Gene 81 years young and flying high
Gene Fuchs of Morgan keeps his Schweiss Hangar Doors busy and one of his three planes in the sky.
If Gene Fuchs of Morgan had been born at a later date he most likely would have been a World War II fighter pilot. Fuchs is not a big man in stature, but he's alway been big on flying. A military flight instructor Fuchs knew once told him he would have been the perfect fit in a military cockpit.
Gene Fuchs, now 81, has logged over 10,000 hours in the air since he first started flying at age 15.
With no war to fight, Fuchs did the next best thing, he started flying at age 15 in 1946 with his neighbor Ed Rieke who owned a J3 Piper Cub and later with his buddy, Marv Battig, who flew a PA-11. Then it was time for him to buy himself an airplane.
His first plane purchased in 1951, at age 19, among many others to come, was a two-seater 1946 Luscome 8A Master, powered with a 65 h.p. Continental engine. He held onto it for a couple of years, selling it later in order to buy some farm equipment. Fuchs recalls those early years very well.
"Right about World War II, I'd see formations of trainers and fighters. One time there was 25 of them that flew the section line behind the farm. They were all at low level, 500 to 1,000 feet. I looked up and wished I could be one of them. I saw a lot of airplanes fly. There was a DC-3 mail plane from Sioux Falls that would fly over every day at 5 minutes past 7 in the late afternoon. It was right on time every dang day. I also saw C-47s during the war years pulling three gliders, one right behind the other, past the farm.
Fuchs stands by the awesome looking engine on his 1942 Stearman PT 13D.
Fuchs is now 81 years old and just as spry as he was in his earlier years. When you talk flying with him, his eyes light up. He still does a lot of flying in his assortment of planes; a 1942 Stearman PT 13D, 1976 180 Cessna and his bush plane, a 1997 Super Cub fitted with big tires or hydraulic skis or floats. He says he doesn't like one over the other, all three are his favorite. He calculates he probably has over 10,000 hours logged in the sky's over every state in the Union, Alaska and Mexico.
"I've used to take hunters out west, fishermen up to Canada and line up halibut and salmon fishing trips in Alaska. Most the time I had to find a place to stay. One time a nice lady told me when you get to Dillingham (a remote Alaska fishing village) just ask for Matilda. She found a place for me to stay,"said Fuchs. "I made 29 trips to Alaska picking up and delivering planes. For over 30 years I delivered airplanes all over the United States for friends in the aircraft business. I've been in every state many times and flew to Mexico for 15 years."
Fuchs uses his 1976 180 Cessna year round and has floats and hydraulic skis for it.
In all those times he said he never had a close call but had to make 10 or 11 forced landings and never got a scratch. Those forced landings were mostly a result of engines stopping, vents on the fuel tanks freezing up, some had been on the ground for quite some time. He had to check them out prior to leaving and a few quit on him due to water in the fuel, even after he had drained the tanks. Brings to mind the old saying "Any landing you can walk away from, is a good landing."
"Flying in Alaska was the most fun and had the most beautiful scenery. I pretty much followed the AlCan Highway, but would take shortcuts up river valleys. At times the radio operators would ask if other pilots could follow me. I had a commercial rating. When I got my commercial rating I had to do it with a FAA examiner and he didn't even have to go through the whole thing."
"I farmed all my life - never had a job," said Fuchs with a smile on his face. "I had 500-plus feeder cattle and did custom corn shelling for about 20 years, mostly in the 50s." He still lives on the farm with his wife and favorite hunting dog Tuffy.
He thought he got his first Schweiss hangar door in the early 80s and had read about them from ads Schweiss Doors placed in Trade-A-Plane, and also knew of him when he was working in Fairfax.
Fuchs purchased his first Schweiss Bifold door in the early 80s and said it has been performing well ever since.
