Vortex Nation Podcast

Vortex Optics

Welcome to the Vortex Nation Podcast. Brought to you by lovers of hunting, shooting, public lands, the Second Amendment and dang good food.

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942 episodes
Updated Yesterday

Episodes942

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Jul 27, 2020 · 49 min
Ep. 136 | Alaska archery brown bear hunting with Justin Olk
Justin Olk, of Game of Inches TV, joins Jimmy and Mark following a “Vortex Selects” video special around SE Alaska archery brown bear hunting. Why even try to go after a brown bear with a bow? Isn’t that dangerous? How many bears do you see in a place like that and what tactics are you employing to get in close enough for the take? How about the logistics of even getting there? If these questions are popping into your head right now, tune in and find out here because we addressed these very topi
Jul 21, 2020 · 16 min
#10MinuteTalk – 7mm-08 By Popular Demand
You asked for it and here it is! Jimmy and Mark hang out with Ryan Muckenhirn for a good 10…ish… minutes to talk about the venerable 7mm-08 cartridge. What it is, where it came from, why it exists and what’s the deal with 7mm and why does it so often seem to be looked over? Check it out and as usual, let us know what other cartridges you want to hear about.
Jul 20, 2020 · 1 hr 31 min
Ep. 135 | The Life of a Sniper
If you’re listening to this podcast, chances are you’ve dreamed at some point in your life of being a sniper. The stories we hear, the movies we watch, and the images depicted always seem to show a lone ranger with the uncanny ability to sneak in behind enemy lines undetected, frequently engaging targets with incredible precision at extremely long ranges. Is that really what it’s all about? Tony Palzkill is not only one of the team members of a group within Vortex we can’t talk much about, but a
Jul 16, 2020 · 54 min
Ep. 134 | MeatEater’s Ryan Callaghan – Carp to Covid, planning for the Unplanned
In this episode, Ryan Muckenhirn fills in for Jimmy, MC Ryan flawlessly navigates his complex suite of electronics and we sit down with MeatEater’s own Ryan Callaghan to chat through how we as sportsmen can navigate rapidly changing plans, shifting on the fly, silver linings of plans that get flushed down the proverbial toilet, learning new skills, taking advantage of less popular seasons, and few things he’s been up to lately. We also cover the super interesting up-tick in hunting, fishing and
Jul 14, 2020 · 16 min
#10MinuteTalk - Custom Turrets
Nick Laufenberg joins Jimmy and Mark to discuss “custom turrets” for your riflescope – What are custom turrets, how do they work, what are their limitations, and should you get some for your riflescope? If not those, what are some other ways to get quick ballistics solutions in the field? All these questions and more get answered right here!
Jul 13, 2020 · 1 hr 19 min
Ep. 133 | Remi Warren and Ryan Lampers - Early Archery Mule Deer
Remi Warren! Ryan Lampers! Early Season Archery Mule Deer! Pretty sure that’s all the description you need to click on this and get to learning. Mark connects with this dream team of Mule Deer hunting and Mule Deer knowledge to pick their brains clean of their lifetime of knowledge on this super cool topic! Mature Mule deer bucks don’t like to make mistakes – but these two gentlemen are masters at exploiting any edge they can get. Where do these deer live? What are they doing? Where are they goi
Jul 7, 2020 · 13 min
#10MinuteTalk - All About Co-Witnessing
We see a lot of misinformation/confusion on the interwebs about co-witnessing red dots and holographic sights with the iron sights on AR’s or pistols. Are you supposed to line up your red dot with your irons? Can you use your irons to sight in your red dot? What’s the point of co-witnessing in the first place and how important is it really? Rob Morell joins Jimmy and Mark in this episode to debunk some myths we’ve seen about this topic!
Jul 6, 2020 · 1 hr 7 min
Ep. 132 | Survival Rifles
It’s about time we talk about survival rifles. What’s the deal with these things? They come in all shapes, sizes and even calibers, but yet never really seem to catch fire. In this episode, Ryan Muckenhirn joins Jimmy and Mark to discuss a bit of the history of survival rifles, many of the different kinds, what cartridge is the best for survival situations, what optic works best on a survival rifle, what the heck are we even preparing to survive in the first place, and much more! As always, we
Jun 30, 2020 · 15 min
#10MinuteTalk - Brush Busting Cartridges - Fact or Fiction
Quick-handling repeating guns firing big, heavy, slow-moving (comparatively) bullets have garnered a reputation for being “Brush Busters” for as long as we can remember. But why? Do the bullets these cartridges fire really bust through brush accurately, delivering their heavy payload on target no matter what lay before them. Are bucks in heavy cover with a screen of brush covering their vitals truly unsafe from these magic bullets? Is this concept fact or fiction? Should we do some experimenting
Jun 29, 2020 · 47 min
Ep. 131 | AZ Bear Hunting with Josh Kirchner
Arizona may not be the first state you think of when it comes to fall black bear hunting, but it may be one you want to get on your radar. Mark sits down with Arizona resident and expert hunter Josh Kirchner, to talk about this super cool hunt and all it offers. A beautiful and unique region, over the counter tags, the flexibility to choose your weapon, a season that runs concurrently with several others, and the chance you may come home with some delicious meat – what’s not to like. Josh covers
