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    Contributing Member Micheal Doyne's Avatar
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    Ian D. Skennerton

    So, I being poor, have only... books not written by Ian D. Skennertonicon. These books seem to command a massive price. Are they really worth it? And if so what do they have which is so great?
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    A Collector's View - The SMLE Short Magazine Lee Enfield 1903-1989. It is 300 8.5x11 inch pages with 1,000+ photo’s, most in color, and each book is serial-numbered.  Covering the SMLE from 1903 to the end of production in India in 1989 it looks at how each model differs and manufacturer differences from a collecting point of view along with the major accessories that could be attached to the rifle. For the record this is not a moneymaker, I hope just to break even, eventually, at $80/book plus shipping.  In the USA shipping is $5.00 for media mail.  I will accept PayPal, Zelle, MO and good old checks (and cash if you want to stop by for a tour!).  CLICK BANNER to send me a PM for International pricing and shipping. Manufacturer of various vintage rifle scopes for the 1903 such as our M73G4 (reproduction of the Weaver 330C) and Malcolm 8X Gen II (Unertl reproduction). Several of our scopes are used in the CMP Vintage Sniper competition on top of 1903 rifles. Brian Dick ... BDL Ltd. - Specializing in British and Commonwealth weapons Specializing in premium ammunition and reloading components. Your source for the finest in High Power Competition Gear. Here at T-bones Shipwrighting we specialise in vintage service rifle: re-barrelling, bedding, repairs, modifications and accurizing. We also provide importation services for firearms, parts and weapons, for both private or commercial businesses.
     

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    Quote Originally Posted by Micheal Doyne View Post
    So, I being poor, have only... books not written by Ian D. Skennertonicon. These books seem to command a massive price. Are they really worth it? And if so what do they have which is so great?
    Worth every penny and then some, probably the best Lee Enfield author out there, save up you hard earned pennies it will be well worth it.

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    Legacy Member artyldr01's Avatar
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    The breadth and depth of his knowledge is unparalleled. Any nationality, any version. I have learned two things:

    A. Good reference books are absolutely essential to save you from spending too much on a "bad" weapon and can help you find the "Shelby Cobra" so to speak.

    B: Often times you can contact the author directly and get it quite a bit cheaper than Amazon or elsewhere.


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    If you have currently all the information that you need with out having to read his books than you do not need them. Please do not waste your time asking what is in them ! You can ask questions on this site and the members I 'am sure can answer them for you .
    Last edited by tr63; 04-18-2020 at 06:36 PM.

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    Legacy Member Bindi2's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Micheal Doyne View Post
    So, I being poor, have only... books not written by Ian D. Skennertonicon. These books seem to command a massive price. Are they really worth it? And if so what do they have which is so great?
    Real in depth researched Knowledge. They are not novels or comics.

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    Advisory Panel browningautorifle's Avatar
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    I too am very happy to have Skennertonicon and other publications. I just recently bought "Hatcher's Notebook" and had to pay for it...then found it cheaper a year later. Well, I have it in hardcover anyway.

    Yes. they are worth it. They aren't going to go down in price soon...
    Regards, Jim

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    I just purchased a whole bevy of books from him last evening. He sells directly via his website, http://www.skennerton.com/, and his prices are very reasonable. I rely heavily on The Lee-Enfield Story and am looking forward to having more of his books on my shelf!

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    Legacy Member Bruce_in_Oz's Avatar
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    I have known IDS since I was a teenager; we lived in the same town and I bought my first P-14 from him.

    He trained as a musician, but was always keen on old guns.

    His first book (1975) was a thin, hardback job: "Australianicon Service Longarms", now long out of print, it was / is an introduction to a history of such arms in Australia, from the "Marine and Militia Pattern musket to what was hot in 1975. The last entry is for the M-16.

    My signed copy is number 116 .

    One of the tings he rapidly discovered is that just about every text available had been cribbed from someone else's previous books and magazine articles. NOBODY seemed to reference primary sources for text or technical illustrations.

    He ended up in the UKicon for several years in the late 1970's, trawling through mouldering archives, assisted by input from some of the last greats in that field.

    The UK government was busy "culling" archives "chronologically" and for all I know, probably still is.

    Being a camera buff, he did all of his own photography where possible. This was in the days before digital, so he set up his own darkroom so that the illustrations intended for publication were optimized for "dot-screening' and of suitable contrast / brightness.

    After the first couple of small books and prodigious amount of research, he decided that he needed to control every step of the process up to the final printing and binding.

    Thus, he bought an IBM "Compositor"; essentially a hot-rodded IBM "Golfball" typewriter. Remember that this was happening in the mid 1970's. These Compositors have a MEMORY and respond to "flags" for font changes. The trick was to type in the text, then put in "flags" for font-changes. Fore example, it would "replay" the 14 point bold for the start of a heading and "pause" while you changed the "golfball' for ten-point standard for the sub-heading and then again for the ten-point italic for the "sub-notes.

