Firearms, Writing, And Fred Mastison: An Inside Look At Forceoptions USA
by Ben Tirpak
May 19, 2022
We get a lot of questions sent our way here at Skillset Magazine, so we thought it was a good idea to grab ahold of one of our favorite people in the firearms industry to help answer some of them. To some of you, he may be a familiar face. For the rest of you, we hope he soon will be. Fred Mastison is a wealth of knowledge and was more than willing to sit down and help answer some of the most commonly asked questions.
A Friendly Chat With Fred Mastison
Fred is probably one of the most well-rounded instructors on the face of the earth. Not only does he teach people how to use firearms more proficiently, but he is also a master of the sword, a combatives instructor, and manages to write articles and contribute to some of the industry’s top magazines in his spare time.
I was able to catch up with Fred recently here in his home state of Arizona in between some training sessions and pick his brain a little bit about what he does for a living. We get to hear about his love of instruction, his past Aikido life and pick his brain about what it takes to be a writer in the firearms industry.
You’ve watched the videos, learned a thing or two, and are ready for more, so now what?
Looking for more information on how to sign up for a class at Forceoptions? Just click on this link here.
Big thanks to the fine folks at Trueshot Gun club for graciously allowing me to take control of their facility for a day to record this interview. If you’re looking for ammo, go hit them up and be sure to tell them Skillset sent you.



Fred is one of the most professional content creators in our Ballistic stable. On top of that, he’s a top communicator and a guy you’d want in the trenches with you when shit goes sideways.