Appleseed Crawfordsville April 18th & 19th

[brotherbill3]

I'm interested...
Is this a 2-day event? Or do we just pick one of the days?
What time will the classes finish up on each day?

Trying to plan this one out.

It is a two day event. Things usually wrap things by around 5:00 each day.

Also - if you haven't been to an appleseed before - go Saturday - if you only go one of the 2 days. ...
and then plan to go both days soon again. ... from personal experience - well worth it.

 

[TheJoker]

After weeks of procrastination, I got Matt's Ruger put together. I drilled the hole for the rear 1 1/2 inch sling mount, set the post and installed the front mount where the barrel band comes together. Then, I installed the USGI canvas sling. I got the Simmons 4x scope mounted after trying several sets of scope rings. I'm not completely happy with the way the scope is mounted; but, it will serve him well for the training.

I'll have to say I'm a bit disappointed in Ruger's quality. The stock fit is poor. The painted finish was sprayed on while the scope rail plugs were already installed. So, removing the plugs caused the paint to chip all around the holes. Yeah, I understand that it will be hidden; but, I still think it is pretty sloppy. The Ruger I inherited from my Dad has a really nice flush fitting stock and the receiver is blued and I've swapped rails several time with no chips in the finish. It was made 30 years ago. My other complaint is that the rail provided by Ruger, blocks the line of site to the rear sight. So even if you get see through mounts, you can't use the iron sights. That's no big deal, there are after market rails for ten bucks that will solve the problem.

I also picked up a couple of those three way magazine set ups for both of us and I installed a black USGI sling on my "Not Your Father's Ruger". The instructors didn't like the quick sling I used last time.

So, now all we need to do is get them both zeroed tomorrow or Friday.

Oh and to make things interesting, I told Matt that if he gets his Riflemans Patch before I do, I'd buy him a M1 from the CMP. GAME ON FELLAS!!

 

[RobbyMaQ]

I shot rifleman on a hand-me-down (from my father) 30 yr old 10/22 with an adjustable aftermarket stock (that worked great for my wife and kids, but for me? not so much).
Instantly put some pipe insulation and wrap on the stock (thanks to some fellow appleseeder's who were more prepared than I), built up the grip to accommodate my long skinny fingers, etc... The bolt is beat up so bad it's not funny.

What I learned was to adapt and apply the fundamentals. You will have fun. Many get caught up in the gear when they should be getting caught up in the fundamentals.

Then I saw that Techres shot it with a cricket...

Did I mention you will have fun?!
ps, I found out later (from the receipt) the rifle was purchased on April 19th! It just doesn't get better than that in my personal history of shooting. Go make yours and Have a great time!!

 

[Cameramonkey]

joker, if you have eye relief issues on your factory scope base, try this. It made a helluva difference for me. Too bad I found it AFTER my appleseed, but it wasnt TOO bad... I still got my rifleman patch despite the issues...


http://www.brownells.com/optics-mou...-mount-silver-sku930-000-044-22345-48224.aspx

ETA: The bottom line is you will have FUN. If you have equipment issues let them roll off your back. I had a flaky scope, a mag that wouldnt drop free, a mag that would stovepipe, and a hair trigger resulting in several flyers. Once I got into the rhythm and stopped worrying I had the time of my life.

 

[TheJoker]

Hey RM...oh, I know I'll have fun! This will be Appleseed number three for me! I shot my first with a Yugo SKS. Talk about a glutton for punishment! Techres presided over that one in Brown County.

I built my "Not Your Father's Ruger"(...from a 30 year old Ruger I inherited from my father) for my second Appleseed. It was only a one day affair last April 19th. I'm still learning! Thanks for the comments!

Thanks CM. It isn't really eye relief. It is the way the rail is made. The one I bought for my Ruger when I built it has a groove cut down the length that allows you to see the iron sights through/under the scope mount. The rail that came with the rifle I bought for Matt blocks the rear iron sight picture. Matt won't need to use the iron sights this weekend, so it'll be okay. Down the road, he can customize his Ruger however he wants.

I am a big fan of Volquartsen products. I used one of their bedding systems when I built my "Not Your Father's Ruger" a couple of years ago.

 

[TheJoker]

My buddy Greg, who came with me last April 19th has just signed up for this weekend. Can't wait!

 

[iChokePeople]

I have some friends attending this event. You miscreants treat them nicely.

 

[ATM]

I have some friends attending this event. You miscreants treat them nicely.

Well, we won't choke them.


Looking forward to seeing everyone this weekend!

 

[Hop]

Alan @ A&A sells that extended mount in black & I think much cheaper than that too. I haven't installed mine yet but really need to move both my 10/22 scopes even farther forward. Both of yours look like they could move forward some more to me.

