It’s an unfortunate fact of life:  Unless you have millions of dollars, the chances are fairly slim you’ll get access to top investments.  For example, when Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) structured an investment in Facebook, it was no surprise that the offer only went to its premier clients.

But is this un-democratic principle also applicable to mutual funds information and access?  Well, there are definitely some examples.  There are many closed mutual funds. And other funds have high minimum investment amounts.  Both of these things are fairly common.

A “closed” fund is a fund that is exactly what the name implies — a mutual fund that is closed to new investors. Why would a fund close its doors? Often it’s because the mutual fund portfolio manager believes it is hard to put new money to work. This is often the case with small company funds — where an investment may be so large it moves the stock price. Or it could be that the manager is just not willing to expand the scope of his investments and compromise the quality of the fund, even if it means more assets and more fees in his pocket.

As for funds that are out of reach due to high minimums or high fees, these are not necessarily “closed” but they are very often impractical. A $100,000 minimum buy-in is just out of reach for most investors.

So what are some prime examples of funds like these you can’t buy? Let’s take a look at five:

Sentinel Small Company Fund (SAGWX)

For investors looking to get strong long-term returns, a small cap fund is a good choice.  Over time, the volatility should be muted.  And yes, hopefully some of the holdings will ultimately become the next big caps.

One of the top offerings in the small cap category is Sentinel Small Company Fund (MUTF: SAGWX).  Over the past ten years, the average annual return was 8.62%.

A big help is that the managers — Chuck Schwartz and Betsy Pecor – have broad skills in diverse industries.  That is, the portfolio has holdings in a range of sectors like software, hardware, healthcare, industrial materials and energy.

SAGWX is closed to new investors though, so even if you wanted to join in now you can’t.

Calamos Convertible I (CICVX)

Successful investing is about finding an edge, which is not easy to do even for the very best minds in mutual funds research.  But in the case of John P. Calamos Sr., he has carved out a niche in convertible securities with the mutual fund Calamos Convertible I (MUTF: CICVX) mutual fund. These are sophisticated investments that are a hybrid of stocks and bonds.

When done right, the results can be quite substantial.  The reason is that convertible investments often do better in tough times – yet still have a decent performance in rallies.  For the Calamos fund, the returns were 6.28% and 6.35% for the last ten and three years, respectively.

Calamos Convertible is theoretically open to new investors. However, you better have a cool $1 million if you’re trying to buy in outside of an IRA.

Gabelli Small Cap Growth B (GCBSX)

Mario Gabelli is another standout investor.  He has a reputation for doing extensive research on stocks, with a focus on finding deep values.  In fact, a good number of his stock picks in the Gabelli Small Cap Growth B Fund (MUTF: GCBSX) often wind-up getting bought out at nice premiums.

Consider that the 10-year annual average return is a stunning 9.09%.  This was during a period when the S&P flat-lined and was wracked by 9/11, the dot-com implosion, the Enron scandals and the financial crisis of 2008.

Needless to say, Gabelli understands how to navigate markets.  Then again, he has been managing money since the 1970s.

True, the 1.48% expense ratio is on the high side.  Yet it’s an acceptable price to pay for a top-notch manager. But note the Gabelli small cap fund is closed to new investors so it doesn’t matter what the expense is if you can’t put your money in this mutual fund right now.

Royce Premier Investment (RYPRX)

When it comes to stock picking, Chuck Royce is a pro.  He is also quite busy as he manages 12 mutual funds as well as two closed-end funds.  Despite this, he somehow is able to post strong returns.

One of his top performers is the Royce Premier Investment (MUTF: RYPRX) fund.  With it, he uses his value-approach, with an emphasis on small cap companies (the market caps range from $500 million to $2.5 billion).

Royce is a big believer in holding onto good companies for the long-term.  As a result, the turnover only about 14%.  Moreover, the 10-year performance is a clear indication that the strategy is spot-on:  an annual average return of 12.16%.

Royce premier is closed to all new investors,  however, so no matter how much you’d like to share in this success you’ll have to find a different investment.

American Century Equity Income (AEKBX)

There’s no shortage of mutual fund articles about providing a steady ride, which often means a portfolio of fixed income securities and dividend-paying stocks.  Well, this is the core of the American Century Equity Income (MUTF: AEKBX) fund.  In fact, all of the portfolio companies are required to pay dividends.

American Century has also been effective with purchasing convertible bonds, which has been helpful in juicing returns.  The 10-year average annual gain is 5.73%.

However, the fund has a pricey expense ratio of 1.97%.  In other words, the returns would have been even better if the costs were more reasonable. Also, this American Century fund is closed to new money so you can’t suffer the high expenses even if you want to.