Waffenkultur - German Gun Magazine Editor goes to a Texas Appleseed

[scuzzy]

I'd received an email about two months back from the Editor of Waffenkultur - a German gun magazine. Yes - they do have guns in Germany - but it's not quite like here in the USA - or at least most of the USA currently. He was going to be in Texas and was interested in going to an Appleseed.

I told him 'Heck yeah' and offered him a free pass to the DFW event. I then contacted spitstickler and Floyd who helped him out with a loaner and he then showed up.

I'd had another email or two since and he was really impressed. I just received another email today and he attached what will be the front page of the forthcoming issue. Anyhow Appleseed made the front page of his latest magazine which will be out in the next week or two.

http://waffenkultur.com/

[Nero]

I'm pretty rusty, but once upon a time I spoke and read German at a college level.  When you get the text of the article, I can have a go at cleaning up Google Translate's attempt if you'd like.

[Unbridled Liberty]

That's cool Scuzzy!  Can't wait to see the actual article.  The other articles look interesting too, especially "Prison Cell Workout".   

UL

[azmule]

"DieWaffenkultur" would make a great forum name for somebody.

[Charles McKinley]

  I was just thinking the same thing UL!

Maybe we can get some money from the tourist bureau.    Just remember no pic for the Aussie Olympians or they will be kicked off the team.

[hawkhavn]

Same here, can you see if they have any US distributors?
Or could send us some hard copies?

HH

Also, I find it sehr interessant that Waffenkultur is a feminine noun. 

[scuzzy]

Same here, can you see if they have any US distributors?
Or could send us some hard copies?

HH

Also, I find it sehr interessant that Waffenkultur is a feminine noun. 

I believe it's going to be online only if I remember correctly. I'll double check though. Their website offers both html & pdf formats of the magazine. The PDF needs a passkey to open though so I'll make sure I get one from him.

I post in the instructor board once I get the passkey.

[Prone to Knit]

Awesome, scuzzy!  The link goes to a PDF of the magazine. I didn't need a passkey. Appleseed got 5 pages, heavy in pictures. Would be interested in what it says.

http://waffenkultur.com/waffenkultur_13.pdf

It did take my computer more than a minute to load (my computer is not particularly fast).

[Nero]

Looks good.  I've attached a file with Google Translate's attempt - I just cut/pasted everything in the article including the captions.  (RTF format, should import to any word processor.)  I'm getting things prepped for a shoot tomorrow, but will have a go at cleaning up the translation when time permits.

See a couple of posts below for a cleaned-up translation.

There are some very well done photos of sling usage in the article - we could do far worse than borrow them!

[Waffenkultur]

Hello all,
thanks for the warm welcome.
I am the editor-in-chief and the one who has taken the class in DFW.

Our magazine has no hard copy yet. It is just an online-magazine.

There is no passkey to our .pdf-document.

Text is written in German, obviously. I have translated the text via google into English just to get an idea what the outcome will be: Well, if you try hard you will get an understanding. But those translate-programms are far away from perfect.

Let me know if I can help with something.

[Nero]

I am working on a translation while taking breaks between packing up for a shoot.  I'll add to this as I progress:

Here's my take on a translation, starting from Google Translate and assisted by my (ahem!)-years old college German and an online dictionary.  Corrections from the authors appreciated.

The people of the RWVA (Revolutionary War Veterans Association) seek to make every rifleman a better shooter with their " Project Appleseed " training.  With this they set a laudable trend against ever 'higher speed' shooting training.

The number of self-proclaimed "High-Speed" instructors has grown tremendously in the last ten years.  In most cases it boils to down a selling proposition, that new shooting positions or weapons handling have been found, that must be used in certain conditions, for instance, "Short-range shooting".  In the end, the paying participants get no real training, only an experience, to have shot in this style one day, once, as one's greatest learning and practice.  Never mind that no practice can overcome a deficit in shooting technique.

Marksmanship

Shooting training can be different, and concentrate on what is truly important.  Americans call this 'marksmanship' and mean the correct implementation of basic skills.  Here marksmanship also means the development of a shooting technique which allows the rifle shooter to strike a 500 m distant target.

RWVA

One organization that holds up this flag is Project Appleseed.  Project Appleseed is supported by a non-profit corporation, the Revolutionary War Veterans Association ( RWVA ) . The people behind Project Appleseed see their roots directly in the Era of the Founding Fathers of the United States of America, a time when every citizen was a "Rifleman".  Owning and carrying a gun was necessary for putting meat on the table, but also for self-defense and, not least, also to defend against state tyrrany.  This way of thinking manifested itself in the second addition to the U. S. Constitution, the so-called '2nd Amendment'.

