Oldest thing in your Build Pile

What do you have in your "Build Pile" that you have owned the longest, that you definitely plan to build, but have yet to get around to it? And why have you put it off so long?

For me it is an FSI Black Brant II. I have always been fond of the Black Brants, and have even built a few. But circa 1982, building something specifically for F motors was intimidating.

Hmmmm.

The oldest thing in my "refinish" pile is an MPC Moon Go, which needs a new paint job and decals.

The oldest thing in my build pile is an Estes Draconian Marauder. I think . . . that might be in the Finish heap as well. I forgot where I left off. If not it, then an Estes Battlestar Galactica Viper fighter for sure.

For me it is an Estes CC Express which I bought circa 2000 right after I crashed my last one--I will build it someday!

I have a partially built Centuri MX-774 that's been waiting on paint for 25+ years. Don't know why i never finished it. Maybe that's when I discovered bigger rockets.

I'm not sure really, It's either a Quest Falcon, a Quest Nike Smoke or an Estes Gemini DC. All of them have been in my kit drawer for quite a while.

I have an complete in the bag estes Phoenix that I have had in a box since 1999. Just waiting to be built. For some reason I just have not.

Sometimes I waffle on selling it but it is a pretty common kit even though it is OOP so I will probably just build it. Maybe I'll make it a 29mm....

Most of the stuff in my build pile is pretty new but I have a late-90's ARV Condor that is waiting... One of these days I need to get an order together to replace the parts that I have robbed from a bunch of the other kits in my build pile.

I don't know what's older, but three that I have to build are the A.V.R. Condor, Sliver Comet and a Black Brandt II.

My '69 Centuri Javelin got away from me in a breeze. I feel bad about that one.

My build pile is only 2 -2 1/2 years old.
The oldest kit (by age of kit) is a # 1921 Redstone.
The kit thats been in the pile the longest is the Dynastar "Snarky".
This was my first online rocket order when I got back into rockets.
I ordered it from Apogee.
I did start it and then started another,then another and then started "Scratching" and all heck broke lose and the rest is history.
Why I havent finished it,I dont know.
It is strange,I was really stoked on getting the "Snarky".
I still think its a wicked cool rocket and all that.
I quess its just a thing,I start alot of rockets, put them aside and then when I get back to them,I need to re-locate all the parts I have assembled.
I have pieces/ parts from different rockets that I have started scattered all over this place.
Maybe a shrink could clue me in on why I do this.
Maybe I have a psycho- somatic disorder. :dark:
HMMM,that would be a good name (psycho- somatic disorder) for a "Scratcher"
OH great, now I got to go and start another rocket.
Now see and what ya went and did LW-B!!!!!!!!!!

A partially finished Red River Stratos. It's one sweet lookin' rocket, but I've always been afraid to do the finish work 'cuz my painting skills aren't great yet. I guess I should just go ahead and finish it since I already made a few mistakes, and finishing my first Stratos would give me an excuse to buy another one--maybe upgraded for 24mm power.

Estes LTV Scout and two Maxi- Honest Johns and a Maxi-V-2 .


Paul t

Estes Goonybirds. I have the full set; the Zoom Broom is built and painted, the Cloud Hopper and Galaxy Guppy are built, but need paint, the others haven't been started, yet.

Yes, original Goonybirds. Not clones.

-Kevin

Some of my oldest are my fiberglass rockets. I bought a Drago and a Mini Dark Star 3 years ago. I bought a WildChild 2 years ago, and just finished it last week.

I was a little intimidated with the fiberglass and epoxy because once it was together, it was not coming back apart, and I didn't want to mess that up.

I am working on my Drago as we speak, and I am very satisfied on how the WildChild turned out.

Hard to say. I became a BAR in 98. My build pile is too big. While I've tracked my builds by year I did not track getting the kits. But at least I know the upper bound is 14 years old :wink:

My Big Daddy. Re-primed, ready for paint and Der Grosser Vati decals but...

It seems that everytime I print myself out a set of decals for it somebody buys them. :confused2:

Not complaining...I'm just saying.

I have an Astron Scout from about 1969 that every time I pull it out to build I can't bring myself to rip open the bag. I know they are pretty common but I still can't open it. Once its built I'll have an original Astron Scout, Alpha, Ranger, X-ray, Streak, and Space Plane in the fleet.

By the criteria you gave, it would be a tie for me between the Semroc Saturn 1b and the Cosmodrome Vostok. Both were part of my earliest order on becoming a BAR. Neither has been built for the same reason: I am not yet qualified to do it right.

I have older kits, some dating back to the 60s from my Ebay binges but those two are the ones I have had the longest.

Interesting question...Not sure which one I got 1st..but these 3 I still have in my possession 30+ years or more later!

