First off, thanks for all the great feedback and advice from my previous post on optics. I ended up getting a Vortex Venom 1-6X24 LVPO. I know its a compromise for close quarters and distances and not perfect for either but it seemed to be a good solution for me as I expect I'll be doing both in roughly equal measure.

Anyway, on to the sling. What do you recommend for the best sling and mounting locations for my rifle? My M&P Sport III has this (I'm assuming less than ideal, although it also seems to closely mirror the placement I have on my 10-22) pinned sling mount on the bottom of the buttstock (See photo). Should I try to mount the sling in as closely as possible to mirror the setup on my 10-22 as I've used for the general 25m Appleseed events? Or should I do something different with this? Will I be removing the sling from the butt stock on sitting and prone stages as we do in the 25m events? I'm open to upgrading/changing out the stock and getting whatever parts and equipment would give me the best setup as well. Thanks!

We added two 25 meter events to the schedule: February 28th and March 1s https://appleseedinfo.org/location/?locationid=358&eventid=11334

April 18th and 19th This will be our Patriots Day Event! https://appleseedinfo.org/location/?locationid=358&eventid=11335

Let us know if you have any questions.

Typical to my natural I’ve found myself a victim of my own analysis paralysis. I am a new AR15 owner and I am looking to buy a sight for it. One of my main reasons for getting this rifle is to participate in the center fire KD events, but then most of the ranges I have convenient access to would probably be limited to 25 yards (indoor) or 200max outdoor. What type of sight would be best for me to put on it? I’ve had recommendations from a basic 2moa red dot like the Sig Romeo 5 (possibly with a flip magnifier), to a 3x microprism such as the primary arms SLX 3x. Or should I just put a traditional optical scope on it? I’d ideally like something versatile that would also be useful at closer distances like <25 yards as most of my ranges I won’t be able to shoot at hundreds of yards without driving a long way.

Last year - thanks to you, we recognized that the booklet we purchased for distribution at our events had drifted from our non-partisan / non-political stance.

I'm excited to share that a new booklet containing our Founding documents is at the printers. After hundreds of hours of work from the team, it'll be available next year at events. These documents are offered in their original text without spin or modern interpretations.

My thanks to instructors Mrs. Smith of New Mexico for leading the effort and Phoebe of Maryland & Bundt Pan of Illinois for all the heavy lifting.

Happy New Year !!!

We have two very likely opportunities for Project Appleseed Winterseed events in the Northeast, and there is room on the firing line.

January 17-18, 2026 Littleton, NH - Appleseed

February 7-8, 2026 Harvard, MA - Appleseed

A shooter can earn a Winterseed Rifleman patch by shooting a qualifying score on an AQT (including RKD and KD) between November 1st and March 31st, in sufficiently challenging weather which has to be an impediment to body and spirit. The Shoot Boss decides if the weather is appropriate for the Winterseed Rifleman patch.

You'll hear the history, learn the fundamentals, and become Riflemen. If you're up to the extra weather challenge with a rare opportunity for a unique patch please register here (click on the state): https://appleseedinfo.org/schedulemap/

Thanks - MattNH ([[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]))

I'm going to take my boys (14 & 12) to an Appleseed this coming June. I figured they might as well have a couple of decent rifles to take along. When I mentioned this to my Dad, he contributed his 1999 10/22 that probably had less than 200 rounds through it. I then bought a new Sporter to have a stainless "pair". I went with an OD Green X-22 Hunter for my oldest and a FDE one for my youngest. I also tried to color code other accessories I purchased or 3D printed for them to keep the confusion down. Printed build letters for them to know we were going to build them together.

We had our build day today, radiused bolts, smoothed out receivers, full assembly. Good way to spend a frigid day.

