The moon lander has its beginnings in Bonestell's preproduction artwork for the CBS television series MEN INTO SPACE, which debuted in 1959. The lander, with its eight fuel tanks and winged "dart" reentry glider, appears to have been inspired by both the general development of the Saturn I booster and the rocket-powered X-15 hypersonic research aircraft. Indeed, Bonestell painted a version of the moon lander artwork with an X-15 atop the clustered tanks, mirroring an actual boosted X-15 concept using a Saturn Block I launch vehicle. The kit has the complete approval and blessing of Ron Miller, one of the trustees of Bonestell Space Art. Ron has recently discovered a series of photographs of Bonestell's efforts in producing plaster planetary landscapes for his painting research, plus a number of balsa wood and plexiglass spacecraft models used in establishing painting angles and geometries. One of the more finished models, perhaps fabricated for Bonestell, is the ascent stage of the moon lander, sans tanks, sitting on its landing base. The lander will be offered at 1/48 scale, approximately 28" high, as a direct comprison to the familiar Grumman Lunar Module kits. the kit will feature resin, ABS, and photoetch parts, with paintable vinyl hatch and plating details.

The Solar System Explorer is derived from the truss structure concept of the International Space Station (ISS), to which are added three nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) engines, a cluster of 24 liquid hydrogen fuel tanks, a series of habitat and laboratory modules, and a pair of planetary landers. The first target for the SSE is Mars, though with the addition of reflective or absorptive outer coverings, the SSE could very well visit Mercury or Jupiter. The SSE will be offered at 1/144 scale.

No precise release date nor price has been established for either kit, so no pre-orders can yet be taken. Parts are being designed and mastered at the present time. Check back with this page or the SMS home page for progress on the kits.

Additional kits and detail parts sets will be offered here at a later time.