Firearms Radio Network (All Shows)
ZERT Coffee & Chaos 147 – Post-SHOT Show & Minneapolis Unrest
29 Jan 2026
Chapter 1: What events triggered the protests in Minneapolis?
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Welcome back to the Zert Coffee and Chaos podcast, the show where we talk about anything and everything relating to what it means to be a survivalist in a prepared individual environment. in today's society. I'm your host, Chris Bartogone, ZP002. Back with me on the show, as usual, my co-host, Jamie Franks, Chief of Caffeine Consumption. Jamie Franks, welcome to the show.
It looks like every week he is going to change what his title is, but he is always going to be the Senior Chief. Well, for five more months, and then he's going to be Retired Senior Chief, correct?
Well, it's weird. So, no, I've got a little bit more than six months. Oh, okay. If I want to reference the actual countdown. I have 184 days, so I'm just over six months still.
But if all goes as planned, my last day at work, and for all intents and purposes, I will be out of the Navy, but I will still be collecting a paycheck for a couple more months, but I will just not be going to work anymore. It should be April 2nd. That should be my last day of actually going to work, but I don't actually officially retire yet. and be stricken from the books until July 31st.
Very nice. You will be crocheting sweaters soon enough. Folks, thank you for joining us today. And for Jamie's last 184 days in the Navy, we will probably speak about it often. And yeah, I it's going to be a wild time for you and for, I guess, all of us.
So, well, I have this app, this app on my phone where it can count down to things or count up like days since things. And so it's weird that like, I mean, it's been a couple of months ago, but on that same app, I like I put in the day I joined the Navy.
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Chapter 2: How have law enforcement tactics changed in response to civil unrest?
And a couple of months ago was 10,000 days that I've been in the Navy. And I have 184 left. Awesome.
Well, anyway, I'm going to continue on with my thanks. Sorry. No, you're fine. You're fine. But I want to just thank everybody for joining us today. for the show joining us for the last 184 days of his journey. What a wild ride it's been.
So if you are listening, make sure you send a comment over to Jamie through our Spotify where our show goes out either on Spotify or the Apple podcast and the firearms radio network. And if you want to check out his journey, I'm sure there'll be some posts and pictures on the interwebs, social medias, and you can find him over on,
Instagram at it's a JF underscore shooter because somebody like all of my social media Facebook Twitter X or whatever they call it was all JF shooter all one word but somebody on Instagram that has like nine posts before I could get it took JF shooter so mine is JF underscore shooter
There you go. So check them out over there. For all of you that are listening, that are ZERT members, I do apologize that the website is still experiencing this issue. It is a lot more complicated than I am going to get into on here. Just understand that I am still working on it from the backside of the Internet website here. Exactly.
And I'm trying to do it all while still getting orders shipped and then doing my day job. And then being out of commission last week for SHOT Show has just added to the mix of me being busy shit. Once I figure out how to clone myself, things will get a little bit easier. But...
Um, I want to keep our show, uh, cadence on point here and make sure that we are putting out a show with information for you guys every week. So thank you. And, uh, uh, keep listening.
So, but you didn't get sick from shot show from what I can tell.
No, I did not. But that is because. I was sick for three months prior to SHOT Show.
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Chapter 3: What are the latest trends in the firearm industry showcased at SHOT Show?
So my body was doing what my body does and it had antibodies going in and battling everything that's in there. And it's funny you say that because we'll get to SHOT Show and what we saw there or what we didn't see there and then what's happened since SHOT Show because there's a lot to talk about.
We will probably not get through all of it because that's just how it rolls here and you'll have to tune in later. But... Sure, that was the big thing, making sure I didn't get sick, which I knew I was going to be okay there. And then obviously the other big news as SHOT Show was happening was the weather that came by and crushed the country.
I mean, I'm looking out my window and we've got about 22 inches of snow here. And the worst part about it is you're talking single digits overnight. There's no, I mean, sun broke out today for a little bit. There's no rain. There's no temperatures getting above 20 degrees. And we're sitting on this snow for a minute. And 20 inches of snow, I mean, that's a lot, right? You're just shy of two feet.
