Reticle Up Podcast hosted by 3GunKenzie

Frank Melloni and I met through our mutual work as writers in the firearms industry. To give you a long overview, Frank has been published in American Rifleman, Guns & Ammo Magazine, Gun Digest Magazine, Ballistic Magazine, On Target Magazine, Shooting Illustrated, Shooting Sports USA, American Hunter, NRA Family, Guns.com, Personal Defense World Magazine, Tactical Life Magazine, and Shoot-on.com.

If you haven't heard of Tactical Kinetics, I can just about guarantee you own one of their gun barrels already. They are the largest OEM barrel manufacturer you've probably never heard of. They are located in Knoxville, TN, and manufacture both pistol and rifle barrels.

I sit down with Jeff Kaplan, Sales Manager, and John McCracken, Plant Manager, in this episode to talk about how they started the business, what it took to go from making 200 barrels to hundreds of thousands of barrels, and what's next for them coming soon.

Jason Day of Unit Solutions sits down to talk to me about the Unit4 non-lethal training rifle. From active shooter response to close-quarters combat, the UNIT4 will vastly improve your tactical training efforts. This non-lethal training rifle is great for dry fire training with blanks, marking, and non-marking rounds.

We talk about how this training rifle is effective for LEO and military applications, as well as with the newest gun owner, competitive shooter, or firearm instructor. Jason also shares his experience as a father teaching his kids how to shoot guns from an early age and how this training rifle makes for a safe and effective training tool.

Caleb Savant, aka @baron_von_savant, is the face of Brownells and a gunsmith. In this lighthearted episode, we talk about his journey from customer service to the Photo/Video Supervisor at Brownells. He shares how little involved he was on social media pre-Brownells and how he now gets recognized in public as "Caleb from Brownells."

He shares a hysterical yet mean comment he just recently received on YouTube and how he deals with the good, bad, and ugly comments. We also talk about what it was like being a guest judge on the Build Box TV Show, what he thought of winning Most Dapper Influencer at this year's Gundies Awards, and more!

Where to begin with all the things Sofia does? Sofia is the Host of the She Shield Podcast, where she talks about concealed carry, combatives, and training with firearms. She Shield is your one-stop pod for all things personal safety. Sofia's goal is to help educate women and men on concealed carry, martial arts, and all topics of self-defense.

Sofia is also a positive 2nd Amendment influencer and publishes some extremely valuable and helpful content on how to train with firearms, what guns and gear she uses to carry concealed, as well as her dry fire routines. She's on TikTok and Instagram as @Fit4Fia and is also a personal trainer, and goes by @fia__fitness on IG.

Sofia is now working with the Live Fire App and talks about how she uses the app, and there's much in store yet from Live Fire soon to come!

Ever wonder what it's like to work in Hollywood as a gun armorer? My friend Justin Taylor joins me on the Reticle Up Podcast to talk about what it's like to work with actors, some sets he's worked on, and even his own experience being thrown into a show as an actor.

We also discuss being a firearms instructor, CA carry laws, and how important medical training is as a gun owner. Justin has lived quite the life, and his experience and insight into being an armorer, an instructor, and an everyday gun carrier, is helpful for everyone to hear.

Gabby Franco is an Olympian and Professional Competitive Shooter on Team Walther Arms and Primary Arms Optics. She joins me to talk about her journey in shooting sports, how she mentally prepared for Carry Optics Nationals with her ACL recovery, and her thoughts on the Second Amendment.⁠⁠

Photo Credit: Forrest MacCormack

Brennan Brennecke is a full-time firearms instructor at Vortex Edge and a competitive shooter. Brennan and I sit down to discuss what Vortex Edge is all about, how he got into instructing, and what his day-to-day looks like. We talk about the dry fire and live fire drills he has done to improve his shooting ability. We talk about the simplicity of his gear and Smith & Wesson gun he uses to compete in the Carry Optics division of USPSA.

Brennan and I also dive into concealed carry and how competitive shooting has helped him in his EDC life.

Chris is one of the marketing managers at Walther Arms and is in charge of posting on social media, creating content, teaming up with positive online influencers, and working with the Walther shooting team. Chris is also a shooter and trains often with his carry gun. We talk about the tools he uses to film content, how he trains with his firearm, and more!

Mia Anstine has done it all. Mia is a writer in the firearms industry, a rancher, a hunting guide, and even hosts her own podcast, MAC Outdoors Podcast. Mia grew up around guns, has been a hunting guide for years, and enjoys small and big game hunting herself. She is also a strong, positive voice for the 2nd Amendment and spends a lot of her time advocating for gun ownership and helping to protect our rights.