Project Appleseed

The idea of Project Appleseed goes back to Jack "Fred" Daily, a US-wide known High Power Rifle competitor, and owner of " Fred's M14 Riflestocks " . The former captain of the U.S. Army was of the opinion that there must be a relation between the declines of shooting abilities and historical consciousness in American society. The first Appleseed workshop took place in 2006 in North Carolina. Since that time nearly 200,000 participants have been trained. The instructors are recruited from the participants themselves and must complete at least 30 hours of training and qualify on the AQT (Army Qualification Test) with a minimum score of 210.  Currently there are a total of 1200 Appleseed instructors.

The name "Appleseed" comes from an early immigrant whose nickname was Johnny Appleseed .  As a pioneer and missionary, Johnny Appleseed went through the land and planted apple trees everywhere along his path.

(Captions)

Collin (16) and Connor (10 ) spend meaningful leisure time with their father on an Appleseed weekend.

The instructor demonstrates a perfect kneeling position. Forearm, knee and foot are perpendicular
under the gun. Maximum stability can be obtained when supported by a sling.

When sitting the arms rest on the knees. This position is very stable and can be maintained for a long
period.

The nightmare of all do-gooders : Ten year old children learn to handle a gun and have fun doing it.

The Hasty Sling is compatible with any 2-point sling, adjusted to length as shown in the picture.

The support arm is pushed completely through the sling.

The support hand goes to the outside and inward again ...

... and lies along on the forend . The sling is now taut.

The gun is stabilized by the sling tension, not by muscle power. The Hasty Sling is a less stable option compared to the loop sling.

(end captions)

The Instruction Program

The special feature of an Appleseed course lies in the history lectures, which is presented by the trainers themselves.   An important point is the date 19 April 1775 , the day on which the American War of Independence began. The RWVA specifies the precise location where the first shots were fired, at Meriam's Corner between Concord and Lexington in the American Massachusetts colony. The presentation also makes this history accessible and interesting to non-Americans.  "April 19th 1775 - The day marksmanship met history, and the heritage began ... " is written as a slogan on their T-shirts.

The practical part of the course program can be performed with any rifle. No matter whether a .22 LR bolt action, a modern self-loading rifle or a hunting or sniper rifle. The only auxiliary equipment which is used in the course is a shooting sling. No bipod, no bench rest, not even a backpack.  The benefits of the shooting sling as support for a stable position is thus a central issue in the training.  Also, of course, the basic skills of shooting are stressed, without which a precise shot delivery is impossible. In the Appleseed program, breathing and focusing of the eye are taught as additional foundations to the four usual points.

In particular:

• sight alignment
• sight Picture
• Respiratory Pause
• Focus on Front Sight & focus your mind
• squeeze trigger
• Follow Through ( Hold your trigger back & calling your shot )

Another further point in good Marksmanship training is the use of Natural Point of Aim (NPOA), the natural impact point.  Shooter and weapon must be aligned to the destination without building muscle tension.  A sure sign of the presence of NPOA is when the weapon, after recoil, returns automatically to the target.

(Captions)

To make a loop sling, the sling is unhooked at the rear mount. The USGI M1 Garand sling is most suitable for this purpose.

The rear part of the sling is formed into a loop (eine Schlaufe).

Right-handed shooters turn the loop clockwise and guide the belt onto the support arm as high as possible

On the upper arm, the strap is tightened with the buckle.

The support hand is held between the sling and forend.

The sling is now taut.

In position, the gun is stabilized through the sling, not through muscular strength. The leg position in prone which is taught at Appleseed is different from other disciplines.

(end captions)


The goal of the training

The goal of the training is for each participant to be able to consistently shoot a group of four arc minutes (4 MOA), which is not quite 12 cm at 100m or 58cm at 500m.  In American measures, this means a repeatable group of 20 inches in diameter at 500 yards distance.  This is done with open sights and without technical aids other than the shooting sling.

The Redcoats

At the beginning, each participant shoots the Appleseed standard practice "Redcoats" target which requires a total of 13 rounds, shot from 25 yards distance . The target includes four half silhouettes whose size is scaled to represent 100/200/ 300 and 400 yards.  There is also a rectangle which represents a  head-sized target at 250 yards. This exercise is shot with three shots each in the half-silhouettes and one in the rectangle.  This exercise is shot again as the last test of the day.  Usually an improvement is seen from all participants.

