@Joe45-91 I saw a video on one of those "self-defense insurance" companies (who I will not name). Basically they let a paying member go through a substantial amount of the legal process without helping him, and another company picked up his defense (maybe for publicity, idk). They weren't ready to spend the money on a real legal defense for someone actually facing real charges. I have not renewed my membership with them since. A lot of the (older) 2A institutions have evolved into money businesses that grift on 2A issues.
A yes would’ve meant I finally got to start my “youtuber career” because this would stop costing me money every month. they have SO much money; i’m not sure how this will effect us in the industry going forward. Integrity is worth more to me than anything; even though I usually make silly videos.
So according to the dude in Grey he went to SDI and thought he was going to be able to start a gun manufacturing company?? He also said he finished college and went right back to school because he wasn't prepared. So wouldn't that make the 4 year $200k tuition that you didn't even attempt to use the biggest scam??
Ive used SDI uning Tuition Assistance. Did it for about 18 months. My command found out and asked me to stop, sent me to training instead. I learned more in 3 weeks at training than 18 months at SDI
Dam, people actually believe SDI is real college.. Majors like Gender studies, art appreciation, decision sciences. You really thought every "college" was useful? It's not that college is a scam, you just got scammed by "college" using loophole to get your money
I graduated from SDI and regret ever going. Most of the curriculum was UA-cam videos I had already watched for free. The only jobs that I could get were VERY low paying.
22k for an associates degree in "gunsmithing" in a virtual setting? Thats like serving me microwave mac n cheese and telling me its a home made Italian meal.
I'm confused on the gunsmithing in a virtual setting but they have an estimated travel cost when showing the 20k price lol. Travelling where? To the zoom class?
To be fair, with that breakdown of the $22k, more than half of it, over $13k, aren't things you'd be charged for online classes. Room and board, transportation, books. At the top it says "based on the info you've provided" so they clearly went for the highest possible bill, and not an online class. Still though $9.4K to learn a hands on skill online is a fucking scam.
In recent years, I’ve realized that if it advertises on my every podcast and UA-cam channel I consume, it isn’t a good product. From Raycon to Better Help to SDI to whatever mattress, etc.
All their money spent on advertising, and none on the actual product. It reminds me of a plot point in the show Silicon Valley (a great comedy about the tech world), when their small software development company was growing the choice was made to basically get rid of all the actual developers and techs, and just have a massive marketing department, with all the operating revenue spent on advertising, with no actual product. Pretty spot on to the real world unfortunately.
I think that this sort of video is really healthy for the community. You guys didnt come without reason for your opinions. If we can't look inward and make sure we aren't pushing garbage, then what good do we serve. Over the years, I've separated from a few brands that stopped making sense along the way and I think thats important for everyone to do, even if the paychecks are big.
We don’t have a reputation for starting drama and I try to keep it that way; but sometimes we get repeatedly asked about a company and this one is better explained in our long video. the hope is that SDI uses some of its ridiculous money to fix its program…
@@DeskPopi used to teach as an online instructor there. You’re spot on. Having been an LE armorer and armorer in the manufacturing industry. This is a trade you need to learn and be taught by others in person on the job. Honestly try to get into a manufacturer as an assembly technician/armorer. You can’t replace real experience
I work for a major firearms manufacturer. They have world class gunsmiths. Not one attended SDI. I know people who graduated from SDI and it did nothing to improve their career in the firearms industry. It’s nice to see someone saying this rather than shilling.
Hey gotta pay the bills somehow honestly if you thought sdi was a good idea you kinda deserved it same with most other sponsors like optics planet and lucky gunner for example
SDI= online school scam. It is sad youtubers don't actually enroll themselves to see if it is even legit. This is like those gold investment companies they promote on conservative related content on youtube. They rip you off on the purchase price and sell price of gold if they even actually buy gold for you and "store" it for you. Oxford Gold Group just went bankrupt last month. Some fools actually invested over 100k with them thinking the company actually bought gold and stored it. Some even took out 401K money to invest with them. Millions of dollars gone. That wont be the last gold buying scam. Also, remember that "Establish Titles" land buying scam where you buy a square foot of royal property in England? Scams come and go lol.
The idea that Brandon, the professional gunsmith prior to youtube, shilled for SDI makes it so much worse since people would be more likely to think "oh damn ok SDI is legit then"
I had a squad leader get upset with me because he came up all excited about SDI and his big pitch was at the end of your course you learn how to build your own AR-15 and I just replied with “why go and pay for a course when the end product is something you can learn to do yourself on UA-cam” he was completely shocked to the realization that he was getting ripped off.
No different to any university. I’ve done a double degree in Design and Media Communication and everything I’ve learnt I could’ve watched an hour long UA-cam video lmao.
I don’t want to divulge too much personal information, so I’ll just say, I went to a brick and mortar Gunsmithing school right out of high school. The curriculum was 80-85% hands on work. 15-20% bookwork and that’s honestly that’s being generous. We had over 5,000 firearms in our schools vault that we were able to have access too. The first year alone was basically disassembly and assembly of various firearms. Then you got into welding, heat treating, working with Mills, working with Lathes. Bluing, glass bedding, stock working from a solid piece of lumber. I could go on and on and on about the hands on work it takes to really learn the trade. Fast forward to now, I’ve seen the SDI sponsorships from many channels for years and have always wondered, how the hell can you get an online degree for a job that is almost entirely hands on?!? Never really cared to look into it. As I have no interest for it, then this video hits my suggestion feed. Thanks for shedding some light on the matter. Liked, subscribed, and hit the bell notification.
Not necessarily a scam, but definitely not a smart investment nearly ever lol. The one the one that always gets me is those stupid overpriced wallets like ridge lol
@@tjbullis1491 How much for a Ridge wallet? My cheapo tri-fold has seen better days... WHOA $150 for a piece of milled aluminum & a small strap attached? GTFOH! 😠
The thing about Nord is that a VPN is useful in specific situations, but not in the situations they use to promote it. A VPN will obscure (not hide) your physical location. It will help you get around content filters on your local network. It won't do a darn thing to protect your privacy.
@@Studio23Media Nord deliberately misrepresents in its ads what a VPN does. They claim it protects you from hackers, data thieves, etc., when a VPN does nothing of the sort.
Guys if you want to get into gunsmithing, save your tuition, go buy a mini machining setup (2000-3000) and start studying. This is the foundation of firearm production, repair, modification. Also buy some BUSTED old guns and practice on them. Listen to every word Mark Novak has ever said, its all gold.
I inherited a bunch of problems in a collection. I did what Mark said and did the maintenance. I also worked at a machine shop during my summers from college. Eventually I was having people bring me problems because they saw me using things my grandfathers neglected. I'm now at the "You owe me for materials and beverages" stage of practicing.
Best advice I ever heard was "learn to be a machinist if you wanna be a gunsmith." It's often at the heart of everything a gunsmith does, it's literally how guns were/still are made. And if gunsmithing doesn't work out in your area or for you specifically, you still got machinist certs to fall back on.
I'd never heard of sdi and was shocked that there's an associates degree for gun smithing. I was like wtf lol, wouldn't you want to start as a machinist and get cnc experience. Having an engineering degree in mechanical, chemical or even classical physics. I received an engineering degree (not one that would apply to gun smithing) but still had to take many basic engineering classes. Dynamics, Fluid dynamics, material classes would benefit the most
@@goldenhide Exactly. Gunsmithing and especially gundealing requires alot of time and money to invest, and its not guaranteed to profit. In my first year with that 3k machining setup I only made 5k making compensators.
As a veteran, as a former student at sdi, they are a diploma mill praying on veterans education benefits. You will not be a gunsmith by any means once you finish your their program. The software or servers that run Their online courses also freeze constant, fail to load and make it very difficult to get anything done. 100% would not recommend to my friends but would to my enemies so I could laugh at the screwing I already know to well they are about to get. Congress needs to discredit close and throw the culprits in jail.
Honestly at this point it is much faster to specify the extremely few educational programs of any type in the US which are not a worthless scam and sheep-shearing operation. US education is FUBAR, it was done on purpose by people who hate you, the stock has basically gone to zero unless you can get a couple very in-demand skills or go to an ivy
Congress hates vets AND firearms owners, and especially the firearms industry. Why wouldn't they want this scam to continue? It only hurts the people they already hate, so I'm sure they see it as a win.
thank you so much. ive been saving to go to SDI and i will now be researching other options. genuinely appreciate what youve done here. youve saved me years of time and money and im very thankful.
@@423D This is why we made the video; the insane amount of people saying they’re cool with the service because it’s just taking their GI bill don’t understand that tons of people are saving their own money to spend on this college in the hope it’ll launch their career…
I looked into SDI but walked away after asking some very basic questions of the, very persistent, rep who calle some twice a day and left numerous messages for me to call him back. I asked how big of a shop I’d need to learn to mill, lathe etc. he said it wouldn’t be necessary and the the $12k a year covered every aspect with out much hands on learning or machine work needed. That is crazy and I laughed so hard at this obvious scam company. I could teach you as much as them plus some machine work from the answers their scammer rep attempted to give me. He was happy to end the call after my very average questions. Sorry for anyone who did open their wallets for these dishonest clowns.
Is sad to see Integrity leaving the “influencers” but at the same time we don’t get nearly as many sponsors or as high of offers when we drop stuff like this or just tell them “no” when we don’t like their product
@DeskPop Influencers have never had any integrity. Most millennials and generation DA are just flat out zombified sheep that blindly believe what the internet tells them.
People will knowingly sign up to waste their money on stuff like this and then act like they got scammed. This isn’t even a gun thing this is just basic school 101
I had a similar experience a few years back, when Brandon Herrera first started shilling for them. I looked into it, was concerned by the lack of information about the cost, googled the cost, and was horrified by the amount for an online course. If it was $100 or so, it might be worth it for the shortest course, but not $10-20k. I closed my half completed application and thought that was it. They called me less than an hour later asking me why I didn't finish the application. I politely said I couldn't afford to pay the tuition, and they hung up on me without another word
To be fair GarandThumb used to be and most other guntubers are currently working under contract with Leviathan Group. It is a marketing company that negotiates all of the sponsorship contracts on behalf of the channels. GT announced fairly recently that he was going to leave Leviathan Group and do sponsorships strictly in house and only with sponsors they had vetted. So while he did agree to the contract with Leviathan, he likely did not have final say in what specific sponsors he had to do spots for
@@jossege thats incorrect; we are signed with Leviathan group. I personally Vett all the sponsors we take on and have said no countless times (this video in particular did not make them happy) Leviathan represents your channel for financial negotiations; you still get to say yes or no to the job.
He HAD his ad campaigning subsided by and therefore under the control of leviathan group - whom he recently severed ties with - and I imagine this whole thing is part of the reason why. Not defending him necessarily, just adding context
I had a pretty similar experience. I completed my degree. I think it would be a decent program (but not for the price) for a person that knows nothing about guns. I completed 90% of my classes and assignments without opening the textbooks (but I still had to cite them). With that said, I also have about a decade of experience as a hobby gunsmith. I did it for the free degree, and free gun (I used TA for it).
