http://www.thetacticalwire.com/features/229198
"What really motivated this article is while I was reading Sixguns by Elmer Keith there was a reference to a man whom Keith described as a "Finished Gunman". He was defined as a man who both attained a high level of expertise as a technical shooter..."

--
Of the Troops & For the Troops

I decided awhile back that am happy with where I am.... my basic maintenance drills usually involve a couple of magazines from 3 to 50 yards, with 100-200 thrown in occasionally just for grins.

I don't consider myself a "Finished Gunman" (I have never had to prove myself in a fight) but I have reached the level that I can usually hit what I want to on demand, within my eyesight limitation. I am not a natural shooter, I have to work at it; but I shoot for fun and to maitain my skill.

Handgun, rifle and shotgun skills which are above average would define a finished shooter [Gunman]. Is this the meaning of Mr. Keith's term?

Good point on working toward being above average with all three guns. Elmer certainly was.

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Multiple times it was a wonder he survived.

the same of him. Raised on a farm and working in the mines was full of dangers. He was hurt to the point of nearly losing a leg but he lived long a most miners.

The man Keith referred to in "Sixguns" was an acquaintance named John Newman. He related that Newman was "as deadly in close range combat as they come. He had been in gun fights, knew the score, and always came out on top."

Keith apparently meant the term "finished gunman" to mean a man who had mastered the technical skills of fighting with a handgun, and proved his ability by surviving multiple gunfights.

I had the privilege of making the acquaintance of a fellow like that in my younger days, an old-time cop named Cal Sehorne. This man had also perused the pachyderm several times and lived to die in bed at a ripe old age.

Thanks.

I must admit I was sorely tempted to post a wise-acre comment like, "Are you sure he wasn't talking about Simo Häyhä? Now there's a Finnish gunman."