I am afraid I lack almost any knowledge about the losses/benefits of the skeletal mesh approach. My best guess is that each approach has it’s strengths and weaknesses depending on your final desired result. If you have the time and skill with mesh modeling I would recommend trying them both to see which is better suited to your needs.
For myself, I tend to lean more toward code solutions. I find setting up a small script more time efficient than modeling due to my lack of skills in that field.