The smallest of the silhouettes, representing the farthest distance, that the shooter hits three times shows the shooter his effective distance at his current skill level.  An interesting detail is the evaluation method, which states that if shot with a caliber of less than .30 (e.g. .22LR) but the bullet hole does not hit the silhouette, the shot is nevertheless considered as a hit, if a bullet of .30 caliber would have broken the edge of the target.

The rectangle which represents a head at 250 yards has its origin in an entrance examination of the 11th Virginia Regiment under Daniel Morgan in 1777.

Daniel Morgan

Daniel Morgan was a commander of the Continental Army in the War of Independence. In 1775 had led a company against the British troops as a Captain, and in 1777 a regiment as a Colonel. Anyone wanting to serve in his Regiment, had an entrance test:  He must hit a head sized target at 250 yards distance with his first shot, says the tradition. Depending on the source, Morgan might have used pumpkins or targets with the face of the English King George III, which was considered unchivalrous and may have given him a name as a war criminal.  In all, Daniel Morgan succeeded in recruiting over 400 men.

Take advantage of a shooting sling

A focus of Appleseed is the benefit of the shooting sling to stabilize the position. A total of three variants were presented: The hasty Hasty Sling , the Hasty Sling and the Loop Sling. The stability increases in the order given. While the first two variants can be implemented with almost any sling, for a loop sling a special sling is required.  The user however needn't dig deep into his pocket:  The USGI M1 Garand sling is available for less than 20 €, for example as military surplus, and is well suited for the purpose.

Army Qualification Test

During the training day, all participants shoot the AQT (Army Qualification Test). For this purpose , a total of 40 shots are necessary on four different stages that can total 250 points. A shooter must achieve 210 or more in order to qualify as " Rifleman".

Conclusion

The quality of instruction at Project Appleseed is very high. The participant will learn all skills that it takes to achieve a consistent shot group of 20 inches at 500 Yards.  This is possible through the execution of fundamentals and the benefit of the shooting sling alone.  What I don't have, I don't need.  Throughout, there is a concern to convert America back into a nation of "Riflemen".  In view of the current U.S. administration, certainly not the worst idea.

On The Net

http://www.appleseedinfo.org/

(I'm not going to re-translate the AQT description, which is just a German translation of the printed text from the OLD version, with transitions begun loaded and the old times.  When can we get those out of circulation...   )

[scuzzy]

Funny - but I'd just added some shoots for Florida today. And just by chance Palm Bay, Florida has some Schutzen:

http://www.pmrpc.com/schutzen

I will be out in Fredricksburg next weekend - Big time Texas/German town:

And here is to German Beer. Yum. Here's to coincidences.

[malabar]

From one of the Palm Bay Contingent: We had a German exchange student back in 2004. Real nice young man named Rene. It was a challenging year -- we got hit by three hurricanes, power was out for weeks, everyone's home was damaged. But we all became quite close, and Rene went out shooting and canoeing with us, etc. 

So his parents came to the US at the end of the exchange program and they were going to do some traveling in the US together.  So my wife asked Rene is there was anything he wanted to do before leaving and he said YES! -- take his dad shooting.

Now this distressed his mom. "Oh, I don't know..."   But dad was supportive -- "Now honey, Rene became interested in this while he was here and I think it's something I should share with him, it will be all right."  And as soon as we got in the car, it was a different story.   Dad as practically rubbing his hands together in excitement.  "Oh, I love going shooting. Every time I come to America on business I take a trip to the range!"

A good time was had by all. 

tk

[olefido]

Lately, I have been fascinated by the schutzenfests, schutzen, and  formal hunting traditions of Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Finland, and other eastern European countries. Does anyone have any good links re: these subjects?

[starfox]

Wow, I would like to thank Henning for whatever lens and/or photoshop treatment he did to make me look so good in those pictures.   

It was a great shoot and I could not have pulled it off without our great DFW area crew of instructors!

[FiremanBob]

I thought Schuetzen was originally shot offhand, but the PMRPC site shows benchrest.

[malabar]

Here's a link to the American Single Shot Rifle Association website...

http://www.assra.com/

The shoot offhand and benchrest, but the matches at PMRPC always are benchrest.

tk

[TaosGlock]

The special feature of an Appleseed course lies in the history lectures, which is presented by the trainers themselves. 
The presentation also makes this history accessible and interesting to non-Americans. 
"April 19th 1775 - The day marksmanship met history, and the heritage began ... " is written as a slogan on their T-shirts.

There were many "non-Americans" that heard the "shot heard round the world".
That localized sound that would symbolize freedom and liberty.

I have spoke with a few of these guys on the German F-Class team here at the NRAWC.
Interesting folks who love to shoot. Looks like they enjoy a good history lesson too!

Huzzah!