This is probably as good a place as any to talk about my experience with SDI. It was February of 2023, my first kid had just been born, and I had realized the clock was ticking on chances to better myself for both me and my kid's sake. I tried SDI, because I have always had a great interest in gunsmithing that I just never capitalized on. A year passes with sleepless nights and mind numbing coursework, and I felt I had learned nothing of practical use. I withdrew from the school and began building an AK from scratch instead, learning more in the process. I now get to bootstrap my career with an extra ~$11,000 + interest in tow with a warning for other enthusiasts. Don't use SDI if you know (and I mean this) anything about guns. You'll be better off using your money on machines, educational material, and tools. Also ring me up if you're looking for a hoosier apprentice lol
$20k worth of tools is better than a degree. At least you can sell the tools if you decide to go a different route down the road. I am a college graduate and I approve this message.
I actually graduated and you work and disassemble some guns. I disassembled my glock completely, was nothing but metal and pins. I made an entire AR10 and go gauged it. History, ballistics, laws, optics, all the different systems, business set up, safety, finishes, metal and woodworking, old and new. They tell you everything and the class discussions, you learn a lot! The professors were extremely knowledgeable and I think most people here don;t even know what they want to actually do. I'm glad I went but I'm more glad I used my GI bill.
Agree I have been thinking about signing up with them for a while. I wonder if there will be a response? I haven’t seen anyone in the comments or other tubers asking about SDI or mocking them.
Reason I took SDI ads a few years ago: Buddy was an instructor and spoke highly of it. Reason I stopped taking sdi ads: He slowly began to see the education being offered was not worth it for the students. I think he might be on focus trips stream/video at some point.
I’m glad we will get more eyes on it from an instructors viewpoint too. The money they throw out right now is life changing to a small channel like us. So it’s really a moment of “do I just do the ads and get the check”
I did the sdi associates deal, and I absolutely agree with this video 100٪. I would love to know how many sdi graduates worked on Brandon Herreras ak 50 project. My bet is zero. I am a contractor gunsmith 3 and it was the military maintenance process that landed me this job, SDI wasn't even a thought in my employers head.
I am glad someone is making a vid like this. I went to SDI and I was and still am a FFL in COMMIFORNIA. They charged the full GI BILL but exclude students that are in more restrictive states like Hawaii, NY, CA etc... so you don't get AR-15 training but they charged the VA benefits full tuition fee without providing full materials (AR15 materials) to the students. Even the pistol materials was iffy because of the handgun roster in COMMIFORNIA. I now specialize in AR15s and AK47s all NOT thanks to SDI. You can't learn everything by watching UA-cam channels but they have the big UA-cam channels as their SDI instructors. They are cool channels but SDI I would NOT recommend. OJT On The Job Training is priceless.
I remember about a year ago, some SDI instructors got into a tiff with Ivan and some other 2A 3d printing guys, basically regurgitating the same fudd talking points of "that would never work", "that would just explode", etc., even in the face of overwhelming documentation and video evidence. That right there told me everything I needed to know about SDI and the quality of their "educators".
I understand 100% what you guys are saying. It takes a large degree of integrity to walk away from those kinds of dollars. I'm 71 years old and I can honestly tell you the most important asset you have is your word. Many, many kudos to you two young gentlemen for having the balls to say no.
It's all we have here, I didn't fully realize that until my 30s, it's hard to understand the depth of that statement in today's society. I was almost killed and it changed my perspective on everything. There really is nothing here with value except your word!
As a recent graduate of the Colorado School of Trades in this past year, I cannot even begin to lay out the extent and depth of knowledge i gained at CST. As others have mentioned, metal working, wood working, tig, different ammos, headspacing, lathe, mill, cerakote, hand tools, blueprints, precise measuring, and so, so, so much more. Every graduate builds a rifle from the ground up, custom fitting a barrel blank to their teceiver that they chambered onto an action that they trued up. They bed the action into a synthetic stock, fully shape and finish out a wooden stock that they bed as well, its incredible. From my time there, about half to two thirds of the students are LE/MIL. ALL of the instructors are incredibly knowledgeable. There are flaws, but they are certainly being worked on. They appear to be adapting in near real time to the industry, and even host armorers courses while youre there, that you can attend as a student.
I wish I had known about gunsmithing at CST before wasting my voc rehab & GI Bill on some useless "accredited" diploma mill paper. A few months after I finished grinding for my pointless certifications, I met a guy who had just graduated from CST.... for exactly what I wanted to do in the first place. No thanks to any of the VA voc rehab counselors & DAV advisors I spent months talking with; CST was never mentioned once. Since then I've never had the opportunity to use *any* of what I learned in real life, and the promised jobs were non-existent. So in the close to 20 years since I kick myself nearly every day for not looking into different schools a little more, and just settling for what they were pushing at the time. I constantly wonder what-if, because now it's too late to do anything else and I have to watch everyone else having fun doing what I wanted to do. F*** the VA and f*** the DAV.
@@anaxis I mean, you still could have done that stuff if you had started at ground level. With the way you worded it, it sounds like you (rightly) got bitter and kinda gave up after one setback. IMO it's still not too late if you're up for it and really want it. 20-40k isn't all that much to get in debt, you'll have a better paid job and can nullify it pretty quickly. Agree about everything else though, f the va & dav, they shill for stuff like SDI.
Just one example of the bigger problem. UA-cam is happy to sensor any content they don’t like, regardless of its legality. However, they are more than happy to post the most ridiculously obvious scam adds the world has ever seen! As long as they are making bank they don’t care how many viewers are getting ripped off.
UA-cam wasn't posting it it was all of OUR favorite gun tubers backing it for years idk why you have 85 likes but there must be 85 more retards down here in the comments 😂 I've never been pushed an ad for SDI outside of a BH AC or GT vid so it's not UA-cam or Google pushing it it's our content creators pushing it with no due diligence bubba ( I know there are scam ads on UA-cam but SDI was only pushed by our creators)
I was going to be one of the foolish people who would go waste money on SDI, but then I looked up the reviews of SDI online. I was fortunate enough to talk to a guy in the firearms industry that set me straight on what SDI is actually offering and what it actually TAKES to be in the firearms industry. It was a long chat and I'm glad I reached out to him to explain this. So, thanks toy you guys of Desk Pop for save my backside as well.
LOL same here! Star Wars! I remember watching the animation about it on the news thinking how cool it was, not knowing at the time it wasn't anywhere near being developed.
When I decided to get into gunsmithing I debated between SDI and AGI (American Gunsmithing Institute) which people said were the top 2 places to go. I decided on AGI over SDI because it A) was less than half the price for their maximum package, B) had substantially more information and covered everything under the sun in terms of firearms, and C) was do at your own pace. I'm very glad I did. I'm a little over 1/3 the way through the course and I've learned a ridiculous amount about function and maintenance and troubleshooting. I still need more hands on work, but I started from nothing and now can tell you how the average firearm works, I know a lot of history, I have already repaired my 1st pistol, and I can explain how things work to other people. So glad I didn't pick SDI. The knowledge is always more important than the certification.
I've always stunned myself with how poor I perform in some aspects of life but then can instantaneously tell a company or person is fibbing with great accuracy.
right? It's a talent. I have been on YT since day one as I am yet to find out that someone I "like" turned out to be sth very distasteful. With how prolific certain proclivities are, this can't be a matter of chance xD
I got hired as a cnc operator with limited metal working experience. Will work at lower wages for a couple of years and then can earn much more. Kinda like an apprenticeship. No college required. Just a good attitude. Now I can run a mill and a lathe, and just today modified an mlok part for a better fit. Otj training.
Showing up sober and on time, willing to listen and learn, able to handle constructive criticism, and willing to actually work during work hours. You'll be light years ahead of others in your generation, and you'll never have to worry about finding a job. On the flip side, if you have all those qualities, don't settle for trying to learn from someone who isn't willing or able to teach, is mad all the time, doesn't care about your safety, and isn't willing to also do anything they want you to do.
I am attending Modern Gun School, now to be fair it is basically the same thing but. The whole tuition is like $2,500 and that’s including all the tools they send you. Difference is it is a trade school. It is accredited as well and takes the GI Bill. I like it pretty good though, it seems to build a decent foundation. Nothing super advanced but they send you projects to finish and send back for grades.
I finished the MGS Advanced course. Was worth the money in my opinion. Made me do projects I wouldnt normally do. Good experience and the project feedback was good.
1978 before the internet. There were about dozen or so gunsmith schools. I didn’t want to be a plumber,electrician,mechanic. I wanted something different. Ending up at Colorado School of Trades, and it was and is still around. The way CST did this was to take repairs from the public as well as your own firearms. You could go during the day or part time at night. Many veterans were among the students. If you were lucky you could score a part time job at a gun shop, Foothills Shooting Range. They were a Class 3 dealer meaning fully automatic firearms and I was in heaven. Keeping this short I graduated and looked around and applied for jobs in the firearms industry. I was green and even though I had training I wasn’t able to score the gunsmith position. (Another story),learned a lot made friends and some still talk to me to this day. CST was like becoming a doctor of sorts teaching general all around gunsmith things. Many would specialize,I had a blast. Working at several different shops and even working at Smith & Wesson. Learning a long the way I didn’t know as much as I thought. Most if not all firearms companies need CNC people to run the machines. You need hands on training. Be very careful picking a school and don’t let people take advantage of your G.I.Bill and you. Good luck on your journey.
Hey, you guys really stuck you neck out there going against a big sponsor whilst being a smaller channel. I fully respect that and admire your bravery and honesty. So many smaller channels would take any sponsorship to get off the ground but you did the right thing. Nice job guys.
This was a brave video for you guys to make; I can tell it made you both nervous to speak truth to power in the 2A & Guntube communities. Way to go. *As men of integrity, you both earned this subscription.*
@@Soniti1324 to be honest; it may have killed our channel financially. We are just starting to feel the heat from it but we would rather go down honest.
My little brother went to school to be a machinist, cost him a total of $2500; pulls in almost $110k/yr. Can do more than most gun smiths who claim to have 20 years experience.
Threats of government restrictions and today’s consumer society kind of made that a very niche low demand vocation. Guns are cheap now I’d imagine the vast majority are either sent back to the factory or pawned off on an unsuspecting soul to continue that process until it’s forgotten about or someone tinkers with it themselves.
@SuperIcarusman This is the way, you are 1000% right about the machinist path. Every shop is starving for capable curious people and you can learn most beginner info on UA-cam, Reddit etc. Enough to get you in the door and through many obstacles. And like you said way more and way cooler stuff than just guns
I requested info from sdi 3 years ago. Then decided it wasn't worth it and didn't pursue. They have called 3 or 4 times a month. 3 or 4 emails a week and weekly texts ever since. I have asked them to stop repeatedly in person, text and emails but I had an email and text this morning.
@@DeskPop you guys have earned my respect, I’ve been telling all my guys about how sdi produces mostly temu ass gunsmiths and now a lot of people have came out about which is going to be a good thing for service members and normal folks.
I've seen a couple of your videos here and there. However, this is the video that made me subscribe. I've been fucked over a lot, specially as an active duty service member. I joined to be an armorer as it has been a life long dream to work on firearms. You could ask people who are the closest to me how much of my time online is researching firearms and perfecting the builds I plan on making once I am of age. I moved to America and joined the military because of this dream I had. However the military screwed me over my armorer contract. So I decided then once I left my military career I would pursue an associates degree in SDI. Thanks to you guys, I won't now. I cannot express how thankful I am for you releasing this video and maintaining your integrity. Thanks to you I'm going to search new avenues of approach for my dream, and thanks to you, I save the benefits for which I need badly to keep pursuing my dream. God bless you, gentlemen
@@frankcastle584 Welcome to the channel, if you’ve seen our stuff you know we like to have fun, but we really value presenting you all with as unbiased takes as we can. Colorado school of trades would probably love to have you; if you’re extremely serious about your career (or any career) Moving to a new place for a bit is well worth it, especially to get trained by some of the best!
