All too often good information from well-vetted gun experts is lost in the sea of information on the internet. Hopefully, this list will be helpful to someone in finding a source of information that is reputable and likely to give the best answer to whatever question you might have.
I have a reasonably short list of folks that I believe to understand a topic well enough to trust that they got their analysis of something correct. I don’t want to bash those non-experts that believe that they are or those that consistently step outside their lane, so this post will be limited to the folks that I feel are worth listening to.
The Gun Experts You Should Trust
This is by no means a comprehensive list of folks, but folks that I have corresponded with recently that I trust to get things right. I am sure that I left someone off the list by accident or have intentionally left someone off the list that would prefer to remain behind the scenes.
Content Creators I Consider Gun Experts
Frank Galli of Snipers Hide – Not only is Frank an accomplished shooter and former Marine Scout Sniper, but he also runs the forum Sniper’s Hide. Frank is always willing to teach when the opportunity presents and specifically helped me understand some extreme long range shooting stuff.
Othias of C&Rsenal – Othias is probably one of the best read folks on YouTube ber none. Sure, Ian from Forgotten Weapons has a larger library, but Othias’ research is in-depth as hell and has actually uncovered new information. Even Ian has given Othias for doing even more in-depth research than he does in the video where he talks about the C&Rsenal t-shirt campaign.
Ian McCollum of Forgotten Weapons – If you aren’t familiar with Ian, please head over to his website and educate yourself. He is dedicated to providing good information about forgotten firearms. Ian also is one of the hosts on InRange TV where he and Karl examine a ton of topics from mud tests to 2 gun matches where they use period gear and guns.
Jordan Bowles formally of Carnik Con – Jordan is a gun nerd of epic proportions and has a metric ton of good, quality information to share. He is a regular on the Primary & Secondary ModCasts and always has some interesting points to add to the conversation.
Expert Firearm Trainers
Steve Fisher of Sentinel Concepts – I like to give Steve a hard time, but I consider him to not only be a dear friend but a mentor of sorts. He has a background in law enforcement and has been a full time, tier 1 trainer for the last couple of decades. With an impressive level of knowledge on a wide range of topics like variable one power scopes, red dot pistols, weapon mounted lights, and a ton of other topics, Fish has a level of knowledge that most will never achieve. Steve has given me some of the most invaluable advice and guidance that I have been given since I started working in the gun industry and was one of the people that drove me to the decision to launch Firearm Rack. Check out our review of the CARB Bag designed by Steve.
Chuck Pressburg of Presscheck Training – With more than two decades of service in the US Army where he spent a lot of time making sure bad guys have a very bad day. Chuck is also the father of the Roland Special, a compensated Glock 19 that has been milled by ATEi for enhanced serrations and a red dot. He also offers several courses like No Fail Pistol to help good shooters become better. The advice he has given me since meeting him has been invaluable and I consider Chuck to be one of the more knowledgeable folks in the industry. Check out our article on Chuck’s No Fail Drill if you want to challenge yourself.
Ernest Langdon of Langdon Tactical – Where Scott may be the king of red dots on pistols, Ernest is the king of DA/SA pistols. He has earned a ton of titles in competition with his go-to Beretta 92 series pistol and also shoots the PX4 on a regular basis. Ernest recently developed what I consider to be the ultimate Beretta 92 series dubbed the Elite LTT.
Bill Blowers – With a background rooted in SWAT, Bill knows a thing or two about using a firearm professionally. Now retired, he hasn’t slowed down a bit and is teaching young SWAT men how to be better through his training company, Tap Rack Tactical.
Shooters
Jerry Miculek – While I haven’t spoken with Jerry more than a couple of times at industry events, I regularly use his video content to drive home a point I am making in conversation or to turn newer shooters onto a good source of information that will help them with grip, draw, and other aspects of sport shooting. Jerry’s video on grip is a personal favorite of mine.
Charlie Melton of Charlie Mike Precision – Charlie is a retired Navy SEAL who spent a ton of time teaching folks like Chris Kyle to snipe. Charlie also spent a lot of time wearing cool guy pants while overseas running missions as a SEAL. He also set a world record by hitting a steel plate at 5,000 yards with a rifle built by Brad Stair that was chambered in the .408 Tejas round.
