Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters What Happened to Bob Milek?

Great thread. Glad it came to the top again. I all ready had a soft spot for the .250-3000, as that is what Dad used,, but Bob wrote an article for a Peterson's annual back around 1990 on the 25s. The part that stands out most was his introduction to the .257 Roberts when he was a kid, hunting with an old rancher. Guess I'll have to dig that out and re-read the whole thing. He was one of the greats.

Great stories. Keep them coming.

If it weren't for me reading his articles I doubt I would have ever tried handgun hunting, especially bolt action handguns.

Bob Milek is why I have a 25/06 and the reason I like it best for my deer hunting, have used other cartridges, but the 25 is my favourite.

Same here, only for the 22 BR. If it wasn't for him, I would probably never have had a 22 BR built. I still use his recommended loads for my 22 BR.

He's the reason I own both a Whelen and a .25-06 (with maybe a little bit of help from Wooters on the latter). When I was a little kid he was the first gunwriter I knew by name.

I too was sorry to hear of Bob Mileks passing, as well as a host of others I had read and followed since the very late 50's/early 60's.

Milek was indeed a realistic and sincere hunter and was a wealth of information, definitely NOT one of the writers who did more hunting over a typewriter keyboard than in the field to sort of quote another well know gunwriter now passed on also. I am thinking of Mr Howells 'short list' and chuckling to myself.

Milek was definitely one to go out of his way to show his disdain for the .300 Winchester Magnum, as much or more so than O'Connor would praise the 270 Win. It, at times, really took away from both of their excellent writings, and frankly, both cartridges, and both writers are excellent in my opinion.

This is a good thread, it brought back a lot of names of writers I read with envy as a young boy growing into adulthood.

I am surprised that I have not seen John Jobson or Larry Koller mentioned, and I read the whole thread. I guess I liked those 2 because they did some of their hunting in New York state, namely Ulster/Sullivan Counties(Larry Koller), and I distinctly remember an article by Jobson in Sports Afield many years ago about spending time in New York state deer hunting with his new bride. I hunted that area as a kid and it was nice to read of gunwriters hunting the same areas as I did I guess.

Ken Howell;
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the true stories from the long list are the best.

Better than any tall tales from the short list.

I said one time that John Buhmiller shot about 60 some elephant..

A gravely voice in the room says"83 elephant, over 150 of the Big Five, I have a copy of the list he sent me a. while back."

I had been reading about Buhmiller for years, everything I could find. And here was a cohort in crime who had coesponded with him for years.


I shut my mouth and was treated to some great stories about John for the rest of the evening.

The last time I saw friend John Buhmiller, I was in his shop sizing cases for the handloads that he was going to take on his first trip to Africa. After that, we "met" only through a voluminous exchange of letters. Much later, I bought his 4x5 Speed Graphic � one of my favorite cameras.

John and Elmer had long-running argument over doubles for dangerous game. John began to see Elmer's point when a wounded rhino (I think it was) chased him around a tree while he funbled to clear a jam in his bolt gun. I bet cuss words are still hanging from the branches of that tree!

Re my short list � one benefit � I've learned, painfully, the fallacy of assuming that artistic skill is a sign or parallel of integrity. John was the gen-you-wine article.

Thanks for reply Mr. Ken, if I may be so familiar.........
I was taught the finer parts of tool and die, from shadow grinding, to heat treat and flowing metal from a bunch of old farts. That did it. Really did it.

They didn't read about it and regurgitate it. They couldn't read about it. They were doing it for the first time. Like John opening up the 378 to 458. Gen-You-Wine. (If I may steel a little.)

I am an old fart metal worker now and a few of the young guys in our shop are shooters. They know the difference between "file to fit, charge extra for sand blasting in 5 minutes to cover my tool marks" gunsmiths and the " check in all axis with an indicator, redo it and be truthful if I make a mistake" gunsmiths.

I keep copys of articles about and by John Buhmiller, Bob Bell and the like for them to read. Folks they hadn't heard of or didn't know they had read. They want to know where to get more, hungry they are, for the real deal.

Old farts smile in all trades when the rookies "get it" for the first time.

Then there is no stopping them. They get hungry for information and are more demanding of their own work on their own guns.

My $.02

I really liked Bob's articles, partly because they were written by a guy who hunted in the same part of the world as me, who learned about hunting in the field and not by reading articles.

I especially remember one article about the .25-06, where he took one elk hunting because it was the only one of his big game rifles that happened to be sighted-in when he decided to go hunting. This is familiar to me, as gun writers end up testing so many scopes that often it's hard to find a rifle that's sighted-in with the right load. (The .25-06 in the story worked, of course, taking some sort of elk--as I remember a cow or young bull--with a broadside lung shot, I believe with a 120-grain Speer Hot Core.)

But I must also confess that the one thing that bothered me aout Bob's writing was his dialogue. Sometimes he'd even start a story with something like this, "Gosh, Bill!" I exclaimed. "That 120-grain pill, started at 3100 fps with 56 grains of 6344, sure put that buck on the ground with some authority!"

People don't talk like that, but then again there wasn't a lot of talking in Milek articles anyway.

I met Bob a couple times in various places and he was indeed a nice guy. But I have gotten to know Bob Jr. much better over the years, and have done some shooting with him, both at targets and hair. He's also a really nice guy, and a darn good shot, too.

I actually remember that article - it must have been written 25-30 years ago. My memory had it as a 120gr hollow point of some sort taking a cow broadside and spraying blood out the opposite end. In short order she was down. Five other people might remember it five different ways. Either way, we remember that we enjoyed that plus countless other articles written by Mr. Milek. He's the reason I still long for a 35 Whelen, and also find the 257 Roberts very interesting, although I've never owned either. Us leftys never get a break, and Ruger never quite got the configurations quite to my liking in those calibers in a #1. A 1-A in a 24" barrel in the Whelen and RSI in the Roberts would suit me fine.

There are a lot of good writers out there, but my top three still include Milek and Aagard. JB rounds it out.

Right!

Even when you create a "quoted" remark or repeat a real one as best you can, you should make it as much like real talk as you can.

I can't recall reading anything that Bob wrote (I did � just don't remember), but the Bob Milek whom I knew was twenty feet tall and solid to the core.

Mr.Milek is the reason I hunt with an XP-100.I read his Handgun Hunting special for Guns&Ammo (circa 1981 or thereabouts) so many times when I was a kid,that I dang near wore the covers off it.

Brian.

At a Remington dinner, I asked a Remington exec when we could expect to see a right-hand XP-100. The question startled him.

"That's what we make now!"

"No, it's a left-hander." I mimicked shooting one with my left hand and working the bolt with my right hand. He looked even more startled � his eyes shot open wider, and he almost jumped.

"By God, you're right!"

I keep hearing references about Bob Milek doing an article on the .35 Whelen. I'm alays looking for more articles that cover my favorite round. If anyone still has a copy of the article, I would appreciate them scanning and mailing me a copy. I really would like to see his take on the cartridge.
Thanks
Paul B.

You're 100% right Mr.Howell-they are a left handed gun.If you're shooting it off hand,you have to change hands to reload it.Still probably the best mass produced specialty pistol ever made.

Brian.

I always wanted one for the action alone. Wouldn't that make into a super-sweet little walking varmint rifle? But they've always been too pricy for me.

I enjoyed reading Milek, and it was his influence that gave me confidence in the 25-06 for mule deer.