Bob,

Man, I would love to see the "real" plans. I've built a couple of the Flying Models version over the years. Always loved the design. From an appearance standpoint, I really liked the bubble canopy version more than the other. But both are very cool.

From an aesthetic standpoint, I think Gene and I (and you for that matter) just sort of see things the same way.  

I know there were pics of both planes on this site recently, but I sure can't find them now.

So what version is it that Walter is offering and how accurate is it?

Hi Bob,

Having known you for quite a while now, and knowing how you are, I wouldn't expect anything else but for you to do the right thing.  Here's to finding Gene S. and getting his permission! 

I totally agree that someone's designs are their property, and no one else should profit from that without the originator's permission.

GOOD LUCK!
Bill

Huuuuuuummm, He's a musician and he is in Florida and he is working. That doesn't sound like it would be too difficult to find him. He is either in one of the musician's unions or is an independent and has a booking agent. Either way he is not invisible.Of course this is only probable if he wants to be found or the family wants his privacy respected.
Dennis

If Gene is actively playing as a musician, he probably belongs to a union.   Perhaps he could be tracked down through the AFM.   Here is the link to the "American Federation of Musicians".   I was a member a long, long time ago.

     http://www.afm.org/   

Cheers.

Warren Wagner

I found 4 Gene Schaffers in Vero Beach. About 6 Eugenes in Vero and surrounding areas and one Gene X Schaffer. I'll do a cross check against musicians. who knows, it may turn up something.

Mike,

That jives with what I found out too. I found a Gene R Schaffer in Vero that was a musician. I was going to post that until I saw your post.

Under these circumstances, I have also taken the liberty to repeat what I have said on the other forum:

Bob,
Thanks for sharing this with us.

I was one of those shy kids about 1959 when I first saw Gene fly. I formally met Simo at the '61 Nats and Gene at the '61 Mirror meet.

I treasured every time I saw Gene fly and was exited when Gene invited me to fly with him. Would you believe that we flew in the middle of a traffic circle in the Bronx not too far from the Whitestone bridge!

Later on Gene and I would meet at a diner enroute to a contest in Pennsyvania or elsewhere on the way to a contest. Gene and I both would do the all night thing since we both usually had gigs the night before. I remember one time that we arrived in our separate cars at a Pennsyvania contest. We parked and took a nap. Harold Price came up behind us and blew his horn for a long time and laughed when we cussed him for waking us up. We could have killed Harold that day! But these are part of those wonderful memories.

In later years Gene and I had a great time at our house in NJ playing 4 handed piano. He was really a fine musician.

Over all these years I have only seen two flights that were close to the perfection that we all strive for. One was by my practice companion Ed Elasick. The other was by Gene Schaffer.

God Speed Gene.

Tom N

I came onto this thread late. So so sorry to hear about Gene. As Jose knows, Gene was my hero and flying role model. I remember him standing over me when I was playing with the flaps on his Stunt Machine, (the real one). I turned around and he said to me, "what are doing". I told him I was "checking out" his flap movement. He said, "that's the way it has to be". Those were the smoothest controls I ever felt on any airplane. He went on to tell me that either I learn to "build these things dead straight, or don't bother). He was right-trust me.

I remember at a contest at Flushing Meadows, Gene said to me "Milt, nobody corners tighter than I do, nobody".  Nobody ever did!! At times, Gene seemed to be more interested in pushing back the boundaries of stunt flying than actually winning. Windy Urtnotwski said that at a past Nats where Gene placed second, Windy watched his flights and that Gene won that Nats straight out-they simply screwed him over!!

I always felt and still do to this day, that Gene did not receive his proper due. From the first flight I ever saw him do at Flushing Meadows, it was immediately apparent to me, that this guy was some sort of flying genius. He was tapping into something that to this day, I still don’t fully understand.

Gene stated to me that, “the guy who flies the best is the guy who should win”. But, as I would find out, stunt was very political back then, and more often than not, that was not the case. Nobody will ever-ever convince me that Gene actually placed second five times. Just how many of those Nats he actually won, I don’t know, but, he can rest in peace knowing that he laid down some flights that probably nobody will ever be able to match.  

For Bob Hunt,

Having read your post about wanting to see that Gene, (or in this case, his estate) would receive proper compensation for his Stunt Machine design, was certainly admirable and needless to say, what we would expect from the “Genesis Man”.

That said, I feel as fellow stunt flyers, we have an obligation to see that our work gets properly published or manufactured, whether by generating a new article, or creating an addendum to an existing article. If I was alive or deceased, I would most certainly hope, that a work, or design of mine was published as I intended.

All too many times, I have heard “stories” about a particular design that was not either manufactured, or published as the designer intended. Considering the time, resources and effort that goes into making a stunt ship, I feel the prospective builder has, at least the expectation that what he or she is working on, is the real deal!!!

I would sincerely hope that you would use your editorial contacts, skill and personal knowledge of Gene’s design, to see that the “real Stunt Machine” gets duly published-ASAP.       

FWIW, this August, at the Prairie Fire Stunt event in Edmonton, they combined N-30 with Classic, so Monty Summach could fly his very nice Stunt Machine (from FM plans) officially. He'd built one as a teen, and just had to try another. Power is a Magnum XLS .36, with Monty's own tube muffler. I was one of the judges. It flew very well, but finished 2nd to a red Tucker Special. Lead the first round, but lost by something like 1.5 points.

Two years previous, I'd watched it fly and thought it looked a bit odd in the air, but I didn't notice that this time. In short, I think you could do a lot worse than just building it from the available plans. A carbon LG might be a good move, but on good smooth grass, it wasn't a noticeable problem.  Steve