Technically, that's probably true Ed. However, there are several forty-size genuine pattern designs from the '70s. I guess around the time of the gas crunch the prices of balsa and glow fuel began to climb. There were a number of "economical" pattern designs published during that era, the goal being to allow modelers to compete with a smaller investment. I have no idea how successful any of them were.
Having just read the Gator Flea article, that's exactly the reason behind the Gator Flea. I thought it looked familiar, now I know that it's a down-sized Compensator. What i found interesting, was the Gator Flea used retracts. It's a pretty sharp looking ship.
FB