Ruger Mini 14 Problem

[Heatseeker]

Are there any Mini 14 experts here?

A buddy has a Mini 14 made in 1985. It is in excellent shape but it seems to be locked up. The bolt does not move when attempting to cycle it by hand and the safety will not move either. I'm hesitant of trying the trigger, not knowing if there is a round chambered or not.

Any suggestions as to what may be the problem and if it is something we can correct ourselves? He wants to pass the rifle to his son for his birthday in a couple of weeks so he's hoping to not have to send it back to Ruger.

Thanks for any advice.

[40calibre]

Definitely sounds like a round stuck in chamber. Only thing I would do is try slamming the bolt with hitting rifle stock to floor. If nothing then I would take it to a gun smith. If you live in LA county I recommend Bain and Davis, I had a case stuck in chamber and they were able to get it out at a reasonable price as well.

[Mossy Man]

i've heard of guys' charging handles rusting shut.

point it in a safe direction and whack the charging handle with a mallet?

(lots of guys kick it, but might not be a good idea if you don't know if its chambered)

[rogervzv]

For God's sake if you do any of the things in this thread be sure the gun is pointed in a safe direction.

Good luck. Mini 14s are super-reliable. Must be a bad shell casing or something.

[toiletfighter]

I've had this happen a few times with my Mini 14 after shooting and not cleaning/lubing. Give it the "AK Kick", buttstock on floor or rifle held in a vise and then a solid kick or whack with a rubber mallet. Clean and lube it well, paying attention to the chamber. I've ran thousands of rounds through my Mini and this can happen on occasion. Best of luck!

[rudedude916]

I've had this happen a few times with my Mini 14 after shooting and not cleaning/lubing. Give it the "AK Kick", buttstock on floor or rifle held in a vise and then a solid kick or whack with a rubber mallet. Clean and lube it well, paying attention to the chamber. I've ran thousands of rounds through my Mini and this can happen on occasion. Best of luck!

What he said. I've had the same problem.

[Heatseeker]

Thanks for the suggestions fellas. I'm going to soak it with penetrating oil and give it a whack. Rest assured, this will be done with the muzzle pointed in a safe direction.

Progress report to follow.

[russ69]

Not need to gorilla the thing, just give a light tap tap tap on the charging handle.

[Bubba_Leon]

This happened when my Mini 14 was brand new, I called Ruger and the guy told me to stick a flat head screwdriver into the slot where the hammer is visible and manually pull it back until you are able to cycle it back.

[TMB 1]

Safety stays stuck in off position when hammer is down. Probably has stuck case in it, but you can run cleaning rod down barrel and measure to know for sure. Be careful you don't break your extractor kicking and beating on it, stuck case may be steel case.

[Heatseeker]

Thanks for the help. One swift rap with a soft faced hammer freed the action up. A total disassemble and a thorough scrubbing rendered the rifle fully operational. The problem was a major fouling of the gas pipe/slide. I let my buddy know that it is important with this rifle to clean it thoroughly after shooting it. He said he hasn't shot it since the late 1990's...

Thanks again!

[donovan]

I just read that the issue has been solved, but I was going with a stuck casing too, or a jammed misfire. It's never happened to my trust 180, but my friend had a cheap round jam in the barrel and the extractor was stuck on it. He carefully banged it forward and back a few times with a stick while pointing it down range and it finally yanked out. You do have to keep these guys clean, although they can really do well in crappy conditions too.
I just cleared a misfire out on my M1 after it had been sitting for I don't know how may years. The casing was out but the bullet was lodger about 5 inches down the barrel.. Thanks dad.... :/

[wxl]

[QUOTE=Heatseeker;13293858]Thanks for the help. One swift rap with a soft faced hammer freed the action up. A total disassemble and a thorough scrubbing rendered the rifle fully operational. The problem was a major fouling of the gas pipe/slide. I let my buddy know that it is important with this rifle to clean it thoroughly after shooting it. He said he hasn't shot it since the late 1990's...

Thanks again![/QUOTE

This usually only happens to the blue Mini 14's. The SS ones usually don't have a problem. Before storing the blue Mini, put a light film of grease on the gas pipe, this will keep it from seizing up when stored a long time.

[Heatseeker]

This usually only happens to the blue Mini 14's. The SS ones usually don't have a problem. Before storing the blue Mini, put a light film of grease on the gas pipe, this will keep it from seizing up when stored a long time.

Oddly enough, this was a SS model. The gas pipe was so crudy that after cleaning there was some slight pitting on the necked down portion if the pipe. Bad gun owner, bad!

[G21Shooter]

Lesson hear after your done shooting your Mini and don't plan on using it again for a long time, a generous amount of grease on the gas pipe is the way to go.

Once annoying, twice a pervert.