Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Elmer Keith accuracy?

I met Elmer Keith a few times and had some nice visits, I cannot say that we were friends but we knew each other well enough to acknowledge each other when we met. I found him to be friendly, willing to talk about near any subject but guns were near and dear to his heart.
I have read all of his books but I can't say that I ever enjoyed them, not only is his style of writing hard to read but in every book when something went wrong it was always someone elses fault, whether it was not getting a promotion at the Ogden Armory, or being passed over for an editors position at one of the major outdoor magazines. I don't think he was more than 5'6" and he did have a bit of a short man syndrome he always had tall heels on his boots and the high crown on his stetson.
I never knew his wife (Lorainne) but she must have been pretty easy going. It seems to me that Elmer was never much of a rancher what with him being a guide, shooter, writer, experimenter it couldn't have left much time for ranch work. I doubt that he ever made much in the way of money, which from what I have read was a bone of contention with him towards JOC.


JOC - Much easier to read, which is the way it should be since he had a Masters Degree in English/Journalism and was a professor at what is now Northern Arizona University. I have read and re-read all of his books and still enjoy his writings more than any other outdoor writer, his writing has the ability to make me feel like I am along on the trip.
I never knew him or met him but I have friends who knew and associated with him and to a man they say he was crotchety at best. But he knew he was a lucky person in making a fairly good living doing what he wanted (hunting and writing) and being paid fairly will for it. I remember reading that he was the highest paid gunwriter of his era. And of course since he was a gunwriter during the golden age of safaris he quite often got to go on safaris paid by for by the magazine.
His last book - aptly titled The Last Book-Confessions Of A Gun Editor is a great read and in it he alludes to some of the difficulties between himself and Keith. It was a limited edition and is hard to find but well worth the effort IMO.

Both had a major infulence and shaped a lot of opinions about firearms in the 40's thru the 70's and the gunwriting world is a lesser place without them.

drover

Also, without a doubt the .270 faired so well because of JOC ‘s writing about it... I read him faithfully when I was a kid.. At that time Elmer’s stuff was mostly in the Rifleman, I believe... First I heard of him was when I was 7 or 8.. About 1954.. I bought some little shooting book that had an article about him.. It mentioned strange calibers I had never heard of: 285 okh , .333 okh 333 belted okh and the .334.. I had no clue about them at the time.. I do remember in the article the guy say Elmer came into town with a 5 point bull on his vehicle after elk season closed. i guess the warden questioned him, his reply was he was back east in elk season..!! Who knows, times were different.. I have searched a thousand times for that little yellow book,never found it..

I love it and don't doubt it.! Yes things were different then.

It appears you and I are close in age. I just turned 68 and I'm guessing you're 3 or so yrs ahead of me.

Jerry

I begin to see that this forum needs a "sticky" clarifying that "spitzer" (a pointy thing, originally a German term) is a type of bullet, whereas "spritzer" (a typically alcoholic drink to which carbonation is added ) is generally unrelated to shooting. Unless you shoot a 270.

Yes we are.. I will be 71 come summer.. Sure doesn’t sound as old as it used to..

I spent quite a bit of my youth around the Salmon area. Mostly hunting and steelhead fishing upriver from town. Been to the Dew Drop Inn a few times.

My dad and his brother used to hit the bars in Salmon pretty hard when they'd head that way, before I was born. Several notable stories of bar fights, car chases where some locals shot at dad and uncle. Happened more than once. I think there were several episodes, in fact. Them Salmon locals is/was a touchy bunch, and my uncle was a loudmouthed a-hole when he got to drinking. My dad was pretty embarrassed to discuss any of it by the time I was old enough to start asking about stories his brother would tell us at family dinners.

I never did run into Elmer in or around Salmon, but I talked to several folks that proudly knew him. I always loved that Salmon River canyon. My mother has requested her ashes be scattered there. I've not been down there in 25 years.

It AIN"T!

When I was a teen I had relatives to die around 60. I 'thot', that's old enuff ! I've changed my mind

Jerry

Best hope JOC doesn’t see that !

Jerry

I’ve seen the Dew Drop In

And the Dew Drop Inn.

Was only in Idaho once can’t remember if we went thru Salmon or not.

I do know where to find ‘spritzers’ tho

Jerry

I think O’Connor and Keith understood their literary rivalry was mutually beneficial at increasing circulation. I recall reading an article by a former Winchester Rep. He wrote about O’Connor and Keith meeting each other for the first time at some Winchester shindig. He was worried that they hated each other. They got along fine. They agreed to disagree and kept animosity where it paid. In writing!

It doesn't matter.
He had a life many would envy and he bowed out gracefully and with dignity.
Pleasure, enjoyment and respect was had by his followers.

Life is the sum of choices taken. Elmer chose well.
John

There's a simple fix to that problem. Turn off the auto correct part of spell check. Worked for me.
Paul B.

Friday afternoon, I stuck a new scope on my AR (5-25 XTR II that looks goofy on an AR but will eventually ride a heavy bolt gun of some sort) and proceeded to put 5 in 7/8" after sight in. It's a Frankengun. Black Hole Light contour 16" middy barrel. Not that anyone reading this thread cares about my AR (or scope), but if I did that prone off bipod and sandbags, with a cobbled together AR, and figuring I likely haven't fired 150 rounds of centerfire rifle ammo in the last year, I'd not doubt that EK or JOC were at least that capable (understatement).

Their rifles were obviously not AR's, and both were dead well before stainless/synthetic became standard, but I doubt either one of them didn't know how to sand a bit out of a barrel channel. I don't know how long, but I also suspect bedding compound of some sort or another has been around a long time. Also, while they both shot and wrote about factory rifles, there were also a LOT of custom gunmaker names in their articles. Biesen, Henrickson, Champlin & Haskins, to name a few. I don't doubt any of these were 1" or better rifles. Especially considering both men were consummate hanloaders.

Keith's ability with any firearm has been described as "superhuman" more than once in print. I think Jack was likely a more than capable field shot with a rifle or shotgun. It'd be pretty tough for anyone to "fake it" for that long and to that degree, for either of them.

As far as their writings, I like both and have learned a lot from both. Elmer could brag and Jack could be as snarky as they come, but to me, that made them even more entertaining. I've got both of the Keith "Gun Note" collections. There's a collection of letters in the back of both of them between Keith, O'Connor, and Truman Fowler. While the letters are very good reading and entertaining, it also helps explain the relationship between Keith and O'Connor. It was "complicated".