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Ruger Mini-14's in Vietnam

the_punisher_the_punisher_ Member Posts: 562 ✭✭✭
edited December 2011 in US Military Veteran Forum
Hello gentleman,
This will probably be my only post in this forum ever,as I am not a veteran of any war,just a follower of military history,but here is my question.I was speaking with a Vietnam veteran at the local Wal-mart and during the conversation he mentioned being issued a Mini-14 in Vietnam.Was anyone else issued a Mini-14 during the war ? This struck me as kind of interesting.Thank you all for your service and thank you for your time.
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Comments

  • Colt SuperColt Super Member Posts: 31,007 ✭
    edited November -1
    I think he was confused.

    The Mini-14, to my knowledge, has never been issued in the Military, and certainly not to combat units.

    He must have meant the M-14.

    Doug
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  • countryfarmercountryfarmer Member Posts: 4,552
    edited November -1
    He was either confused or FOS.
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  • remingtonoaksremingtonoaks Member Posts: 26,245 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    You may have miss understood him. Or maybe he sustained a head injury, and is confused.. Or he has just plain FOS.. A lot of guys that never served, claimed they did..

    But the time line of when the mini came out, is right at the end of the Nam conflict, plus I haven't heard of a contract with Ruger for the mini with the military JMO
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  • dheffleydheffley Member Posts: 25,000 ✭
    edited November -1
    He either wasn't a VN vetran, or you misunderstood. There were m-14's in vietnam, especially in the earlier years, but no Ruger Mini 14's.

    You are welcome here, vetran or not.[;)]
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  • Laredo LeftyLaredo Lefty Member Posts: 13,451 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Ditto what the prior posts said. The Mini-14 was never a US military rifle. He either misspoke or you misunderstood what he said.

    The Ruger Mini-14 did'nt come out until 1974, about the end of the war and by then we had the M-16. The M-14 was used by the Marines and Army in Nam but phased out for the M-16.

    I had an M-14 in basic training at Fort Ord and was issued an M-16 when I got to Vietnam.
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  • the_punisher_the_punisher_ Member Posts: 562 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I kind of figured his comment was a little off,but I didn't want to upset the gentleman as I tend to shop at that store every other week.Thanks again for answering my question and for providing me with some info on the year the guns were first introduced.I may return with some more questions pertaining to weapons of the Vietnam war,as now I know where I can find the answers.
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  • TrupoBPTTrupoBPT Member Posts: 381 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    They are both .14 caliber right??
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  • quickmajikquickmajik Member Posts: 15,576 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by TrupoBPT
    They are both .14 caliber right??


    He is a youngin', think he said he was 12.

    No lad,

    the m-14 is /308 Winchester Thats .30 of an inch
    The ruger mini-14 is .223 Remington thats .224 of an inch

    This was an intersting if moot topic.
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  • TrupoBPTTrupoBPT Member Posts: 381 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by quickmajik
    quote:Originally posted by TrupoBPT
    They are both .14 caliber right??


    He is a youngin', think he said he was 12.

    No lad,

    the m-14 is /308 Winchester Thats .30 of an inch
    The ruger mini-14 is .223 Remington thats .224 of an inch

    This was an intersting if moot topic.

    Its a joke...
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  • k0n-n0kk0n-n0k Member Posts: 2 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    I am also do not know of any Mini-14s in Vietnam. But he claimed to have been issued a 'government issue' Mini-14.

    http://www.kitsune.addr.com/Firearms/Auto-Rifles/Ruger_Mini-14.htm

    However, He could have gotten confused with an M1 Carbine.
    (He was 1st Marine Division Motor-pool in Da-Nang 1969-1974.)
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  • 70-10170-101 Member Posts: 1,006 ✭
    edited November -1
    The M4 was the closet to a Ruger mini-14, perhaps this is what he meant? As others have said, no Ruger mini-14 were ever issued to our troops as far as I know; and I never saw one in Vietnam.
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  • woodguruwoodguru Member Posts: 2,850
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by quickmajik
    quote:Originally posted by TrupoBPT
    They are both .14 caliber right??


    He is a youngin', think he said he was 12.

    No lad,

    the m-14 is /308 Winchester Thats .30 of an inch
    The ruger mini-14 is .223 Remington thats .224 of an inch

    This was an intersting if moot topic.


    Was an M-14 .30 cal or .308?
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  • Colt SuperColt Super Member Posts: 31,007 ✭
    edited November -1
    "Was an M-14 .30 cal or .308?"

    It was a 7.62NATO.

    Most .30 cals ARE .308, including the 7.62NATO.

    Doug
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  • givettegivette Member Posts: 10,886 ✭
    edited November -1
    "He was 1st Marine Division Motor-pool in Da-Nang 1969-1974"

    Five Years in Vietnam? At one base? Working in the same job?
    The author of the Mini-14 statement is really out to lunch to claim such an in-country timeline.

    As Arte Johnson would have said: "Veeeeery Interesting"!!!
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  • KansasGuyKansasGuy Member Posts: 13 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    "He was 1st Marine Division Motor-pool in Da-Nang 1969-1974"

    I have to agree that the timeline is not too believable. Perhaps if one was either a lifer and went back or Force Recon and had spaces between with training in CONUS. But 5 years- I don't think so.

