Skeeter Skelton Remembered

[Electrod47]

Skeeter Skelton along with Bob Milek and John Wooters and don't forget Maj. George Nonte jr were some of the most influential people for me as I progressed with my shooting hobby as a young man recently discharged from the Army in 1972.
Money was tight. So I leaned toward Major Nonte and his "Kitchen Table" tips for reloading and minor gun smithing. Then Skeeter who always blended a yarn with his gun handling advice. In fact I moved to rural Arizona with mena in 1977 so I could be in the same environment as his. Oh, the shooting was fun in those days. Even started wearing a hat just like his. Still do. Bob Milek really turned it up for handgun hunting with me. Enjoyed his adventures in print immensely. Those Arizona mule deer weren't easy to get back in the day. Reading John Wooters tales of Texas white tail, which were easy to imagine cause I had trained at Ft. Hood in 1966.
So later, I went to work in a Steel Mill outside Dallas made a lot of friends and got to hunt those white tails many times in West Texas.
I miss the kind of imagination those guys could stir up in me. Just recently I gave up all the gun magazine subscriptions I had kept up over the years. Every article would start with a history lesson about John Browning did this and that and Colts history or Smiths blah blah blah.
OR the "perfect packin pistol" no matter how absurd the choice might be.

Oh Well,
Anybody want to get reacquainted with Skeeter he is holding forth at Dark Canyon for many moons now.
www.darkcanyon.net/skeeter
or a kind tribute to Bob Milek from Craig Boddington at www.thefreelibrary.com/The+wyoming+cowboy%3A+remembering+Bob+Milek
John Wooters wife just a few years ago has put up all his work.
johnwootters.com that lovely lady must be in her 90's and still holding forth for her husband.
These kind of people are getting hard to find.

[gwpercle]

Thanks ...
I just went to the Dark Canyon site and down loaded and printed a couple of Skeeter's articles on loading and shooting the 357 magnum . I'm a book guy so I printed them and put them in a binder and keep it all together in a place on my bookshelf .
Skeeter was my main 38/357 casting/loading influence . His words on using Lyman #358156 with a gas check and 38 special cases was just the ticket ,1970 and I had buckets of 38 special brass , not one 357 magnum case was to be found and had bought a brand new Ruger Blackhawk 357 magnum , the gun shop had that single cavity Lyman mould , gas checks and I knew the man who owned the tire shop ...free wheel weights ... Skeeter , #358156 & Unique powder got me to shooting that Blackhawk in such a good way that I had little need for 357 magnum brass for about 40 years .
Gary

[Shawlerbrook]

Yes, Shooting Times magazine was my favorite back in the 70’s & 80’s.

[smithnframe]

I’m not a PPP fan either! Elmer and Skeeter are still my favorites.

[memtb]

Elmer, Bob, and Skeeter were my favorites! Bob lived about 20 miles from me! memtb

[KCSO]

I was a big fan of Jack Lewis too. Those guys would be highly cencored today and most of Nonte's do it yourself is banned. Remember pinning your grip safety?

[Krag 1901]

I started reading GUn mags in~1960 and had a huge collection of them. PO Ackley and Skeeter were my favorites.

[lightman]

I mis those guys! Brings back lots of memories.

[abunaitoo]

I shooting times was smart, they would come out with an issue of all of Skeeters articles in one.
It would be an instant hit.
Been looking for a copy of Skeeter Skeltons Handgun Tails for a long time.
I did see a few for sale, but way out of my price range.

[contender1]

Count me in as a long time Skeeter fan as well. I have his books, I have some of the special magazines, and even a few other items I enjoy. I got to meet Skeeter many years ago at the SHOT Show. Soft spoken, yet,, you could hear the steel in his voice.

[Catshooter]

What a great bunch of guys. Skeeter especially, could write. The man sold 100% of his writings and not many can say that. He could sure put together a sentence. I loved reading his work. Him and Nonte were taken too young for sure.


Cat

[Walks]

Thanks ...
I just went to the Dark Canyon site and down loaded and printed a couple of Skeeter's articles on loading and shooting the 357 magnum . I'm a book guy so I printed them and put them in a binder and keep it all together in a place on my bookshelf .
Skeeter was my main 38/357 casting/loading influence . His words on using Lyman #358156 with a gas check and 38 special cases was just the ticket ,1970 and I had buckets of 38 special brass , not one 357 magnum case was to be found and had bought a brand new Ruger Blackhawk 357 magnum , the gun shop had that single cavity Lyman mould , gas checks and I knew the man who owned the tire shop ...free wheel weights ... Skeeter , #358156 & Unique powder got me to shooting that Blackhawk in such a good way that I had little need for 357 magnum brass for about 40 years .
Gary

Same with me.
Even though I started reading Shooting Times early on and My Dad already shot the same loads as Skeeter, I loved his articles and stories the best of any Shooting mag ever. With Peter Hathaway Capstick a close second.

[GOPHER SLAYER]

I still have many of those old magazines you guys are writing about. I bought them new. Geeze, where did all those years go. If it were not so hot I would get them out and take pictures of them. It's over a hundred today.

[Ithaca Gunner]

Yeah, I've got a bunch of old Shooting Times too, and always kept an eye out for the ''Special Editions''. I've got one that's all Skeeter stories, love reading them, over and over! Skeeter is timeless!