Payton Grimes is a professional precision rifle shooter who, in 2022, walked away with the Ladies Open title at the IPRF shoot. She joins me on the podcast to talk about her journey in precision rifle shooting and reminds me of how her first match went, as I just recently shot my first-ever PRS match. Payton shares her gear load out, how she prepped for the IPRF shoot, and what's next for her as she heads off to college!

She'll be a great competitor to watch for years to come!

Andy Grossman, Founder of Pew Pew Nation, joins me to share about our epic hog hunting trip we had together in Texas, how he found himself in the gun industry, and what the story is behind his arm tattoo. Andy is an accomplished writer in the firearms industry and has several covers for print magazines. He shares his journey to gun ownership, how he found himself becoming an FFL, and why gun ownership is important to him.

Visit ⁠www.pewpewnationusa.com⁠ to learn more about Andy, and use the code pewpewnation at ⁠www.freedomfatigues.com⁠ ⁠when shopping online!

Luis Espindola and I sit down to discuss how his businesses evolved from Sheep's Clothing Company to Redefine Violence. We talk about the meaning behind the artwork we see on his clothing designs and how it all got started. Luis and I also dive into situational awareness and martial arts training and talk about the evil that unfortunately exists in our world.

Tim is the owner of LFX Firearms Training and is the first guest to return to the podcast! Tim joins me to talk about situational awareness. He shares his insights on learning to read people, what to look for when you're in public, and how force-on-force training can help prepare you for a defensive scenario.

Nic is Leupold's Shooting Sports Marketing Manager and a PRS competitive shooter. He shares how he began working at Leupold and the different hats he's worn in the company over the years. We discuss the value of having a pro shooting team, working with shooters who travel to compete across the country, and venturing into the international market.

Nic shares what he's learned shooting PRS and how he's improved as a shooter. He also shares some good insights for newer PRS shooters wanting to get into the sport!

Do you remember the TV Show, Top Shot? If you watched Season 1, you might recognize this next guest, Caleb Giddings. Caleb is now the Brand Marketing Manager at Taurus. He is a Revolver Specialist and still finds time to compete in matches with his revolvers.  

In this episode, Caleb shows us how to speed-reload a revolver a few different ways, talks about all things revolvers, and more!  

Matt Nash is a competitive USPSA shooter who mainly shoots Production. He is on the USA World Shoot team, competing in Thailand. In this episode, we talk about his shooting career success, including his making Super Squad for the 2022 Nationals this year. He shares his dry fire and live fire practice sessions and drills he worked on before leaving for World Shoot.

At the end of this episode, he and I dive into being prepared in a home defense scenario or in a public setting and what kind of basic medical training and gear you should always carry.

Charlie Perez has been involved in practical shooting for years. He's competed in USPSA, IDPA, and Steel Challenge and enjoys every aspect of competitive shooting. He placed 12th at USPSA Limited Nationals this year and shares what he plans to shoot next year in this episode!   Charlie is also an instructor and wrote a book called Path of Focused Effort to help shooters at home and his students better prepare for his classes. 

Charlie is heavily involved in his local clubs and serves as a Section Coordinator in USPSA. In this episode, we talk about ways to give back and get involved to continue growing the shooting sports we love so much!  

⁠Before listening to this episode of the Reticle Up Podcast, be sure to watch Part 1 and Part 2 of Build Box with Ursula, Adam, and me competing in the rifle-building TV Show. 

Luke Faust is a USPSA Production Master Class shooter who has invested quite a bit of time and energy into shooting. He is passionate about the future of USPSA, so much so that he is running for Area 3 Director. In this episode, we dive into what he's looking to change if he were elected to the Board of Directors.  

We also talk about what brought him to firearms, his love of CrossFit, and why he finds it important to defend oneself without a gun if needed. He shares his budget setup for competition shooting as well, and more!

Mason and Kaylee Lane are a power couple competing, training, and shooting together. Mason is a 3 Time National Champion who has grown up shooting professionally. Kaylee got started in Steel Challenge and USPSA, and enjoys competing in both iron-sighted and optic divisions.  

These two travel the USA and internationally together to compete in shooting competitions all across the world. They instruct together and make the perfect team! We recorded this episode right between Race Gun and PCC/Prod Nationals, so you can get a little insight on their training up to Nationals, how they switch gears from one Nationals to the next, and what they're working toward with World Shoot coming up.

Kolby Pavlock, a Rimfire World Champion, and Grand Master level competition shooter, joins me to talk about his shooting career and his move to work with Volquartsen Firearms⁠. 

Kolby is one impressive young man. He has accomplished goals in shooting sports that so few people will ever accomplish in their lifetime. He has mastered different shooting disciplines and divisions. His knowledge of firearms led to him working at Volquartsen and helping develop some of the products you see today.⁠ He is an avid hunter and has already harvested some big game this season. He talks about growing up hunting and how he still enjoys that today.  