 

[TheJoker]

Tonight after work, I took both Rugers to Pops indoor range(...or whatever it is called now) and zeroed them. The screws that hold the rail on kept backing out on my rifle. So, when I got home, I took the rail screws out, gave 'em a wee bit of Loctite and re-tightened them. So much for zero!

 

[TJ Kackowski]

In general, arriving at an AS with a rifle that is zeroed is helpful. However, the Instructors make sure every rifle is zeroed and that everybody understands how to adjust their optics before any timed/scored shooting begins. It's all part of the process of making Riflemen since most people attain their zero off of a bench. When they start to shoot from prone with a sling, things tend to change a bit.

 

[MattCFII]

In general, arriving at an AS with a rifle that is zeroed is helpful. However, the Instructors make sure every rifle is zeroed and that everybody understands how to adjust their optics before any timed/scored shooting begins. It's all part of the process of making Riflemen since most people attain their zero off of a bench. When they start to shoot from prone with a sling, things tend to change a bit.

Agreed! TJ and crew did a great job at MCFG a couple of weeks ago. I noticed a big shift in my M&P 15-22 from rested to slung prone, but after thinking about how the handguard attaches it made sense why it was so large.

I know generally Appleseed is a rain or shine thing and got my rain gear ready for Sunday, but what about thunderstorms?

 

[grunt soldier]

Unfortunately if it is lighting then we have to wait till it stops. But we usually just tell history and what not during those time outs

 

[MattCFII]

Good to know actually that it won't cancel the whole day!

 

[dusty88]

I hope this event is going well and disappointed I ended up missing it. Dozens of saplings came to me via Fedex on Thursday. If I don't plan them today, they will be ruined so I had to pass on this. I hope the weather holds out for you!

 

[treeman22]

It was a fantastic shoot! My first time going, and well worth it.
Thank you to ATM and TJ for making it a fun and enjoyable experience, and especially Alex: she's going to make a great instructor! I'm glad to see a young lady getting involved, especially when she has talent. You all did a great job, and are all excellent instructors.
The volunteers were great as well.

My only regret was not shooting the Garand more while we were shooting the steel plates.

 

[dmazzio]

It was a fantastic shoot! My first time going, and well worth it.
Thank you to ATM and TJ for making it a fun and enjoyable experience, and especially Alex: she's going to make a great instructor! I'm glad to see a young lady getting involved, especially when she has talent. You all did a great job, and are all excellent instructors.
The volunteers were great as well.

My only regret was not shooting the Garand more while we were shooting the steel plates.

Treeman you did awesome this weekend, CONGRATS on your Rifleman Score and you did awesome with the Garand, you were spot on.

This was just and awesome weekend. For those of you that have never experienced and Appleseed it is something that you need to put on your bucket list. I told my daughter when you go back to school on Monday you can tell all your friends that you saw Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, Billy Joel, Mehgan Trainor and countless others in concert this past weekend.

Thank you all again. Below is my AAR i posted on the Appleseed forum:
There is no way I can show my gratitude and appreciation enough for what ATM, TJ, Alex and all the other volunteers did for myself and my family this weekend. My first Appleseed and I brought my 11 year old daughter, Rachel, and my wife, Amy, along with me and the experience was one that will be remembered for a lifetime. Rachel and myself were really looking forward to going Amy was just going because it was a family thing to do. All I can say that by the end of the day today there were only two people left that still wanted to shoot in the pouring rain, as you guessed it was Rachel and Amy. So as they get to the line, 100 yards from 2 steel targets my wife turns to my daughter and says "It's on little girl. Which target do you want"; Rachel chose the smaller of the two, what I believe was a 8"x8" steel square. The shooting begins and Rachel goes 10 for 10 kicking her mother's butt. Needless to say I was a very proud daddy, of course I have to live with the two of them.

There is something to be said not just for this program but for the instructors that kept an 11 year old girl so engaged and enthusiastic even on the 2nd day that she chose to continue shooting in the pouring rain and not complain.

Thank you guys for everything, we will be back and hopefully with some new shooters.

 

[ATM]

Official AAR started here: Crawfordsville, IN April 18-19, 2015

This was cbhausen's first shoot volunteering as a blue hat, indygunguy joined us Sunday serving under his blue hat as well. TJ and Riflegirl rounded out the crew.

We had a fine line of Americans out to share the event and it was truly a pleasure to be a part.

Treeman22, rbsangler, and Mike L. earned their Rifleman patches (and bacon!) - HUZZAH!

Honorable mention to TheJoker, I think he was up to a 206 - within one shot of earning the bacon, so close!

Yes... Rachel really did provide the fitting finale to close the event, going 10 for 10 in the rain to close the event. Epic!

So many memorable moments - awesome shoot everyone!