What is the best selling model rocket kit of all time?

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dbrent

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I don't have any confirmed sales numbers, but I would nominate the Alpha III given its continuous availability since 1971 both as an individual kit and as part of a starter set. It's also been continuously available in educational bulk packs since those were first offered in 1994.
Add to that its regularly availability at major chain stores like Walmart and Hobby Lobby as well as its appeal to beginners and its hard to think of a rocket that would have sold more units throughout the history of our hobby.

Any thoughts?
 
Maybe. Without seeing Estes historical sales data, no one can say with any certainty. Big Bertha is probably right up there, as it has been in production even longer, and introduced many to model rocketry at the height of the race to the Moon.
 
I don't have any confirmed sales numbers, but I would nominate the Alpha III given its continuous availability since 1971 both as an individual kit and as part of a starter set. It's also been continuously available in educational bulk packs since those were first offered in 1994.
Add to that its regularly availability at major chain stores like Walmart and Hobby Lobby as well as its appeal to beginners and its hard to think of a rocket that would have sold more units throughout the history of our hobby.

Any thoughts?
That would be my guess as well. Buying an Alpha III kit or starter set and seeing the difference flying it on A, B, and C motors is such a common way to get into the hobby that it’s almost cliché. That’s how I did it.

Admittedly I consider the Athena and other rockets with longer body tubes to be superior in terms of user friendliness, but the Alpha III is such an icon, is so unmatched in terms of availability, and is such a valuable self-teaching tool for requiring a bit of basic assembly that it’s difficult to recommend anything over it.
 
I don't have any confirmed sales numbers, but I would nominate the Alpha III given its continuous availability since 1971 both as an individual kit and as part of a starter set. It's also been continuously available in educational bulk packs since those were first offered in 1994.
Add to that its regularly availability at major chain stores like Walmart and Hobby Lobby as well as its appeal to beginners and its hard to think of a rocket that would have sold more units throughout the history of our hobby.

Any thoughts?

Agreed, gotta be the Alpha, maybe not Alpha III alone, but all the Alpha variants combined.

Who in this group has never built an Alpha? Sounds like a good thread / poll topic: "Have You Built An Estes Alpha?"
 
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If you combine the two (Alpha and Alpha III) I don't think there is any question... But for purposes of this discussion I consider them to separate kits. The Alpha is probably close. The Big Bertha is popular but was never offered in a starter set or in educational bulk packs. Even the Alpha hasn't been offered in a starter set for some time now...which is why I give the edge to the Alpha III. The Alpha was available for 4 years prior to the Alpha III however and that was in the "heyday" of model rocketry, so it could still be number one... Would love to get a look at Estes sales numbers over the years!
 
I posted this question over on YORF and got my answer from none other than Vern Estes himself! The Alpha is the top selling model rocket of all time.
As far as I'm concerned, that settles it.

That's awesome, got the answer from the man himself. Here's a Link

2022-01-28 Vern Answers Question Estes Best Selling Rocket .jpg
 
I posted this question over on YORF and got my answer from none other than Vern Estes himself! The Alpha is the top selling model rocket of all time.
As far as I'm concerned, that settles it.
Although he did note that he'd still rather fly a Big Bertha...lol!
 
The Bertha is more fun. The Alpha's greatest attribute was finding trees and power lines.

Too bad we didn't connect the dots and switch to streamers sooner with the Alpha's, when we were kids.
 
The Bertha is more fun. The Alpha's greatest attribute was finding trees and power lines.

Too bad we didn't connect the dots and switch to streamers sooner with the Alpha's, when we were kids.
An Alpha on a streamer works great. I have a couple of Alpha IIIs with streamers in them that I take when I travel any distance to fly so that I can fly even if the weather isn't the greatest. One of them has also flown seven times off a beach at Ocean Shores, Washington in three trips out there (so far).

My wife will often put a streamer in her regular Alpha (clone of the second balsa nose-coned version from the early 1970s) as well.
 
I watched that show a lot for some reason but my memories of it are not fond. Dr. Smith was always so annoying.

It was required viewing when the bus dropped me off from grade school. Grab some milk, stir in some Nestle's Quick, grab a handful of Chip's Ahoy, and plop down in front of the TV. Oh, the exuberance of a 6 year old.

I tried to watch a few episodes a while back. I'll just say... IMO, it doesn't hold up well to the test of time.
 
Wife... flying... rocket....
View attachment 502005
It all depends on who you’ve got.

My girlfriend loves going to gun ranges and stuff, she’s a bit of a country girl who respects objects of power. Getting her out to fly was a cakewalk, now we’re working together on her Yankee kit. I opted for this because she’s proven herself skilled with knives and glue before, she’s certainly proving up to the challenge. She’s also excited about the color scheme and advertised performance.

I firmly believe that if you frame and sell it right, you can convince anybody to come to the range and fly, and if it’s run well, you can also get them to come back.
 
One other thought related to all of this....the Alpha III has been available continuously for 50 years now, and unlike the other two longer running models (Big Bertha, Alpha) its configuration has been essentially unchanged for that entire half century. The Alpha has had three major motor mount changes, the much-discussed nose cones, and two different fin shapes. Big Bertha has had four different nose cones and a variety of motor mount/stuffer tube arrangements (there's at least one thread on that going right now). But an Alpha III sold today is, for all intents and purposes, the same as the first ones sold as K-56 in 1972 except for colors of parts. Pretty amazing, really.
 
One other thought related to all of this....the Alpha III has been available continuously for 50 years now, and unlike the other two longer running models (Big Bertha, Alpha) its configuration has been essentially unchanged for that entire half century. The Alpha has had three major motor mount changes, the much-discussed nose cones, and two different fin shapes. Big Bertha has had four different nose cones and a variety of motor mount/stuffer tube arrangements (there's at least one thread on that going right now). But an Alpha III sold today is, for all intents and purposes, the same as the first ones sold as K-56 in 1972 except for colors of parts. Pretty amazing, really.
It’d be a fun project to clone a fleet of Alphas or Berthas showcasing the variants.
 
It’d be a fun project to clone a fleet of Alphas or Berthas showcasing the variants.
I know of some folks who have tried....if you're looking to recreate the pictures in catalogs it can be quite the project. If you're interested in physical configuration then the variations can multiply in different ways. The messiest one I can think of is that during the 1989-1992 time frame, Alpha kits were sold with several nose cones: the older blow molded shape, the newer blow-molded shape, and Alpha III nose cones in both red and (very rarely) blue. At the same time the red/black to blue/black livery change was going on. So that's a bunch of permutations right there.... :D
 
My lovely spouse never took an interest in any of my hobbies. R/C (planes, helicopters and boats) and rocketry. Was simply blase' to her. She didn't protest and was fine with me participating in the hobbies but just didn't take an interest.

She was more interested in running a clean household of which she did very well and I miss her a lot. Deceased 1/25/19 of Radon induced lung cancer as she never smoked cigarettes. Didn't know the house was a Radon trap and she spent a lot of time taking care of our mentally handicapped son. The house has been abated now and Radon is barely detectable. Wished we would have known.

I had to take care of myself as I was single until age 31when I married. My mother taught me to cook and I did very well. Now that I'm retired, I like trying different things in the kitchen. Not like some people I know who live with prepared foods out of a microwave. I only use the microwave to re-heat food I made or an occasional pizza.

Oh, that's her in my avatar. In the original full sized photo it can be seen that she's frowning. I still have that rocket and it's flyable. About 15 years old.
Kurt
 
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