Got my Dad’s 2014 Mac Mini here, going to put a new SSD in as it’s getting so slow now. I think the original spinning drive is on the way out.
If I swap the new SSD in, can I use the Internet recovery feature (option cmd R) to reinstall the OS rather than bother with USBs? Never tried it with a completely blank drive.
You can use the Internet Recovery to reinstall Mac OS, The internet recovery tool is a bit finicky over even slightly unstable internet connections though so you will have to try your luck.
Sometimes it just requires several attempts.
Will give it a go, thanks.
Quite surprised how much work is involved in getting the hard drive out of a Mac Mini. It’s under everything so the motherboard, power supply, fan etc. all need to come out too.
Say what you want (or need to) about Apple’s products in the power and capability departments… but one thing that it appears they spend not a wink of effort on is disassembly/repairability. It’s built for looks on the outside and they really don’t want you messing about on the inside.
Yes they are quite difficult the first time you do it. After a few times you find ways to cut corners and get it done easier.
I used to replace drives in 30+ of them a day.
Good to know. Any tips? My only concern usually is all the tiny connectors you have to detach. They always seem a bit delicate. iFixit have a decent guide.
It looks like you already found the best resource to complete what you are doing. Just take it easy and don’t force anything, Tweezers and picks/spudgers are deffinately your friend when it comes to doing this type of work. I invested in a knock off ifixit tool kit on Amazon a while back that came with all the bits and plastic spudgers and that has been a tremendous help. You got this!
All going well so far. It’s booted up OK, just reinstalling macOS. The only difficulty I had was reattaching the WiFi antenna connector. It’s tiny! Guess I’ll find out soon enough if WiFi is still working.
Yeah it is a little unsettling the first time you try to click those little wires back on but you should feel them click and it should stay put fairly well after attaching them, usually its easy to tell if they do not click in as you will let go of it and it will almost immediately move away from its spot. Good job though, atleast the next one will be easier 
All done, WiFi working 
It’s transformed, very quick now with the SSD. Thanks for the tips.
Great job, glad I could help