"However the military screwed me over my armorer contract." Never EVER, EVER, EVER trust your recruiter. (This is for anyone young enough to consider signing up) I am NOT saying you don't serve. Go in with your eyes wide open, knowing that your first or second choice may not be immediate. Once in, become a sponge. Wherever you get posted, take a course. Over a 6 year contract, you could hit as many as 2 courses a year if lucky (that's 10 additional positive marks on your record for while you are in, and 10 different things you know when you get out - Your first year will be challenging enough, survive!). What you become is based on YOU, not what that man handing you the paper to sign says.
Thank you for putting this out. Every time I see a gun tuber advertise SDI, I'm going to link this video in their comments. I've been screaming this at them (proverbially) for years, to no avail. They don't listen.
There is no substitute for hands on learning. As you stated - a milling machine and lathe are not something you can learn remotely. You cannot separate them from the curriculum. I spent two years obtaining an associates degree from an NRA accredited program in North Carolina. It got me a job in the industry. It made me cringe hearing people support and promote the SDI program. Go to a real school. There are four in the country last I checked. PA, AZ, CO, and NC.
I graduated this year from the program at Trinidad State in Colorado. I definitely got more out of it than SDI offers. Machine shop classes, welding, all the way to making traditional wood stocks.
@@Rob-bn9ib yep! We learned how to blueprint a gun from scratch. How to make tools. How to refinish guns correctly. If you wanted to learn color case hardening - they would take the time to teach you. Whatever part of gunsmithing you wanted to specialize in. Another point the video leaves out - there are areas of expertise. Some guys end up just doing general repair, some of them make ludicrous money doing very intricate metal engraving, or making high-end safari rifles.
To get a sponsorship you have to sign a strict and detailed contract dictating how the sponsor is presented on your (and any affiliated) channel. Broadcasting anything else on the channel, even from someone else's mouth, would constitute a breach, and a successful lawsuit would follow.
Yeah that’s not how those work. You don’t get paid til after the vid is posted and there’s usually multiple checks/reviews the sponsor gets to do of the full video before you post it.
@@ShellShock794agree. But hes making the absolute jack off the sponsors. Another channel mentioned GT and said he will get 20,000-30,000 grand from companies to have a quick ad on his video. "Mantis dry fire systems are cool" they give him 20 grand. Anyone who says they wouldnt take that deal is either independently wealthy, have no family, or an absolute fkin retard.
@@ShellShock794 To be fair GarandThumb used to be and most other guntubers are currently working under contract with Leviathan Group. It is a marketing company that negotiates all of the sponsorship contracts on behalf of the channels. GT announced fairly recently that he was going to leave Leviathan Group and do sponsorships strictly in house and only with sponsors they had vetted. So while he did agree to the contract with Leviathan, he likely did not have final say in what specific sponsors he had to do spots for
I’m a retired guy and I was thinking about getting into gunsmithing. I was researching SDI and your video was the first video that I watched, thanking you for not letting waste my time and MONEY.
Is that what he's shoveling into his mouth while trying to talk at the same time? F^$k^&g moron. My first partial video here will be my last video here.
To who? People need to stop blaming other people for their own gullibility. I get it though. You trust his words and he told you about something, but if he handed you a gun instead it wasn't loaded you better check that thing (what I mean is you should always look more in depth into what it is you're getting yourself into instead of just going into it with open arms and an open wallet)
Nothing grand thumb promotes is quality. AAC is trash ammo, the dry fire bullshit is a gimmick and as the video focuses on, SDI is not a useful tool. His videos are good but his promotions mean nothing.
@@abracing199so glad people are recognizing this. For a long time he just takes sponsors by the highest bidder. I pretty much ignore any of his sponsorship promotions. His videos are good but I’ve stopped watching for that reason.
@@grand1957 I think there's a reason he just kind of blast through his sponsors without dwelling on them. He speaks about them for as long as he's legally required to do so to get paid and then he drops it. Usually trying to make bits and skits out of the discussion. He doesn't owe anyone an apology, and you shouldn't stop watching his content because advertisements. Are all of you people so brain rotten that you have to buy every single advertisement you see in the world?
The tuition cost of SDI is similar to the full cost of my master’s degree in mechanical engineering. That’s wild. It’s definitely worth it going the engineering route with a real college or doing some sort of apprenticeship in machining and working your way up. I’m an engineering hiring manager (not in the gun industry) and I would be very skeptical if I saw a resume with one of these scammy for-profit schools.
Good video, fellas. There’s reasons I’ve never taken a penny from them. I did get a beer koozy from them at NRA show one year, sooooooo I’m not totally clean. 😂
Ironically enough, a worker at a local Rural King previously enlightened me to the worthless nature of taking the SDI course. Good to see more people revealing the truth.
I had to watch the reaching into each other's pocket bit like 3 times to make sure I was seeing what I thought I was seeing. Glad to see some young men with some integrity though. Y'all earned my sub, for what it's worth.
Currently have this playing in the background as I do class work for SDI. I've been on the fence about swapping schools for a couple months now. I think this video finally convinced me.
Greetings from Czech Republic. My younger brother went to REAL gunsmithing highschool here in CZ, in Uherský Brod. Where they teach you to use machinery, how the systems work, etc. If you compare all he was taught with SDI, SDI is basically what they learnt the first month (out of all 4 years btw, for free.). I know this because i was tutoring him on few subjects. It's shameful the people of SDI charge so much for something that you could basically learn from youtube tutorial
@@foreststalkerbrothers here you could get a couple of certificates for most of the stuff you need to learn and / or just work at a shop and learn on the job. It could be done so much cheaper and easier sometimes even free...
Eey, the world is small... I also been there for a year as a requalification student. I got books and some knowledge however I still think I would need a lot more experience to really call myself a weaponsmith.
I’m the automotive industry, I run into applicants from places like Lincoln Tech, WyoTech and other similar schools. The way to get an idea if they might be good or bad is to ask how they liked it. The ones who loved it usually learned very little. The ones who are more ambivalent in their description usually taught themselves to a decent starting point.
SDI graduate here. You get a muzzle loader to assemble and either an AR-15, LR-308/AR-10, or a pistol caliber carbine (in place of the 1911 when I attended) as your capstone project. I chose the LR-308 and was sent a palmetto upper with a low rent lower that still doesn’t mate well with the upper (I’ve done all the filing that I can do without making the firearm dangerous to operate). Otherwise, it’s UA-cam university with a few irrelevant classes.
As a rule I never trust any sponsor on UA-cam. The only one I did is Privacy, just because it's a free service and it actually is good for web security.
Yeah, some tech companies are solid. But stuff like this, or especially betterhelp, hoooo doggy, dont even get me started on them. If you have the need for some SSRIs, or other low strength meds like that, just go to hims. If you need therapy, just go to a real one. Yes its annoying and stressful to find a good fit for you, but its 1,000,000% worth it.
I've been working on guns for 30+ years, the only classes that ever mattered were for machining and metallurgy. Everything else i've learned over the years has come from hands on. I took a 2 year course at a junior college for "gunsmithing" just so I could be insured, otherwise it was worthless. The only advice I can offer is what I did starting out, go to pawn shops and small gun stores and offer to buy broken or non-functioning guns and repair them at your own expense. Build a knowledge base of experience, learn wood refinishing, learn to cerakote, learn how to hot blue. and keep at it until people start asking you to repair or restore their firearm. After 10 years or so you can build a customer base that will support you.
Big props for this video. In a time of increasing concern over fiscal stability, you went at one of the biggest sponsors of many, many influencers. You could have taken a payday, but instead you stuck to your morals. o7 gentleman!
Had the SAME issue with ITT TECH..... LONG STORY SHORT they've been SHUT DOWN BY THE BOARD OF EDUCATION and was sued also for QUESTIONABLE GRANT AN LOAN INTAKE PRACTICE..... these schools ARE NOT THE WAY TO GO....
I personally believe college is only for people who need college: Engineers (me), Physicists, doctors, lawyers, accountants. Gunsmithing is a trade. Get a job working as an apprentice for a gunsmith. You'll get paid to learn gunsmithing. Also, a lot of gunsmithing is restoring / refinishing people's old rusty guns.
Can't tell you how much I wanted to know about SDI. Not that I was interested to attend because I grew up sitting in my grandfather's gunsmith shop so I have a fairly decent idea about what it takes for skill and to make an income out of it, but that I speculated that it must be a scam. Yet you guys are the first bold enough to talk about it. Very happy this video popped into my feed this morning. Big kudos! Subscribed!
This is exactly what happened to one of my best friends. Got out of the military, has always loved firearms and he used his GI bill on it. He's a trucker now.
So true. I work for one of the major tech companies. Making far more than I ever thought I would. I went to school online (via a real university sure) but my degree ran me nothing as a veteran. Had I paid out of pocket it was MAYBE a couple grand a semester. I’m in a niche compliance field. My degree has nothing to do with it. Basically someone gave me a shot for a compliance role and it spiraled into me working in FAANG. I’m telling my kids to pay as little as possible for school. School brand doesn’t matter at all anymore it’s just a piece of paper that they use to gatekeep.
College is just expensive information they send you to find on the internet anyway. The only real thing they "teach" you at any school is how to look for information.
I didn’t even think that “SDI” was that serious of an institution. Thought it was just a hobby course. I also skip ads anyway because I’m there for content not paywalls or advertisements.
Im about to go. Using gi bill so it's free plus they pay me like $1000 a month to go. Already older so I'm just going to learn a hobby and get the tools .
Deep diving on sdi saved my money and my future. I just graduated high school and want to become a gunsmith on the side, sdi was my plan before people started being honest. I'm looking at MGS now but that will have to wait a couple years
I recommend the Colorado school. I know a few guys who went through it on their GI bill. None of them actually became gunsmiths because going with being a machinist made much more money for them. They got a job right away and within a year they already bought homes in Texas. (Nothing down, VA loan, but they were making more than enough money to make their mortgage payments.)
I remember all the advertisements you'd see for gunsmith training through the mail in all of the firearms publications back in the day. I was always skeptical of them as the sales pitch always seemed the same as a lot of the fly by night "business" colleges. It's great that you are exposing this modern version of the same scam. Thank you. Running a net loss as a gun channel on UA-cam, par for the course. Keep up the good work and I hope you guys find great success.
We’ve been asked about SDI many times recently; I mentioned it in a video months ago and figured it was time to talk about why we don’t recommend it. The real hope here is the we can make enough of a wave SDI uses its huge sums of money to make a better program.
Have been at a well known firearm manufacturer for almost 5 years now that I got just by interviewing with no prior experience and in that 5 years ive been in finishing dept, getting raw machined parts ready for assembly, laser engraving logos, serial numbers and state, local, and international insignias, and even small bits of assembly. But not only does the company teach everything while on tge job, but offer courses for gun smithing and other skills at their Academy. These companies will give you the tools to learn
The capitalized Academy makes me think that the company is in New Hampshire and has recently gotten some major government contracts. Smaller companies will generally have less formal educational programs.
SOME companies will give you the tools to learn. 90% of companies today will not hire you without experience even if they could train you to do it in a week or two.
I saw a story on T.V., one of the human interest stories in the early 80's. It was about a guy living in a camper shell in the back of his truck while going to Lassen county community college for gunsmithing. I joined the Army in 1985. In 1989, I was a desk sergeant in Korea at an MP station. My clerk, who we will call Vinny, was that guy. He accumulated 140 semester hours at a community college. He was also made my unit's Armorer. He could fix anything that did not require machine tools.