    I carried an M-14 all the time in Da Nang. I was an Air Winger with VMCJ-1 and H&MS11 / MAG-11 / 1stMAW. I arrived in July 1967 and all we had were M-14's. The grunts had M-16's and did NOT like them. Force recon bugged us for M-14's all the time.
    I did a 2nd Tour so ended up with 19 months in country. The Air Wing - or at least MAG-11 started to issue M-16's in January 69, but I was rotating back in Feb 69 so I kept the M-14 until I left.

    (Corrected arrival year to 1967 from 1969 - glad I finally read it again. Pretty hard to arrive in July 1969 and then leave in Feb'69. Agent Orange must do that to us)

    I'm not sure what they used in MAG-22 in Chu Lai. But I have a friend (from VMCJ-1 in July'67) that went back I think in '72. I could ask if important to anyone. He stayed in the Corps and left a MGYSgt. Semper Fi indeed. You oughta see his ribbons.

    Peace

    So yes - we had M-14's in Nam. NOT Mini-14's.
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  • River RatRiver Rat Member Posts: 9,022 ✭
    edited November -1
    The 1974 date is a little curious to me, since the U.S. cease-fire was early in '73. I suppose we had troops on the ground after that, with the ARVNs doing the fighting, but it seems odd.

    The M-14 was a great rifle, in my opinion. Marines generally kept one per platoon as heavy weapons (like the BAR in WW2) after the M-16 was issued, but other than that they were getting rare in the 70s. But I wasn't a marine, just a dumb Navy squid, so what do I know?
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  • k0n-n0kk0n-n0k Member Posts: 2 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    I am sorry 1969-1974 was the years he served he only spent 2 years in Da Nang (69-71) and the rest in Okinawa. I reviewed some of his documents and he was issued a M-14. His father who bought the gun for him, may have mistook M-14 for Mini 14. But in any case I still treasure it.
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  • awsarawsar Member Posts: 5 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    I served aboard the USS Reasoner DE-1063 with HSL-35 Det 2, deployed in Sept. 74 and outchopped after the great Runaway Scrape and Operation Frequent Wind in April 75. As a SAR swimmer in the SH-2F, we were issued M-14's and Colt 1911's. Did not see an M-16 till my later reserve outfits after coming home. It never failed, and was often used when we had swim calls and had to take care of sharks.
    The M-14 was still issued to ships and rescue personnel into the 80's according to other shipmates who stayed in and later retired.
    My dad bought one of the first Mini-14's, a series 80 Bicentennial, in 1976 and I now have it. Anyone saying they were issued in Nam is FOS, period.
    Also, you are welcome to the forum. Education is everything.
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  • bobskibobski Member Posts: 17,866 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    the mini 14 was made for prison use and was indeed govt issue in some cases. it was designated the GB-801 AND GB-802. they were both 5.56mm class 3 selector auto versions with flash M16 style suppressor and M16 type bayo lug and front site.

    but it was post nam, and never in the war.
    Retired Naval Aviation
    Former Member U.S. Navy Shooting Team
    Former NSSA All American
    Navy Distinguished Pistol Shot
    MO, CT, VA.
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  • chaneydchaneyd Member Posts: 56 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    FOS. The Mini-14 wasn't produced until 1973.
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  • militaria1918militaria1918 Member Posts: 465 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Easy to confuse considering the Mini 14 is almost the same rifle but in a smaller caliber. The Vet might not have touched a weapon since leaving the military.
    I met a WWII vet once who had a WWI German Austrian Helmet and he was not aware that it was not the standard issue helmet. He was un aware of the difference between it and the M35 he encountered in Europe. The Years pass and the details get foggy.

    Mike
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  • deerhunterrickdeerhunterrick Member Posts: 14 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    There is a big difference between the M14A and the mini 14 not any resemblence at all. M14A is by far larger and by far and again better built. The mini 14 is a toy made by a sporting goods gun company and the M14 is a Springfield built for military ord and not a toy. The M14A will shoot the inters out of a mini 14 at 1000 meters all day while the owner is trying o figure out where it came from. Hate when some Yahoo thinks he knows the difference between fantasy and reality. Fantasy is when you have never been there and think you know all there is about being there. 1 Shot 1 Kill for life the blood we spill there is no answer to the call of duty.
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  • Rick S.Rick S. Member Posts: 33 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    awsar, interestingly my rear was Camp Reasoner. Named after a MOH "winner." I also carried an M-14, (in 1969) 4 WP rifle grenades, adapter and crimped "blank" rounds.
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  • River RatRiver Rat Member Posts: 9,022 ✭
    edited November -1
    ATTENTION ALL POSTERS! The young man has stated that this has been cleared up. Somebody in the story-chain got confused. His friend was in VN for two years, and he was issued an M-14 not a mini-14. So he is not a POS after all.

    I had a mini-14 once, and liked it. Would much rather have an M-14 though!
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  • kc5gxckc5gxc Member Posts: 177 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I have read somewhere that the Mini 14 was used in a military capacity by a Canadian unit...recon or something like that. Do not remember when. Read this when reading the history of the mini somewhere....I got one and really like it. A real shooter...just not a target rifle.
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