I swear there's a thread here about Project Appleseed but I'm not finding it. My searching just pulled up all of member Appleseed's posts 
I'm looking at attending one of their events this year in Oregon and am looking for feedback from people who have gone.
For those that aren't aware, it's a rifle marksmanship group that puts on events all over the country. They don't put out a tacticool vibe, which I appreciate: https://appleseedinfo.org/
I have a project?
Appleseed said:I have a project?
Sounds more like you are a project.
I went to one pre-COVID.
Great instruction, but the tacti-cool vibe is replaced with a "civil war reinactor" vibe. It's part marksmenship course, part history lesson. Also pretty sure I got put on a watchlist for attending...
In the Boom Stick Thread.
I am a Shoot Boss, which means I am allowed to put on shoots with Instructors working under me. EDIT: Another member here is an Instructor, also, JRGunfighter_John.
No tacticool, no politics outside of the history of the beginning of the Revolutionary War (maybe a 2nd Amendments issue if there is something coming up on the ballot), no discussion of any politician that has not been dead for at least 150 years.
Money very well spent. What would you like to know?
I've been intending to go to one. I also think I want to get a 10/22 first, as my model 60 would need cleaned about three times during the weekend or I'd be having feeding issues every 100 or so.
barefootcyborg5000 said:I've been intending to go to one. I also think I want to get a 10/22 first, as my model 60 would need cleaned about three times during the weekend or I'd be having feeding issues every 100 or so.
10/22 is, by far, the most popular thing there. I prefer Marlin, myself, though, so that is what I have and use. AR type .22's also work well. Pretty much anything is welcome, but it gets expensive using anything other than .22 LR, and you will still be worn out, just with .22 LR. No pistol caliber stuff, just because the bigger hole is too much of an advantage for scoring. Some places are .30 cal and under, some are .22 LR only, it depends on what the range itself is set up for.
In reply to matthewmcl :
Ah, that's where it was! Thanks.
My questions are mostly about equipment and the general vibe of the events. So far it seems like they actually adhere to their apolitical stance, which is rad. I don't really want to spend money to hear someone rant about their least favorite politician/group/etc. I'd rather just learn to be a better shot and send some lead downrange.
As far as equipment goes, I have two .22 rifles I could bring: a Marlin 60 and a Henry lever-action. I like shooting the Henry more, but I'm not going to drill the stock for sling swivels. I'm also unsure how great it'll be to work the action when I'm prone. However, I have no qualms about drilling the Marlin's stock for swivels. Problem there is that it gets gunked up, just like barefootcyborg5000 said. It's also got the stock sights. Do I need to invest in the tech sights Appleseed sells to get the most out of the course? I'm fine with spending the $69 to get them.
One of the localish events allows center-fire, so I briefly considered taking my Mosin. Then I remembered that I like my shoulder unbroken 
In reply to calteg :
I've been to a couple classes at Front Sight. I'm sure attending an Appleseed event won't get me on any more lists than those, haha.
In reply to thatsnowinnebago :
The tech sights are worth the money. You want some form of easy adjustment, so tech sights, some other target sight, or an optic of some form.
I loved Model 60's until Project Appleseed, then I realized I have better options than putting my hand in front of the muzzle to reload when I am tired and lying in the dirt next to newbies. I have two Marlin 795's as loaners, and a Marlin 7000T which I love so much I have a second still in the box in the safe. They all use the Marlin 60 receiver.
Marlin 60 tip 1: McDonald's straws are large enough for shakes, which makes them large enough for .22 LR speed loader use. Fill it up with with one end pinched off, and you can pour them into your tube.
Marlin cleaning.
The Marlin micro groove rifling runs best never being cleaned and only using lead bullets (no copper flash). The chamber still needs a good scrubbing. You need an old school .22 LR bore brush, and either a regular chunk of cleaning rod (okayish) or something made from steel cable like a roll up cleaning rod (better). You need something that can transmit torque, even if only a little, and it needs to bend. With a rigid rod you end up bending the brush which wears it out faster, but brushes are dirt cheap.
Take the gun down (out of the stock) and remove the bolt. Come in as straight as you can and put the brush a case length into the bore and twist it a bunch. you can wrap a little bit of patch around the brush to help hold solvent and gunk.
What is happening is enough gunk builds up in the chamber to start sticking to the cases during extraction. This is just like having gunk on the bolt, but worse. Only using copper flashed bullets can eliminate a lot of the problems, but the rifling is not made to take it and the rifling doesn't work as well with it. Regular exposed lead .22 LR is outside lubed with parafin (really good stuff uses bee's wax, which is messier but less sticky). The bullet rides the bore during loading, so the chamber gets a wax buildup. The readily available solvents are generally not good at dealing with wax, so the wax gets left in the chamber. Clean it out and you should be good for a whopping 200 rounds instead of 100. That is enough to let you clean in the evening after the first day of shooting and be good for the next day. If you have been cleaning like that and you still have issues, step up to bee's wax on the bullets. I recommend that anyway, as there is little point learning the limits of your current ability with lousy ammo.
