It truly was a patchwork vehicle. The main booster stage was comprised of eight rocket tanks from the Redstone missile, which were strapped around a bigger tank from the Jupiter rocket. Hence the nickname: "Cluster's Last Stand."

To put this massive vehicle into space, a new rocket engine would be needed. Instead of one big monstrosity, eight smaller ones would be used. But the engines for this booster rocket would use borrowed technology from the Thor and Atlas programs. So development of the engine would proceed quickly to meet the tight deadline. This new engine was called the H-1, and combined, the eight engines would generate 1.5 million pounds of thrust.

The second stage was to use six RL-10 Hydrogen-Oxygen engines, which would come from the Centaur stage of the Atlas and Titan programs. Eventually it was replaced by a the new J-2, a single, larger engine. It was to be the first time that astronauts would be launched into space with highly volatile and difficult-to-handle liquid hydrogen as the fuel.

Now you can own an authentic replica of this historic rocket. It is the totally new 1/70th scale Saturn 1B, sold exclusively from Apogee Components.

Using many original engineering drawings and rare archive material, the Saturn 1B has been carefully researched and authenticated to bring the space enthusiast the finest replica ever produced.

To make sure all the tiny details were accurately represented on the final kit, totally new molds were created costing more than $50,000. The level of intricate detail made possible are things like the 0.005 inch high raised panel lines on the surface of the Boost Protect Shield that covers the Apollo Capsule. The entire surface of the rocket is so blanketed with intricate detail. From the tip of the Escape Tower, down to the injection molded plastic nozzles, this is a totally new model that offers the best level of accuracy of this historic rocket. When your friends see it, they'll be riveted by its authentic appearance and level of accuracy.

The reason the Saturn 1B ranks on top of your list of favorite rockets is because it includes the eight fuel tanks in a big cluster, the unique transition section that conforms to the eight tank tubes, and eight fins — twice as many as any other NASA rocket. Plus it has lots of corrugations that give the rocket lots of surface texture. Finally, it has a elaborate paint pattern that makes it unique and eye appealing.

When you tell your friends that you built the awesome Saturn 1B, their jaws will drop in disbelief. Surely something as handsome as the beautiful Saturn 1B you're holding couldn't have been built by you?

Most people wouldn't even dare to undertake such a intricate looking rocket. But you did.

You knew that this kit was made simplistic to build because it came with a special video instruction book. The instructions were so detailed, and so easy to follow, that you learned the techniques required to build this simply by watching the little assembly movies. When you were done building the model, you were left with a huge sense of accomplishment and a can-do attitude to tackle other complex looking rockets.

Besides the accurate details on the rocket, the CD-ROM instructions that come with the rocket also contain extensive paint patterns for the Saturn 1B, as well as drawings showing where the water-slide decals are positioned. These illustrations are almost works of art by themselves.

• Highly detailed injection-molded Apollo Capsule
• Injection-molded engine nozzles
• Cast-resin fins that are true-to-scale. Other models of the Saturn 1B often use bulky oversize fins (that are not authentic) to make the rocket stable when launched.
• Urethane resin details for the booster interstage section
• Injection molded transition with fits perfectly over the cluster of fuel tank tubes
• Miticulously detailed vacuum form wraps for the booster thrust structure, Interstage, and 2nd stage.
• Eye-poppingly detailed embossed wrap for the transition of the 2nd stage to the Service Module.
• Special "raised ink" wrap for the Service Module portion to bring out the raised panel lines on the rocket, and to aid in masking off the different color patterns.
• Injection molded Reaction Control System (RCS) nozzles on the Service Module.
• "Perfect Fit" body tubes.
• 29mm motor mount for E, F, and G rocket motors.
• Five-color water-slide decals. Includes markings for all of the various Saturn 1B missions flown by NASA
• Four hours of video instruction. These not only show where to place the parts, but how-to put them together correctly. This gives a high quality fit and lightweight rocket.
• 10 pages of superb painting instructions and drawings show the colors on the rocket.
• Removable display nozzles. Other models don't even include nozzles!
• Vacuum form baseplate that shows the excellent surface detail on the bottom of the rocket.
• Vacuum form antenna panels.
• Precision cut cardboard centering rings — for a strong and lightweight rocket that fits together perfectly.
  Kevlar shock cords
• High Strength rip-stop nylon parachutes. Includes a 24 inch and 36 inch diameter chute, which brings your model down nice and slow after a rip-roaring launch.
• 1/4 inch launch lugs
• RockSim design file so you can pick which motors you'd like to fly, and to determine how well the rocket will perform with those motors.
• CP location charts, to show you how to balance the rocket if you choose the "spinning" model launch system.

With the exclusive instructional videos that show you the correct way to put together your Saturn 1B kit, you're going to end up with a model that will simply awe your friends.

Bonus Offer: Order Now, and you'll also receive a large 20 X 28" wall poster displaying the history, and specifications of the Saturn 1B. This is a $9.97 value. This offer is only good while supplies last. Order by clicking the "Add to Cart" button below. Click Here for details of the poster.

A. It is possible, because there is plenty of room for motors inside the tube. But YOU will have to modify the kit yourself. This kit does not come with extra centering rings or engine mount tubes for a cluster version; it only comes with a single 29mm motor mount in the first stage. The photos below shows an Apogee Saturn 1B kit that has been converted by Jim Filler to a cluster of four C6-3 motors and four A10-PT motors. This was model took 2nd place in scale at the NARAM-50 contest in 2008. (Photos by Chris Taylor).

To see how the Apogee Saturn 1B Rocket rocket looks and performs with each motor configuration, download the FREE RockSim design file for this model (click here). The FREE edition of the RockSim software can be used to open and view this file.

Are you new to rocketry? Do you think you know what happens when you launch your rocket? Now you can learn about the events that occur as your rocket is launched into the air. So when you launch your rocket, you'll be prepared and you'll be able to show off your knowledge to observers watching your rocket. This article also gives you links to other references that will give you even more background information about rocketry, so you can become a true rocket scientist and expert.

"The Saturn 1B arrived this week in great shape. After a thorough review of the kit contents I can say it was well worth the wait. Like the Saturn V it's an awesome kit, and I'm looking forward to what will be a truly rewarding building experience.

Over the last two days, I've used my spare time to watch the video instructions. These are likewise well prepared, and the additional photo and illustration material is just excellent. I'm hard pressed to say which is more enjoyable - the kit or the video instructions!

Congratulations on delivering the hobby the finest in Saturn models. " -- J.R. Brohm