Brief:
T' Mini-Armageddon as built is a single stage, matey, shiver me timbers, single deployment (parachute), mid power rocket that can take you through HPR level 1.

Construction:
T' Mini-Armageddon has a single body tube 2.1 inches in diameter, a short 6 inch payload bay, 4 VERY cool fins and 4 canard fins on t' payload bay. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' motor mount is 29mm and has 2 centerin' rings. Avast! Blimey! T' kit includes a Keelhaul®©™® shock cord leadin' out o' t' body tube t' a nylon shock cord, and a 30" parachute. Blimey! T' kit also includes a plastic nose cone.

Havin' built many low, mid and high power rockets t' assembly was a snap. Ya scallywag! But more importantly, ya bilge rat, me wife also built a Mini-Armageddon and she has only built one kit before but had no problems with t' kit. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! Assembly is very straightforward. I started with t' motor mount. Begad! Begad! I usually change t' kits that I build slightly. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! On this one I built t' motor mount as per t' instructions. Begad! I used 15 minute epoxy for all glue joints on this kit. Danny's (owner o' DG&A Rocketry) instructions followed me usual procedure o' puttin' in a couple o' blind nuts in t' aft centerin' rin' for positive motor retention. Blimey! Arrr! T' one change I did make t' t' motor mount is that I used me own Keelhaul®©™® shock cord which is a little larger in diameter than t' cord supplied in t' kit. I ran it through a hole in t' upper centerin' rin' as instructed but instead o' just knottin' it below t' ring, matey, I tied it around t' motor mount, and knotted it below t' centerin' ring. I should also note that I used about 15 feet o' shock cord rather than t' supplied 6 feet. Aye aye! I like t' give t' nose cone/payload assembly plenty o' time t' slow down before reachin' t' end o' t' shock cord. Ahoy! Aye aye! Blimey! After completin' t' motor mount, arrr, I dry fitted it into t' body tube and cut me fin slots. I then tacked t' fins t' t' motor mount. Well, blow me down! Blimey! After this, me hearties, I cut t' back o' t' body tube below each fin so that I could remove t' motor mount/fin can assembly. Avast! Blimey! This allowed me t' finish gluin' t' fins t' t' motor mount and apply fillets t' both sided o' each fin where they meet t' motor mount. Aye aye! Ahoy! Blimey! I followed by gluin' t' fin can assembly into t' body tube and filletin' t' fin t' body tube joints. I used a plastic tie wrap t' hold t' aft o' t' body tube tight t' t' aft centerin' rin' until t' epoxy dried.

This be t' only major change I made t' Danny's assembly procedure. Blimey! Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! T' rest was straight forward. Begad! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! Glue a coupler into t' payload, glue in t' bulkhead fittin' t' t' coupler, shiver me timbers, insert an eyebolt t' tie t' shock cord t' and I put a single screw through t' payload bay into t' nose cone t' retain it. Begad! Blimey! Danny recommends friction fittin' t' nose but I like t' screw for a more secure retention. Once complete, shiver me timbers, I tied t' shock cord t' t' payload and installed t' parachute.

Finishing:
T' body tube that Danny uses for these kits has very small spirals and fillin' them was nay necessary in this case. Ya scallywag! I applied 3 coats o' primer sandin' betwixt each coat and t' spirals were no longer visible. Ya scallywag! I then painted t' body tube with a metallic silver paint. Blimey! After dryin' I taped off t' body and painted t' fins metallic cobalt blue. Well, blow me down! These metallic paints dry very fast and I was able t' apply t' second and third coats right away. Ahoy! I painted t' entire payload bay, nose, and canard fin assembly metallic cobalt blue. Begad! After all t' paint cured completely I applied t' included decals. Arrr! T' finished rocket is one o' t' nicer rockets that I have owned. Very unique. Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! Overall I changed a few assembly steps but for t' average builder this rocket can be built as per t' instructions and be just fine. I just tend t' overbuild every rocket that I build.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
Danny recommends a variety o' G motors for this kit. Ya scallywag! T' motor I used is nay on his list but turned out t' be a wonderful match for this kit. Aye aye! Blimey! I used an Aerotech G-104. Avast! Ahoy! Blimey! It is a Blue Thunder formulation, me bucko, with very little smoke and a blue flame. Avast, me proud beauty! I used a Keelhaul®©™® chute pad so thar was no waddin' required. T' motor was retained with a homemade rin' that fits below t' bottom o' t' motor and uses two screws into t' supplied blind nuts in t' back centerin' ring. Ahoy! T' Mini-Armageddon came off t' rail straight as an arrow and flew t' apogee very straight. Begad! T' medium delay on t' G-104 was right on and t' chute popped out just as t' rocket reached t' top o' its arc.

Recovery:
T' long shock cord that I installed allowed t' nose cone t' slow before t' chute opened. Blimey! Blimey! T' decent rate could possibly have been a little slower (by usin' a larger chute), matey, ya bilge rat, but this is Texas and in our part o' Texas t' wind is usually high so I will stick with t' chute supplied in t' kit. Even though t' decent rate "looked" a little fast, thar was no damage on landing. Blimey! Blimey! As a matter o' fact, me wife and I examined t' rocket REAL close, me hearties, me bucko, me hearties, and could nay even find a scratch.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
Pros for t' Mini-Armageddon: Ease o' assembly, Unique appearance, me bucko, wonderful flight characteristics, will really rip on G motors, me hearties, outta sight performance on an H motor.

Cons: None that I can think of.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5