Jun 25, 2020 · 1 hr 19 min
Ep. 130 | Solo Filming Hunts with Remi Warren
Remi Warren joins Mark and Jimmy once again to discuss solo filming hunts. After we talked with Wyatt and Erik about outdoor photography, we got a number of requests suggesting going into detail around filming hunts - and who better to talk to about this topic than a man who has been filming his own hunts for years professionally. Not only has Remi put out some incredible videos shot entirely on his own with multiple cameras he’s hiked back into the wilderness, but he also feels it’s made him a
Jun 23, 2020 · 24 min
#10MinuteTalk - Two Truths and a Lie – Know Your Hosts (2 Year Podcast!)
We can’t believe it’s been two years of podcasting already! After all this time, it seemed like a good idea to do an episode for you all to get to know our hosts, Jimmy and Mark, a little bit better. This breaks the normal trend of our mostly instructional episodes and focuses solely on having a little fun. Don’t worry – we’ll be back to our regularly scheduled episodes right after this. Here’s to another 2+ years of podcasting!
Jun 22, 2020 · 1 hr 5 min
Ep. 129 | Whitetails on the ground with Jared Scheffler/Whitetail Adrenaline
If you like heart-pounding, edge-of-your seat, ground-based whitetail action like we do – listen to this podcast - then go check out the DVD’s Jared Scheffler/Whitetail Adrenaline has been putting out since 07. Yes I said DVDs’, yes they are still making them and yes you should pick one up and have an old fashioned DVD party with your hunting homeys - complete with snacks and a cold one, or two, or……. we’re not your Mom, do what you want. In this episode, we sit down with Jared to talk abou
Jun 16, 2020 · 18 min
#10MinuteTalk – Troubleshooting Your Shooting Equipment
Don’t blame yourself, it could be your equipment. Jimmy, Mark and well, pretty much just our beloved Ryan Muckenhirn, talk you through the things you should check on your rifle and in what order to rule out inconsistencies in accuracy. We also cover how and why issues may manifest so you can spot them easier. We’ve all experienced accuracy ghosts – those things that seem unexplainable. You tear your hair out and burn ammo trying to ferret out the culprit and remedy the problem for days and possi
Jun 15, 2020 · 1 hr 16 min
Ep. 128 | Do Suppressors Affect Accuracy?
The title says it all – Does putting a suppressor on the end of your rifle make it inherently less accurate? More accurate? No different at all? Reuben and Adam, our in house “Can Bois” for all things NFA, discuss the many variables and details that go into not only how suppressors work in terms of making your shot quieter, but also how they influence the performance of your rifle. Notice we didn’t say “Hurt” the performance of your rifle – You’ll have to listen to figure out that part! As alwa
Jun 9, 2020 · 13 min
#10MinuteTalk - Taping your Muzzle – Should you?
Taping the muzzle of your rifle – common practice for some, extreme uncertainty for others. I mean how could sealing the business--end of your rifle not effect accuracy? It has to right? Or does it? Jimmy, Mark and our beloved Ryan “Mucky” Muckenhirn sit down to discuss this very topic. Listen up, it may just save your hunt!
Jun 8, 2020 · 1 hr 26 min
Ep. 127 | “Why am I missing?” – Troubleshooting Your Misses
I’ve you’ve been shooting for really any amount of time, chances are you’ve found yourself in the incredibly frustrating situation where you just can’t seem to hit a target no matter what you do. We’ve certainly been there, too! It really doesn’t matter whether it’s at 1,000+ yards or 100 yards, there are so many variables that go into every single shot, it can happen on any rifle or at any distance. Scott Parks and Reuben Aleckson join Jimmy and Mark to discuss, from some pro shooter’s perspect
Jun 2, 2020 · 22 min
#10MinuteTalk - “Over-Torqued Rings”
If you hunt, shoot or compete with an optics-equipped firearm, this could be the most important information you hear or that you can give to your friends to create the most reliable, accurate and repeatable setup possible. “Over-Torqued Rings” is a phrase we’ve mentioned in the past on the podcast and one you may have heard about on the internet from time to time. There’s all kinds of different rings/mounts/specs/ideas/theories out there that can make actually getting the right information on ho
Jun 1, 2020 · 1 hr 20 min
Ep. 126 | Submachine Guns – The Coolest Guns Ever??
What do you do when the tide of a war has changed and suddenly your complicated, pole-vault-pole-length, bolt action rifles are no longer a viable solution to close quarters combat or outfitting a massive fighting force? Get out your sheet metal, some random parts from the hardware store, a few car mufflers and as many hands as you can get to build stuff and start cranking out some submachine guns. Few other categories of firearms come in so many unique shapes, sizes, and chamberings with such i
May 28, 2020 · 17 min
#10MinuteTalk – The 300 WSM… Finally…
Much to Mark’s delight, Ryan Muckenhirn joins him and Jimmy to discuss the 300 WSM. (Sorry, Texans – there’s a lot of different pronunciations we throw around of “WSM” in this one). All of Jimmy’s joking to poke fun at Mark aside, the 300 WSM is one impressive cartridge and to quote Ryan himself, could be looked at as “The modern day gentleman’s 30-06”. That’s a big claim to make, but could it be true? We talk all about design, performance, comparisons and limitations (Just to bug Mark) in this