One of the greats!

[WILCO]

http://www.gunsandammo.com/files/2013/07/Elmer-Keith_001.jpg

[powderburnerr]

Yep, that's Elmer shooting pests .

[starmac]

Must be shooting into one heck of a tall berm. lol

[square butte]

Yeah - that berm is called the rocky mountains

[Hickok]

Seems a lot of people like to bash EK, but I for one read his material and bought his books, and enjoyed the stories, data and information, which helped give me a start in handgun hunting along time ago. I use a lot of Keith SWC's, and they work for me.

[w5pv]

I have red a lot on EK,lots of good data.

[lightman]

Yup, He was one of the great ones.

[ballistim]

Seems a lot of people like to bash EK, but I for one read his material and bought his books, and enjoyed the stories, data and information, which helped give me a start in handgun hunting along time ago. I use a lot of Keith SWC's, and they work for me.

I'm sure most of the people bashing him had a lot less time spent shooting & hunting than Elmer Keith - and he deserves a lifetime achievement award if only for the design of his wadcutters. Over the years I hear him getting ripped over the story of the well documented long distance deer shot with the .44 mag,(my father included) but they fail to mention the fact that the deer in question was previously wounded and putting it down was the humane thing to do. Political arguments often follow this pattern; edit the story to support your opinion, don't let the facts get in the way of a good argument. Great photo BTW!

[WILCO]

Great photo BTW!

I thought so too and needed to share it.

[Wolfer]

Back when Elmer was still writing and I was a young man who knew most everything about anything I thought he was a little full of himself. I never really cared for the man.
In later years I read his book ( Hell, I was there) and I came to a different understanding of the man. Opinionated for sure but that opinion didn't just happen. It grew from a whole lot of experience. That he was as tough as a hogs rooter there is no doubt.

Now that I'm a lot older and know a lot less than I did I'm now one of his greatest admirers.

[Hickok]

Back when Elmer was still writing and I was a young man who knew most everything about anything I thought he was a little full of himself. I never really cared for the man.
In later years I read his book ( Hell, I was there) and I came to a different understanding of the man. Opinionated for sure but that opinion didn't just happen. It grew from a whole lot of experience. That he was as tough as a hogs rooter there is no doubt.

Now that I'm a lot older and know a lot less than I did I'm now one of his greatest admirers.Very well said.

[lbaize3]

Elmer is a part of our history. I admire his writing and lifestyle. He had his own style, likes and dislikes. He reminded me a lot of my Papaw (Dad's Dad). Tough as a boot and means what he said. He was the father of long range pistol shooting for me and I have had a lot of fun trying to repeat his shots. There may others like him (Brian Pearce, maybe), but Elmer was bigger than life for me.

[leadman]

I had the American Rifleman magazines starting in the 1930s and read many of his articles. We probably would not have the excellent revolver cartridges if he hadn't experimented with the existing cartridges of his day.
Many people do not know that in the late 1930s he and his two buddies were experimenting with solid copper rifle bullets and even machined grooves in the bearing surface, just like the current Barnes bullets. Elmer said they shot great but since they were hand made too expensive.

[Nueces]

I attended the NRA Show in Washington, DC around 1960, when I was 12 years old. One of Dad's old friends, who was very much into guns, had invited us. This friend walked Elmer up to Dad and introduced him. I could have reached out and touched EK's belt buckle.

Dad had no idea who he was, but I did and longed to speak. However, I had not been included in the introduction, so I held my tongue. That was the only time I ever saw the grand old man.

But, I had learned my lesson. In later years, I would attend an NRA meet or the SHOT Show and march right up and introduce myself to Jeff Cooper, Skeeter Skelton, Dean Grennell, Charlie Askins, Mike Venturino or Bill Jordan. Those short conversations make some fine memories.

Elmer's book "Sixguns" got me through Air Force pilot training by offering a refuge in the mountains, with powder smoke in the air. As someone has said, it's no longer possible to grow up as he did and his perspective and vision is unique.

[smoked turkey]

I wish I had had the opportunity to meet "the man" Elmer but alas I did not. I have read some his writings and think that Elmer was one of a kind. He was a man of termendous influence. I studied the great photo of him in the OP and tried to figure out what caliber Elmer was shooting in the Ruger #1. I came to the conclusion that since it was Elmer he was probably varmit hunting with his 375 H&H!

[WILCO]

I studied the great photo of him in the OP and tried to figure out what caliber Elmer was shooting in the Ruger #1. I came to the conclusion that since it was Elmer he was probably varmit hunting with his 375 H&H!