"Mike was building doors already, but they were all little ones and I needed something bigger. I talked to Mike about it and he said,'We can give it a try.' I was the instigator for what Schweiss Doors is doing today. I guess you could say I started Mike Schweiss off in the big door business," said Fuchs with a smile.
That bifold door was a 36-footer. You could get a Stearman through that because it only had a 32 foot wingspan. The other planes he had to put the nose up to the door and swing the tail around.
"That first door still works real good, never had any trouble with it. Me and my neighbors installed it. It was easy with my loader. The only thing I had to do with that door was replace a V-Belt on the electric motor this winter, even the original heavy duty cables are still on it," said Fuchs.
He liked that door so much he decided to order another Schweiss Bifold door for a hangar he built at his lake home south of Itasca Park in northern Minnesota in 1997. It's a 47 ft. door with 16 ft. clearance. This one was installed by the Schweiss Door crew and he said he was glad Mike talked him into getting a remote opener on it.
Gene Fuchs 45x18 ft. Schweiss liftstrap/autolatch bifold machine shed door gives him enough room to wheel in all three of his airplanes or farm machinery.
Fuchs said he prefers the bifold model over the hydraulic Schweiss door. He figured that when he wasn't around, if he left it open he would have less problem with winds. He also likes the fact that it provides some shade, drains the rain away from the front when open and snow and ice is never a problem.
"I never had a problem with this cable door either it still works like a clock and from day one it always wound up straight," said Fuchs. "I also have a 45x18 ft. bifold liftstrap door on my machine shed at the farm. Sometimes I have 6 in there. I like the straps on my big machine shed door, they work fine, it winds up a little faster, and all my doors seal very well."
He said he has recommend Schweiss Doors to many other people. He's very pleased with them and said Mike always treated him good, and likes the fact he keeps improving his doors.
”I was the instigator for what Schweiss Doors is doing today. I guess you could say I started Mike off in the big door business.”
- Gene Fuchs
Trusty dog, "Tuffy" likes to pal with Fuchs around the hangar, but prefers to get out and hunt pheasants with Gene even more.
A grass landing strip sits just behind Fuchs farmsite grove. He's able to wheel out there right from his bifold hangar door.
Four patented Schweiss Bifold liftstraps easily open his 45 ft. machine shed door. It's also equipped with autolatches.
|
Rural pilot has nothing but praise for his three Schweiss Bifold doors
Gene Fuchs, 81, has been taking to the air since the age of 15 and bought his first airplane four years later. He has two Schweiss Bifold hangars doors and one large 45 ft. bifold machine shed door at his farmsite east of Morgan, Minnesota. He bought his first bifold door in the 1980s and hasn't had a lick of trouble with any of them. |
|
Now you see it, Now you don't. Crazy Cool garage door appears only half as big as it really is
Washington resident Herb Korthuis needed a tall garage door to fit his large motorhome into. A city zoning ordinance said he couldn't do it at first, but thanks to Schweiss Doors he now has a 16x12 ft. bifold door that blends into the rest of his house and neighborhood and which was OK'd by the building inspector despite its size. |
|
COMPOSITE FOAM PANELS TAKE KIEHM CONSTRUCTION NATIONWIDE
Back in 1980, Marty Kiehm, age 23 at the time, built his first structure, a 70' x 100' hangar with a 48' bifold hangar door at the Delavan, MN airport. Though not yet a licensed pilot, aviation blood was already trickling through his veins. His dad was an aerial applicator so 'flight talk' was a fairly routine part of family conversations. However following in his Dad's footprint wasn't his ambition. |
|
Top of the Line Schweiss Hydraulic Designer Door graces Under Armour building
Schweiss Designer Doors don't get much better than this. Under Armour Corporation in Baltimore, Maryland ordered this very attractive and unique metal perforated hydraulic one-piece canopy door as a showpiece for their store and office building in Baltimore, Maryland . The 28' 10" wide x 12' - 140 mph windrated door features two distinctly lighted Under Armour billboard-style logos which can be seen for miles around. |