I can second this. I am a recent graduate from that same school, Lassen College. I graduated their 2-year vocational gunsmithing program in May of 2023, and have received every certification they offer. I can very safely say that I learned more in machining, gunsmith machining, gunsmith welding, and firearms design and repair in my first semester than any SDI student will learn in their 2 years. I have had many chances to converse with SDI students and I haven’t been able to hold an equally knowledgeable conversation with any of them. They simply are not a good school. I’ve handled and fixed countless guns, fabricated countless parts, polished for hundreds of hours, have hundreds of hours behind many types of machinery, and your average SDI student won’t know how to turn on a lathe.
@@larrylamb5462no way! I lived up in Susanville for my time at the college but moved back to the Bay Area when I graduated. Was able to find a job in the industry but I don’t see a having a huge future in gunsmithing here due to the shitty politics. I will probably be moving somewhere better soon if I get the chance to.
@@cooldudepharaoh food for thought. Out of 3,060 or so counties in the USA, the one I live in now, Randolph, NV, is the 9th most heavily armed county in the country, and has been for years. Don't know of any gunsmiths around, either.
During one of the courses we had to write a paper on wether or not gunsmiths should know how to work on mini-guns/chain guns. I said, as a person who litereally worked on them in the Marine Corp, that the likelyhood of a civilain ever seeing one, let alone having to work on one meant that it was, in my opinion, cool to learn but definitely not important... The retired LE "teacher" deducted point because he disagreed... With my opinion piece... On a subject that i have first hand knowledge on...
^This is exactly why I dropped out. Not the butthurt instructor, but that particular essay. I don't have your particular knowledge on those weapons, but I was smart enough to know I'd never need it.
Excuse me Mr. Gunsmith, I have a problem and was wondering if you can help? Well you see, I got this M-61 Vulcan that I got through totally legal means, she's not working right though. Can you diagnose the issue and fix it? I tried contacting General Dynamics about it but they never returned my emails.
Garand Thumb didn’t drop SDI until everyone on YT started exposing SDI. To be clear, he did nothing noble; he simply saved himself after making a ton of cash from promotions. He knew better, but maybe you (the viewing audience) didn’t.
Same thing with Big Daddy Unlimited. Slightly different situation I know but I stopped ditching him a long while ago. I used to watch him a lot, pretty much every video. Once I started buying my own gear while considering recommendations he made, only then did I realize not much applies to me in a significant way. I still think the information was interesting to know but I started digging and found that he promotes products from the highest bidder. I don’t know if there’s any truth to that but I wouldn’t be surprised.
Agreed. I remember when he used to push freedom munitions and it wasn’t until the money dried up and people complained enough that he admitted to all the problems with the ammo
What do you mean I can't learn a hands-on skill online?
what do you mean i’m not good at sex, i’ve seen so much online?
based seeing you here, Ian :)
well put
@@DeskPop I feel you might have missed the point in @ForgottenWeapons comment. he was being sarcastic.
@@kaelin000 And deskpop was being completely serious.
-100 social credit score, +500 Reputation score
Quest Failed: Sonoran Hegemony
New Quest: Desert Power
+5000 AURA
new_vegas_levelup.wav
Apparently we ruffled some feathers with this one
@@DP.HR.Conclusionshow do you figure?
“SDI is a joke and a scam.” Former student.
And this is more citation than SDI uses.
Yep, i fell for it. Dropped out.
What I've learned is that 99% of pro 2A companies are just grifting.
Like those specialized 2A legal defense companies that you pay a subscription for? Haven't looked it, just sounds like a scam
Facts. The firearms industry is so scammy.
everybody. not just the companies. many things today is a grift. very few authentic people today.
@Joe45-91 I saw a video on one of those "self-defense insurance" companies (who I will not name). Basically they let a paying member go through a substantial amount of the legal process without helping him, and another company picked up his defense (maybe for publicity, idk). They weren't ready to spend the money on a real legal defense for someone actually facing real charges. I have not renewed my membership with them since. A lot of the (older) 2A institutions have evolved into money businesses that grift on 2A issues.
99% of pro a2 people are just pro a2 because they think guns are cool, not to fight against a tyrannical government.
Wait a minute, US guntubers actually get paid to promote stuff?!? 😮
Where can we sign up?
We've been trying to figure that out as well.
sometimes they slip us a fiver but I have to do some knee work
Come to the Dark Side, We have cookies and guns
In the old country the companies sponsor guntubers... out of fear!
pretend to be zelensky, kamala's too dumb to notice the difference
I always wondered why every channel is happily complicit in scamming vets by accepting SDI sponsorship. This video is a breath of fresh air.
A yes would’ve meant I finally got to start my “youtuber career” because this would stop costing me money every month.
they have SO much money; i’m not sure how this will effect us in the industry going forward.
Integrity is worth more to me than anything; even though I usually make silly videos.
😂
I've called them out multiple times. I don't think most youtubers realize SDI is a scam.
So according to the dude in Grey he went to SDI and thought he was going to be able to start a gun manufacturing company?? He also said he finished college and went right back to school because he wasn't prepared. So wouldn't that make the 4 year $200k tuition that you didn't even attempt to use the biggest scam??
@@ldial89 he’s a biologist; I also have two college degrees. He wanted to start a gun shop; SDI was a waste.
Ive used SDI uning Tuition Assistance. Did it for about 18 months. My command found out and asked me to stop, sent me to training instead. I learned more in 3 weeks at training than 18 months at SDI
@@remfaf9121 Freaking awesome work by your command; that’s the best help they could’ve given you
You've got some of the only leaders left.
So, they sent you to armorer school?...
Dam, people actually believe SDI is real college..
Majors like Gender studies, art appreciation, decision sciences. You really thought every "college" was useful? It's not that college is a scam, you just got scammed by "college" using loophole to get your money
Not sure if I believe this as you could've easily requested to go to Armorer's School, regardless of MOS, and I'm sure they would've sent you...
I graduated from SDI and regret ever going. Most of the curriculum was UA-cam videos I had already watched for free. The only jobs that I could get were VERY low paying.
@@shanebrown6415 sorry you had to find out that way man; we’re really hoping to set people’s expectations extremely clear with this video.
You come to my place for the weekend. $500 bucks, I include the Dremel and booze. Guest lectures by Tannerite.
this is VALUE.
Hell yeah brother
Don't tempt us with a good time
Where do I sign up
sign me up! LOL
22k for an associates degree in "gunsmithing" in a virtual setting? Thats like serving me microwave mac n cheese and telling me its a home made Italian meal.
You eat it via zoom
I'm confused on the gunsmithing in a virtual setting but they have an estimated travel cost when showing the 20k price lol. Travelling where? To the zoom class?
To be fair, with that breakdown of the $22k, more than half of it, over $13k, aren't things you'd be charged for online classes. Room and board, transportation, books. At the top it says "based on the info you've provided" so they clearly went for the highest possible bill, and not an online class. Still though $9.4K to learn a hands on skill online is a fucking scam.
why does an online course list room and board at almost a quarter that 22k cost? Something doesn't add up there.
So your telling me I can’t consider velvita an authentic Italian dish🤔🤨🤣
In recent years, I’ve realized that if it advertises on my every podcast and UA-cam channel I consume, it isn’t a good product. From Raycon to Better Help to SDI to whatever mattress, etc.
All their money spent on advertising, and none on the actual product. It reminds me of a plot point in the show Silicon Valley (a great comedy about the tech world), when their small software development company was growing the choice was made to basically get rid of all the actual developers and techs, and just have a massive marketing department, with all the operating revenue spent on advertising, with no actual product. Pretty spot on to the real world unfortunately.
I actually like my raycon earbuds. Have had them for 5 years now with no problems.
BCM went hard for a bit, but I like that rifle. College in general is usually a scam. To be expected.
🤣🤣dawg my Raycons where so ass i ended up just copping a way better pair of headphones on amazon for like $80
AG-1 guy is super sus.
my mate said he caught an SDI once, I didn't even know he was into guns
My mate got himself a vw golf with an sdi engine, never knew they did car engines too
One time I thought I caught a STI (sexually transmitted infection) from a vape & it encouraged me to wear a condom at all times
I think that this sort of video is really healthy for the community. You guys didnt come without reason for your opinions. If we can't look inward and make sure we aren't pushing garbage, then what good do we serve. Over the years, I've separated from a few brands that stopped making sense along the way and I think thats important for everyone to do, even if the paychecks are big.
We don’t have a reputation for starting drama and I try to keep it that way; but sometimes we get repeatedly asked about a company and this one is better explained in our long video.
the hope is that SDI uses some of its ridiculous money to fix its program…
@@DeskPop All you can do is share your thoughts and hope they do something about it, right?
@@TheGunCollective that’s the hope.
We all serve capitalism, whether we like it or not ...
@@DeskPopi used to teach as an online instructor there. You’re spot on.
Having been an LE armorer and armorer in the manufacturing industry. This is a trade you need to learn and be taught by others in person on the job. Honestly try to get into a manufacturer as an assembly technician/armorer. You can’t replace real experience
I work for a major firearms manufacturer. They have world class gunsmiths. Not one attended SDI. I know people who graduated from SDI and it did nothing to improve their career in the firearms industry. It’s nice to see someone saying this rather than shilling.
Same here. All our weapon engineers were from ferlach
Hey gotta pay the bills somehow honestly if you thought sdi was a good idea you kinda deserved it same with most other sponsors like optics planet and lucky gunner for example
What are some of the better schools out there?
SDI= online school scam. It is sad youtubers don't actually enroll themselves to see if it is even legit. This is like those gold investment companies they promote on conservative related content on youtube. They rip you off on the purchase price and sell price of gold if they even actually buy gold for you and "store" it for you. Oxford Gold Group just went bankrupt last month. Some fools actually invested over 100k with them thinking the company actually bought gold and stored it. Some even took out 401K money to invest with them. Millions of dollars gone. That wont be the last gold buying scam. Also, remember that "Establish Titles" land buying scam where you buy a square foot of royal property in England? Scams come and go lol.
@@chrisE815Be a machinist. That's it.
Another reason I love C&Rsenal. Even though they could really use a sponsor, they declined SDI because it, quote, "wasn't gunsmithing"
Respect
Sasquatch and Mae are wonderful, wholesome and full of integrity!❤
Come on, you know the are Ballistol shills! 😊
I think they only have one sponsor and that’s Ballistol
But then again Ballistol unlike 99% of ads, is a product that’s been in use for over a century
@@keepyourbilsteins Because it's gun oil, what are you gonna use? Butter?
Let's see if Brandon Herrera drops them as happily as he did Established Titles.
He and Hickock and everyone else would be silly not to drop them, and honestly shoulda never even considered them in the first place.
Still have not dropped them
The idea that Brandon, the professional gunsmith prior to youtube, shilled for SDI makes it so much worse since people would be more likely to think "oh damn ok SDI is legit then"
@@Dexcessive Brandon was trying to run for congress in the past, just a heads up 😅
Only after the jig is up
I had a squad leader get upset with me because he came up all excited about SDI and his big pitch was at the end of your course you learn how to build your own AR-15 and I just replied with “why go and pay for a course when the end product is something you can learn to do yourself on UA-cam” he was completely shocked to the realization that he was getting ripped off.