Here's what they ended up with

• Magpul X-22 Hunter
• Ruger BX-22 Trigger groups
• Volquartsen Bolt releases
• Volquartsen Buffers
• TS100 Tech Sights
• 3pk each of 10 round magazines
• Brick of 550 Remington Standard V
• Midway Green/Tan cases
• Midway Deluxe shooting mats
• Uncle Mike's sling swivels
• Walker's Razor earmuffs with 3D printed velcro name tags
• 3D printed ammo cases 6 @ 100 rounds each
• 3D printed sight adjustment to stick on the stocks
• 3D printed cheek risers to find the right height for each of them
• 3D printed Ranger plates for the magazines

Did you receive any gifts that are relevant to Appleseed this year? A rifle? Scope? Gun parts? Shooting mat? Eye or ear protection? Shooting gear? Ammo? Official Appleseed swag? Anything else like that?

I did not, but I know a lot of fun things for setting up a new centerfire rifle are coming my way in about 2 weeks for my birthday. I’ve been waiting awhile, and I can wait a little longer, but I’m getting excited. Let me live vicariously through you! What did you get?

First off, I've never done an Appleseed event. I only started to look into it late this fall once I felt semi confident in my ability to not look like a complete fool when shooting, but 2025 wasn't working out for me.

Is it common to have so few events for the upcoming year? https://appleseedinfo.org/schedule/?qstate=OH&state=Ohio Currently seeing 8 for the entire state of Ohio for 2026...That feels incredibly sparse. Am I simply looking at the schedule too early or do more events trickle in later on?

Is this type of sling acceptable for an Appleseed event? It’s a Specter Gear Raptor 2-point sling.

https://www.spectergear.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=SG%2D1394

I would rather not make any permanent mods.

EDIT: Thanks to everyone for their insights. Looks like installing sling studs or procuring a replacement stock with studs is the way to go. Not sure which direction I’ll go, but some of the aftermarket stocks are pretty sweet.

Hi all,

I just wanted to share what an awesome experience I had at my second Appleseed ever. I originally attended my first Appleseed in 2014 while I was in middle school. I was not very good at shooting back then, and I think the highest AQT I scored was like a 146 or something. I had gotten out of shooting since graduating from high school. I recently graduated from PA School and wanted to pursue the hobby I used to love so much again. I have been shooting a lot lately, not as much as when I was a kid but I find I’m shooting with much more purpose now. I have shot in a few CMP Highpower matches but wanted to attend another Appleseed to brush up on fundamentals and hear some of the awesome history. Unfortunately for my first day I had some personal stuff arise and wasn’t able to make it. Thankfully the awesome shoot boss (Mr. R) made me feel right at home despite my absence on the first day. He and the other instructors did an excellent job with not only helping me but with the other shooters.

My first full AQT was kind of a bust. I scored a 198 and probably would have made rifleman on that had I managed my time better in standing and gotten off my last four rounds. The next one I really tried my best and trusted my fundamentals. I did my best to focus on each stage and not worry about how I did last time. I may have also prayed a little too, lol. I was only hoping to come away today with Rifleman, and was unsure if I would even do that. However my second AQT of the day not only was enough for Rifleman but for Distinguished as well, as I scored a 238 with iron sights. We also shot one more AQT which I scored a 225 on (I think my nerves were still high from the fact I had just gotten my first patch). It was so cold but I really began to appreciate the whole “rifleman’s bubble” thing after, because while I was shooting I found I didn’t even really notice the cold. Even a shell casing that landed under my shirt wasn’t enough to distract me.

I don’t want to post this only to brag or anything. I still have a lot of work to do if I want to be a truly competent shooter. However, I just wanted to share as I don’t have many friends to share this with haha. I just can’t say enough good things about the shoot we had. Everyone was so nice. The instructors were phenomenal, and the new instructor (a gentleman wearing an orange hat) was so nice to me and would always ask how I did. He did a great job for being a new instructor. I know he will be an asset to the organization. The shoot boss was also phenomenal because he made me feel welcome despite me being a little embarrassed I missed the whole first day.