|
One of a kind Texas hangar has its own control tower
"I come here every morning at 6 a.m. I spend all day here and I enjoy every minute of it." Those words from Patrick Aucoin, Aucoin and Associates, Inc., Spring, TX. And where he comes each day is to an 84' x 84' steel hangar at the Spring, TX airfield. But what a hangar! For 14 years this spot was only a concrete slab, the only remnant from a Texas tornado that wiped out the hangar which used to set on this hunk of concrete. But not so today. |
|
Pilots are appreciating the 80 schweiss liftstrap bifold hangar doors at Oshawa, Ontario airport
There aren't many airports in the U.S. or abroad that have as many Schweiss Bifold Liftstrap/Autolatch hangar doors as the Oshawa, Ontario, Canada airport. In a three-phase project a total of 80 Schweiss liftstrap and autolatch bifold doors have been put onto hangars there. In just the last order alone, 34 Schweiss bifold doors ranging in size from 41.5 ft wide to 47 ft. wide gives some solid proof of their popularity among hangar owners there. |
|
Innovative Schweiss lift gate gives versatility to 'The Paw'
Contemplate this description of a popular Mankato, Minnesota facility: Daycare, rehabilitation, grooming spa, spacious suites with in-floor heat, raised beds, exercise program, pool, reservations required, therapeutic laser class treatments, post operative care, hydrotherapy, kindergarten, parties and social activities. |
|
Big bifold glass door connects spaces at new Red Bull headquarters
Extreme sports enthusiasts are a key demographic for energy drink makers, and Red Bull's new North American headquarters in Santa Monica, CA was created with that audience in mind. Among the 105,000 sq. ft. buildings many impressive design features are 40' wide by 250' long, non-functioning skateboard platform and 28' tall by 40' wide, Schweiss glass-paneled bifold door. |
|
Arizona Stucco hydraulic door gives shade on hot days.
Aircraft enthusiasts from more than 70 nations go to the world famous Oshkosh Air Show with their eyes to the sky. It brings in more than 10,000 aircraft and displays nearly 2,500 aircraft of all makes and sizes. Dave Sirota, President of Bassuk Brothers Property Management firm in Oro Valley, Arizona, a bedroom community adjacent to Tucson, didn't go there to look at aircraft, he had another mission in mind. |
|
Schweiss Doors makes boathouse owner envy of beautiful Lake Vermilion
Schweiss Doors can't take all the credit for the envy. Ryan also goes first class with the 1955 Chris Craft Continental boat that cruises in and out of his boathouse. And for those not living on this lake, known worldwide as Lake Vermilion, that's also envious. |
|
Aero Country East is a Dallas, Texas area first-class aviation lifestyle community
"New North Dallas, Teaxs Aero Country East airpark goes exclusively with Schweiss "Red Power" hydraulic one-piece hangar doors. Many Country Club amenities and 39 custom townhomes and pool on privately-owned airport add first class appeal for pilots and families |
|
Washington Wallaby Ranch chooses Schweiss doors for its hangars
When you think of wallabies and kangaroos the first thing that comes to mind is Australia, "The Land Down Under." You don't have to travel that far, however, to see these marsupials, The Fall City Wallaby Ranch has 19. |
|
Kansas farmers Mancave has room for dragstrip racing cars and more
The term "mancave" has in recent times entered the American vernacular. It refers to a place where the guys can get together, lay back and talk about whatever is on their minds and solve the world problems and such over a cold one or two. Mancaves seem to be quite popular amongst football fans. |
|
Schweiss Doors installs 132 liftstrap Bifold T-Hangar doors for Bult Airfield
Only about 30 miles due south of downtown Chicago and surrounded by fields of corn, soybeans, wildlife habitat and even a few tree farms sits one of the newer and more intriguing airfields in America. Called Bult Field Airport and identified as C56, this country airport however dates back to 1942 when Paul Sanger, a Monee, Illinois aviation enthusiast started his 'grass strip' air field three nautical miles southeast of town. |
|
Napa Valley Winery puts Schweiss doors to special use
