Sunday night Master Gunsmith Jim Kelly from Darlington SC crossed the River. I'm sure some of the members here have crossed paths or had work done by Jim in the last 60+ years he as been perfecting firearms. Jim started tinkering with guns as a boy but really got serious when he was building 1911's for the Air Force Pistol team and evolved into one of the most respected gunsmiths in the country. The last 20+ years he had mostly focused on high end restorations of double barrel shotguns and rifles for clients all over the world. I was able to talk him into building me a K38 Target gun and last year after a little begging he did his last trigger job on a 3" M13 for me that is nothing short of spectacular. Jim was a walking encyclopedia of gun knowledge and would gladly share his knowledge and has had many young guys get started out learning from him. I could sit for hours and listen to his stories of visiting old Gun shops in France and other countries learning from the old masters who build guns by hand and never used any type of power tools. One friend compared Jim's passing to a library burning down. Sadly his wife passed away just a few weeks prior to him. He will certainly be missed.
An Icon in the Gun World has Passed
- Thread starter Eddietruett
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May he rest in peace.
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Condolences to the family. Never met him but heard of him several times regarding 1911s.
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Sorry to hear this. Thanks for letting us know.
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