The Ruger Mini-14 was introduced by Ruger in 1974 as a scaled down version
of the M-14 battle rifle.
The M-14 rifle uses the 7.62mm (.308) cartridge, while the Mini-14 is
chambered in the 5.56mm (.223) caliber.
The Mini-14 inherited much of its design from the M-14 rifle, including most
of the gas system, the rotating bolt, and the safety design.
Selective-fire Mini-14's have been manufactured and sold to police and
government agencies.
The Mini-14 Ranch Rifle is a popular variant of the Mini-14. The Mini-14
Ranch Rifle has a scope base cast into the receiver to enable easier mounting
of a rifle scope. The ejection port is also modified to ensure that ejected
cartridges do not strike the scope.
The Ruger Mini-14 is one of the most customizable rifles on the market
today. The Mini-14 can become almost unregonizable in some of the large variety
of stocks and folding stocks available on the market today.
The Mini-30 is a
close relative of the Mini-14. The Mini-30 is a version of the Mini-14 which is
chambered for the Soviet 7.62x39mm cartridge. These cartridges became available
very inexpensively after the end of the Cold War and the Mini-30 makes good
advantage of that.