That's how Opus One building's architect, Scott Johnson, described this California Napa Valley winery located between St. Helena and Napa, almost straight north of San Francisco, California. Johnson was part of the design team behind the whole footprint of the Opus One building expansion. The suggestion and actual design of the unique Schweiss bifold and hydraulic doors was recommended by Wayne Leong, of Leong Architectural firm in St Helena, CA. |
|
Prestige Contractors of Canada is newest Schweiss Doors distributer
Most every contractor at heart wants to do the best job for their customer. Sometimes that means going above and beyond the call and at other times being able to offer the best product for them. |
|
Large Schweiss Bifold Liftstrap door perfectly fits farmshop needs
There's nothing cheap about building anymore but this project turned out wonderfully. The Schweiss door fits perfectly. We dressed up the shop and office area with some window shutter trim. Structural Building out of Becker, MN was the contractor and they did a great job |
|
Inadequate experience with another company leads farmer to Schweiss Doors
It was a 70 ft. hydraulic door, very lightly built, it came in two sections that didn't meet together when they put it together. It showed up bent, and when raised it would bend, very poor weld quality, with welds missing in places. It was a piece of crap, I've never seen something so poor, there was no engineering done on it. There was no quality control. |
|
Schweiss Red Power Pumps are a jump above the rest
Jumping over the best |
|
RiverEdge Park & Music Garden orders Schweiss Doors for new Illinois project
RiverEdge Park and Music Garden is a venue that not many people in the United States have heard of yet, but they will. It is becoming the centerpiece in a 10-year master plan for the city of Aurora, Illinois, that state's second largest city with a population of close to 200,000 people, making it the 112th largest city in the United States. Aurora is located about 45 miles west of Chicago and is accessible by commuter train from there. |
|
Schweiss has truckloads of top quality doors leaving the factory each week
Since Introducing "Red Power" Hydraulic Doors to the market this Spring, sales of Schweiss Hydraulic Doors have escalated, and as a result truckload-after-truckload of ready to assemble doors have been moving out to destinations within all corners of the United States and other locations around the globe. |
|
Sharp looking farm shop features office space and large hydraulic door
This eye catching farm shop is indeed a beautiful facility. All four exterior steel walls are white, however red is the accent color around the edges of this big hydraulic door, all windows in the door, plus other access doors into this incredible building. |
|
Taxi-through hangar speeds crop work for big time spraying operation
Twenty-seven years as an aerial applicator provides an historical perspective each spring for Rich Sigurdson, Olivia, MN. For cantankerous 2011 he simply responded,"This spring brought in a little more work than normal. This is the latest for putting crops in the ground since I've been in the business. |
|
Huge Army tanks and track vehicles pass through Ft. Carson liftstrap bifold doors
Getting 146 doors installed at one location speaks rather strongly about the quality and reliability of your door provider. But that's the current scorecard of Schweiss BiFold doors at Fort Carson, Colorado (Colorado Springs) where Mortenson Construction (Denver branch) has an ongoing contract with the U.S. Army for the construction of special heated maintenance shops called TEMFs (Tactical Equipment Maintenance Facilities). This means structures big enough for Army tanks and other special military tactical vehicles. |
|
Electrical engineer researches and chooses 40 ft. Hydraulic Hangar Door
I researched over a year what I wanted to do. I met Dave Schweiss at the Florida 'Fun in the Sun' air show and both Dave and Mike at the big Oshgosh, WS show. After meeting the guys and looking more closely at their product the choice was obvious. It simply was the best fit, the best design, the best door and in terms of value, the best deal. |
|
Fagen WWII museum purchases multiple large Schweiss Liftstrap Bifold Hangar Doors
Here are some shots of Fagen's warbirds. All mighty nice, mint condition airplanes! Just one of many unique planes that will be on display in the New Fagen Museum. It'll be the hot spot in Granite Falls, Minnesota to see some of the most beautiful Flying machines imaginable. |
