MPC -- First Product Literature
 

Attached below are pdf scans of a number of early MPC model rocket product flyers which appear to be from the initial introduction of the line in late 1969.

These all come from a folder of product information that seems to have been directed at hobby dealers, best I can tell. The cover letter in the folder (first item below) mentions a 'kickoff' date of around October 15, 1969.

Following it are pdf scans of two-sided product literature flyers of a number of MPC kits that were to be introduced at that time. These flyers do not appear to cover the entire MPC line, but I have some follow-on scans that I will post that should cover a number of the others eventually.

While I have collected I think all the MPC line in the last 10 years or so, I never had any of them 'back in the day'. However, my best friend in the very early 70s -- and really the first person I ever knew that had model rockets -- he and his Dad started out with the Centuri Astro-1 starter set in very late 1971. They flew them out of town at a grandparent's property in North Carolina, so I never got to see any of them fly.

But sometime along the way they added a couple of MPC kits to their 'fleet' and they were the Martian Patrol and the Lunar Patrol. As such, MPC kits (at least those two) form some of my very early memories of 'model rockets' and thus they became a basis for collecting the series.

I'll post some additional items to this thread in time.

Earl

Thanks Earl!

Interesting stuff!

The town next to where I grew up had a hobby shop ("Artisan Mart") that carried MPC and COX kits and motors, and a hardware / variety store ("Eisenstadt's") that carried Centuri kits and MPC motors. Later they stocked Estes kits and motors, and picked up Centuri motors.

So, I guess distribution was odd.

My first models were mail-ordered Estes, but I did have quite a few MPC models, from Artisan Mart and eventually ordered from AVI. I won one of AVI's design contests and got a BUTT LOAD of MPC kits.

I just have one survivor from the mid 70s, a Moon Go which I refurbished about five years back. After flying it a few times I loaned it to the Sun River rocketry exhibit.

Some time during 1969 I saw one of those Kalmbach model magazines where they kind give an overview of what's new in all the hobbies, and there was an article on the MPC line that was coming up. First I'd heard of it.

In May of 1970 I was on a school trip to All-State band competition in Augusta. At lunch we went to a shopping center that had a Kmart (We didn't have anything like that in Athens!) and I found a Pioneer 1 kit. Fortunately Mom give me some extra spending money if I needed it, so it came home with me, and I used that kit to win Parachute Spot Landing at the first NAR meet in Georgia in June (see December '70 Model Rocketry Magazine for the report).

Thank you, Earl! It's so cool seeing these and seeing the connections across time.

Interesting story Roy. What school age would that have been? Junior high or high school? Do you remember where the competition was held in Augusta? That would have been about two months before we moved to Augusta from the Atlanta area. The only K-Mart I was aware of in those days would have been on Gordon Highway. If so, that K-Mart stayed open until just the last handful of years when it closed along with so many others.

Earl

Most welcome Bob. I'll try to post some other things soon.

Earl

I was in ninth grade in Jr High. No idea what highway it was on. It was the day of the total eclipse, slightly overcast. Totality occurred when I was in the checkout line at the store. But my gut feeling was the store faced south as there was a little directional light coming in to the store before or after.

That would have been in March that year (just looked it up...March 7). That K-Mart on Gordon Highway does face largely south. And likely that was the only one in the area back 51 years ago.

Do you recall where the band competition itself was held?

Earl

march --- may, yea, whatever! :)

Would probably have been at a high school. I don't remember that much about it, except that our much-maligned saxophone section won our ensemble category much to everyone's' surprise. I don't remember what we played, but the other kids in the band gave us a lot more respect after that weekend, though we still squeaked and squaked when we played Moon River, or some of the passages from the overture to Victory At Sea.