Not sure if it's the "21 Club" Ruger #1, but here's some more info:

http://www.classicsportingarms.com/the-21-club-ruger-no-1s/

[Idaho Sharpshooter]

As I type this, I can look to my left about four feet away and see Elmer's Shiloh Sharps LRE 45-90 leaning against a bookcase. Serial Number EK 100.
And, yes, it is a sub-2moa rifle, with the 6X MVA scope, a 540gr PP bullet and a slightly compressed case full of 777. I just cannot convince myself to load it with black.

I visited him regularly before his stroke, and after the second one when he was in a nursing home about two miles from our house.

We will never, sadly, see his like again...

[scarry scarney]

As I type this, I can look to my left about four feet away and see Elmer's Shiloh Sharps LRE 45-90 leaning against a bookcase. Serial Number EK 100.
And, yes, it is a sub-2moa rifle, with the 6X MVA scope, a 540gr PP bullet and a slightly compressed case full of 777. I just cannot convince myself to load it with black.

I visited him regularly before his stroke, and after the second one when he was in a nursing home about two miles from our house.

We will never, sadly, see his like again...

wow. And I thought the auction list in the pit (http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?264542-One-heck-of-an-auction-here) would be something, and Idaho owns one of his rifles.....

[Moonie]

wow. And I thought the auction list in the pit (http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?264542-One-heck-of-an-auction-here) would be something, and Idaho owns one of his rifles.....

This board will NEVER cease to amaze, I learned that years ago. Be humble, when you try to one-up someone here you just might be sorry lol.

[firefly1957]

I read a lot of Elmer's writings and have a few of his books way back he was the first articles i read in the gun magazines i learned a lot from reading him. Elmer has also cost me a bit of money I doubt that 44 in my Avatar would have been bought if i did not read him and then there is my Sharps Shilo .......

[StrawHat]

Growing up I read a lot of his work. It influences me today. Mostly about large bores, it was because of him I got my first 44 Magnum. Eventually, I gave up on the 44 Magnum (actually all Magnums) and prefer the 45 long Colt. I still reread his writing to glean new things.

[youngmman]

I got my junior hunting license at age 13 in 1961 after completing the NRA hunter safety course. It included an NRA membership for $1.25. I began reading Elmer Keith's articles in the American Rifleman and was hooked. He wrote with a sense of adventure recounting the "Old Days" when he knew some of the prominent figures of the old west along with his analysis of bullet development and effectiveness.

Now I have casted for the last 20+ years and use the H&G #43 and #503 for some of most accurate and effective bullets I shoot.

[WILCO]

Bump!

[DoubleAdobe]

Back when Elmer was still writing and I was a young man who knew most everything about anything I thought he was a little full of himself. I never really cared for the man.
In later years I read his book ( Hell, I was there) and I came to a different understanding of the man. Opinionated for sure but that opinion didn't just happen. It grew from a whole lot of experience. That he was as tough as a hogs rooter there is no doubt.

Now that I'm a lot older and know a lot less than I did I'm now one of his greatest admirers.

Yeah, Elmer didn't have a problem with low self confidence.
Years ago when Pete Rose was in his prime I disliked him for the same reasons you mention about Elmer. Pete's later problems notwithstanding, I later changed my mind about him and admired him for his grit and determination.

[Shuz]

It bothers me that this great picture does not include any evidence of ear or eye protection.

[DoubleAdobe]

It bothers me that this great picture does not include any evidence of ear or eye protection.
I don't know if you were being absolutely serious or not about eyes and ears, but shooting recreationally as a youngster, I don't recall that being a requirement. It may have been suggested, I don't recall, but I know I didn't have any ear protection and have the bad hearing now to prove it..
My Dad was in a Triple A Battery in the Korean War era and when I asked him what they used for hearing protection, he just looked at me like I had started talking Swahili. Probably couldn't hear me.
What I mean is, different times and different ways. We learned better now.

[Bad Water Bill]

Sadly all of the old ones have left and there are none to follow in their footsteps.

Yes there are writers that experiment BUT the folks like Elmer Keith and Harvey Donaldson did their research and development ON THEIR OWN DIME.

Yes they EARNED the right to voice their opinion because THEY paid for it.

[StrawHat]

Good hearing protection is a relatively recent development, coinciding with the development of the jet plane. Prior to that, cigarette butts, cotton balls and spent shell casings were used but not often. I doubt if I used hearing protection prior to the 70s unless shooting on a team that required it.

Kevin

[shoot-n-lead]

It bothers me that this great picture does not include any evidence of ear or eye protection.

Doesn't bother me in the least.