|
Fast opening Schweiss hydraulic heated shop doors were just what this farmer needed
Obviously a guy doesn't spend several thousand dollars for a big hydraulic door because it opens and closes in 37 seconds. But surprisingly 'door speed' is a bit of a factor, at least for Terry Albright, Renville County farmer who also runs a fleet of 'over the road' semi rigs. |
|
New 75 ft. Ohio farm shop has Schweiss hydraulic door with special lighting
A slick, new 75' x 80' farm shop with special lighting, in-floor heating, a huge 40' door and a burgundy and beige color scheme is getting all sorts of attention on the farm of John Dulin, Kenton, Ohio. "The contractor that sold me the building has people coming here every week it seems to check out the building and especially that big hydraulic door. So it's a real treat for me and my farming partner son Dana, to show them the works," explained Dulin, who is also maintenance manager for six school buses in their local special education district. |
|
Wayzata resident loves his worry free liftstrap garage door conversion
Two bifold doors were on his Wayzata, Minn. home when he and his wife, Nancy, purchased it from a previous owner several years ago. He referred to the doors as "a bonus and attractive feature" and believed the architect chose the bifold style of doors for aesthetic reasons. |
|
Carriage House helicopter hangar is very likely the most unique in America!
The Carriage House on the lakeshore property of Sid Morris, Cornelius, NC is very likely the most unique in America! It doesn't house horses and horse buggies. It doesn't house antique autos. Instead it houses his R44 helicopter. And that chopper gets to the Carriage House by first landing on a helio pad on the end of his 200' dock. A small electrically driven dolly then gently lifts the chopper with operator then guiding the chopper to its proper stall inside this remarkable 4-star carriage house. |
|
Artists architectural glass door was perfect for Martha's Vineyard studio and guest house
At 27 years of age, film maker/artist/author Travis Wood appears to be adding architectural design to his intriguing resume. Evidence of this new dimension is a most unique structure, a combination studio/guest house that he and his father are constructing on their vacation property on Martha's Vineyard, hugging the south shore of Massachusetts. |
|
Funky Brooklyn Store Front Perforated Steel Bifold Doors add touch of class and security
Hugging the southwest corner of Long Island, New York, Brooklyn's earlier identity was mostly hitched to Coney Island beach and the Brooklyn Dodgers of baseball immortality. Today the city is enjoying a renaissance of rediscovery by artists, retailers, ambitious contractors and creative landscapers including the Andre Kikoski Architect firm which just wrapped up the complete renovation of two empty, abandoned warehouse buildings on 22-28 Wyckoff Ave. |
|
Multiple stores and doors are key to Arnold Company farm implement business expansion
Consolidation is that aggressive word which has been enveloping agricultural business for several years now. In simple terms, it results in fewer but bigger. And that certainly is the recent history of the farm implement business, which used to pride itself on having eight, 10, even 12 or more dealerships per county. Today three or four farm equipment dealers per county is more the usual. But ownership of farm implement stores today often includes multiple locations throughout an entire state. |
|
Former Alaskan has Bifold hangar doors for fishing and flying from private airstrip
Flying since he got the bug when working the fishing canaries in Alaska, Eric Hutchins, Grand Rapids, MN, has a rather diversified agenda these days. For example he runs a year-round Dairy Queen in this bustling tourist center town. He also does some part-time law enforcement work and occasionally flies fire detection with the MN DNR. When time permits, high on his agenda is getting together with his snowmobile buddies for a few miles through the beautiful lake and woodland country of Itasca County. |
|
Large 108 ft. Schweiss Bifold Strap Door is finishing touch for hangar renovation
