MK kits were actually quite cheap back in the early to mid 1980's and before. The value of the Yen soared compared to the weak US dollar and the price of the kits followed. When the MK Aurora was initially offered (11/1985)by Indy R/C (I don't think World engines ever imported MK kits) the price was $110.00 (which included the tanks, spinner and some other hardware not to mention very good quality wood and glass parts). The Curare 60, Arrow 60, Blue Angel 60 and Magic 60 were all priced at less than $100 originally and guys thought the kits were pricey even then. One of my fellow club members (back in 1980 or there-abouts) bought an MK Curare 60 kit which he used as a template to build 6 wood/foam copies. He kept 2 and sold the rest. He was an excellent builder and they all flew well (and sold quickly). His first one did not last long [&o] as he had built the 'canopy' into a hatch where his Rx battery was located. During a High speed split 'S' the hatch (and Rx battery) departed from the fuselage and the Rossi powered Curare made a large crater.
MK produced some very nice 'top-of-the-line' kits in the late 90's including a 2 meter version of the Extra 300 that was designed by Quique Somenzini. The kit included the retracts (along with other nice hardware), but was very "pricey" (about $700 US) at the time. Subsequently, MK decided to try to cut the cost of their kits and eliminated most of the hardware (Topstar, Super VR-90, Synergy, Alliance, Skystar 90, etc.). The kits were still expensive by US standards (~ $300 for the 90 sized kits), but very well engineered and the high quality wood was still used.
I'm a big fan of MK kits, by the way
-Will B.