This picture captures the essence of Elmer...and for the record, everyone ,now, knows to use eye and ear protection...and still, some don't.

[dragon813gt]

I'm guilty of not wearing safety glasses. I absolutely hate wearing them. Praying my vision holds up for the remainder of my life. I honestly can't believe someone would pick out lack of PPE in a picture from that era.

[Nueces]

I've even seen Civil War snipers pictured without glasses and ears....

[Bad Water Bill]

There was hearing protection in the 50s SORT OF.

About as good as a $5.00 pair today

Spend an 8 hour day around jets in afterburner and you never heard a 45 ACP going off next to your head.

I can not imagine what it was like during WW2 working INSIDE of a turret of one of those 16" cannons firing for effect on a beach somewhere hour after hour.

[bhn22]

One of the greatest failings of our time is that the current generation often discards the accomplishments of great men of the past, simply because the youngsters can't comprehend the sacrifices and determination of two generations ago. Many accomplishments came about from the simple need to feed their families, and keep a roof over their heads.

[Mod42]

Elmer was one of the greats, and one of my heroes. Wish I could have spent a day with him to hear some of his stories. I was fortunate to have been friends with Don Zutz, another writer from that era. Don's field of expertise was shotguns, but he had spent a fair amount of time with Elmer. Don knew that I was a fan of Elmer Keith, so he would tell me many stories about Elmer, and many other writers from that era. When the old guard died off I pretty much stopped buying the gun rags because there wasn't a lot of honest information to be bought. Handloader is about all I buy anymore.

[Three44s]

I doubt you could have talked Elmer out of wearing his hat for the sake of hearing protection anymore than you could have also talked him out of his cigar for other health reasons.

Different times, different men!

I also admit to not taking Elmer Keith as seriously as I should have ... I was more into Jack O'Connor and the .270 Win in my younger days. I also admit to buying into the myth that the .44 mag was "too much gun" during those days.

A friend of mine had a close encounter with a grizzly back in '93 on the edge of our cattle summer range and my whole world turned upside down ........ right there and then.

As I weighed my options ........ I came to the .44 mag somewhat late in life ...... at age 40.

After reading Elmer's Sixguns and Hell I Was There ........ I was quite saddened that I had discounted his wisdom for so many years and have been trying to make up for such errors since then.

My wife and I traveled over to Idaho and West Yellowstone MT last end of October. On the way home we traveled through Salmon Idaho and on up and over the top in Darby and Hamilton MT. I was hoping to see something of Elmer there in Salmon but alas there is no museum for him and the local museum was not open the day we passed through .... but I spoke with some locals that were in the know and they said that Elmer's son ..... Ted was very interested in MONEY ....... not history ...... and he has sent everthing worth a dime over to Cabela's and that it was on display in their Boise store .........

......... and now I see it's all about to be auctioned off .........

I realize I personally have what I really need or deserve .... if I "deserve" anything in the first place ..... his writings and the indelible impact he left on shooting and hunting.

Best regards

Three 44s

[Uncle R.]

What a man he must have been. I wish I could have known him. I guess he may have been abrasive to some people, but had a right to be opinionated. He sure as heck had seen the elephant.
<
EK is gone and the world he grew up in, hunted in and wrote in is gone too. They're all now in that distant place we call the past. Fortunately for us, his writing lives on so we can in at least a small way listen to his stories and share the world he knew. What a blessing it was for all of us that EK wrote of the things he did.
<
There's a lesson here for all of us. As Colonel Cooper admonished in the last years of his life - if you have a story worth telling, write it down.
<
Uncle R.

[TXGunNut]

Feel free to bash Uncle Elmer....as soon as you match his trigger time, hours in the field and big game kills. Never had the pleasure of meeting him but have it on good authority that he's the same man most of us imagine after reading what he wrote. I've spent may hours reading what he wrote; he was the real deal and tough as nails to boot. In my book he was the John Moses Browning of boolit design. Yes, he tried some stuff that didn't work. That's part of the territory.

[shoot-n-lead]

Feel free to bash Uncle Elmer....

Who was bashing Elmer????

[Bad Water Bill]

Who was bashing Elmer????

Must have been some person NEW to the hobby.

[doc1876]

When I was 10 or so, I "discovered" Elmer. I devoured every thing on him I could find. I kept reading him up until after his death, and now I am now turning to collecting his work. I will forever wish I could have met him. His writings are still as up to date today as they were 35 years ago.

[TXGunNut]

Who was bashing Elmer????


Nobody, have seen a fair bit of it and just wanted to head it off. The man understood hunting boolits like no other man in his time and darned few since.