No different to any university. I’ve done a double degree in Design and Media Communication and everything I’ve learnt I could’ve watched an hour long UA-cam video lmao.
@@sounds_like_pain3345that’s a degree in design & media… lol no shit
@@sounds_like_pain3345man that one’s kinda on you. Paid to go to school for some stuff an Indian guy coulda taught you in a series of YT tutorials.
You make it sound like SDI only teaches AR platforms. That’s stupid.
@@sounds_like_pain3345You chose the wrong degree lmao
I don’t want to divulge too much personal information, so I’ll just say, I went to a brick and mortar Gunsmithing school right out of high school. The curriculum was 80-85% hands on work. 15-20% bookwork and that’s honestly that’s being generous. We had over 5,000 firearms in our schools vault that we were able to have access too. The first year alone was basically disassembly and assembly of various firearms. Then you got into welding, heat treating, working with Mills, working with Lathes. Bluing, glass bedding, stock working from a solid piece of lumber. I could go on and on and on about the hands on work it takes to really learn the trade.
Fast forward to now, I’ve seen the SDI sponsorships from many channels for years and have always wondered, how the hell can you get an online degree for a job that is almost entirely hands on?!?
Never really cared to look into it. As I have no interest for it, then this video hits my suggestion feed. Thanks for shedding some light on the matter.
Liked, subscribed, and hit the bell notification.
Sounds like you went to CST like I did
or TSJC
Where are they I was interested in maybe going to school for them once I save up enough money.
They just make you provide your own firearm.
Wait, tell us more about your career after you finished trade school! That's fascinating. 😎👍🏻
Props for making this video. Weird that it doesn't show in my subscriptions tab....
it’s a risk for us, hopefully it pays off long term.
UA-cam has a bad habit of doing that to us 😆
@@DeskPopthis is the only channel I’ve ever noticed it with. Also the only channel I bother to check on to make sure I don’t miss anything
@@bigfootgoesboom no really sure why; we’re honestly way too small still to matter so it’s just a weird thing that happens to us
UA-cam tries to squash upstarts before they can get big, especially if they don't agree with them idealogically.
Allegedly..
I wasn't a subscriber but it came up in my feed on top.
If a youtuber is sponsoring anything, it's a scam. SDI, Nord, Better Help, etc.
Not necessarily a scam, but definitely not a smart investment nearly ever lol. The one the one that always gets me is those stupid overpriced wallets like ridge lol
@@tjbullis1491 How much for a Ridge wallet? My cheapo tri-fold has seen better days... WHOA $150 for a piece of milled aluminum & a small strap attached? GTFOH! 😠
The thing about Nord is that a VPN is useful in specific situations, but not in the situations they use to promote it. A VPN will obscure (not hide) your physical location. It will help you get around content filters on your local network. It won't do a darn thing to protect your privacy.
No, not everything. Also, Nord isn't a scam, you just don't understand VPNs. 🤦🏻♂️
@@Studio23Media Nord deliberately misrepresents in its ads what a VPN does. They claim it protects you from hackers, data thieves, etc., when a VPN does nothing of the sort.
Damn. This makes Mika on Garand Thumb introducing them as "Stupid, Dumb, Idiots" that much funnier.
That was Charlie, but close enough I guess..
Sleepy Drowsy Prostitutes?
I was thinking the same thing.
maybe if you think about it that was the point lol
He was trying to subtle-ly warn us
Guys if you want to get into gunsmithing, save your tuition, go buy a mini machining setup (2000-3000) and start studying. This is the foundation of firearm production, repair, modification. Also buy some BUSTED old guns and practice on them. Listen to every word Mark Novak has ever said, its all gold.
I inherited a bunch of problems in a collection. I did what Mark said and did the maintenance. I also worked at a machine shop during my summers from college. Eventually I was having people bring me problems because they saw me using things my grandfathers neglected. I'm now at the "You owe me for materials and beverages" stage of practicing.
Best advice I ever heard was "learn to be a machinist if you wanna be a gunsmith." It's often at the heart of everything a gunsmith does, it's literally how guns were/still are made.
And if gunsmithing doesn't work out in your area or for you specifically, you still got machinist certs to fall back on.
I'd never heard of sdi and was shocked that there's an associates degree for gun smithing. I was like wtf lol, wouldn't you want to start as a machinist and get cnc experience. Having an engineering degree in mechanical, chemical or even classical physics. I received an engineering degree (not one that would apply to gun smithing) but still had to take many basic engineering classes. Dynamics, Fluid dynamics, material classes would benefit the most
@@goldenhide Exactly. Gunsmithing and especially gundealing requires alot of time and money to invest, and its not guaranteed to profit.
In my first year with that 3k machining setup I only made 5k making compensators.
Eh mark is kinda full of shit on a couple things, mostly good info and good fibished product mostly but slow as hell...thats why C&rsenal dropped him
As a veteran, as a former student at sdi, they are a diploma mill praying on veterans education benefits. You will not be a gunsmith by any means once you finish your their program. The software or servers that run Their online courses also freeze constant, fail to load and make it very difficult to get anything done. 100% would not recommend to my friends but would to my enemies so I could laugh at the screwing I already know to well they are about to get. Congress needs to discredit close and throw the culprits in jail.
Which institution isn’t a diploma mill?
Honestly at this point it is much faster to specify the extremely few educational programs of any type in the US which are not a worthless scam and sheep-shearing operation. US education is FUBAR, it was done on purpose by people who hate you, the stock has basically gone to zero unless you can get a couple very in-demand skills or go to an ivy
@@johnb.6468yeah but SDI didn’t even try to hide it lol
Congress hates vets AND firearms owners, and especially the firearms industry. Why wouldn't they want this scam to continue? It only hurts the people they already hate, so I'm sure they see it as a win.
Thank you for your input from another vet
thank you so much. ive been saving to go to SDI and i will now be researching other options. genuinely appreciate what youve done here. youve saved me years of time and money and im very thankful.
@@423D This is why we made the video; the insane amount of people saying they’re cool with the service because it’s just taking their GI bill don’t understand that tons of people are saving their own money to spend on this college in the hope it’ll launch their career…
I hire gunsmiths. An SDI "diploma" is worth about as much as saying "I have watched 100 UA-cam videos on gunsmithing."
There are some legitimately useful gunsmithing videos on youtube though. Doesn't sounds like the same can be said for SDI.
what about a 1000+ majority of which being Forgotten weapons and InRangeTV
@cburn-YT that's a plus, imo but you need hands on time. LOTS of it. Spinning and chewing up metal...lathes and mills..
What's the best gunsmithing school to go to?
I looked into SDI but walked away after asking some very basic questions of the, very persistent, rep who calle some twice a day and left numerous messages for me to call him back. I asked how big of a shop I’d need to learn to mill, lathe etc. he said it wouldn’t be necessary and the the $12k a year covered every aspect with out much hands on learning or machine work needed. That is crazy and I laughed so hard at this obvious scam company. I could teach you as much as them plus some machine work from the answers their scammer rep attempted to give me. He was happy to end the call after my very average questions. Sorry for anyone who did open their wallets for these dishonest clowns.
I think it's safe to assume that anything promoted by a UA-camr is dodgy or a scam. It's been proved time and time again.
Is sad to see Integrity leaving the “influencers” but at the same time we don’t get nearly as many sponsors or as high of offers when we drop stuff like this or just tell them “no” when we don’t like their product
I don't think it's everything, but there are some that definitely scream "scam"
@DeskPop Influencers have never had any integrity. Most millennials and generation DA are just flat out zombified sheep that blindly believe what the internet tells them.
@6negative991 Yeah, there are some that are fine or just mediocre products.
Eh, Helix did alright by me.
I looked into SDI a year ago or so. Twenty minutes of research is all it takes to realize it’s a complete waste of time/money.
Exactly, looked at it after highschool and shut that shit down asap lol. Shame
@@Wes0602 it’s crazy how many people don’t look into things before signing up and paying.
Ditto here. I graduated Spartan school of aeronautics and all I had to do was look at the SDI website to make a: NO THANKS decision.
People will knowingly sign up to waste their money on stuff like this and then act like they got scammed. This isn’t even a gun thing this is just basic school 101
I had a similar experience a few years back, when Brandon Herrera first started shilling for them. I looked into it, was concerned by the lack of information about the cost, googled the cost, and was horrified by the amount for an online course. If it was $100 or so, it might be worth it for the shortest course, but not $10-20k. I closed my half completed application and thought that was it. They called me less than an hour later asking me why I didn't finish the application. I politely said I couldn't afford to pay the tuition, and they hung up on me without another word
It's painful that Garand Thumb always sells his channel to the sketchiest people...
I still remember how Shadiversity roasted Kamikoto knives. Selling 10$ knives for 300$, claiming they are worth 1000$.
No. Easy to tell who to avoid. 😂
To be fair GarandThumb used to be and most other guntubers are currently working under contract with Leviathan Group. It is a marketing company that negotiates all of the sponsorship contracts on behalf of the channels. GT announced fairly recently that he was going to leave Leviathan Group and do sponsorships strictly in house and only with sponsors they had vetted. So while he did agree to the contract with Leviathan, he likely did not have final say in what specific sponsors he had to do spots for
@@jossege thats incorrect; we are signed with Leviathan group. I personally Vett all the sponsors we take on and have said no countless times (this video in particular did not make them happy)
Leviathan represents your channel for financial negotiations; you still get to say yes or no to the job.
He HAD his ad campaigning subsided by and therefore under the control of leviathan group - whom he recently severed ties with - and I imagine this whole thing is part of the reason why. Not defending him necessarily, just adding context
Dakota Wright here. Great video gents.
Thanks for all the Info and support on this man!!
Absolutely. I'm glad I could help some folks out in the industry.
So basically I'm hearing that I should sue SDI for fraud?
I had a pretty similar experience. I completed my degree. I think it would be a decent program (but not for the price) for a person that knows nothing about guns. I completed 90% of my classes and assignments without opening the textbooks (but I still had to cite them). With that said, I also have about a decade of experience as a hobby gunsmith. I did it for the free degree, and free gun (I used TA for it).
"Goon daddy"
This is probably as good a place as any to talk about my experience with SDI. It was February of 2023, my first kid had just been born, and I had realized the clock was ticking on chances to better myself for both me and my kid's sake. I tried SDI, because I have always had a great interest in gunsmithing that I just never capitalized on. A year passes with sleepless nights and mind numbing coursework, and I felt I had learned nothing of practical use. I withdrew from the school and began building an AK from scratch instead, learning more in the process. I now get to bootstrap my career with an extra ~$11,000 + interest in tow with a warning for other enthusiasts. Don't use SDI if you know (and I mean this) anything about guns. You'll be better off using your money on machines, educational material, and tools. Also ring me up if you're looking for a hoosier apprentice lol
So UTI but for guns
Yeah I really never understood how you're supposed to learn gunsmithing without any of the essential tools
Find you a old dude. And apprentice. Machine shop. Or old timer gunsmith.
There are in person gunsmith schools that teach a lot more. You can’t replace in person instruction for this trade.
$20k worth of tools is better than a degree. At least you can sell the tools if you decide to go a different route down the road. I am a college graduate and I approve this message.
Every generation has to learn about predatory colleges all over again.
Do the world a favor if you're reading this and remind kids of this.
ITT Tech***** Cough *****
Huh? What? I didn’t say anything.
@@logyz450 wyotech
@@logyz450 I remember those commercials form the 80's....Somehow we knew those guys were scammers.
