Estes Rockets
America's leading model rocket manufacturer, making kits and engines at their 77-acre campus in Penrose, Colorado since 1961. Founded by Vern and Gleda Estes in 1958, the brand has introduced millions of people to aerospace science and the joy of flight through affordable, flyable rocket kits.
Products by Estes Rockets
4 products listed
$42-$50Estes Tandem-X Launch Set
Everything a new rocketeer needs in one box. The Tandem-X Launch Set includes two beginner-level rocket kits (Amazon and Crossfire ISX), a Porta-Pad II launch pad, and an Electron Beam launch controller. The two-rocket bundle lets families or groups fly back-to-back while one rocket is being recovered, making it the most practical starter package Estes offers.
$30-$38Estes Big Bertha Model Rocket Kit
A backyard legend since 1965, the Big Bertha stands 27 inches tall with its distinctive 1.64-inch diameter body and chunky proportions that produce a slow, theatrical liftoff to 500 feet. The larger airframe makes it easier to track in the sky and spot on landing, making it a crowd favorite at club launch days and a rewarding intermediate build.
$22-$28Estes Alpha III Model Rocket Kit
A beginner-friendly update on the classic Alpha, the Alpha III ships with pre-colored orange-and-black body parts and self-stick decals — no painting required. It reaches 1,150 feet on the same engines as the original and recovers under a 12-inch parachute, making it the most approachable first scratch-build in the Estes lineup for new rocketeers ages 10 and up.
$20-$26Estes Alpha Model Rocket Kit
Estes' most iconic model rocket, the Alpha has introduced generations to the hobby since 1961. This intermediate-skill kit assembles in about an hour using pre-cut balsa fins, a cardboard body tube, and a plastic nose cone, then climbs to 1,000 feet on standard engines and floats back under a 12-inch parachute. The Alpha is still the most widely recommended first 'real' rocket for anyone stepping up from a ready-to-fly kit.