Project Appleseed

Would it be okay to use a bolt action rifle with a 10 round magazine at an Appleseed?  I know you probably won't get rifleman do to being timed but could still learn the basics.

Yes, absolutely.  2 mags are preferred but if not, we can accommodate that.

Oh...and PLENTY of people have scored rifleman with a boltie.  Remember, in the timed events, at Rifleman's Cadence, the shooting consumes only about 30 seconds of the time.  That leaves an awful lot of time for transition, mag changes, finding NPOA...and working the bolt.

Kris

I score better with my bolt action CZ 452 than any rifle Ive shot with.

My first Rifleman score was with my CZ-452 bolt action. Very accurate rifle. Get a 2nd magazine (at least 5 rounds) and you are good to go!

kenjo

At my first Appleseed (as a student) there was a young lady who earned her patch with a Mossberg 44US CMP surplus bolt action and one SEVEN round magazine.  Earned it on her second AQT, BTW.  She was an experienced 4-position shooter who kept a teachable attitude and adapted quickly to what she was being taught.

Build a good position, align it with the target, shoot by the fundamentals you will be taught, and stay in the bubble (don't get distracted by the timer, your score, etc.).  You will do fine.

I've shot score with a Remington 504 bolt action 22 & have seen others do so with Ruger and CZ bolt action 22's, all of them with detachable box mags.

One of these days, I'm gonna get around to trying it with my No. 4 Enfield 303.

I've had a shooter score Rifleman with a CZ boltie in 7.62x39.  He had only one 5 round magazine; he single loaded the second 5.  It can be done.  Make sure the action is smooth, and then lots of practice in manipulating it with a minimum of wasted motion.

I do not consider a bolt action rifle to be a barrier to scoring Rifleman at an Appleseed.

I've done it with both rimfire and 30-06.

Many bolt action rifles are significantly more accurate than their semi auto relatives.

Keys:  Get your repeatable dependable rock solid cheek weld established and learn to work the bolt while disturbing your NPOA as little as possible.  Proficiency with bolt manipulation comes from practice (like everything in this world!).

Quote from: eaglescouter on October 15, 2014, 04:19:27 PM
I do not consider a bolt action rifle to be a barrier to scoring Rifleman at an Appleseed.

I've done it with both rimfire and 30-06.

Many bolt action rifles are significantly more accurate than their semi auto relatives.

Keys:  Get your repeatable dependable rock solid cheek weld established and learn to work the bolt while disturbing your NPOA as little as possible.  Proficiency with bolt manipulation comes from practice (like everything in this world!).

We have had 2 Riflemen qualify on bolties in Alaska in the past 14 months.  +1 on the quoted comments above.

Mudcat did it with a Savage Rascal and Techres did it with a Cricket.  Both are single shot youth rifles and the Cricket adds the extra step of cocking the firing pin in addition to operating the bolt.

UL

Wheeler 44 is able to shoot rifleman with his single shot Brno bolt action .22 rifle.  He hold the rounds between his lips for quick reloading.

I was at an AS event in Bickelton, WA in 2012 and there was one shooter with a single bolt action .270 and he shot rifleman's scores all weekend.   He would lay out the 10 rounds next to the rifle on the mat and had plenty of time to pickup and fire the rounds.

Lever actions, on the other hand, stink. 

Almost made it with my Marlin, but I kept having stovepipes, or that's my story.
60 year old rifle needs a spring kit.

I haven't been able to shoot 210 on a rapid fire AQT with my CZ 452... just keep running out of time on Stage 4.

But a regular AQT is straightforward. 

I've had a half-dozen students do it, including one first-time Appleseeder, relatively new shooter, with a box-stock CZ 452 Lux.

What rifle are you bringing?  There is a good chance you could barow a magazine if it isn't something obscure.

I suggest this book to every bolt gunner, from the golden age of bolt gunning:

http://books.google.com/books/about/Suggestions_to_military_riflemen.html?id=TphJAAAAIAAJ

Check out that chicken wing on the cover!

Shooter today at Marion, IL shot a 223 with his bolt gun on the first AQT at his first AS. It can be done.

And he followed it up with a 217, then he took an orange hat.

I like to think that I had really good instructors.

Quote from: Charles McKinley on October 18, 2014, 11:48:37 PM
What rifle are you bringing?  There is a good chance you could barow a magazine if it isn't something obscure.

I suggest this book to every bolt gunner, from the golden age of bolt gunning:

http://books.google.com/books/about/Suggestions_to_military_riflemen.html?id=TphJAAAAIAAJ

Check out that chicken wing on the cover!

Awesome book!

Bring what you have. As you can see from the posts, the score is attainable using a bolt action rifle. Smooth is fast. Practice throwing the bolt. It helped me to score Rifleman with my Savage.

Took my patch with a 235 and a Ruger American Rimfire, which take the same mags as the 10/22.

Yes, it can be done.

The OP has been well answered, but I might as well add my .02$.  Yes, absolutely IF you're good with a bolt.

I've shot rifleman twice with a Norinco JW 15 (basically same as a CZ 452) and 5 round mags.  You just need to use your time efficiently in the RF stages.  Don't miss, and stick to your cadence.  Don't rush your shots if you hang up a bolt cycle, one saved round is better than 3 hasty off-target shots.

Shoot with a purpose, run the bolt, shoot again. 

You should shoot a Rapid AQT Australian style, bottom up. Get the high value shots off first.

Quote from: Rocket Man on October 16, 2014, 01:09:10 AM
I haven't been able to shoot 210 on a rapid fire AQT with my CZ 452... just keep running out of time on Stage 4.

But a regular AQT is straightforward. 

I've had a half-dozen students do it, including one first-time Appleseeder, relatively new shooter, with a box-stock CZ 452 Lux.

Just want to add some thoughts. I shoot a CZ455 and got 240 in my second appleseed. I didn't make rifleman in my first appleseed and here is the lesson I learned:

1. Use GI sling
.. in order to make loop sling. That's critical for me to shoot good score in stage 4, when time is in our favor.

2. Keep the bolt lubricated
My bolt became a little sticky in the last a few rounds in my first appleseed, possibly due to lack of cleaning and lubrication, which made it really hard to reload and even harder to find my NPOA again after very reloading. Each round I have to load/reload 40 times with different positions. It was nightmare when my finger hurt, and my movement slowed.

3. Breath control
I breathe in every time I lift and pull the bolt, and breathe out when I finish reloading, slight readjust, NPOA is there, (take another breath if not confident) hold and squeeze the trigger. Reloading actually takes less than a second.

4. I find that magazine change and target switch are among the most challenging parts of 25yd aqt. I believe it is true no matter what action we use.