@@logyz450they scammed me too. Worst decision ever!
@logyz450 I got a Bachelors from ITT and I'm a very successful electrical engineer. But I am definitely the exception to the rule.
I actually graduated and you work and disassemble some guns. I disassembled my glock completely, was nothing but metal and pins. I made an entire AR10 and go gauged it. History, ballistics, laws, optics, all the different systems, business set up, safety, finishes, metal and woodworking, old and new. They tell you everything and the class discussions, you learn a lot! The professors were extremely knowledgeable and I think most people here don;t even know what they want to actually do. I'm glad I went but I'm more glad I used my GI bill.
Charlie was trying to warn us all along
Nah. He took the money too and ran with GT into the sunset
😂 no wonder
"Shakin baby institute"
Money talks my friend, even if its by Sme*** D*** Itali**s
“Korean Meat Bathing suits”
Been WAITING for someone to make a video on SDI. Big ups to you dudes for the transparency.
Agree I have been thinking about signing up with them for a while.
I wonder if there will be a response?
I haven’t seen anyone in the comments or other tubers asking about SDI or mocking them.
Reason I took SDI ads a few years ago:
Buddy was an instructor and spoke highly of it.
Reason I stopped taking sdi ads:
He slowly began to see the education being offered was not worth it for the students.
I think he might be on focus trips stream/video at some point.
I’m glad we will get more eyes on it from an instructors viewpoint too.
The money they throw out right now is life changing to a small channel like us. So it’s really a moment of “do I just do the ads and get the check”
I did the sdi associates deal, and I absolutely agree with this video 100٪. I would love to know how many sdi graduates worked on Brandon Herreras ak 50 project. My bet is zero. I am a contractor gunsmith 3 and it was the military maintenance process that landed me this job, SDI wasn't even a thought in my employers head.
I love you reno, let me be your bipod
@@WilliamEacmen Brandon’s head gunsmith follows the channel; I don’t think he’s and SDI grad or he would’ve said something to us by now 😂
Surrreeee, blame it on your "buddy" 😊
I am glad someone is making a vid like this. I went to SDI and I was and still am a FFL in COMMIFORNIA. They charged the full GI BILL but exclude students that are in more restrictive states like Hawaii, NY, CA etc... so you don't get AR-15 training but they charged the VA benefits full tuition fee without providing full materials (AR15 materials) to the students. Even the pistol materials was iffy because of the handgun roster in COMMIFORNIA. I now specialize in AR15s and AK47s all NOT thanks to SDI. You can't learn everything by watching UA-cam channels but they have the big UA-cam channels as their SDI instructors. They are cool channels but SDI I would NOT recommend. OJT On The Job Training is priceless.
I remember about a year ago, some SDI instructors got into a tiff with Ivan and some other 2A 3d printing guys, basically regurgitating the same fudd talking points of "that would never work", "that would just explode", etc., even in the face of overwhelming documentation and video evidence. That right there told me everything I needed to know about SDI and the quality of their "educators".
meanwhile nasa and spacex are 3d printing rocket engines using the same set of nickel alloys as far back as 2014.
I understand 100% what you guys are saying. It takes a large degree of integrity to walk away from those kinds of dollars. I'm 71 years old and I can honestly tell you the most important asset you have is your word. Many, many kudos to you two young gentlemen for having the balls to say no.
It's all we have here, I didn't fully realize that until my 30s, it's hard to understand the depth of that statement in today's society. I was almost killed and it changed my perspective on everything. There really is nothing here with value except your word!
As a recent graduate of the Colorado School of Trades in this past year, I cannot even begin to lay out the extent and depth of knowledge i gained at CST. As others have mentioned, metal working, wood working, tig, different ammos, headspacing, lathe, mill, cerakote, hand tools, blueprints, precise measuring, and so, so, so much more. Every graduate builds a rifle from the ground up, custom fitting a barrel blank to their teceiver that they chambered onto an action that they trued up. They bed the action into a synthetic stock, fully shape and finish out a wooden stock that they bed as well, its incredible. From my time there, about half to two thirds of the students are LE/MIL. ALL of the instructors are incredibly knowledgeable. There are flaws, but they are certainly being worked on. They appear to be adapting in near real time to the industry, and even host armorers courses while youre there, that you can attend as a student.
I am a former CST Grad (2016) as well. RIP Gary Schlomer
I wish I had known about gunsmithing at CST before wasting my voc rehab & GI Bill on some useless "accredited" diploma mill paper. A few months after I finished grinding for my pointless certifications, I met a guy who had just graduated from CST.... for exactly what I wanted to do in the first place. No thanks to any of the VA voc rehab counselors & DAV advisors I spent months talking with; CST was never mentioned once.
Since then I've never had the opportunity to use *any* of what I learned in real life, and the promised jobs were non-existent. So in the close to 20 years since I kick myself nearly every day for not looking into different schools a little more, and just settling for what they were pushing at the time. I constantly wonder what-if, because now it's too late to do anything else and I have to watch everyone else having fun doing what I wanted to do. F*** the VA and f*** the DAV.
How much were your courses
@TommyBrittain_tbgaming I think in 2016 the course length was 16 months for 23k
@@anaxis I mean, you still could have done that stuff if you had started at ground level. With the way you worded it, it sounds like you (rightly) got bitter and kinda gave up after one setback.
IMO it's still not too late if you're up for it and really want it. 20-40k isn't all that much to get in debt, you'll have a better paid job and can nullify it pretty quickly.
Agree about everything else though, f the va & dav, they shill for stuff like SDI.
I like your kind of honesty. I went to Pennsylvania Gunsmith School. It was definitely worth it.
@@MrWilk_Firearms I love your full auto desert eagle man. we need a long video onnit
Just one example of the bigger problem. UA-cam is happy to sensor any content they don’t like, regardless of its legality. However, they are more than happy to post the most ridiculously obvious scam adds the world has ever seen! As long as they are making bank they don’t care how many viewers are getting ripped off.
UA-cam wasn't posting it it was all of OUR favorite gun tubers backing it for years idk why you have 85 likes but there must be 85 more retards down here in the comments 😂 I've never been pushed an ad for SDI outside of a BH AC or GT vid so it's not UA-cam or Google pushing it it's our content creators pushing it with no due diligence bubba ( I know there are scam ads on UA-cam but SDI was only pushed by our creators)
Notice how Better Help has been making a huge comeback?
Hell, they're even on TV and radio now.
I was going to be one of the foolish people who would go waste money on SDI, but then I looked up the reviews of SDI online. I was fortunate enough to talk to a guy in the firearms industry that set me straight on what SDI is actually offering and what it actually TAKES to be in the firearms industry. It was a long chat and I'm glad I reached out to him to explain this. So, thanks toy you guys of Desk Pop for save my backside as well.
so what does it actually take
I’m old. I hear SDI and think of the Strategic Defense Initiative…
LOL same here! Star Wars! I remember watching the animation about it on the news thinking how cool it was, not knowing at the time it wasn't anywhere near being developed.
I'm young. I hear SDI and think of Sexually Dransmitted Infections...
@@MomoWax1000dransmitted? Bc you have neurosyphillis
same here i grew up in the 80's that's all you would hear about damn i'm getting old
When I decided to get into gunsmithing I debated between SDI and AGI (American Gunsmithing Institute) which people said were the top 2 places to go. I decided on AGI over SDI because it A) was less than half the price for their maximum package, B) had substantially more information and covered everything under the sun in terms of firearms, and C) was do at your own pace. I'm very glad I did. I'm a little over 1/3 the way through the course and I've learned a ridiculous amount about function and maintenance and troubleshooting. I still need more hands on work, but I started from nothing and now can tell you how the average firearm works, I know a lot of history, I have already repaired my 1st pistol, and I can explain how things work to other people. So glad I didn't pick SDI. The knowledge is always more important than the certification.
I've always stunned myself with how poor I perform in some aspects of life but then can instantaneously tell a company or person is fibbing with great accuracy.
Should've gone into intelligence work or law enforcement.
right? It's a talent. I have been on YT since day one as I am yet to find out that someone I "like" turned out to be sth very distasteful. With how prolific certain proclivities are, this can't be a matter of chance xD
Yep, I've screwed a lot of stuff up in my life, but my Bullsh*tometer functions fine.
I Never did get it. Kind of dogshit in everything else. But I do take pride in my Bullshit detector.
I’m the opposite lol. I trust people and assume good intentions way too easily
I got hired as a cnc operator with limited metal working experience. Will work at lower wages for a couple of years and then can earn much more. Kinda like an apprenticeship. No college required. Just a good attitude. Now I can run a mill and a lathe, and just today modified an mlok part for a better fit. Otj training.
Showing up sober and on time, willing to listen and learn, able to handle constructive criticism, and willing to actually work during work hours. You'll be light years ahead of others in your generation, and you'll never have to worry about finding a job.
On the flip side, if you have all those qualities, don't settle for trying to learn from someone who isn't willing or able to teach, is mad all the time, doesn't care about your safety, and isn't willing to also do anything they want you to do.
I am attending Modern Gun School, now to be fair it is basically the same thing but. The whole tuition is like $2,500 and that’s including all the tools they send you. Difference is it is a trade school. It is accredited as well and takes the GI Bill. I like it pretty good though, it seems to build a decent foundation. Nothing super advanced but they send you projects to finish and send back for grades.
Can you send me a link or names, it's it really just called modern gun school?
@@michaelsaine Yes you can find it under Modern Gun School, or try typing in MGS.
I finished the MGS Advanced course. Was worth the money in my opinion. Made me do projects I wouldnt normally do. Good experience and the project feedback was good.
This comment thread sounds like bots.
I'm not saying it is, just terrifying.
@@James_Bee I'm tots not an atf bot doing atf things faining where to do my atf things
Integrity is not often found online. I think all of us in this space should be taking notes
This reminds me of the 2010s when for-profit colleges deliberately targeted veterans for the gi bill. You'll find a lot of videos talking about that.
1978 before the internet. There were about dozen or so gunsmith schools. I didn’t want to be a plumber,electrician,mechanic. I wanted something different. Ending up at Colorado School of Trades, and it was and is still around. The way CST did this was to take repairs from the public as well as your own firearms. You could go during the day or part time at night. Many veterans were among the students. If you were lucky you could score a part time job at a gun shop, Foothills Shooting Range. They were a Class 3 dealer meaning fully automatic firearms and I was in heaven. Keeping this short I graduated and looked around and applied for jobs in the firearms industry. I was green and even though I had training I wasn’t able to score the gunsmith position. (Another story),learned a lot made friends and some still talk to me to this day. CST was like becoming a doctor of sorts teaching general all around
gunsmith things. Many would specialize,I had a blast.
Working at several different shops and even working at Smith & Wesson. Learning a long the way I didn’t know as
much as I thought. Most if not
all firearms companies need CNC people to run the machines. You need hands on training. Be very careful picking a school and don’t let people take advantage of your G.I.Bill and you. Good luck on your journey.
Hey, you guys really stuck you neck out there going against a big sponsor whilst being a smaller channel. I fully respect that and admire your bravery and honesty. So many smaller channels would take any sponsorship to get off the ground but you did the right thing. Nice job guys.
This was a brave video for you guys to make; I can tell it made you both nervous to speak truth to power in the 2A & Guntube communities.
Way to go.
*As men of integrity, you both earned this subscription.*
@@Soniti1324 to be honest; it may have killed our channel financially. We are just starting to feel the heat from it but we would rather go down honest.