[pworley1]

Mr. Keith gave us a lot. If you shoot, you use some of what he shared with us whether you liked him or not.

[Certaindeaf]

My hero. Great pic. That kinda looks like a Leupold 1x5.

[Certaindeaf]

I think my favorite story of his is when he and a buddy were quite young, someone kidded them about their hoglegs and tossed his hat up in the air, saying "bet you can't hit that!".. well they drew and drilled that hat. The owner fingered the holes in the hat, not too happy about it and threw it in the dirt. The boys made good use of it, punching cylinder size discs out of the felt and greasing them for an over-powder wad for their old percussion revolvers.
Its been a long time but I think that's pretty close to how the story goes.

[paul h]

He is by far my favorite hunting/shooting/handloading/gunsmithing/experimenting author. What those who bash him likely fail to realize is that all of their accumulated shooting knowledge is based on what was learned by experiments by Elmer, Whelen, Ackley, etc.,

[Snow ninja]

Need to find one of his books and get to it. Read a lot about him, but just haven't come across any of his books.

[WILCO]

Google will show the way........

[ballistim]

Need to find one of his books and get to it. Read a lot about him, but just haven't come across any of his books.

I found books of his & others through a statewide library program, don't know but something like that may be available where you live, just a thought.

[Bad Water Bill]

I found my copy thru Amazon.

Evil bay also had a few also.

[.22-10-45]

What is even more remarkable about Keith and other firearm afectionados of his generation, is that for the most part they did their bullet casting using a 10lb. pot over an old cast iron wood burning range. and used the early nickle plated Ideal tong tools for load workup. I have read that careful inspection of primers were necessary before loading to weed out the ones with missing anvils. We have it so easy today, sometimes we forget what our forebears had to go thru..and yet looking at some of those old targets shot so long ago..can be quite a challenge to equal with todays equipment.

[charlie3tuna]

As a boy growing up in southern Indiana, I had a subscription to Outdoor Life. This was during the time the argument was raging between Elmer Keith and Jack O'Connor. Although I wasn't allowed to have a gun (a long story), I devoured every word of it. After giving the matter thought, I concluded that Keith knew what he was talking about, and O'Connor was full of it. Still feel that way today.

charlie

[robg]

they dont make em like that any more .times change not alway for the better.

[Certaindeaf]

Sometimes it's the little things that will catch your eye and stay with you. Like how smart and important it is to blade off, if possible, so as to probably get (kill) multiple cretins with one shot (force multiplier) or how odd it is that a small fellow (his arsenal days) can easily shoot neck snapping guns all day long where a larger one will most often cry after the first shot.

[WILCO]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/d/dc/Elmer_Keith.jpg/220px-Elmer_Keith.jpg

[WILCO]

http://ts1.mm.bing.net/th?&id=HN.607994080519520337&w=300&h=300&c=0&pid=1.9&rs=0&p=0

[WILCO]

Bump!

[Wooly]

Considering that many shooters of today don't know much about EK, what will his name recognition be in 10 or 20 years? Cabela's wanted the space back, so Ted is selling the guns. Probably would be worth less later on. Our generation is getting old.
On another note, I met Elmer in 1979. Idaho Sharpshooter(brother of EdK and I) spent a morning talking with him at his house in Salmon. Bought my copy of Sixguns that day & had Mr Keith dedicate it. A prized possession of mine, hopefully my heirs will enjoy it as I have. Elmer was the man.

[WILCO]

http://imghumour.com/assets/Uploads/Lets-Bump.jpg

[Pumpkinheaver]

One of my favorites. I don't agree with everything he said but he was entertaining.

[Clay M]

I have been to his house in Salmon, Idaho.
I always enjoyed his prospective on big bore rifles.
I also grew up shooting .44 magnums in both revolver and rifles ,so I was definitely influenced by Keith.

Both O'Conner and Keith influenced me growing up.
My love for the .270 win definitely came from O'Conner.

[bdicki]

http://www.gunsandammo.com/files/2013/07/Elmer-Keith_002.jpg

[WILCO]

https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8428/7734575360_1e6bef6b19_z.jpg

[WILCO]

http://www.shakariconnection.com/image-files/elmer-keith.jpg

[sparky45]

Yup, He was one of the great ones.

This ↑↑↑

[Clay M]

I met Keith at the NRA convention in Atlanta back in the easily 70's .He was a very nice old fellow.
I love Salmon ,Idaho. I can see why we lived there for the remainder of his life.
It is a very beautiful drive up from Boise. The canyon river drive going into Salmon has a very off world feel.