Here is a good reference article with lots of ammo names. All rifles are different, with some liking one ammo more than another, but you can still get an idea of what different ammo types will do and names to look for, if you can even find anything. On the plus side, quality ammo is rarely hit hard, price wise, by a quick ammo scare. Covid is different. Budget about $80 - $120 for a brick, is my recommendation. You will still learn a lot with cheap ammo, but it will be harder to learn and you won't learn as much. The feedback you get from good ammo is just like the feedback you get from good steering.
Edit: No really here is an article...
https://www.accurateshooter.com/guns-of-week/22lr-rimfire-ammo-comparison-test/
In reply to matthewmcl :
As someone who LOVES my Marlin Model 60, this is very useful information. I have never had issues with it regardless of ammo but I never shoot much more than 100 rounds.
I had a coworker who did the project Appleseed thing years ago. She raved about it. I need to do one someday.
Appleseed said:I have a project?
Have you forgotten the Ford already?
Toyman! said:Appleseed said:I have a project?
Sounds more like you are a project.
If you only knew...
In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :
Yeah. I let it go. The logistics were too much. I'll probably regret it.
That buildup in the chamber sounds like the exact cause of my issues. I've never had a failure to eject but what happens is the bolt will load the fresh round, mostly. The bolt doesn't close fully/seat the round fully in the chamber. I can force the bolt closed and it will fire but I'm not fond of doing so.
Thanks for the ammo recommendations. I would have honestly just used whatever cheap stuff I have in my stash if you didn't say anything. I assumed good ammo would be a waste for a noob. Looks like midway actually has some Lapua super-x available.
Do I need to show up with a zeroed rifle or does the class start with that?
If you are zeroed, good. If not, that is one of the early exercises. 25m generally, 25 yarda for placea with fixed stands. Most people bring cheap ammo, but it is hard to tell if you screwed up or the ammo did. With good ammo, you know it is you, and Project Appleseed teaches you how to read a target so you know what you did wrong.
In reply to matthewmcl :
Ok cool. I'll buy those tech sights at some point before the class and I'm not confident in my ability to zero them on my own.
I guess I should say, if you can go to the range and put 5 shots near 2 inches at 25 yards, take good ammo because you will cut that in half. If you have a good rifle but can't quite figure out how to get 4 inch groups, then cheap is fine. You are going to dedicate pretty much a whole weekend, so don't try to skimp on ammo unless you can't find better. Good ammo won't make a bad weekend, and bad ammo might or might not.
I might be an ammo snob, but Project Appleseed made me change how I look at plinking. Now I really want to make every shot a good one.
Those numbers above assume good sights. If you are using that blade in the middle of the barrel, 4 inches may not be bad.
Don't forget to make sure your sling is up to the task. A GI web sling is great for Project Appleseed. Both sling and sights can be purchased on the website, if you don't find a better deal elsewhere.
In reply to matthewmcl :
I was planning on that GI sling. A reddit threat pointed out that your training is designed for it, so it'd be silly to bring something else. And it's hard to beat that price!
I might as well see what kind of groups I'm getting with my .22 now. "Testing ammo" is a great excuse to get out there.
If you are looking at good ammo, here is one that would be about the highest you really need at Project Appleseed. This is the level of ammo I run. There is better ammo, but you are not going to see the benefits at Appleseed ranges, conditions, gear, skill, etc.
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1392216306?pid=216306
you can step up another $10 a brick, and the end result is you will have less chance of on shot in 50 being a flyer.
This one is made for semi-auto, which might have a benefit, but I do not know the technical details as to what makes it better. Tighter bullet grip, perhaps, or maybe just the different wax formulation? If the wax is less sticky, it would go longer between chamber scrubbings. I would be tempted to spend the extra $10 and see what it did for reliability. You will want a brick. Some shoots are down in the 300 round range, some are as high as 450. You don't want to get to the top of your game for the weekend and then change ammo.
In reply to matthewmcl :
Gotta love that good .22 ammo is still only 20c/rnd.
I'm getting pretty excited for the class. It's always fun playing gunsmith to get my rifle ready. Not to mention shooting skills are a blast to learn.
I had been shooting mostly Winchester Wildcat .22 in my 10/22 because it's what I had bought a brick of many years back. Didn't want to risk running out back when it was scarce, and I found some of this in stock for about what the Eley sells for:
https://sk-ammunition.com/products/long-range-match/
I was blown away by just how consistent this stuff is. A+. Recommended! I've never been more accurate with the 10/22.
Well, shoot! I see it's gotten more expensive. Inflation is real!
https://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/item/00178420158/sk-long-range-match-22-lr-50-rounds
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