But you got to remember, you don't have anywhere to put it when it's all said and done. So there are giant mounds of snow. You're talking 15 to probably 18 feet in the air per in the middle of parking lots. Now, um, that shit will be here until April, uh, unless we have a crazy weather day, but you know, we're prepared for this stuff up here.
Uh, I know there's a lot of folks, whether you're listening and you're a Zert member or you're not, uh, uh, in the middle of the country down South that are not prepared. They have no infrastructure, uh, a half an inch of snow with a little bit of ice on the top shuts Dallas Fort worth down. So, um, crazy stuff, but yeah, man, thanks for asking. No, uh, no sickness at shot show.
I didn't get the sickness out of all the times I went to shot show. Um, I either got super sick, uh, by the end of the show, I could feel it coming on or like, or like the week after I would just get hammered. And then, um, there was one time where I got so sick from shot show that like the next year I was like, I'm not, I'm not getting sick. I'm not getting sick.
And so like, I was taking like Zycam and airborne and I was doing hand sanitizer. Like, like I would set a timer on my watch and I would do hand sanitizer like every 30 minutes. And then I would go to the bathroom, um,
every like every hour on the hour and like wash my hands with soap and water and come back to the booth and then 30 minutes with the hand sanitizer and the zycam and the airborne and the you know all that stuff that was the one time that i didn't get sick and then of course like then i'm an idiot and so then the next year i was like oh well i didn't get sick last year i'm sure i'll be fine this year but it was but then and then you relax and then i got sick again but yeah um
Yeah, you're talking about the snow. My first year in the Navy, I was stationed up in Maine. And up there, they had these big open parking lots, just big paved flat areas that were specifically for piling up snow in the winter. In the summer, you're like, why is there this big random parking lot in the middle of nowhere so they could pile up all the snow there in the winter?
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Chapter 4: What innovations are manufacturers making with 2011-pattern pistols?
I know that my boss did because he had some stuff to see when it comes to, um, uh, like, uh, machine shop stuff. But other than that, it was, uh, all business for me as far as just meetings after meetings. So that was, that was interesting. Um, And I got to tell you, man, like, and even when I had some downtime, I found myself in the media room talking to a couple other guys.
Like, I talked to Hickok45 for a little bit. Oh, really? Yeah, man. It was really interesting because... I can go back a few years when I saw him there and this was when I was with the firearm lubricant company and I tried to hand them some samples and the dude didn't want to say shit to me. Now this was on the show floor.
Now we're up in the media room and we're both having a cup of coffee and like him and I just happened to be standing right next to each other. And he was like, how's the show going? I was just like, okay, cool. Like it's interesting. And by the way, you know, then you see their real names and you're just like, oh, that's the dude's real name. He's just been Hickok 45.
The other dude who I haven't seen in a long time was mil spec monkey. Um, Oh yeah. Yeah. Like, uh, Clayton over there. He was, it was wild to see him. I remember way back in the beginning and he, uh, he rolled up to the booth when we had the firearm lubricant there. That's when Mike lamb was, was doing our celebrity appearance. And, um,
they just busted out their equipment and immediately did like a five or 10 minute video on how the product worked, which was really cool.
But the last time I can remember seeing him, he was wearing an entire suit, like a, like a suit and tie, like kind of suit. But the entire thing was made out of multicam Velcro entire suit. That's awesome.
Speaking of Velcro. So I ended up, it's been a goal of mine to leave shot show with less, right? Like I, I mean, our mutual friend there who he always has to leave with bags of swag. And I'm just like, all right, man, I guess like if that's your thing, it's not my thing. Like I said, I went with KDG stickers. I came back with not KDG stickers. I did come back with a couple of patches. Yeah.
uh alex from zert las vegas who's our poc out there she gifted me an awesome zert hq patch that was when they had the hq in las vegas and that's a special one so love that thank you alex for uh for giving that to me and then uh sarah from kitfox designs she makes some awesome awesome pvc patches man like she is super talented and she does rifles, uh, pistols.
She does all kinds of weapons and they're super detailed and they're huge, man. They're like, I'd say the ones that I got, like the AR rifle that I got, I would say it's probably about, I don't know, man, like six, seven inches from, from end to end, super detailed. Um,
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Chapter 5: What makes the Dragon pistol from Rideout Arsenal unique?
