Skeeter Skelton

[Beans]

  I was sitting at a friend’s house reading an old issue of Shooting Times and I ran across an article, I had read before but I had forgotten.

It seems that Skeeter had came into possession of a worn out Colt SAA 45.

He had the gun rebuilt for his son Bart and had it finished in a bead blaster  blue eggshell finish, with wood grips.

I have never seen the gun but it sounds like the Rodeos  .   Put a set of outstanding wood grips on the Rodeo and you  can have a Skeeter Skelton replica.

[Virginia Gentleman]

I'm sure there are many others like it that were redone in the 50-80s with period incorrect finishes and either bead blasting, parkerizuing or overbuffed finishes.  To the collector they are ruined, to a shooter they are a bargin.

[Capt. John Fitzgerald]

I'm pretty sure Ol' Skeeter knew what he was doing.
Skelton was, and still is, my favorite gun writer.  Had the chance to meet him back in the 80's when the NRA held their convention in Seattle.  He was a personable, unassuming man and a pleasure to talk to.

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[Delmonico]

Skeeter was a man like many who understood that many times a firearm is a tool.

[Beans]

The article stated the Colt was worn out, I beleive the only thing he saved from the orginial Colt was the frame and the backstraps
everything else was replaced,

[Virginia Gentleman]

I guess it would depend on how badly the salvaged parts were.  If they were too deeply pitted then an bead blast appearance would be appropriate.  If the parts could be polished and either re-case hardened or blued to near factory spec. then bead blasting would ruin an otherwise restorable gun.  This was all done before the advent of Turnbull and other true firearms restoration specialists. 

[RRio]

I sure miss ol' Skeeter's writings.I think he would have liked CasCity, also, because he loved single actions.
I remember one story he wrote about sombody taking a bunch of modern guns and ammo, and going south of the boarder and swapping them for old Colt SAAs. I don't remember the details of the story, but it was akin finding a treasure. It was a great story.

Is his son still writing?

[Capt. John Fitzgerald]

I remember that article as well, Rawhide.  It was a great story.
Here is a link to a short bio and some of Skeeter's articles;

www.darkcanyon.net/skeeter_skelton.htm

[Virginia Gentleman]

I think his son Bart runs a gunsmithing business and does still write from time to time.