Starlight

[Rustee]

What would a Starlight be worth these days? It doesn't look like it would be that hard to scratchbuild but I'm more into an original kit,thanks.

[lurker01]

Rustee,

There is a RAT chewed version of the kit on ebay at this very moment. I wouldn't begin to pay hundreds of dollars for something that has been tasted by rats, but I am sure someone will :)


http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=280284162416&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=018

Bob

[Ltvscout]

Actually, that looks more like silverfish damage to me. This seller has a bunch of other old kits posted as well. My guess is this guy got these out of the barn at Penn Valley.

[Rustee]

So a Starlight is an ultra-rare kit then? I thought it would make a nice compliment to one of my Silver Comets. I might have to lower my sights and look for a Maxi X-Wing Fighter or a Bomarc,possibly a Little Joe II. I think I could scare one of those up,thanks for the replies.

[ghrocketman]

The ONLY thing that is rat-chewed about that kit on ebay is the hang-tag.
I think those that are HUNG-UP on collectible kits having pristine HANG-TAGS are NUTS.
What counts is the CONTENTS, not how it's hung unless someone is planning to open a "Stepped into the past" hobby shop.

[lurker01]

The ONLY thing that is rat-chewed about that kit on ebay is the hang-tag.
I think those that are HUNG-UP on collectible kits having pristine HANG-TAGS are NUTS.
What counts is the CONTENTS, not how it's hung unless someone is planning to open a "Stepped into the past" hobby shop.

GH,

If I am having to bid against others that dive the price into the hundreds of dollars, I want the kit to be PERFECT! If not, I will just clone the kit for like what ... $15 - $20 dollars?

Years back in the late 1990s, I saw an Estes Patriot, big sport flier not the Desert Storm missile, sell for almost $100.00. Now you might say, well that is not a bad price even then for the kit. Well what was amazing was the the kit had black mold in it, the tubes were dented and bent, and it was opened.

I'm sorry, but if I am forced to pay 30 - 40% more above fair collector prices for a kit due to emotional impulse bidding on ebay, I want the item to be as mint as possible. Silverfish, Rats, bird droppings, exposure to weather/sunlight ... no thanks. I will watch this Starlight from the sidelines and wait for a real mint example to appear... someday :o

Bob

[lurker01]

So a Starlight is an ultra-rare kit then? I thought it would make a nice compliment to one of my Silver Comets. I might have to lower my sights and look for a Maxi X-Wing Fighter or a Bomarc,possibly a Little Joe II. I think I could scare one of those up,thanks for the replies.

The kit was available for 4 years => year 1, they had good sells and decided to bring it back in 1969. Year 2, Estes was busy with the Damon merger. The kit probably did OK but not fabulous. Year 3, the kit was probably kept because of part inventory, but sales were even less than year 2, so the decision was made to drop it. Year 4, only existing stores and existing parts were used to fill orders and closeouts. Year 5 (1973) dropped from catalog.

I have no idea what the numbers were, but a guess would be that over the 4 year life span of the product, maybe 20 thousand units were produced? I can't believe the numbers would be any higher because if they were, the kit should have continued to be produced and sold? This is just a guess.

Bill Simmons had lists of actual production run totals but threw them out a year or so ago because he didn't see any value in keeping them :(

Bob

[Ltvscout]

Bill Simmons had lists of actual production run totals but threw them out a year or so ago because he didn't see any value in keeping them :(

Bob
Bill Simmons or Bill Simon?

[Les]

Personally, my interest is in the rocket. Whether I clone it or find an original kit on e-bay is not important. I will admit, I'm lazy. I am willing to pay a little more for a kit than searching "everywhere" for parts, decals, etc. But I refuse to pay $100's for a kit just because it is an "original".

[Rustee]

Truth be told,everything is readily available to clone it with brand new parts,and it would be just as easy to upscale it too. Having one NIP though does have a certain,shall we say,cachet?

[lurker01]

Bill Simmons or Bill Simon?


Scott,

Bill Simon .. Sorry about that Bill

Bob

[Gus]

Bob, and others,

I'm curious if what constitutes a "good seller" at Estes has changed over the years. Any idea what kit volume would keep a kit in production in the old days versus today?

[barone]

Truth be told,everything is readily available to clone it with brand new parts,and it would be just as easy to upscale it too. Having one NIP though does have a certain,shall we say,cachet?
Semroc has everything except the fins.......

http://www.semroc.com/Store/scripts/ClassicParts.asp?ID=33

And the fin patterns are available at Jimz......

http://www.dars.org/jimz/k-32.htm

[Jeff Walther]

Semroc has everything except the fins.......

http://www.semroc.com/Store/scripts/ClassicParts.asp?ID=33


That is a very cool link. How do you get to it if you do not already know the URL?

Are there other tables like that available? I've hunted around but can't seem to find the magic path of links.

That would go most of the way to making me say, "Who needs kits?" I agree with Les, getting everything in one bag is a convenience factor which is worth a little bit extra. But with prices like the bids the seller under discussion is already getting on his kits, it is well worth it to me to clone from scratch--or buy Semroc's retro Orbital Transport kit for example. Now if they just had the Trident...

Tables like the one you linked would make cloning just about as convenient as buying a kit. The only thing that could go one step further is if Semroc had a system so that the buyer could group his parts and Semroc would drop each group in its own plastic bag before shipping it. :-)

[barone]

That is a very cool link. How do you get to it if you do not already know the URL?

Are there other tables like that available? I've hunted around but can't seem to find the magic path of links.

That would go most of the way to making me say, "Who needs kits?" I agress with Lee, getting everything in one bag is a convenience factor which is worth a little bit extra. But with prices like the bids the seller under discussion is already getting on his kits, it is well worth it to me to clone from scratch--or buy Semroc's retro Orbital Transport kit for example. Now if they just had the Trident...

Tables like the one you linked would make cloning just about as convenient as buying a kit. The only thing that could go one step further is if Semroc had a system so that the buyer could group his parts and Semroc would drop each group in its own plastic bag before shipping it. :-)
From the Semroc home page, there is a banner that says "The Classics". That takes you to a table that lists ALL (well it looks pretty comprehensive) model rockets ever kitted. You can use the filter box at the top of the chart to look for a specific kit. The left hand side of the chart is a pictorial showing at what stage Carl is at kitting the model. Click on that and it takes you to a table for that particular kit, listing the parts. And, if Carl has them, you'll get the add button. Sure is a lot easier than trying to figure out what you need for a clone..... ;)

[Jeff Walther]

From the Semroc home page, there is a banner that says "The Classics". That takes you to a table that lists ALL (well it looks pretty comprehensive) model rockets ever kitted.

Thank you! That is very convenient and cool and kind of breath-taking when I think about how much work Carl must have put into it.

[kurtschachner]

FWIW, I built a Starlight clone earlier this year. One of the threads I started included a redrawn set of fin templates as I found the Estes ones to be incorrect. Here is that thread which includes my fin patterns:

http://forums.rocketshoppe.com/showthread.php?t=3570&highlight=starlight

Use them if you wish and at your own risk ;)

Also I would highly recommend you cut the fins out of basswood. Surprisingly to me at least, it wasn't too heavy at all and the outcome is vastly superior to balsa wood. Just my suggestion.

[Ltvscout]

Semroc has everything except the fins.......

http://www.semroc.com/Store/scripts/ClassicParts.asp?ID=33

Well, I GUESS I could let Carl off the hook long enough to stop thinking about were to get those CPT-10 tubes so he can get some Starlight fins into inventory. :chuckle: