POCATELLO — Two local business owners have combined forces to open a new gun shop and firearm training facility in south Pocatello.

Retired Bannock County sheriff’s deputy Jeff Young, who spent 26 years with the agency, is the owner of the firearm training company Lone Pine Tactical. He recently teamed up with Lewis Spencer, who is the owner of LS Armory, an online tactical gear shop, to open the Gate City’s newest gun shop — Cold Lead.

“Basically we started out with the idea of having a training facility and things just started rolling,” Spencer said. “Jeff has hosted some concealed carry, beginners handgun and advanced pistol classes and I have a business where I build and sell custom Kydex holsters. I did that for about three years before I met Jeff when I took some classes and here we are.”

Young said Cold Lead, located at 7804 W. Katsilometes Road off of South Fifth Avenue, offers a wide variety of training courses. Cold Lead got its name from an old cowboy term used during the Wild West days, Spencer said.

In addition to offering handgun and concealed carry classes, Young provides advanced AR-15 training, sessions dealing with less- or non-lethal weapons such as pepper spray and Tasers, and force on force training. He also offers periodic workshops on topics such as disaster preparedness, active shooter response, tactical medical training and more.

“Another thing we offer is what’s called residential threat assessments, which involves us going to your home during a private class and conducting a three-ring security check,” Young said. “We look at how a burglar or home invader would make entry to the residence, we talk about cameras and lighting, and we teach a home defense plan.”

He continued, “We cater the home defense plan to your needs. If you have firearms, we teach the course one way but we also cover how to use less lethal or other options if you’re not the type to own a firearm to protect your home.”

Young said that it doesn’t matter how great local law enforcement agencies are in Southeast Idaho, there can be situations where a person must become their own first responder and he wants to ensure that every person who participates in the training classes at Cold Lead is prepared with the necessary skills and fundamentals to stay safe in the event of an emergency situation.

“Law enforcement are always stretched thin and sometimes it’s necessary that we take care of ourselves before the police can arrive,” Young said. “We want people to be ready to defend themselves and their family.”

One reason Spencer and Young decided to open Cold Lead was because they both witnessed a surge in gun sales amid and immediately after the COVID-19 pandemic.

“There was a big increase in firearms purchases during the pandemic,” Spencer said. “There are over 7 million new gun owners and something like 80 million background checks for people trying to purchase firearms during that time. The training that we offer is going to teach people the laws surrounding the use of a firearm, when you should use it and when you shouldn’t and to help people realize that using deadly force should be the last resort.”

Spencer and Young said they recently held a training session in which several elderly women who had never handled a firearm before participated.

“They started out being absolutely terrified of the gun so they came and did our beginner’s class,” Young said. “By the end of it they were comfortable and understood that these guns were just inanimate objects, tools, that won’t go off on their own. We were able to teach them that it’s not the gun you need to be afraid of, it’s the person behind the gun.”

When it comes to providing home security checks, Cold Lead will provide that service free of charge to battered/abused women, Young said.

“We do a free home assessment to get them back to a position where they feel safe in their own home.” Young said. “We have already helped two women out quite a bit, preparing them so that they can start to live their lives again instead of being in fear for their lives.”

In addition to being able to make a custom Kydex holster for any gun, the gun shop portion of the store will include a variety of firearms, ranging from airsoft guns to pistols and handguns to shotguns and rifles. Spencer said they are currently working on adding more stock to their collection and should have a large shipment of ammunition arriving soon.

“The other thing we want to do is we want to offer the highest quality gear and attachments,” Spencer said. “We don’t intend on stocking any filler equipment. We’re going to have stuff that’s going to last forever. Our gun oil for example is the best gun oil I’ve ever found.”

Because the shop is also a training facility, Young said their specialty will be weapons that you can conceal carry. The facility also offers an indoor airsoft gun shooting range so that folks can sight in newly acquired attachments on site.

Britney Yarbrough, who owns Snake River Chung Do Kwan, will offer martial arts training at Cold Lead every Tuesday from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. and self-defense classes by appointment only on Wednesdays.

Another frequent happening at Cold Lead is something called The Foxhole, which involves a group of veterans and first responders meeting at the facility to work out issues, said Spencer, adding that the group is looking for a certified counselor who will come in and hang out with them and enjoy some of the complimentary coffee that’s always available at the establishment.

“This has been a long time coming for us and we are excited for the future,” Spencer said about Cold Lead.

Cold Lead is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and by appointment by calling 208-241-9057 or 208-252-0630.