He was like, oh, it's right down this aisle. He's like, but please check out our 2011 section. We've got 2011s now. It's right next to the breadcrumbs. And it just seems like that and your local electronic store, everybody's got a 2011 this year. So- That's a joke. But the point being, I think this year, 2026, is going to be the year of the 2011 and the suppressor.
Well, and let's take a second to appreciate the irony of that statement, because the 2011 is called the 2011 because it came out in the year 2011. And now here we are 15 years later, and everybody's acting like the 2011 is something new, which I like that.
Well, yeah, I don't know that. Yeah, I don't know that they think it's new, but everyone has decided to start making one that thinks it's better. I think maybe it took them... How many years is that? 2011 to... 2011 to 2026 is 15 years. 15 years. So it took them 15 years to... To jack the price up. I can tell you that.
No, I mean, like when 2011 first came out, you know, back in 2010, 2011, they were they were very expensive back then because every single one of them was a custom gun. Nobody like and that was kind of like back then. What's what's what would qualify that?
three grand and in i mean yeah okay yeah that's cool that's cool but now they're eight yeah yeah tell me what they did you know but i mean but back then only only competition shooters had them um because competition shooters were the only people that were willing to to put in the time and the money because even though each one of them was a custom gun once you got it, they all needed tuning.
The magazines needed tuning the, like the, you know, back then they all used magazines from a single source. And like, it wasn't, it's not like a Glock where you can go buy a Glock magazine off the shelf at your, your local Bass Pro shop. And it is going to run in your gun. Like your 2011 magazines had to be like custom, uh, tuned and custom shaped or whatever, like to be able to run in your gun.
And, um, Now, the difference is there's 2011 pistols that are coming off of a machine in an assembly line. They're not all custom anymore, but yeah, you're right. Some of them are eight grand or whatever, but that's not new either. The Terran Tactical ones that have been around for several years now, they've always been seven to eight thousand dollars.
Right. I would say that he probably started that trend up. Right. So he, and, and what I will tell you about Karen's guns is when you look at his sand Viper or pit Viper, it looks beautiful. I will, I will be the first to sit there and say, it looks gorgeous. Right. Like that burnt copper thing that he ended up with chef's kiss. I think it's what the kids say. Yeah.
But I mean, aside from that though, I mean, you know, If you guys know me, I have shot quite a few guns in my day. I was about to compare myself to Ben Steger, which is not a comparison. I'm not saying I'm as good of a shooter as him or anything like that. But I've shot a lot of guns in my time, and it kind of takes a lot to impress me.
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Chapter 6: How does the Dragon compare to other handguns in the market?
honest opinion. It's an upgrade for the 19, for as many people as preach about the Glock 19, the Glock 19, the Glock 19. At this point, I would choose a 48 over a 19, but that's not because of the shootability of the gun. It's because of the whole... When I shot Terran's 2011, I mean, it... It is amazing. It's an amazing shooting.
Okay. Was it Terrence personal 2011?
Yes. I was shooting Terrence personal one. Okay.
So it might be a little tuned, but we don't know that again. I've never, I've never shot one of his guns. Quite honestly, the first 2011 that I shot was the Kimber that I made videos about last year. It was not the first 2011 that I handled. But it was the first one that gave me that impressed, like, oh, wow.
Okay, I want to shoot this because if this feels this good like this, then let me see how it shoots. So that's where I ended. Like, there was no interest in a staccato. And I know that they were the, I guess, the gold standard when it came to 2011s, right? STI, then staccato. Like, that was what everybody aspired to get.
Well, I think they are also, like... If you notice, all of these other quote-unquote 2011s that are coming out, none of them are actually called a 2011, and I think that's because what was STI is now Staccato, and I do think they have the trademark on the name or the model of 2011.
So the Kimber is the 2K11, the Sig is the P211, and all the rest of them have these names that are 2011 adjacent, but I think Staccato is the only one that can actually call their gun a 2011.
Right. Yeah. So but, you know, OK, step back a second before the Terran 2011 started making waves and you had these 1911s, Les Bear, Wilson Combat, Dan Wesson, Nighthawk Customs.
Yeah. Yeah.
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Chapter 7: What insights do the hosts share about social media's impact on current events?
