Picture Courtesy o' Blackhawk

Brief:
Sport scale high power version o' t' SAAB

Construction:
T' kit came with two glassine-covered body tubes, coupler, 8 nicely cut 1/4" plywood fins, 3 1/4" plywood centerin' rings, shiver me timbers, matey, me hearties, bulkhead plate, U-bolts, 10' tubular nylon, parachute, me bucko, me bucko, launch lug, ya bilge rat, and nose cone. Ahoy! All around high quality material. Ahoy! However, thar was no provision t' attach t' nose cone to t' payload bay. You have t' supply your own hardware for that. Aye aye! You also have t' supply motor retention hardware. Arrr! On t' other hand, t' U-bolts came securely attached t' t' appropriate rings.

T' instructions seemed t' be for a generic high power rocket. Avast, me proud beauty! This be the third high power rocket I've built--the other two were from PML and BSD. Avast! As a result, ya bilge rat, I didn't have any problem. Arrr! However, arrr, a beginner t' high power could have trouble, as some steps weren't clear, and t' third centerin' rin' wasn't even mentioned. Avast, me proud beauty!

T' rings fit a bit loosely, so you have t' be careful t' keep them level. Begad! Begad! I beveled t' leadin' and trailin' fin edges 22.5 degrees usin' a router table and a panel-raisin' bit. Arrr! I put a 1/4" slot in a piece o' masonite with a 4" diameter arc at one end t' align t' main fins. T' secondary fins were added later, and aligned by clampin' wooden stakes betwixt t' main and secondary fins. Ya scallywag! Well, blow me down! T' fin tabs were 1/16 t' 3/32" too long, me bucko, matey, and so t' fin roots were "elevated" off t' body tube, requirin' a fillet under them.

I added a PML modular baffle at t' top o' t' motor mount, and T-nuts for motor retention at t' aft centerin' ring. Ya scallywag! I also added T-nuts t' retain rail buttons. Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! I did this by nay securin' t' aft centerin' rin' until after the motor tube be glued in. Aye aye! This allowed me t' get into t' area betwixt the middle and aft rin' and glue (with thickened epoxy) t' T-nuts. Well, blow me down! Avast!

There are 7 feet o' fillets along t' fins! It took four pumps o' West epoxy (+ thickener) t' finish those.

I got some removable white plastic rivets from Rocketmotion t' secure the nose cone. Arrr! Well, blow me down!

My rocket came in about 4 ounces lighter than t' Blackhawk specs.

Finishing:
I didn't finish it. Ya scallywag! Considerin' what happened t' first flight (see below), that was a good idea.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Blackhawk R&D recommends t' I300-10, arrr, matey, I2110-10, arrr, I357-6, I161-6, I156-6. Avast, me proud beauty! I ended up usin' a Pro38 3-grain motor (384I205) with a 9-second delay.

There is very little space t' place t' chute and shock cord. Blimey! You need to pack it carefully t' fit. Well, blow me down!

There was a light wind.

Immediately after leavin' t' rail, me bucko, arrr, ya bilge rat, t' rocket went into skywriter mode, did about 4 full loops, shiver me timbers, and landsharked under full power. Ya scallywag! Ejection occurred after t' landshark.

Recovery:
On impact, one fin ripped off. T' payload bay had a slight crinkle. Begad! Blimey! T' damage should be easily repairable, matey, though I might just swap out t' payload bay for a PML replacement--it's less work than tryin' t' patch t' crinkle and surprisingly cheap. Avast, me proud beauty! I'll also be able t' get more room for t' chute by shortenin' t' coupler.

DEFINITELY ADD NOSE WEIGHT. Avast, me proud beauty! This rocket is unstable if built accordin' to the manufacturer's instructions. Ahoy! If anything, shiver me timbers, me CG was forward o' standard, matey, as I assume t' only place I could have saved weight over t' manufacturer's quoted weight be t' use a little less epoxy on t' fins.

Flight Rating: 2 out o' 5

Summary:
Actually good value for t' loot. Begad! Pretty rocket. Avast, me proud beauty! Lots o' people were wondering where I got it. If only t' vendor would talk about nose weight in the instructions, me hearties, matey, t' flight ratin' would have been higher (e.g., me hearties, about a 4, matey, I bet).

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5