T.C. Kennon Rifle

[willec]

I purchased from an estate sale a T.C. Kennon rifle several years ago. The rifle is a mauser 98 action in 25-06. The wood stock has three different types or shades of finish. I've only shoot the rifle a few times at the range and it shoots like a dream. I've been trying to find as much information about T.C Kennon for years. So far I understand he was from the Stone Mtn. area and built guns in the atlanta area. In addtion I understand that some of his guns are part of the collection at the Charlie Elliot wildlife center. I have no idea how old the rifle is or its value.

Can any of you gun folks add any additional information about T.C. Kennon. Thanks.

 

[Nitro]

All I can tell you is that for his time, he was considered the best in this area.

I believe he passed away some years ago if I remember correctly.

You have a keeper with that rifle. Congrats.

 

[tom ga hunter]

There is a deputy at the newton county police department who worked for him. He goes by the name TC you might want to give them a call.

The rifles that I have seen made by him have looked strange with poor workmanship.

 

[weagle]

When I was growing up in Stone Mountain in the 60's and 70's T.C. Kennon was considered THE MAN when it came to gunsmithing and benchrest shooting. He was one of the original founders of the Gate City Gun Club that later moved and became the South River Gun Club. The early club was mostly benchrest shooters.

His guns are known for extreme accuracy. Many of his guns have those gawdy Weatherby looking stocks with the big rollover cheekpieces, white line spacers and skip checkering.

Sounds like you have found a keeper.

Weagle

 

[DDaniel]

TC Kennon

Hi!
TC was a neighbor of ours. We were newlyweds and my husband would spend hours in his shop watching him work.He was known as an excellent gunsmith. The only one of TC's guns that my husband had was stolen some years ago. He was so upset that he sold his entire collection. Only recently has he begun to collect again. We have been searching for a TC Kennon but been unable to do so. If you ever find another that's for sale, I would love to surprise him.
Thanks,
DDaniel

 

[applebutterfly]

Hi there! I know I'm very late replying to this thread, but I just ran across it when I googled TC Kennon. I'm honored that people remember him and his work. He was my grandfather!

I will be happy to tell you anything you would like to know. He was a great man, and he left my family with a wonderful legacy.

He was an avid outdoorsman. Not only did he love to hunt and fish, but also he loved animals and had many pets. He always had dogs and cats, but he also had horses, turkeys, quail, and an alligator. He wanted a peacock for a long time, but my grandmother put her foot down on that one.

He was an extremely gifted artist. He designed all of the guns he built, and he did all of the detail work by hand. The stock of each gun had a significance to him whether it be an animal he saw on one of his hunting trips or a pattern to help teach my cousins and me about shapes. He spent hours shaving and sanding until it was just right. He also enjoyed drawing. Most of his artwork was nature scenes that he drew with pencils or charcoal. He always drew from memory, and it would look just like a photo when he was done.

He was an officer with the Atlanta Police Department for 30+ years, and he and one of his good friends within the department started their own shop as well as The Gate City Gun Club. The original name of the shop was Kennon and Key's Rifles. Unfortunately Marion Key was killed in the line of duty, but he saved my grandfather's life that night. Several years later my grandfather was shot in the leg while he was on duty, so he wasn't able to return to patrolling. He maintained and repaired the department's weapons before he fully retired from the APD in the early 60's. About a year after retiring he moved from Atlanta to Stone Mountain. He had built a house on some family land and also built a gunshop behind the house. It was then that he changed the name to Kennon's Custom Rifles.

I was only 5 when he passed away in July of 1985, but I still have very fond memories of spending time with him down at his shop. I spent most evenings there since we lived right up the street, and he lived with us the last couple years of his life. It was my special time with granddaddy each night before I had to go home to go to bed. He stopped what he was doing, and poured us both a glass of grape juice. I would sit on his lap and he would tell me a bed time story since I would be asleep when he got home. To this day I can tell you that shop smelled like bluing, sawdust, metal, Miller High Life, and Camels. I can't think of too much more comforting.

I hope this helps. I'm really glad to know that someone who appreciates his talent and workmanship owns one of his rifles. If there's anything else you'd like to know about him, please feel free to ask.