In September of 2009, we started the rehabilitation of Hanger 155 at Chippewa County International Airport in Kincheloe, MI. Our first step was to remove 60 years worth of lead paint from the existing steel substructure and miles of asbestos-containing material. When the building was safe to work in, our demolition subcontractor started on the roof system. |
|
Midwest John Deere dealership and store installs a Schweiss One-Piece Door
It's big, 43,500 square feet. It has a special floral display unit out front courtesy of the employees and the general contractor. You walk into an 'eye catching' 100' x 160' 'Consumer Display' section complete with a 10' high shelf showcasing various John Deere 'consumer goods'. And greeting you at the retail counter is a colorful prairie scene with an old country barn, woodlots, fields of corn and wheat plus a depiction of the original 1-bottom plow that launched the John Deere machinery company. A show place of sorts? Yes, indeed. |
|
Classic Florida hangar home Schweiss wall/porch door is drawing national attention
Well, it's all of the above for 62-year-old Daniel Shaw, a plumbing contractor at Geneva, Fla. Who has given new meaning to the term "hangar home." The structure is 50' wide x 60' deep x 30' tall, all metal/ However, a 45' x 15' Schweiss hydraulic door sporting a wrap-around porch with decorator railing, table and chairs, a "walk through" door with stylish window, and veranda "roof" gets your attention. |
|
Schweiss doors open things up at the Renville County Fair
Schweiss Hydraulic and Bifold Doors recently installed four new hydraulic doors at the Renville County Fairgrounds located in Bird Island, MN. The Renville County Board approached Schweiss looking for a way to open up the event building located at the county's fairgrounds. The event building is used to host live bands, beer gardens and public auctions by Henslin Auction Services. Hydraulic doors seemed like the perfect solution to open up the building and allow easy access to the building for large groups of people. |
|
Minnesota Implement dealership spike in business calls for new facility liftstrap bifold doors
We're no longer just selling iron. Today we're selling precision farming products and that requires special training of both our personnel and our farm customers," says Paal Haug, general manager of Haug Implement with stores at Willmar and Litchfield |
|
Radiation-shielded Bifold Door designed specially for industrial x-ray system firm
The creativity of customers continues to be a driving force for many manufacturers. Take for example North Star Imaging, Inc., a Rogers, Minnesota manufacturer of industrial x-ray systems which are enclosed by a radiation shielding cabinet and access door and used by manufacturing firms in the aerospace, military, automotive, medical device, electronics, even the genetic seed industry and many more. |
|
Stylish North Carolina Target store Bifold gates serve dual purposes
How do you make the loading dock area for your store secure, yet still easily accessible and stylish? This Target store in North Carolina found the answer with two 39' x 17' bifold gates for their loading area. Give us your idea and we will get you the door. |
|
Unique Schweiss Bifold roof-door designed for East Coast sandblasting chamber
What looked like a near impossible situation without some totally new engineering design instead turned out to be a remarkable solution to an extreme challenge. The challenge? How to fit a "roof door" over a 20' by 30' sandblasting chamber used by SMS Millcraft, Oil City, PA. This firm specializes in refurbishing component parts for various Pennsylvania steel mills. |
|
Farm Air spraying operation relocates and builds new hangar with 76 ft. hydraulic door
It is rare that an Air Tractor dealership changes hands. It cant be done without an approval from Air Tractor, Inc. This requirement became all too apparent to Bill Taylor of Farm Air in Fairfield Illinois. Bill was starting to think about retiring from the business he formed in 1976. Shortly after forming Farm Air, Bill saw a need for Air Tractors in the Midwest, and approached Air Tractor about becoming a dealer. Over thirty successful years later, Bill decided it was time to sell Farm Air with its Air Tractor dealership intact. |
|
TGIF puts custom-made Schweiss Bifold glass doors on patio bar
This custom set of Schweiss Bifold Doors was the perfect solution to provide a unique dining experience for this restaurant's patio bar customers. |