    Anything bigger than about fourteen point, or requiring a "fancy" font, was done MANUALLY, using "Blick Letraset" dry-rub sheets. There is probably a video on "that site" about such exotic technology.

    All of this "robot typing" was done on sheets of fine-grade, white glossy paper. These were then cut up and allocated a position on a "page" and lightly glued down, along with any illustrations. Text and images were shuffled about as needed.

    MONTHS of prep, just for a set of "print-ready" pages. And you had to keep in mind that in a bound, hardback, things are done in "sub-bindings" and you have to be careful because each "leaf" actually contains FOUR "pages", not two. Part of the trick was to ensure "fiddly bits' like footer page numbers, or even tiny slips of paper containing a corrected line of text did not "fall off the page", literally.

    All this mountain of carefully prepared paper then went to a specialist photographer to prepare the masks for making the lithography plates that ultimately put printers ink on paper. But, before anyone went mad and rushed straight into a run of several thousand books, a trial run was made. The test product, including "page-folds" is then proof-read, again and evaluated for "layout" (and "lost" bits of text), before the "GO" button for true production begins.

    Anyone who moans about the complexities of producing the office Christmas party flyer needs to get a life.

    Now I'll go and make a coffee and get back to cleaning and lubricating my lathe so I can re-crown this barrel.


    Cheers, and stay upright and breathing!

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    Yes, well worth the money. If you have a general interest in LE's & only buy one of his books get the LES as it is encyclopaedic.

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    Contributing Member Singer B's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bruce_in_Oz View Post
    I have known IDS since I was a teenager; we lived in the same town and I bought my first P-14 from him.

    He trained as a musician, but was always keen on old guns.

    His first book (1975) was a thin, hardback job: "Australianicon Service Longarms", now long out of print, it was / is an introduction to a history of such arms in Australia, from the "Marine and Militia Pattern musket to what was hot in 1975. The last entry is for the M-16.

    My signed copy is number 116 .

    One of the tings he rapidly discovered is that just about every text available had been cribbed from someone else's previous books and magazine articles. NOBODY seemed to reference primary sources for text or technical illustrations.

    He ended up in the UKicon for several years in the late 1970's, trawling through mouldering archives, assisted by input from some of the last greats in that field.

    The UK government was busy "culling" archives "chronologically" and for all I know, probably still is.

    Being a camera buff, he did all of his own photography where possible. This was in the days before digital, so he set up his own darkroom so that the illustrations intended for publication were optimized for "dot-screening' and of suitable contrast / brightness.

    After the first couple of small books and prodigious amount of research, he decided that he needed to control every step of the process up to the final printing and binding.

    Thus, he bought an IBM "Compositor"; essentially a hot-rodded IBM "Golfball" typewriter. Remember that this was happening in the mid 1970's. These Compositors have a MEMORY and respond to "flags" for font changes. The trick was to type in the text, then put in "flags" for font-changes. Fore example, it would "replay" the 14 point bold for the start of a heading and "pause" while you changed the "golfball' for ten-point standard for the sub-heading and then again for the ten-point italic for the "sub-notes.

    Anything bigger than about fourteen point, or requiring a "fancy" font, was done MANUALLY, using "Blick Letraset" dry-rub sheets. There is probably a video on "that site" about such exotic technology.

    All of this "robot typing" was done on sheets of fine-grade, white glossy paper. These were then cut up and allocated a position on a "page" and lightly glued down, along with any illustrations. Text and images were shuffled about as needed.

    MONTHS of prep, just for a set of "print-ready" pages. And you had to keep in mind that in a bound, hardback, things are done in "sub-bindings" and you have to be careful because each "leaf" actually contains FOUR "pages", not two. Part of the trick was to ensure "fiddly bits' like footer page numbers, or even tiny slips of paper containing a corrected line of text did not "fall off the page", literally.

    All this mountain of carefully prepared paper then went to a specialist photographer to prepare the masks for making the lithography plates that ultimately put printers ink on paper. But, before anyone went mad and rushed straight into a run of several thousand books, a trial run was made. The test product, including "page-folds" is then proof-read, again and evaluated for "layout" (and "lost" bits of text), before the "GO" button for true production begins.

    Anyone who moans about the complexities of producing the office Christmas party flyer needs to get a life.

    Now I'll go and make a coffee and get back to cleaning and lubricating my lathe so I can re-crown this barrel.


    Cheers, and stay upright and breathing!
    Thank you for this post. I learned a tremendous amount of information and will pick up his books.

  15. Thank You to Singer B For This Useful Post:


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