 

[Nitro]

applebutterfly,

Thanks for adding a great story and tribute about your Grandfather. One of my friends knew ol'TC and still has a rifle he commissioned TC to build for him. The rifle is one of his most cherished possessions.

 

[Gentleman4561]

i would love to see some pictures of one!

http://forum.gon.com/showthread.php?p=2237832

heres one for sale

 

[godogs57]

I have three of TC's rifles and they all shoot like a house afire! I am 50 years old and remember growing up in Atlanta...like Weagle said, I remember him being THE MAN back in the days before Kenny Jarrett, et. al. I have a .223 made on a Sako aciton, a 257 Roberts on a small ring Mexican Mauser and a 300 Winchester on a commercial Mauser and they will all roll your socks up and down...great guy, great guns. I worked in two gun shops in Atlanta during the day and it was told more than once that Rip Collins did a lot of his stock work....can't say if it was true or not, but most folks accepted that as true. I have a newspaper article saved from the AJC that details his work...will see if I can get it scanned, etc.

 

[Gentleman4561]

I have three of TC's rifles and they all shoot like a house afire! I have a newspaper article saved from the AJC that details his work...will see if I can get it scanned, etc.

would love some pictures the article sounds neat to

 

[godogs57]

DDaniel, did you see the TC 30/06 for sale in the classified section of this forum????

 

[willec]

Thanks Applebutterfly

Hi there! I know I'm very late replying to this thread, but I just ran across it when I googled TC Kennon. I'm honored that people remember him and his work. He was my grandfather!

I will be happy to tell you anything you would like to know. He was a great man, and he left my family with a wonderful legacy.

He was an avid outdoorsman. Not only did he love to hunt and fish, but also he loved animals and had many pets. He always had dogs and cats, but he also had horses, turkeys, quail, and an alligator. He wanted a peacock for a long time, but my grandmother put her foot down on that one.

He was an extremely gifted artist. He designed all of the guns he built, and he did all of the detail work by hand. The stock of each gun had a significance to him whether it be an animal he saw on one of his hunting trips or a pattern to help teach my cousins and me about shapes. He spent hours shaving and sanding until it was just right. He also enjoyed drawing. Most of his artwork was nature scenes that he drew with pencils or charcoal. He always drew from memory, and it would look just like a photo when he was done.

He was an officer with the Atlanta Police Department for 30+ years, and he and one of his good friends within the department started their own shop as well as The Gate City Gun Club. The original name of the shop was Kennon and Key's Rifles. Unfortunately Marion Key was killed in the line of duty, but he saved my grandfather's life that night. Several years later my grandfather was shot in the leg while he was on duty, so he wasn't able to return to patrolling. He maintained and repaired the department's weapons before he fully retired from the APD in the early 60's. About a year after retiring he moved from Atlanta to Stone Mountain. He had built a house on some family land and also built a gunshop behind the house. It was then that he changed the name to Kennon's Custom Rifles.

I was only 5 when he passed away in July of 1985, but I still have very fond memories of spending time with him down at his shop. I spent most evenings there since we lived right up the street, and he lived with us the last couple years of his life. It was my special time with granddaddy each night before I had to go home to go to bed. He stopped what he was doing, and poured us both a glass of grape juice. I would sit on his lap and he would tell me a bed time story since I would be asleep when he got home. To this day I can tell you that shop smelled like bluing, sawdust, metal, Miller High Life, and Camels. I can't think of too much more comforting.

I hope this helps. I'm really glad to know that someone who appreciates his talent and workmanship owns one of his rifles. If there's anything else you'd like to know about him, please feel free to ask.

I took my rifle to the wildlife center at Charlie Elliot and you can really see the Craftsmanship that went into those rifles. I spoke with a lady named Alissa and she told me some good information on your grandfather. The rifle I purchased was owned by a gentleman that my wife worked for years ago he was a very big man and I was told that the rifle was built special for him. I only met him a few times but he was very good to my wife and it mean a lot to us that we were given a chance to purchase some of the collection.

Thanks for the story about your grandfather.

