riflemen’s  usual combat engagements take place at well under 400yds.   Most engagements that I know of from personal stories took place at under 100yds.   The M1 Carbine still was very practical for soldiers until the M4 Carbine came out, now many enthusiasts in California and New Jersey can use the Promag magazines that are 10rds and from what many of our customers have said they worked very well for this old relic.   If it were not for the limited availability and reliability of M1 Carbine ammo, I think the gun would be more popular.

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10rd magazines and living behind enemy lines

I guess we are all living behind enemy lines if you consider what we’ve been dealing with since the 2008 election.   I recently go around to reading some of the bull shit that is listed in the Obamacare bill and it’s loaded with nothing more than crap.   We have a bunch a lunatics in Washington DC that are trying to say that a vending machine operator has to list how many calories for each individual item they are selling.  This is all brought to  you by the people that are afraid to call Islamic terrorism what it is and want an average American Citizen to not be allowed to own a firearm that holds more than 10rd of ammunition in it.

We have a diverse group for our customer base.  We  have the concealed carry apparel crowd and we have many, many Government employees and private contractors.   Our customers that live in California and New Jersey tend to be more restricted in the gun accessories product line and when it comes to selling gun magazines, we’ve been selling a lot of t he Promag magazines to them.   The Mini 14 is a very popular firearm in California because the gun doesn’t have to be modified from the Factory configuration, but it still shoots the .223 or 5.56 ammunition that the AR15 does.

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Some words about Promag

I’m old enough to remember how much of a nightmare it was to find “standard’ capacity magazines for handguns in the late 1900s when the impact of the AWB was in full affect.   I use to buy semi-auto handguns based on how much the magazines cost and ended up sticking with 1911 handguns and Berettta 92FS firearms.   The Beretta 92FS is still a favorite 9mm of mine, but I have other guns that I prefer for myself.   While I was using my Beretta as a standard CCW gun, I only had 3 standard capacity magazines for it and one of my friends who was moving and getting married was selling his, I only ended up buying his gun magazines off of him.

I have had several Promag magazines from AR15 to 1911s and Beretta 92.   I would say that they are all manufactured from different times and quality varies, but the reliability has been fairly good.  I would not consider them for primary carry, but they are good range magazines.  I have a few friends that use them as primaries, but I would do thorough testing with them and consider having to use a pair of pliers if you have any issues.  I have had very good results from the Promag gun magazines that are made for the Mini 14 and Mini 30.   The 5rd magazines that Ruger ships their guns with are flush fitting and in many States the 20rd and 30rd are illegal, but the 10rd magazines make the Mini 14 a better defensive weapon in these States.  There aren’t very many other options for anything other than 5rd Ruger magazines.

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