FREE FLIGHT OLD-TIMERS FEW months ago received letter Bucky Walter informing Joe Elgin will honored 1999 SAM [Society Antique Modelers] Champs special events Playboy gas design Gull Wakefield wrote back asking Bucky could find photo Gull 1 could use column got much addition two great photos sent detailed story about outstanding designer competitor some interesting history thats too good share Joe Elgin good fortune grow up Cleveland during 1930s Dick Korda George Reich Chet Lanzo others members Cleveland Balsa Butchers active indoor outdoor contests 1938 early 1939 Joe designed small Pylon model Ohlsson 23 influenced perhaps Goldberg Mercury Zipper designs says really sensations 1938-1939 Joe flew model some success local contests before losing 008 [out sight] no dethermalizers days no max Cleveland Models larger kit manufacturers day Joe others bought wood model supplies retail store Cleveland made kits Scale models Joe suggested company also get Free Flight Duration kits quite some time Cleveland showed no interest Joe needed ajob knew Clevelands chief draftsman designer left Joe designed Eaglet Condor gliders brother designed small Cabin gas model Fleetster three designs helped Joe land job models became Cleveland kits company policy give credit designer draftsmanthey Cleveland designs Joe started working Cleveland fall 1939 stayed about year before leaving start carecr lithographer During year drew A-B size Playboy flown lost Goldbergs Sailplane kit came out Cleveland wanted compete Senior Playboy drawn airfoil similar Sailplane no accident Joe said seen Sailplane fly will never forget test hand-glides . some airplane first Playboy Jr did have side stringers second improved version did did Senior Just before Playboy Senior drawings sent printer rough sketch added fuselage side drawing Cabin version No prototype made cabin version matter no prototype made Itsy Bitsy Baby Playboy designed the Atom engine Joe says too small impossible get models required wing loading eight ounces per square foot models published kitted others Atom engine structures appropriate Rubber models Atom sort engine day Joe avid Rubber flier Wakefield Gull small-stick Thennaleer eventually drawn Cleveland also did six Nature Series models models looked like birds insects built six said could least get fly across room Tribute Brave Nations Series models used same printwood wing stabilizer designs same sizes names chosen honor nations Hitlers invading army overrun 1939 Viking last model Joe did Cleveland said based observations made some small models 1940 Chicago Nationals Cabin models impressive performance Joe did say speculate Bombshell So Long designs among others Joe spent World War II years Air Force flew navigator B-17s did 19 missions over Germany before being 138 Model Aviation Elgin Playboy Senior probably frequently built OldTimer Gas model Competed Goldbergs Sailplane kit Joe Cleveland Gull design Diamond-shaped fuselage shoulder wing folding propellerlatest thing 1939 shot down spending 16 months POW prisoner scraped glue furniture joints split wood balsa razor blades used rubber suspenders Joe said able construct some simple stick models actually flew out barbed wire compound . guards very cooperative actually retrieved models Whenever flew other prisoners playing baseball would stop watch Joe continued designing after war several American FAI Federation Aeronautique Internationale teams power Wakefield 1950s days enjoys Old-Timer contests often flying own designs flies Radio Control Sailplane events honor talk briefly Joe SAM Champs flown Bong Field Wisconsin years ago modest friendly extremely competent modeler deserves remembered Lanzo Goldberg Korda others stature ember 1999 139
Edition: Model Aviation - 1999/09
Page Numbers: 138, 139
FREE FLIGHT OLD-TIMERS FEW months ago received letter Bucky Walter informing Joe Elgin will honored 1999 SAM [Society Antique Modelers] Champs special events Playboy gas design Gull Wakefield wrote back asking Bucky could find photo Gull 1 could use column got much addition two great photos sent detailed story about outstanding designer competitor some interesting history thats too good share Joe Elgin good fortune grow up Cleveland during 1930s Dick Korda George Reich Chet Lanzo others members Cleveland Balsa Butchers active indoor outdoor contests 1938 early 1939 Joe designed small Pylon model Ohlsson 23 influenced perhaps Goldberg Mercury Zipper designs says really sensations 1938-1939 Joe flew model some success local contests before losing 008 [out sight] no dethermalizers days no max Cleveland Models larger kit manufacturers day Joe others bought wood model supplies retail store Cleveland made kits Scale models Joe suggested company also get Free Flight Duration kits quite some time Cleveland showed no interest Joe needed ajob knew Clevelands chief draftsman designer left Joe designed Eaglet Condor gliders brother designed small Cabin gas model Fleetster three designs helped Joe land job models became Cleveland kits company policy give credit designer draftsmanthey Cleveland designs Joe started working Cleveland fall 1939 stayed about year before leaving start carecr lithographer During year drew A-B size Playboy flown lost Goldbergs Sailplane kit came out Cleveland wanted compete Senior Playboy drawn airfoil similar Sailplane no accident Joe said seen Sailplane fly will never forget test hand-glides . some airplane first Playboy Jr did have side stringers second improved version did did Senior Just before Playboy Senior drawings sent printer rough sketch added fuselage side drawing Cabin version No prototype made cabin version matter no prototype made Itsy Bitsy Baby Playboy designed the Atom engine Joe says too small impossible get models required wing loading eight ounces per square foot models published kitted others Atom engine structures appropriate Rubber models Atom sort engine day Joe avid Rubber flier Wakefield Gull small-stick Thennaleer eventually drawn Cleveland also did six Nature Series models models looked like birds insects built six said could least get fly across room Tribute Brave Nations Series models used same printwood wing stabilizer designs same sizes names chosen honor nations Hitlers invading army overrun 1939 Viking last model Joe did Cleveland said based observations made some small models 1940 Chicago Nationals Cabin models impressive performance Joe did say speculate Bombshell So Long designs among others Joe spent World War II years Air Force flew navigator B-17s did 19 missions over Germany before being 138 Model Aviation Elgin Playboy Senior probably frequently built OldTimer Gas model Competed Goldbergs Sailplane kit Joe Cleveland Gull design Diamond-shaped fuselage shoulder wing folding propellerlatest thing 1939 shot down spending 16 months POW prisoner scraped glue furniture joints split wood balsa razor blades used rubber suspenders Joe said able construct some simple stick models actually flew out barbed wire compound . guards very cooperative actually retrieved models Whenever flew other prisoners playing baseball would stop watch Joe continued designing after war several American FAI Federation Aeronautique Internationale teams power Wakefield 1950s days enjoys Old-Timer contests often flying own designs flies Radio Control Sailplane events honor talk briefly Joe SAM Champs flown Bong Field Wisconsin years ago modest friendly extremely competent modeler deserves remembered Lanzo Goldberg Korda others stature ember 1999 139