I am a little surprised as well, given the improvements Ruger has made to the barrels.
Here is an interesting test article from Gun Blast:
http://www.gunblast.com/Ruger-RanchRifle68.htm
When I mentioned the barrels, the huge issue with Mini accuracy was barel related. The old barrels were so thin that barrel whip was a significant factor. While reliable, a 4" plus MOA was not everyone's cup of tea, especially in these days of sub MOA accuracy.
Ruger beefed up the barrels on the 581 models, and the results are shown in the Gun Blast article.
Pro Mag claims to have a high cap mag in the works - but the roll out keeps getting delayed due to production issues. I contacted them last year, and received an email from one of their VP's stating it would be out before Christmas. That assurance followed the original timeline of pre-Thanksgiving. We are now at 2 months past the end of year roll out, and no one at Pro Mag seems to be willing to commit to a new date.
Frankly, most of these companies are so caught up in trying to meet demand for their current inventory, that rolling out a new product that may have a very short useful life (a new AWB) takes a back seat, if it has a seat at all.
I have not tiried it, but there are guys out there using the Ruger 20 round Mini 14 magazines, which they claim will hold 8 rounds of 6.8 SPC.
What is interesting is that the Gun Blast article mentions that Ruger makes 20 and 30 round high cap mags for law enforcement. That makes sense, since one of their target markets for the 6.8 SPC ranch rifle is the law enforcement community. I contacted Ruger asking whether high cap mags were available at all in 6.8 SPC, and received a non answer reply. They directed me to their web site for mags they had available. Which is garbage. It sounds like Ruger is back to its old tricks in adopting the paternal, anti-second amendment policy that civilians do not need more capacity than what Ruger determines they need. I thought they had turned the corner on that issue after the passing of Bill Ruger followed by their decision to release the high cap .223 mags to the public. I was wrong.
With that said, the Ruger 6.8 mini appears to be a decent platform, albeit limited in capacity. Ruger recently increased the MSRP on the Ranch by about $100 for 2009, which to me was not close to being justified. I see more than a few companies doing this to cash in on the current buying frenzy. I also see a few that are trying to hold the line on costs and are not in a profiteering mode. Those companies in the latter category will be the first to get my business in the future.
Here is an interesting test article from Gun Blast:
http://www.gunblast.com/Ruger-RanchRifle68.htm
When I mentioned the barrels, the huge issue with Mini accuracy was barel related. The old barrels were so thin that barrel whip was a significant factor. While reliable, a 4" plus MOA was not everyone's cup of tea, especially in these days of sub MOA accuracy.
Ruger beefed up the barrels on the 581 models, and the results are shown in the Gun Blast article.
Pro Mag claims to have a high cap mag in the works - but the roll out keeps getting delayed due to production issues. I contacted them last year, and received an email from one of their VP's stating it would be out before Christmas. That assurance followed the original timeline of pre-Thanksgiving. We are now at 2 months past the end of year roll out, and no one at Pro Mag seems to be willing to commit to a new date.
Frankly, most of these companies are so caught up in trying to meet demand for their current inventory, that rolling out a new product that may have a very short useful life (a new AWB) takes a back seat, if it has a seat at all.
I have not tiried it, but there are guys out there using the Ruger 20 round Mini 14 magazines, which they claim will hold 8 rounds of 6.8 SPC.
What is interesting is that the Gun Blast article mentions that Ruger makes 20 and 30 round high cap mags for law enforcement. That makes sense, since one of their target markets for the 6.8 SPC ranch rifle is the law enforcement community. I contacted Ruger asking whether high cap mags were available at all in 6.8 SPC, and received a non answer reply. They directed me to their web site for mags they had available. Which is garbage. It sounds like Ruger is back to its old tricks in adopting the paternal, anti-second amendment policy that civilians do not need more capacity than what Ruger determines they need. I thought they had turned the corner on that issue after the passing of Bill Ruger followed by their decision to release the high cap .223 mags to the public. I was wrong.
With that said, the Ruger 6.8 mini appears to be a decent platform, albeit limited in capacity. Ruger recently increased the MSRP on the Ranch by about $100 for 2009, which to me was not close to being justified. I see more than a few companies doing this to cash in on the current buying frenzy. I also see a few that are trying to hold the line on costs and are not in a profiteering mode. Those companies in the latter category will be the first to get my business in the future.
