David, sorry for the delay. Here is the box. I put 6 motors in it. Clearly there is extra room to put some wrap in the box to protect the motors. I don't recall exactly what it looked like. The postage on the side shows June 2, 1970. This was within a days from my high school graduation! It also shows that postage was 12 cents! (And that explains the red ink "12" at top of box -- shipping charges to be used to generate the postage label.)

Clearly in high school I could not write, or fit, "Miscellaneous" on the box, so it stored "Junk".

The little wires are rusted, but they were loops that passed thru slits in the cover, and folded over, so I guess contents could be inspected. The box was not sealed with tape.

Attached Thumbnails

 

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Lee Reep
NAR 55948

Projects: Semroc Saturn 1B, Ken Foss Designs Mini Satellite Interceptor
In the Paint Shop: Nothing! Too cold!
Launch-Ready: Farside-X, Maxi Honest John, Super Scamp

Agreed! I wish I had one of those shipping boxes and postage label from my childhood.

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Lee Reep
NAR 55948

Projects: Semroc Saturn 1B, Ken Foss Designs Mini Satellite Interceptor
In the Paint Shop: Nothing! Too cold!
Launch-Ready: Farside-X, Maxi Honest John, Super Scamp

The Stine Collection at The Museum of Flight contains several examples of the original 1970 era 1/100 scale MPC plastic kit of the Soviet R7 booster. This particular model depicts the Sputnik configuration of the kit finished in bright aluminum finish. A clear plastic nose allows a view of a tiny Sputnik satellite housed within.



This finish is quite close to the appearance of the actual vehicle used to loft Sputnik 1 on October 4, 1957; almost 60 years ago. The event sent shockwaves across the world and heralded the beginning of the space race and changed the course of history. Getty Images has a nice color photo of the vehicle, but since they claim to own the image rights from an old Soviet propaganda film we can't embed the image in here: http://www.gettyimages.co.uk/license/170983479

A frequently repeated myth is that people could see Sputnik 1 from the Earth; a myth perpetuated in the movie October Sky. While Sputnik was highly polished, visually acquiring the beachball sized satellite would have been at the limits of visual acuity. What observers were likely seeing was the much larger R7 core vehicle which also was also in orbit for a few days after the launch.



Here we see the business end of the R7 booster and its clustered RD-107 booster engines. The location of the four core engines are replaced by the model rocket engine tube.



The MPC model was long out of production, but a recent reissue of the kit made from the orginal molds will make it easy for modelers to build their own flying examples in time for the October anniversary.

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National Collection Images: G. Harry Stine Collection/The Museum of Flight.

Awesome detail.

I'm glad it has been preserved.

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The Rocketaholic

Wow, what a read!

Just finished start to end so far, this is my favorite thread from any rocket forum.

Thank you everyone, please keep more heading our way.

Talk about memory road, bought my Estes from the back of Boy's Life, glad to see others mention it as well.

BTW-Was planning on being at the airport in Kenai for a flight today, instead got side-tracked, now I can go fly after finishing. On the other hand, the last image of the XB-70, looks like from X-Plane simulator, has me thinking it has been awhile since I have flown it as well. Maybe get it all done today.

Best regards,
Mike Bauer

Like. It was an honour to share a drink with you, Lee and Lonnie at NARWIN-1.

Technically it was also an honour for you to show up at my Lucerne launch and ask I remove certified Firestarter motors from the market. While I declined because I was limiting distribution to launch dealers, and the subsequent tests proved me right, It was awesome!

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE TO OUR ENTIRE SOCIETY VERN.

In November 1969, as eyes were turned toward Apollo 12's lunar explorations, G. Harry Stine brought model rocketeers back to Earth with a column that would recall the first American rocket to successfully orbit a satellite; the Jupiter C and its Explorer 1 payload.

In the November 1969 issue of model rocketry Stine wrote an exceptionally detailed article on converting the Hawk Jupiter C kit to flight. The article and its detailed instructions read as well as they day they were published nearly a half century ago. Jupiter C Plastic Model Conversion by G. Harry Stine

Could Stine have written the article as a means to generate interest and acceptance of plastic model rockets, knowing in a few months that MPC would offer modelers detailed examples of both the Vostok booster and Titan III? We may never know the answer to that question, but The Museum of Flight does have the model, still in exceptionally fine condition, build by Stine and presented in the original article.



This model is one of at least two Hawk Jupiter C's built by Stine. Apparently one was destroyed during competition at NARAM-9 in Mankato, Minnesota. The exceptionally clean condition of this model suggests that it has never been flown.



Some of the fine detail on the Hawk kit is shown here. True space nerds will recall that the drum structure with the vertical stripe seen here was spun prior to launch to spin stabilize the third stage of the configuration that put Explorer 1 into its final orbit.



Good fin details on the model are noted in this image. Readers may find it interesting that the thrust produced by the Jupiter C motor is less than that produced by a single Boeing 777 engine at takeoff thrust.



A good chunk of nose weight in the model will bring it into stable flight margins.



The original Hawk kit and Glencoe reissue appear to be readily available online, so a nostalgia minded modeler should have no problem recreating this beauty in time for the Explorer 1 60th.

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National Collection Images: G. Harry Stine Collection/The Museum of Flight.

That is really neat

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The Rocketaholic

Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Astron Alpha at the Museum of Flight and get free admission via Smithsonian Museum Day Live*!



Join us as we celebrate 50 years of the Estes Astron Alpha model rocket! The Alpha, which has been in continuous production for over 50 years, has introduced thousands to the hobby of model rocketry since its appearance in 1967. One of Estes best sellers, the Astron Alpha is a favorite of experienced rocketeers in its original form as well as subsequent variations created over the past half-century.

Displays: The National Association of Rocketry will exhibit models showcasing the evolution and descendants of the Alpha, including the world's largest, at 12 feet tall!
Meet and Greet: Bill Simon, the designer of the original Alpha will be on hand to talk with the public.
The Boeing Employees Model Rocket Club will host a special Alpha Anniversary launch on Sunday, Sept. 24 at the club's Kent launch site. Ask at the tables for details.


*Get Free Museum Admission Coupon Here

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National Collection Images: G. Harry Stine Collection/The Museum of Flight.

As the NAR and MOF salute to the Estes Astron Alpha approaches it is appropriate to discuss our guest of honor Bill Simon, longtime VP at Estes and designer of many classic Estes kits. If you haven't been there already Eric Higgins excellent website has an informative page on Bill's kit designs. Bill Simon's career at Estes.



Image courtesy of Vintage Estes Rockets/ Eric Higgins.

You can follow the link on Eric's page to an interview with Bill Simon or see the attached file. The article discusses the origins of the Alpha design and the excitement at Estes during the Golden Age of model rocketry.

Local Seattle collector Dan French will have his own personal collection of Alpha variants on display Saturday September 23rd at the Museum of Flight. Dan has more Alphas in his collection than G. Harry Stine! Also on display will be the world's biggest Alpha; generously loaned for display by US Rockets. Thank you!

The G. Harry Stine Collection contains several examples of the Alpha. Here we see one of the early examples of the Alpha using plastic components.




While marketed as the Phantom II, it was really just a clear plastic Alpha and one of the coolest education aids ever brought to market!




How many young people started their rocketry hobby with an Alpha Starter Kit? Hundreds of thousands would be my guess.

Attached Files

Launch - Bill Simon Interview-Correccted.pdf (534.2 KB, 39 views)

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National Collection Images: G. Harry Stine Collection/The Museum of Flight.