Nicholas Chan started from the ground up in the firearms industry. He put in years of hard work, and when the opportunity presented itself to do more, he jumped at the chance! If you've ever attended an industry event and visited the Taurus booth, you've probably met Nicholas. He is one of the most friendly folks you'll meet and is a wealth of knowledge about guns.  

Nicholas and I chat about how he ended up where he is today without a college degree, which is a testament to how brilliant and hard-working he is. He talks about his bow hunting experience and the time and effort he has put into learning all there is to about archery. We get into concealed carry and how to learn from a reputable firearms instructor.  

If you don't know the name yet, you will soon. Brantley just placed 4th overall at the 2022 USPSA Carry Optics Nationals. But where did he come from? How did he get there? With cut-out cardboard dry fire targets he made with boxes from Walmart... Not kidding.

Brantley has always been on the quiet side, but now that people are starting to ask for help and tips from him, he's coming out of his shell. We talk about what it's like as an introvert learning to be more social. And once Brantley gets to know you better, he's more of a talker than you might think!  I ask him about what it took to make GM, how he set his sights on the top 5 at Nationals, and what he did to exceed that goal this year.  

Keep your eyes peeled on this Alabama boy. He's a force to be reckoned with on the shooting range!!

Adam is a Steel Challenge competitive shooter who travels the country competing. In this episode, Adam shares how his shooting journey came full circle at one specific competition. He remembers going to his first big match and squadding with some of the biggest names in Steel Challenge. He had been following them online, watching videos of them shoot, and they inspired him to want to get better. Because of how friendly and welcoming they were towards him as a new shooter, he knew he was in the right community that he wanted to be a part of. Years later, Adam now strives to be the kind of person that welcomes new shooters as they did him.

Adam wasn't always pro gun. In fact, he shares how he converted from anti-gun, to being curious about firearms, to now not knowing life without them. Adam is a great role model on and off the range and always has a smile on his face. 

Lane Nelson is a 19-year-old competitive shooter who has put in the work and trained himself to be a Master Class Carry Optics shooter. His shooting journey started as a junior and now, he's learning to balance college, shooting, and family/friends time. We talk about his goals for his shooting career and what's next on the horizon for him. 

Lane runs some awesome budget-friendly gear, a mostly stock Canik pistol, and a quality red dot. We go over his gun and the gear he started with and how he still uses that same gear today! ⁠ 

Hunter Constantine went from a new competitive shooter to GM in USPSA simply by buying a ton of ammo and practicing at the range. He is an instructor at Field Craft Survival and helped co-found Two Track Nation. Hunter spends a lot of time on the road for events and oftentimes overlands on his travels. 

We talk about working in the firearms industry, being brand ambassadors and online influencers, and how our marketing backgrounds have helped us in the industry.

Will and Ben are two of the most hardworking and humble guys I have worked with. Their company, Forge Relations, puts relationships before business and cherishes the connections they've made over the years. If you don't know about Forge Relations, they're the team that puts on the annual Gundies Awards!⁠ The Gundies Awards are the firearm community's Voter Choice Awards.

In this episode, Will and Ben talk about how they met, formed Forge Relations, and what's next for them in the future.

Billy Barton joined USPSA and started shooting competitively to get more proficient with his carry gun. Now, Billy is a GM-level Carry Optics Competitive Shooter and a firearms trainer/instructor.

Billy and I sit down to talk about his Carry Optics setup, how he improved his own shooting skills, and what classes he teaches. Billy is also the host of the Speed Up & Get Your Hits podcast, one of the best podcasts on becoming a better shooter and competitor.

Gals Day at the Range is an event like no other where women of all ages can come out and learn how to shoot in a fun environment. This year's Gals Day was an action-packed event that included shooting pistols, rifles, and shotguns. We ran ladies through a Steel Challenge stage, a USPSA stage, and set them up to shoot shotgun clays and 100-yard rifle steel.

This event was only possible because of sponsors who donated ammunition, supplies, and everything we needed to have a fun time. Hunters HD Gold brought the Magical Mystery Tour van and set up at the event. DoubleStar brought rifles for the ladies to shoot outfitted with Timney Triggers, and also brought a full-auto rifle that many women shot for their first time.

All of the range officers who taught women how to shoot safely volunteered their time to be there. We all had a great time helping out and if you're interested in volunteering or attending, next year's event is on May 13, 2023, at Camp Davy Crockett in East, TN.

Every lady went home with a prize thanks to generous donations from sponsors that included ammunition, gift cards, hats, case gauges, patches, holsters, and more!