FWIW:
Many old-time Estes (and Centuri) kits are available as “clones” from www.erockets.biz. Look under the Semrocs brand.
Estes re-released the Centuri version of the Mercury Redstone. It has a plastic tower, capsule, and fins. Nowhere near the building challenge, but a very nice model.
Our local rocket club has a public outreach launch each month during the good weather season. We get some short-timers who just launch almost-pre-made kits, and a few dedicated modelers who build the challenging kits. The family shown below really went bonkers for rocketry; mom, dad, and two sons are really ambitious. I suspect they’ll try for their high power certifications this year.