It is either the Centuri USS America(which is partially started)


Centuri Little Joe II


or

Estes Mars Lander

Funny that this thread came up, because I was just thinking about this question the other day. Nothing remains from my earlier period in the hobby, which ended in 1971, so nothing in my build pile predates my becoming a BAR 8 years ago. My SLS Sky Hook is probably the oldest item in the pile. It was my very first Semroc kit (the first of many many many... and counting). I bought it in 2005 (I think), well before I had ever contacted Semroc itself, before I had ever joined a club or NAR, before I had ever attended a club launch and before I had joined any of the web forums. Aside from participating on the oldrockets group on Yahoo, I was still completely going it alone in rocketry just like I had done in the 1960s. At the time I couldn't imagine ever becoming part of a community of like-minded people who were obsessed with making things fly on small reaction motors. I didn't think that much of a community even existed for it, just a few geeks like me scattered around the country. Wow have things ever changed since that first year back. I was just thinking about pulling this kit out and getting started on it. Now it's definite.

My next oldest project is my Estes Executioner -- often started but never progressed very far, for a variety of reasons. I have to pick up some BT-80 to replace a short section that I stole from that kit for a repair of another rocket.

My oldest project that is actually on the bench and partially completed is my ERP Moonik-1 (started in 2005). Nothing's happened since John Lee (JAL3) and I talked about it in a thread here quite some time ago. Gotta get back to that one. Also my ASP Sonda IIB from 2006, still in primer.

MarkII said:

My oldest project that is actually on the bench and partially completed is my ERP Moonik-1 (started in 2005). Nothing's happened since John Lee (JAL3) and I talked about it in a thread here quite some time ago. Gotta get back to that one. Also my ASP Sonda IIB from 2006, still in primer.

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Mine is still waiting for repairs. Alas, so much to build! So much to repair! So much to fly! So much to discretely hide from SHE WHO MUST BE OBEYED!

JAL3 said:

Mine is still waiting for repairs. Alas, so much to build! So much to repair! So much to fly! So much to discretely hide from SHE WHO MUST BE OBEYED!

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So true! :roll:

JAL3 said:

By the criteria you gave, it would be a tie for me between the Semroc Saturn 1b and the Cosmodrome Vostok. Both were part of my earliest order on becoming a BAR. Neither has been built for the same reason: I am not yet qualified to do it right.

I have older kits, some dating back to the 60s from my Ebay binges but those two are the ones I have had the longest.

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That part right there: I am not yet qualified to do it right, is why my Flis Kits Decim8 is still in the bag. It's not level 4 build, in my mind it's a 5++. Chan Stevens did a build but I just thought it needed to be more....organic...or something. The quality of work needed for that is a magnitude higher than normal, the little curvvy "S" shaped pieces need to be CA'd and rounded and the amount of moulding in all the pieces will take hours of work. And that's just the start. Then it's a Vorlon paint job, 3 colors if I remember.

My oldest rocket is an ARC WAC Corporal 18mm x 24mm 2 stage. It, too, is a fairly complex rocket, my second favorite rocket. I need to get the SEMROC list of parts to build a 1/10th Argo D-4 Javelin but really try to build it 4 stage. The upper Aeroshroud encloses a Recruit. The motor was used extensivly in the Little Joe l & ll programs in clusters with other solid rocket motors allready in production at that time.

Oldest one in the house is a retired Estes Ranger in the attic. Painted red with Testor's model paint with a brush and the leading edge of one fin broke of. They have a tendency to do that

I have a Titan IIIE (#2019) I started back in the 90's that needs final construction and paint. It's an cool old Damon in a box kit I got from a hobby shop. Will probably finish it this winter and use it for display only. I would hate to bust up something so old.

I have an almost completed Estes Klingon Battle Cruiser from 1975. It was completely built but I lost half the plastic bridge part and need to pull another.

If I pull it out of the bag, it would have to be myself.

I have an Estes Black Brant that's been half-finished for more than 2 years now.

dave carver said:

That part right there: I am not yet qualified to do it right, is why my Flis Kits Decim8 is still in the bag. It's not level 4 build, in my mind it's a 5++. Chan Stevens did a build but I just thought it needed to be more....organic...or something. The quality of work needed for that is a magnitude higher than normal, the little curvvy "S" shaped pieces need to be CA'd and rounded and the amount of moulding in all the pieces will take hours of work. And that's just the start. Then it's a Vorlon paint job, 3 colors if I remember.

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That's how I feel about the Decim8. I've pulled it out,laid it on the bench,then calmly returned it to the build pile until I get guts to build it .

The Decim8 is the senior resident of my build pile,been there two or three years now. Someday...........someday.

Estes Vindicator #1367


TA

I have no clue which kit is my oldest, but I do know my build pile started 15 years ago so at least one is that old

Why? Can't stop buying and can't keep up

But I will go on a building spree once I retire! Just don't know when that will be...

I have an Estes 1/100 Saturn 1B I bought in 1991-92 and have never gotten around to build.

I opened the box shortly after I bought it which tanked its billion-dollar resale value (had I decided to sell it off). Maybe I'll get busy and put it together this winter.