Ruger Mini-14 Ranch Rifle Instruction Manual

INSTRUCTION
MANUAL
FOR
RUGER®
MINI-14®RANCH RIFLE
AUTOLOADING RIFLE
This manual applies only to Mini-14 “Ranch Rifles”
so marked on the receiver.
NOT FOR USE WITH MINI THIRTY RIFLES (cal. 7.62 x 39mm)
For Product Service on This Model Please Call:
(603) 865-2442 (See p. 34)
STURM, RUGER & Company, Inc.
Southport, Connecticut 06490 U.S.A.
THIS INSTRUCTION MANUAL SHOULD ALWAYS ACCOMPANY THIS FIREARM AND BE
TRANSFERRED WITH IT UPON CHANGE OF OWNERSHIP, OR WHEN THE FIREARM IS LOANED OR
PRESENTED TO ANOTHER...

3
WARNING!
“Children are attracted to and
can operate firearms that can
cause severe injuries or death.
Prevent child access by always
keeping guns locked away and
unloaded when not in use. If you
keep a loaded firearm where a
child obtains and improperly uses
it, you can be fined or sent to
prison.”
ADVERTENCIA!
State-By-State Warnings
Certain states require by law that their own specified warning
notices in larger-than-normal type be conspicuously included by
the manufacturer, distributor, or retail...

Maine:
“ENDANGERING THE WELFARE OF A CHILD IS A
CRIME. IF YOU LEAVE A FIREARM AND AMMUNITION
WITHIN EASY ACCESS OF A CHILD, YOU MAY BE
SUBJECT TO FINE, IMPRISONMENT OR BOTH. KEEP
FIREARMS AND AMMUNITION  SEPARATE.  KEEP
FIREARMS AND AMMUNITION LOCKED UP. USE
TRIGGER LOCKS.”
Maryland:
“WARNING: Children can operate firearms which may cause
death or serious injury. It is a cr
imeto store or leave a loaded
firearm in any location where an individual knew or should
have known that an unsupervised minor would...

New Jersey:
“IT IS A CRIMINAL OFFENSE TO LEAVE A LOADED
FIREARM WITHIN EASY ACCESS OF A MINOR.”
New York City:
“THE USE OF A LOCKING DEVICE OR SAFETY LOCK IS
ONLY ONE ASPECT OF RESPONSIBLE WEAPONS
STORAGE. ALL WEAPONS SHOULD BE STORED
UNLOADED AND LOCKED IN A LOCATION THAT IS
BOTH SEPARATE FROM THEIR AMMUNITION AND
INACCESSIBLE TO  CHILDREN AND ANY  OTHER
UNAUTHORIZED PERSONS.”
North Carolina:
“IT IS UNLAWFUL TO STORE OR LEAVE A FIREARM
THAT CAN BE DISCHARGED IN A MANNER THAT A
REASONABLE PERSON SHOULD...

6
This firearm was originally sold
with a key-operated locking
device. While it can help provide
secure storage for your unloaded
firearm, any locking device can
fail. All guns are designed to fire
if they are loaded and the trigger
is pulled. Therefore, never install
the locking device inside the
trigger guard or in any way that it
can possibly pull the trigger!Do
not leave the keys in the lock.
The ultimate responsibility for
secure storage of any firearm
must depend upon its owner and
his or her...

FIREARMS SAFETY-YOUR RESPONSIBILITY
SAFETY MUST BE THE FIRST AND CONSTANT
CONSIDERATION OF EVERY PERSON WHO
HANDLES FIREARMS AND AMMUNITION.
This Instruction Manual is designed to assist you in learning how to use and care
for your RUGER®MINI-14®RANCH RIFLEproperly. Please contact us
if you have any questions about it.
Only when you are certain you fully understand the Manual and can properly
carry out its instructions should you practice loading, etc. with live ammunition.
If you have any doubts about...

!
8
!
FIREARMS ARE DANGEROUS WEAPONS –
READ THE INSTRUCTIONS AND WARNINGS
IN THIS MANUAL THOROUGHLY AND
CAREFULLY BEFORE USING.
GENERAL INFORMATION
AND MECHANICAL CHARACTERISTICS
The RUGER®MINI-14®RANCH RIFLEis a gas operated, box magazine
fed, autoloading rifle. It is simple, reliable, and consists of a relatively few rugged
components. The mechanism employs the Ruger fixed piston/moving cylinder
gas system in conjunction with a simplified Garand-type rotating bolt. The
Mini-14 Ranch Rifle can be field...

9
Figure 1. In this illustration the frequently used operating components are identified. Note
that the safety is rearward in the trigger guard and is therefore in its “ON” (safe) position.
receiver in recoil. The bolt has been redesigned and the previous Mini-14 spring-
loaded ejector has been eliminated. The bolt stop has been modified to fit in a
slot in the side of the bolt, and it also serves as the ejector so that the empty
cartridges are ejected from the receiver straight out to the side in order...

Keep the safety on unless actually firing.
Always move the safety fully to its intended
position and check
it. The safety  is not “ON”
unless it is completely “ON”. Never depend on
a safety mechanism or any other mechanical
device to justify careless handling or
permitting the rifle to point in an unsafe
direction. The only “safe” rifle is one in which
the bolt is open, the chamber is empty, and
there is no magazine in the gun.
KNOW HOW TO USE THE SAFETY
!WARNING – MANUAL SAFETY
Safety in ON Position
10...

11
!WARNING–AMMUNITION
AMMUNITION (CARTRIDGES) NOTICE
WE SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY DAMAGE
OR INJURY WHATSOEVER OCCURRING IN CONNECTION WITH, OR
AS THE RESULT OF, THE USE IN RUGER FIREARMS OF FAULTY, OR
NON-STANDARD, OR “REMANUFACTURED” OR HAND LOADED
(RELOADED) AMMUNITION, OR OF CARTRIDGES OTHER THAN
THOSE FOR WHICH THE FIREARM WAS ORIGINALLY CHAMBERED.
AMMUNITION
The RUGER®MINI-14®RANCH RIFLESare chambered for the .223
Remington (5.56mm) cartridge. The Ranch Rifle is designed to use...