Um, when I racked the slide and, and I picked up a alpha Fox trot Romulus and again, still crunchy. Um, I was told about this 2311, which is by OA Defense, a company out of North Carolina. It's the 2311. It's a really weird-looking design. It's supposed to, I think, operate off of the P320 mag thing.
Oh, I did hear about this. Right. Yeah. Yeah.
Um, I grabbed it super aggressive. It's almost like they just threw 60 grit sandpaper, wrapped it around the, the, the, the, um, uh, the grip and that was it. Like I, it was different, you know, different. I, and I just don't like the look of it. It looked a little bit too awkward for me. And I know we're talking aesthetics, right? It really has to come down to shootability. Um,
Well, it's funny when you talk about like the like there's so many of these things that like come out at SHOT Show and they're, you know, they're on every influencer's channel and they're in Recoil magazine and they're all this. It's the it's the next big thing. And it's, you know, and so when you when you just said, oh, it's this.
It's this aesthetically weird-looking aggressive gun that came out of this shop in North Carolina. My brain automatically went back to the old Warsport ARs that were supposed to be the next big thing. Warsport is going to revolutionize the AR industry. And guess where Warsport is now? They don't exist. And for a minute –
they were on every YouTube channel and every gun fluencer had to have one. And they were on the cover recoil magazine and all this stuff. And now they don't exist. And so like, right. A lot of what you're saying stinks of that, except for the, the Kimber two K 11. I like,
I think this is now the third year I haven't been to SHOT Show, so this year I actually did miss it, and actually this year I wish I had gone. But as a person that's somewhat of a firearms industry insider, watching SHOT Show this year from the social media feeds and from the YouTube feeds and stuff, one of the biggest... good positive buzzes to come out of shot show was the Kimber 2k11.
So, I mean, you, you were on the, you seem to be on that train pretty early. You got a seat at the front and now everybody else is jumping on board.
So, yeah. And I was late to the late to the party that time, but this, Oh, a defense, you know, they remove the, the grip safety. Um, they, they gave it a really awkward, um, uh, looking grip with a swell and their mag, like their, uh, their mag. Well, I don't, it just looks dumb. Like it, it really looks dumb. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Oh, a defense. I know you're going to be listening to this.
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Chapter 8: What final thoughts do the hosts offer on staying informed and prepared?
2011. I don't know what you call it. It's the alias something or other. Um, I, I know Michael parks and, you know, obviously they do some good work over there, but I gotta tell you, like, The concept, like they made a great video about launching this thing, right?
Like high-end quality short film and you get a Halliburton briefcase or whatever it is and you open it up and there's your card and your gun and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And then I went and looked at the price tag and I was like, oh my God, $7,500. Yeah. I'm not naive folks. I know that there's people out there with fuck you money and they buy stuff like this. So it's not who's buying it.
My question when I walked up to the booth was who the fuck is carrying this?
Yeah.
Please tell me who's carrying a seven to $8,000 pistol in their pants. Um, and I don't think anybody is, I think like, you know, I've got a, a cool Zert skull and a death Ridge toothpick behind me on display. I think people buy that and they put it in a shadow box and be like, look what I got. But, um, Who's going to give a shit about that? Nobody really.
Like, and if you've got that on your coffee table, what are you doing? Like, it's just a weird centerpiece.
Yeah. I mean, that's like that, that collector guy on YouTube. It's the, the YouTube channel is called the collector. Right. And it's this guy that he's this millionaire and he loves to spend his money on guns, but he can't shoot worth of shit. He couldn't hit water if he was standing in a boat, but he invites like Lena Michalak over and, and Daniel Horner to come over. So,
When they come over to visit the collector, they get to shoot the $8,000 handgun that otherwise, exactly like you said, sits on a little hook on the wall in his billion-dollar gun bunker that's in the basement of his house and all that. That's not just a throwaway question to say, who is this for? Because most competition shooters aren't rich by any means, uh, competition shooting is expensive.
And unless you're at the very tippy top, um, you know, you're coming out of pocket quite a bit, um, to, to be a serious competitor, um, because the, the people that are at the top also, by the way, didn't get there by accident. They also started out coming out of pocket. And, um, but you're right. Nobody's going to conceal carry a $7,000, $8,000 handgun. A cop is not going to carry that on duty.
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