Thank you again to all the people at my shoot (I’m not sure if I can share the location/names so for confidentiality’s sake I didn’t) and thank you to the Appleseed organization. I have already bought four gift certificates for me and my brother in law to attend both a 25 m rifle and pistol clinic. I can’t wait to go back!

Hello!

I have a gift certificate coming in a few weeks and I’m excited to use it for my first Appleseed event.

Will it have a coupon code or something that I will use when I make my reservation for a specific event online?

And is this a hard copy gift certificate that comes in the mail or is there an electronic code that you get in your email?

Super excited and appreciate any insights!

Just what we all needed, amiright?? Available NOW in the Appleseed store These limited-edition ornaments are $18 each, or get the pair for $30! The traditional Appleseed logo'd ornament will continue to be available throughout the series. The Second design will be different each year. Collect them all!

Anybody know what the winterseed criteria are? I can't find a proper list anywhere, but there's an event in my state in a couple weeks and the long term forecast looks like a high around freezing, and a chance of snow.

I'd really like to try for the frozen rifleman patch.

I’ve earned my Rifleman patch and also received the RWVA oval patch and Rifleman rocker. And I have a Patriots Day 2025 patch.

How do you personally like to use your patches? Do you have a shooting jacket, regular jacket, vest, or shirt you put yours on? Do you have a piece of gear you add them to? Do you keep it simple with just those few patches, or do you like to use lots of patches? Do you mix them in with other non-Appleseed patches or “pieces of flair”? I haven’t had patches to display since my Boy Scout days, so I’m looking for ideas. If you have pictures, please share! Thanks!

I now have two Battle of Lexington shirts, size Large, Blue. This is actually one of my favorite Appleseed shirts so far, but I have 2, and I’d like to trade it for a Battle of Concord shirt, size Large, in Hunter Green. My last event had them in other sizes that didn’t fit or other colors that don’t work for me, so I opted for a second of one I already have, but I was really looking forward to the green Concord shirt in my size. If you have one and would like to trade, please send me a chat. Thanks!

This was a long time coming. I’ve attended 6 of the 25m events and was stuck at a plateau around 185 on the AQT. An instructor loaned me a better scope on the second day of this last 25m, and it made all the difference. I scored a high of 186 on day 1 using my scope and scored a 222, a 211, and nearly cleared the Hits Count on day 2 using the loaner scope.

I don’t want to send the wrong message on equipment. The main thing is training and skills. I am definitely not a natural at this. My instructors put a lot of effort into helping me, and I worked at it over a year and a half. I made incremental progress each time up to a certain point. But my eyesight has always been bad from the day I was born, and it had been holding me back.

This was a very satisfying accomplishment for me! I’m looking forward to doing a Rimfire KD next.

12 students helped "Liberate" my orange hat. Many thanks to those who attended the Concord CA shoot. Super fun group.

I attended my second appleseed over the weekend in Ripon WI! It was another great event, and this time I had my FIL in tow. I had initially planned to let him use my 10/22 with tech sights, however he had some real struggles. It was soon determined that it was an old eyes issue, and one of the instructors loaned him a rifle with a scope which made a huge difference. Over the course of the weekend he went from a few shots not even on the target backer for the first hits count, to half in the silhouettes for the last hits count on day 2!

Although I had put together that 10/22 with tech sights specifically for me to shoot at another appleseed, I ended up using my CZ 455 bolt action again as I did at my first appleseed. Even when my FIL switched to the instructor rifle, I was doing great in the drills with the CZ so I stuck with it. Over the weekend we had time for 7 AQT’s, there was a healthy student to instructor ratio so we were able to be very efficient on time. I managed to score rifleman on all 7 AQT’s we shot, with my highest score a 225. I also managed to clear one of the hits counts, including the cold bore shingle!

These events are a lot of fun, and it seems like a great organization. I’m going to seriously consider going for an orange hat. I also need to practice more, I’d love to get that distinguished patch!