What was your first rocket?

[Mini 14]

Hey all,

What was your first rocket? Was it the stereotypical first rocket in the Estes Alpha or something else?

Mine was the Estes America that came in a starter set with a shiny gold nose cone.

 

[Elapid]

scout

 

[DynaSoar]

Astron Sky Hook.

The Alpha didn't come out until 3 years later.

 

[Steward]

I've always known that there were a few people a "little" older and "wiser" than me...

LOL...!!!

picture circa 1969-1972...???

 

[adrian]

Estes Patriot Starter Set, in 1992. It's still operational, although one reason for that is that it hasn't flown as often as some of my other rockets.

 

[Fishhead]

An Estes Beta in 1977 that I never flew as a two stager until 2002.

 

[Hospital_Rocket]

Astron Birdie

 

[gpoehlein]

Alpha here as well

Greg

 

[rocketkid88]

Estes Tidal Wave starter set.... still flying 2

 

Centuri Javelin - way back in 1968

 

[loopy]

Estes Sizzler back around 1984 or so. This is not the newer dinky little sizzler.

 

[Rocket Al]

MPC Pioneer 1, Lunar Lectric controller and a Lunar Launch Pad all of which my dad bought me in 1970 or so.

Thanks to Dale Windsor, got a new Pioneer, and somebody on ebay had the other stuff for a song....

Al

 

[jflis]

Originally posted by DynaSoar
Astron Sky Hook.

The Alpha didn't come out until 3 years later.

Same here

Alpha? That there's one of dem new fangled rockets, ain't it??

 

[Juaru]

Estes Code Red starter set. I'm old, but not a BAR.

John (not Jon) Arthur

www.JonRocket.com

 

[OARJeepr]

Estes Black Brant...I was maybe 10 and it didn't really look like a Black Brant when I was finished, but it was D powered and a lot of fun.

 

[JRThro]

Originally posted by jflis
Alpha? That there's one of dem new fangled rockets, ain't it??

Jim, kinda like the way I think "Carry On Wayward Son" is new song by Kansas? (It came out in 1976, btw.)

Originally posted by Juaru
Estes Code Red starter set. I'm old, but not a BAR.

John (not Jon) Arthur

www.JonRocket.com

Sounds like me! I just got into the hobby in June of 2004, when I was almost 47 years old. My first rocket was an Estes No. 2 Skywriter, which I bought for my son.

 

[Bowhunter]

IIRC it was the scout

 

[hokkyokusei]

Estes Alpha III starter set.

 

[rstaff3]

Hey, I'm lucky that I even flew rockets that far back.

 

[Samuron]

Centuri Quasar, 1972.

Beautiful rocket; painted all copper, looked really "Flash Gordon". Lots of great launches, always came back to the pad.

Lost it in the only CATO I ever had.

 

[Karl]

First rocket : Tidal Wave RTF
First Kit(s) : Big Bertha & Polaris


Karl

 

[powderburner]

https://www.rocketryforum.com/showthread.php?threadid=4818&highlight=streak+powderburner

 

[Fuddrucker]

Der Big Red Max starter set. AWESOME! I loved that rocket and the Big Foot launch pad that it came with.

Got it about 1980 and my mom threw it out back in '91 when I got married and moved out of the house. She didn't think I would want my rocket stuff anymore. She also threw out my Sissor Wing Transport, Alien Explorer, and my Starship Nova. I was pretty bummed when I went over to pick that stuff up and she told me she dumped it. I could tell what she had done by the look on her face when I asked where the stuff was.

Since then I have cloned the Red Max and Alien Explorer.

...Fudd

 

[astronboy]

ESTES Goblin 1971. My Dad built it for me, and I restored it a few years ago. I had found it in the bottom of a box of other stuff at my Mom's house. It had shreds of one fin, a crushed body tube, and no nosecone, but it was my first rocket. So I re-rounded the body tubed by stuffing it with BT-55 tube couplers, sanded it smooth, attached new fins and a BMS nosecone.

 

[dr wogz]

Mioner was teh Estes 'Challenger' starter set.

One of those moulded plastic 4 finned bottoms, and a BT..

The launch system was a plactic 'cap' that screwed to the giant 6v battery. The batter weight provided the 'support' (no legs). No ajustment either, unless you wedged something under the battery to get your launch angle.

 

[Borderline Sci]

MPC Flare Patriot (1968 cost me 75 cents) And I still have it… I got it because it was the closes thing they had at the store that looked like a Saturn I B…for an Eight year old…

 

[limd21]

My first was scratchbuilt (honest). Over 30 years ago now, it was built from some scraps from my uncle's rocketry supplies. Body tube was an old Estes engine shipping tube (light blue), a leftover balsa nose cone and balsa fins cut to roughly emulate the Alpha pattern (done by eye, looking at the Estes catalog). Engine mount consisted of tons of masking tape wrapped around the engine (friction fit for a non min diameter tube). Shock cord was a length of cotton twine, crepe-paper streamer, and an eye hook I scrounged from my Dad's collection of miscellaneous screws. It was rougly Alpha-esque, although a lot cruder. Paint was was whatever enamel found on the garage shelf. (Did I mention walking to school was uphill both ways?)

First factory kit was an Estes Mark II. Lost it on its second flight. Turned me off to kits for while. I could scratch build for a fraction of the cost, saving my pennies (literally) for engines. I can remember that firing three (ABC) motors in any given session was an "expensive" day of flying. All my launch hardware was scratch built, and that tendency continues to this day, only buying kits where they are classics or are otherwise unique.

 

[Localx]

Mine was an Alpha also, as a BAR my first was a mosquito. It was also my first rocket fired as a BAR and get this....I got it back.

 

[wwattles]

First ever: Estes Wizard, for a school class.
First as a rocketeer: Estes Hi-Flier.

WW

 

[arthur dent]

First rocket

Quest BIG RAGE starter set and i still use the carry case.