Rob Leatham – The Great One has earned his name many times over. Rob is a wealth of knowledge and has the ability to deliver it in a blunt, but enjoyable way. He rarely minces his words and takes great pride in teaching people how to suck at shooting less. Several of my epiphanies as a shooter has been the result of a conversation with Rob or during the mini-class, I was privileged to attend during the SAINT launch.
Gunsmiths
Brad Stair of Performance Guns – Brad has spent most of his life building precision rifles and is one hell of a shooter to boot. Not only did Brad develop the Tejas cartridges, but he also was the man behind the world record holding rifle that Charlie Melton used to hit at 5,000 yards.
Robert Waggoner of Alamo Precision Rifles – Robert is a good friend of mine and one of the best bolt gun builders in the country as far as I am concerned. On top of being the dude that built my bolt guns, he is also an accomplished long-range shooter that has competed in just about every precision discipline to include King of Two Mile.
Bruce Gray of Grayguns – Bruce is probably one of the nicest men in the firearm industry as well as one of the most knowledgeable that I have had the pleasure of meeting to date. In addition to being an amazing pistolsmith, Bruce also is a hell of a shooter that has competed against guys like Rob Leatham and other great shooters. He has operated the top Sig shops in the country for some time and established a reputation for doing amazing things with Sig Sauer pistols as well as Heckler Koch guns.
Joe Chambers of Chambers Custom – While I am not a 1911 lover, I can appreciate a well-built pistol. Joe is the mind behind some of the finest 1911s that I have ever seen and really knows his stuff. On top of understanding how to build a pistol capable of 2″ groups at 50 yards, he is also an amazing shooter that has shown some pretty amazing targets like a No Fail drill target with a perfect 100 score where 9 of the 10 hits were in the x ring.
William Larson of Semper Paratus Arms – Many make the mistake of assuming that ARs are like legos and that YouTube can teach you everything. The second that you spend some time talking with Will it becomes really apparent that AR stuff isn’t that simple. I took a 2-day armorer’s class from Will a while back and took a new appreciation for doing things the correct way.
Doug Holloway of ATEi – If you need a gun milled for enhanced serrations or to add a red dot, Doug should be your first call. He has been milling slides for dots for the better part of a decade and understands intricacies about mounting a red dot sight to a reciprocating slide that most overlook. He also was one of the guys that helped Chuck build the very first Roland Special and even offers a Roland Special package if you are interested in recreating the flattest shooting Glock 19 you should consider carrying. Doug also builds the Glock A9 pistol, an optimized Glock 19.
Other Industry Pros To Trust
Tom Victa – While Tom’s job at FN makes him a wealth of knowledge on FN guns, his real strength is his incredible level of knowledge about pistols. He understands pistol design and is a true student of the gun that loves to enrich the community as best as he can. Tom has been super helpful since I met him several years ago and has become a good friend of mine that I rather enjoy hanging out and nerding out over gun stuff with.
Larry Zanoff of ISS Props – If you need to know something about an obscure gun, prop guns, or any number of oddball gun things, Larry is your man. He not only is a propmaster with ISS but he also appears on the TV show Hollywood Weapons. Interestingly he previously worked for Calico firearms and also has a background in Law Enforcement.
RAZORJB – I can’t really talk about RAZORJB’s background, but I talk with him often about things he is very knowledgeable about like dogs, firearms, and kit. I am blessed to call RAZORJB a friend and even more blessed that he has the patience to help me understand those things better.
i have an agrentina mouser on the bottom of the stock it as ab itched in it. what does that mean.
HI I am a high school student and doing research for a debate. I am in charge of finding experts on guns and I was hoping that maybe I could get some opinions on whether or not gun safety should be taught in schools. If you have an opinion please let me know.
Yes, Gun safety should absolutely be taught at in a non political manner. It is just as much of the American culture as balancing a checking account and sexual education; no reason to neglect safety for politics sake.