You guys know something that a LOT of people seem to have forgotten:
*Your word (reputation) means everything...*
Subbed
Respect 💯
Ole boy ended the video with about 14 zyn pouches in 😂
Came here to comment the same exact thing but decided to see if anyone else noticed it as well.
🤣 Yep!
Super annoying hearing him talk with all of that stuff in his mouth.
Literally. I was like dude, he *just* put one in, and he's reaching for it again? Just switch to regular chewing tobacco and get a horseshoe lip lmao
Haha I noticed that myself, wasn't sure if he was doing it for a comment.
My little brother went to school to be a machinist, cost him a total of $2500; pulls in almost $110k/yr. Can do more than most gun smiths who claim to have 20 years experience.
Threats of government restrictions and today’s consumer society kind of made that a very niche low demand vocation. Guns are cheap now I’d imagine the vast majority are either sent back to the factory or pawned off on an unsuspecting soul to continue that process until it’s forgotten about or someone tinkers with it themselves.
@SuperIcarusman This is the way, you are 1000% right about the machinist path. Every shop is starving for capable curious people and you can learn most beginner info on UA-cam, Reddit etc. Enough to get you in the door and through many obstacles. And like you said way more and way cooler stuff than just guns
He does way more in the automotive side.
I was planning on following up my SDI degree with a machining trade school.
Bullshit. No one gets any certification as any sort of real machinist for $2500. SDI aside you are full of crap!
This is what honor and integrity looks like. Good on you two.
Thank god I didn’t waste my gi bill on this “school” glad I made the right choice.
GI bill Siphon has been a trending phrase for the reviews… The targeting of people with GI bills to waste on this really made me dive into it.
I requested info from sdi 3 years ago. Then decided it wasn't worth it and didn't pursue. They have called 3 or 4 times a month. 3 or 4 emails a week and weekly texts ever since. I have asked them to stop repeatedly in person, text and emails but I had an email and text this morning.
I almost paid cash for the course😅
@@HansShacklefordgood dodge
@@DeskPop you guys have earned my respect, I’ve been telling all my guys about how sdi produces mostly temu ass gunsmiths and now a lot of people have came out about which is going to be a good thing for service members and normal folks.
Not a video people expect to be made in our industry. Respect for the honesty.
how to lose sponsors, speedrun edition
1 man who’s truthful is worth more than 1000 fakers.
Preying on idiots for views is somehow virtuous while preying on them for ad revenue is somehow reprehensible. Did I get that right?
We may be ret@rd3d but it also means we don't know how to lie in our videos.
I've seen a couple of your videos here and there. However, this is the video that made me subscribe. I've been fucked over a lot, specially as an active duty service member. I joined to be an armorer as it has been a life long dream to work on firearms. You could ask people who are the closest to me how much of my time online is researching firearms and perfecting the builds I plan on making once I am of age. I moved to America and joined the military because of this dream I had. However the military screwed me over my armorer contract. So I decided then once I left my military career I would pursue an associates degree in SDI. Thanks to you guys, I won't now. I cannot express how thankful I am for you releasing this video and maintaining your integrity. Thanks to you I'm going to search new avenues of approach for my dream, and thanks to you, I save the benefits for which I need badly to keep pursuing my dream. God bless you, gentlemen
@@frankcastle584 Welcome to the channel, if you’ve seen our stuff you know we like to have fun, but we really value presenting you all with as unbiased takes as we can.
Colorado school of trades would probably love to have you; if you’re extremely serious about your career (or any career) Moving to a new place for a bit is well worth it, especially to get trained by some of the best!
"However the military screwed me over my armorer contract."
Never EVER, EVER, EVER trust your recruiter. (This is for anyone young enough to consider signing up)
I am NOT saying you don't serve. Go in with your eyes wide open, knowing that your first or second choice may not be immediate. Once in, become a sponge. Wherever you get posted, take a course. Over a 6 year contract, you could hit as many as 2 courses a year if lucky (that's 10 additional positive marks on your record for while you are in, and 10 different things you know when you get out - Your first year will be challenging enough, survive!). What you become is based on YOU, not what that man handing you the paper to sign says.
Thank you for putting this out. Every time I see a gun tuber advertise SDI, I'm going to link this video in their comments. I've been screaming this at them (proverbially) for years, to no avail. They don't listen.
There is no substitute for hands on learning. As you stated - a milling machine and lathe are not something you can learn remotely. You cannot separate them from the curriculum. I spent two years obtaining an associates degree from an NRA accredited program in North Carolina. It got me a job in the industry. It made me cringe hearing people support and promote the SDI program. Go to a real school. There are four in the country last I checked. PA, AZ, CO, and NC.
I graduated this year from the program at Trinidad State in Colorado. I definitely got more out of it than SDI offers. Machine shop classes, welding, all the way to making traditional wood stocks.
@@Rob-bn9ib yep! We learned how to blueprint a gun from scratch. How to make tools. How to refinish guns correctly. If you wanted to learn color case hardening - they would take the time to teach you. Whatever part of gunsmithing you wanted to specialize in. Another point the video leaves out - there are areas of expertise. Some guys end up just doing general repair, some of them make ludicrous money doing very intricate metal engraving, or making high-end safari rifles.
There are 2 in Colorado. THE Colorado School of Trades and the other one called Trinidad.
What’s the az one called
You should've taken SDI and just been honest about it.
SDI sponsored and the SDI student testimony from HR.
@@AvocadoAtrocity the biggest of brain moves
To get a sponsorship you have to sign a strict and detailed contract dictating how the sponsor is presented on your (and any affiliated) channel. Broadcasting anything else on the channel, even from someone else's mouth, would constitute a breach, and a successful lawsuit would follow.
Sponsors usually give you pretty strict talking points and almost always have to sign off before you post them
Then you don’t get paid. Why do you think that would actually work?
Yeah that’s not how those work. You don’t get paid til after the vid is posted and there’s usually multiple checks/reviews the sponsor gets to do of the full video before you post it.
The only bad thing about GT dropping SDI is that unfortunately, we lose Charlie's quips at their expense.
Nah, i think he could keep it up without GT namingthem directly
He'll just pickup another horrible company. He has a history of horrible sponsors
@@ShellShock794agree. But hes making the absolute jack off the sponsors. Another channel mentioned GT and said he will get 20,000-30,000 grand from companies to have a quick ad on his video. "Mantis dry fire systems are cool" they give him 20 grand. Anyone who says they wouldnt take that deal is either independently wealthy, have no family, or an absolute fkin retard.
@@ShellShock794 Established Titles, Big Daddy, SDI, Mantis, dude is on a roll
@@ShellShock794 To be fair GarandThumb used to be and most other guntubers are currently working under contract with Leviathan Group. It is a marketing company that negotiates all of the sponsorship contracts on behalf of the channels. GT announced fairly recently that he was going to leave Leviathan Group and do sponsorships strictly in house and only with sponsors they had vetted. So while he did agree to the contract with Leviathan, he likely did not have final say in what specific sponsors he had to do spots for
I’m a retired guy and I was thinking about getting into gunsmithing. I was researching SDI and your video was the first video that I watched, thanking you for not letting waste my time and MONEY.
I really appreciate you guy’s not being afraid to have some integrity… when the rest are falling aside.
Bro went hard on the nicotine in this one 😂😂😂😂
Is that what he's shoveling into his mouth while trying to talk at the same time? F^$k^&g moron. My first partial video here will be my last video here.
haha! I thought you were joking but after @9:55 he just keeps popping them in every 20 seconds :)
@@randalthor6872 I was losing it haha. It was a good play because I couldn't stop watching wondering how many he was going to slap in there.
Zyn should sponsor the channel :)
Them boys was horkin up Frfr
They always seemed like a scam, but GT gave them a sliver of credibility. He owes an apology.
To who? People need to stop blaming other people for their own gullibility. I get it though. You trust his words and he told you about something, but if he handed you a gun instead it wasn't loaded you better check that thing (what I mean is you should always look more in depth into what it is you're getting yourself into instead of just going into it with open arms and an open wallet)
Nothing grand thumb promotes is quality. AAC is trash ammo, the dry fire bullshit is a gimmick and as the video focuses on, SDI is not a useful tool. His videos are good but his promotions mean nothing.
@@abracing199so glad people are recognizing this. For a long time he just takes sponsors by the highest bidder. I pretty much ignore any of his sponsorship promotions. His videos are good but I’ve stopped watching for that reason.
He sure does!
@@grand1957 I think there's a reason he just kind of blast through his sponsors without dwelling on them. He speaks about them for as long as he's legally required to do so to get paid and then he drops it. Usually trying to make bits and skits out of the discussion. He doesn't owe anyone an apology, and you shouldn't stop watching his content because advertisements. Are all of you people so brain rotten that you have to buy every single advertisement you see in the world?
The tuition cost of SDI is similar to the full cost of my master’s degree in mechanical engineering. That’s wild. It’s definitely worth it going the engineering route with a real college or doing some sort of apprenticeship in machining and working your way up. I’m an engineering hiring manager (not in the gun industry) and I would be very skeptical if I saw a resume with one of these scammy for-profit schools.
I think part of the issue is the very people they scam too, Americans have gotten so lazy at vetting it's crazy.
Good video, fellas. There’s reasons I’ve never taken a penny from them. I did get a beer koozy from them at NRA show one year, sooooooo I’m not totally clean. 😂
So you're in their pocket now is what I'm hearing. Lol
@@LooniJoose I’m koozie rich!!!😂😂😂
@@LegallyArmedAmericaFTSGI
sounds like they’ve paid you off 😂
@@DeskPop total hush money payout!!! 😂🤫
Ironically enough, a worker at a local Rural King previously enlightened me to the worthless nature of taking the SDI course. Good to see more people revealing the truth.
I had to watch the reaching into each other's pocket bit like 3 times to make sure I was seeing what I thought I was seeing. Glad to see some young men with some integrity though. Y'all earned my sub, for what it's worth.
Currently have this playing in the background as I do class work for SDI. I've been on the fence about swapping schools for a couple months now. I think this video finally convinced me.
Good luck!
Greetings from Czech Republic. My younger brother went to REAL gunsmithing highschool here in CZ, in Uherský Brod. Where they teach you to use machinery, how the systems work, etc. If you compare all he was taught with SDI, SDI is basically what they learnt the first month (out of all 4 years btw, for free.). I know this because i was tutoring him on few subjects. It's shameful the people of SDI charge so much for something that you could basically learn from youtube tutorial
@@foreststalkerbrothers here you could get a couple of certificates for most of the stuff you need to learn and / or just work at a shop and learn on the job. It could be done so much cheaper and easier sometimes even free...
Eey, the world is small...
I also been there for a year as a requalification student. I got books and some knowledge however I still think I would need a lot more experience to really call myself a weaponsmith.
Cool
16:35 "my current rifle has over 1000 rounds through it without oil lubricant" the fear of my units armorer reawoken within me when i heard this.
1000 rounds is a morning at the range for some people.
Sure the gun won't fail after that many rds, but yea not something I'd do unless it's an emergency or other exceptional circumstances.
@@lazypat5497name checks out
Even as a European with no military or firearms experience, that's sounds wrong
Former 92Y here, was listening to this vid at work and when he said that my head jumped up lmao
I’m the automotive industry, I run into applicants from places like Lincoln Tech, WyoTech and other similar schools. The way to get an idea if they might be good or bad is to ask how they liked it. The ones who loved it usually learned very little. The ones who are more ambivalent in their description usually taught themselves to a decent starting point.