 

[CBH]

applebutterfly, does your family still have your grandad's old Jeep?

 

[applebutterfly]

applebutterfly, does your family still have your grandad's old Jeep?

No, but I wish we did. I don't remember exactly when it was sold, but it was within the first year or two after he died. We all loved that Jeep! It made quick work of getting down to the lake for some fishing.

 

[jiggabelly]

My father and T.C. "Pete" Kennon were very good friends and I used to cherish the visits to his shop on Biffle Rd. when I was a kid. So many guns, so much knowledge...
In his house he had a Winchester '73 made into a lamp with 3 horshoes for a base...Presentation Colt's on the wall...a table in his attic with more knives than I could count, I think that's where I got my blade addiction.
My dad was a pipefitter and welder who built one of Pete's stainless steel blue-ing vats in our basement. I'll never forget those days and those good men. Pete built and gave my dad a .270 that I wish I could recover, it's out there somewhere...it had set and hair triggers, built in compass, beautiful walnut stock ...drive a tack @ 200yards.

I miss those days and those guys...

 

[Gans/Ben]

TC or as we called him (buddy) is my grandad, i was around 9 when he past. He was loved by everyone that new him. I have two of his guns his oun winchester 12ga, and a 25/06 and would love to get lots more. I would be happy to talk to anyone about him.

 

[Gans/Ben]

Charlie Elliot and my grandfather were best of friends that two people could ask for. They were hunting buddy's and they both could tell more hunting storey then most of us could dream of. Charlie wrote tc obitchuary and the gun's at the wildlife center tc made them just for charlie.

 

[aceheart1976]

T.C. Kennon model Ace

i just purchased a 30-06 rifle and was told it was a T.C. Kennon custom. has the same type stocks i see on the other rifles made by Kennon but the other markings i can find anywhere on the gun is is the serialnumber, and im guessing the model which is ACE. atleast that is what i was told.
the guy that owned it passed away and his wife has been selling his entire collection of rifles and this was in it and im curious about it. very nice rifle, and trying to find out more about T.C. Kennon

 

[Rex]

It's hard to believe TC Kennon died so long ago. Years ago, I traded for a beat-up Browning shotgun and asked people at the DeKalb Police Department, where I worked, who would be a good gunsmith to reblue it and go through it and get it up to snuff. Of course, the fates were smiling on me that day, because the recommendation was for TC Kennon on Biffle Rd. in the Stone Mountain area. I loved his place as soon as I walked in. A jumble of gems in that shop, gun parts, machinery and tools, stocks and blanks, bluing tanks with evil-looking chemicals. Mr. Kennon promised to do me a job I'd be proud of, and when I went back to pick up the shotgun, I couldn't believe how good it looked. I'm sure he must have laboriously polished every inch of it, but he did not charge me for it, I was embarassed to pay so little for such fine work, but he wouldn't take more. He even spent time telling me about the history of the gun , and lamented with me that some bonehead had put a Polychoke on it, spoiling the original lines and bore on the shotgun. (but he made it look like it was original--exact blue job as the rest of the gun.) He told me I should oil it down for the next few months, as the rust came out of it, and it would look better (and Edited to Remove Profanity ----Edited to Remove Profanity ----Edited to Remove Profanity ----Edited to Remove Profanity ---- if it didn't). I took him several other gun jobs over the next few years, including a Thompson-Center Hawken kit I'd built, for him to blue--he did an amazing job on that, too. Every time I open my gun safe and see those blue beauties in there I think of Mr. Kennon and his wonderful, "cluttered" shop!

Long way of saying, as far as I'm concerned, if TC Kennon laid his hands on it, you can rest assured it is an example of the finest workmanship of the "old school" that you will ever find. I never intend to let go of the firearms he worked on for me, and my only regret is that I could never afford for him to build a custom rifle for me.

 

[60plus]

Howdy folks. I googled T.C. Kennon and found this forum & decided to join. Went to school with his sons & had him build an '06 for me, I believe in the late '60s. It overwhelmed me when I saw it for the first time. Make that every time! Any way, I'm looking forward to more on the forum although I do not go online a lot.