SDI graduate here. You get a muzzle loader to assemble and either an AR-15, LR-308/AR-10, or a pistol caliber carbine (in place of the 1911 when I attended) as your capstone project. I chose the LR-308 and was sent a palmetto upper with a low rent lower that still doesn’t mate well with the upper (I’ve done all the filing that I can do without making the firearm dangerous to operate). Otherwise, it’s UA-cam university with a few irrelevant classes.
As a rule I never trust any sponsor on UA-cam. The only one I did is Privacy, just because it's a free service and it actually is good for web security.
You mean you don’t drink AG1 for energy?
@@charlesjohnsjr.5809this sincerely made me laugh
AG1 boys unite
AG1 = Ruff Greens
Prove me wrong.
Yeah, some tech companies are solid. But stuff like this, or especially betterhelp, hoooo doggy, dont even get me started on them. If you have the need for some SSRIs, or other low strength meds like that, just go to hims. If you need therapy, just go to a real one. Yes its annoying and stressful to find a good fit for you, but its 1,000,000% worth it.
I hate that Brandon Herrera shills them considering he owns an AK manufacturing company…
the guy is a politician. what did you expect?
Has he actually started manufacturing them or does he just finish parts kits?
@@JuanRuiz-bu4zk uh. Hes not a politician actually. He just ran. And then didnt even make it. Hes not a bad dude
@@JuanRuiz-bu4zk lol what? I think you have to actually be elected to count as a politician
@@JuanRuiz-bu4zk he ran but wasn’t elected so no he’s not a politician. He’s literally never held any political position.
I've been working on guns for 30+ years, the only classes that ever mattered were for machining and metallurgy. Everything else i've learned over the years has come from hands on. I took a 2 year course at a junior college for "gunsmithing" just so I could be insured, otherwise it was worthless. The only advice I can offer is what I did starting out, go to pawn shops and small gun stores and offer to buy broken or non-functioning guns and repair them at your own expense. Build a knowledge base of experience, learn wood refinishing, learn to cerakote, learn how to hot blue. and keep at it until people start asking you to repair or restore their firearm. After 10 years or so you can build a customer base that will support you.
Big props for this video. In a time of increasing concern over fiscal stability, you went at one of the biggest sponsors of many, many influencers. You could have taken a payday, but instead you stuck to your morals. o7 gentleman!
I’d rather be homeless and honest.
Now THIS is wholesome, spicy content. Godspeed to your lawyer(s). 😬 Someone had to say it, and we're all here for it.
$50m lawyer vs $1 lawyer video coming soon!!!
@@DeskPopit’s just as good
Had the SAME issue with ITT TECH..... LONG STORY SHORT they've been SHUT DOWN BY THE BOARD OF EDUCATION and was sued also for QUESTIONABLE GRANT AN LOAN INTAKE PRACTICE..... these schools ARE NOT THE WAY TO GO....
Same with Colin college in the southwest
I personally believe college is only for people who need college: Engineers (me), Physicists, doctors, lawyers, accountants. Gunsmithing is a trade. Get a job working as an apprentice for a gunsmith. You'll get paid to learn gunsmithing. Also, a lot of gunsmithing is restoring / refinishing people's old rusty guns.
Can't tell you how much I wanted to know about SDI. Not that I was interested to attend because I grew up sitting in my grandfather's gunsmith shop so I have a fairly decent idea about what it takes for skill and to make an income out of it, but that I speculated that it must be a scam. Yet you guys are the first bold enough to talk about it. Very happy this video popped into my feed this morning. Big kudos! Subscribed!
This is exactly what happened to one of my best friends. Got out of the military, has always loved firearms and he used his GI bill on it. He's a trucker now.
Oh look another degree that does nothing, I can’t stop winning 🎉🎉🎉
The reality is that the only degrees that are worth anything are medical degrees and law degrees. Anything else can be learned on the job.
So true.
I work for one of the major tech companies. Making far more than I ever thought I would.
I went to school online (via a real university sure) but my degree ran me nothing as a veteran. Had I paid out of pocket it was MAYBE a couple grand a semester.
I’m in a niche compliance field. My degree has nothing to do with it. Basically someone gave me a shot for a compliance role and it spiraled into me working in FAANG.
I’m telling my kids to pay as little as possible for school. School brand doesn’t matter at all anymore it’s just a piece of paper that they use to gatekeep.
College is just expensive information they send you to find on the internet anyway. The only real thing they "teach" you at any school is how to look for information.
@@USAVET11B20I have a degree in history and political science, which means that I’m fully qualified job wise to ask if you’d like fries with that.
@@USAVET11B20What about engineering degrees?
A novel idea to research the products or businesses one represents. Not long ago, it was simply called integrity.
Good discussion men.
I didn’t even think that “SDI” was that serious of an institution. Thought it was just a hobby course. I also skip ads anyway because I’m there for content not paywalls or advertisements.
Im about to go. Using gi bill so it's free plus they pay me like $1000 a month to go. Already older so I'm just going to learn a hobby and get the tools .
Deep diving on sdi saved my money and my future. I just graduated high school and want to become a gunsmith on the side, sdi was my plan before people started being honest. I'm looking at MGS now but that will have to wait a couple years
@@Operator_Aspen Colorado school of trades; or even better if you want to wait a few years- assemblyman at any firearms company
I recommend the Colorado school. I know a few guys who went through it on their GI bill. None of them actually became gunsmiths because going with being a machinist made much more money for them. They got a job right away and within a year they already bought homes in Texas. (Nothing down, VA loan, but they were making more than enough money to make their mortgage payments.)
I work at a gun shop with a gunsmith, and he highly recommends the Colorado school! Dude's a real piece of gunsmith too
To agree with the other guys, Trinidad State in Colorado is where my dad went to study gunsmithing when he was young in the 70s
@@DeskPop what exactly is an assemblyman? Just slapping parts together in the back of the house? Is that a common position?
I remember all the advertisements you'd see for gunsmith training through the mail in all of the firearms publications back in the day. I was always skeptical of them as the sales pitch always seemed the same as a lot of the fly by night "business" colleges. It's great that you are exposing this modern version of the same scam. Thank you.
Running a net loss as a gun channel on UA-cam, par for the course. Keep up the good work and I hope you guys find great success.
I earned my associates of science degree from SDI, never had a problem and learned a lot. Got hired by a local gun manufacturer here in East Texas.
This is why I like you guys. You have proven time and time again that you will not shill for shitty companies you wouldn’t stand behind.
We’ve been asked about SDI many times recently; I mentioned it in a video months ago and figured it was time to talk about why we don’t recommend it. The real hope here is the we can make enough of a wave SDI uses its huge sums of money to make a better program.
They are always the highest paying ads, unfortunately. But we won't shill for crap.
Have been at a well known firearm manufacturer for almost 5 years now that I got just by interviewing with no prior experience and in that 5 years ive been in finishing dept, getting raw machined parts ready for assembly, laser engraving logos, serial numbers and state, local, and international insignias, and even small bits of assembly. But not only does the company teach everything while on tge job, but offer courses for gun smithing and other skills at their Academy. These companies will give you the tools to learn
Please sir, tell me which company will do this! I live in Missouri, will CMMG do this?
The capitalized Academy makes me think that the company is in New Hampshire and has recently gotten some major government contracts.
Smaller companies will generally have less formal educational programs.
Sometimes they will, sometimes they will try to screw you if you quit - and will try to make you quit -
Pay attention to those contracts
@@ianmcmahon8589 😎 your assumptions are right hahahahaha
SOME companies will give you the tools to learn. 90% of companies today will not hire you without experience even if they could train you to do it in a week or two.
I saw a story on T.V., one of the human interest stories in the early 80's. It was about a guy living in a camper shell in the back of his truck while going to Lassen county community college for gunsmithing. I joined the Army in 1985. In 1989, I was a desk sergeant in Korea at an MP station. My clerk, who we will call Vinny, was that guy. He accumulated 140 semester hours at a community college. He was also made my unit's Armorer. He could fix anything that did not require machine tools.
I can second this. I am a recent graduate from that same school, Lassen College. I graduated their 2-year vocational gunsmithing program in May of 2023, and have received every certification they offer. I can very safely say that I learned more in machining, gunsmith machining, gunsmith welding, and firearms design and repair in my first semester than any SDI student will learn in their 2 years. I have had many chances to converse with SDI students and I haven’t been able to hold an equally knowledgeable conversation with any of them. They simply are not a good school. I’ve handled and fixed countless guns, fabricated countless parts, polished for hundreds of hours, have hundreds of hours behind many types of machinery, and your average SDI student won’t know how to turn on a lathe.
@@cooldudepharaoh small world. I lived at SIAD in Herlong from 1990-1992.
@@larrylamb5462no way! I lived up in Susanville for my time at the college but moved back to the Bay Area when I graduated. Was able to find a job in the industry but I don’t see a having a huge future in gunsmithing here due to the shitty politics. I will probably be moving somewhere better soon if I get the chance to.
@@cooldudepharaoh food for thought. Out of 3,060 or so counties in the USA, the one I live in now, Randolph, NV, is the 9th most heavily armed county in the country, and has been for years. Don't know of any gunsmiths around, either.
Just proving how expensive actual integrity is, congratulations gentlemen this was a phenomenal video
During one of the courses we had to write a paper on wether or not gunsmiths should know how to work on mini-guns/chain guns. I said, as a person who litereally worked on them in the Marine Corp, that the likelyhood of a civilain ever seeing one, let alone having to work on one meant that it was, in my opinion, cool to learn but definitely not important... The retired LE "teacher" deducted point because he disagreed... With my opinion piece... On a subject that i have first hand knowledge on...
Their “blogs and videos” for the curriculum must have disagreed
Womp womp maybe cite a credible source next time. My instructor happened to agree with my assessment as I shared it in the video.
^This is exactly why I dropped out. Not the butthurt instructor, but that particular essay. I don't have your particular knowledge on those weapons, but I was smart enough to know I'd never need it.
Excuse me Mr. Gunsmith, I have a problem and was wondering if you can help? Well you see, I got this M-61 Vulcan that I got through totally legal means, she's not working right though. Can you diagnose the issue and fix it? I tried contacting General Dynamics about it but they never returned my emails.
Thats all college my guy you write what the teacher agrees with or you fail, college is pretty simple, fake it till you make it
Garand Thumb didn’t drop SDI until everyone on YT started exposing SDI. To be clear, he did nothing noble; he simply saved himself after making a ton of cash from promotions. He knew better, but maybe you (the viewing audience) didn’t.
Just goes to show if you put enough zero's behind something anyone is willing to sell a piece of their soul.
Same thing with Big Daddy Unlimited. Slightly different situation I know but I stopped ditching him a long while ago. I used to watch him a lot, pretty much every video. Once I started buying my own gear while considering recommendations he made, only then did I realize not much applies to me in a significant way. I still think the information was interesting to know but I started digging and found that he promotes products from the highest bidder. I don’t know if there’s any truth to that but I wouldn’t be surprised.
@@grand1957mr krabs, money money money
Agreed. I remember when he used to push freedom munitions and it wasn’t until the money dried up and people complained enough that he admitted to all the problems with the ammo
@@brandonschwertley2723 I see it more as them selling a piece of OUR soul.
SDI is kind of like watching people shoot. It won’t make up for range time.
This is my first video I’ve watched of yours. You two have earned by subscription.
Congratulations on the SDI sponsorship! You guys are awesome😄
And I love you random citizen.