Brief:
T' Mini-Armageddon as built is a single stage, single deployment (parachute), me hearties, ya bilge rat, 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, shiver me timbers, a short 6 inch payload bay, 4 VERY cool fins and 4 canard fins on t' payload bay. T' motor mount is 29mm and has 2 centerin' rings. Arrr! T' kit includes a Keelhaul®©™® shock cord leadin' out o' t' body tube t' a nylon shock cord, me bucko, and a 30" parachute. Avast! Arrr! 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, matey, me wife also built a Mini-Armageddon and she has only built one kit before but had no problems with t' kit. Ya scallywag! Assembly is very straightforward. Blimey! I started with t' motor mount. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! I usually change t' kits that I build slightly. Arrr! On this one I built t' motor mount as per t' instructions. I used 15 minute epoxy for all glue joints on this kit. Avast! 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! 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, arrr, 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. Begad! Well, blow me down! I like t' give t' nose cone/payload assembly plenty o' time t' slow down before reachin' t' end o' t' shock cord. Ya scallywag! Blimey! After completin' t' motor mount, shiver me timbers, I dry fitted it into t' body tube and cut me fin slots. Well, blow me down! I then tacked t' fins t' t' motor mount. After this, me bucko, I cut t' back o' t' body tube below each fin so that I could remove t' motor mount/fin can assembly. 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. I followed by gluin' t' fin can assembly into t' body tube and filletin' t' fin t' body tube joints. Aye aye! 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 was t' only major change I made t' Danny's assembly procedure. Ya scallywag! T' rest be straight forward. Avast, me proud beauty! Glue a coupler into t' payload, glue in t' bulkhead fittin' t' t' coupler, me bucko, 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! Danny recommends friction fittin' t' nose but I like t' screw for a more secure retention. Once complete, 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. Begad! I applied 3 coats o' primer sandin' betwixt each coat and t' spirals were no longer visible. I then painted t' body tube with a metallic silver paint. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! After dryin' I taped off t' body and painted t' fins metallic cobalt blue. Aye aye! These metallic paints dry very fast and I was able t' apply t' second and third coats right away. Ahoy! Avast! I painted t' entire payload bay, nose, and canard fin assembly metallic cobalt blue. After all t' paint cured completely I applied t' included decals. Arrr! Avast! T' finished rocket is one o' t' nicer rockets that I have owned. Begad! Very unique. 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. Aye aye! Ahoy! 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. Begad! I used an Aerotech G-104. Aye aye! Well, blow me down! It is a Blue Thunder formulation, shiver me timbers, with very little smoke and a blue flame. 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. Arrr! T' Mini-Armageddon came off t' rail straight as an arrow and flew t' apogee very straight. Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! 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! Aye aye! Blimey! T' decent rate could possibly have been a little slower (by usin' a larger chute), arrr, 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. Ahoy! Blimey! Even though t' decent rate "looked" a little fast, thar was no damage on landing. Arrr! Blimey! As a matter o' fact, shiver me timbers, me wife and I examined t' rocket REAL close, 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 hearties, wonderful flight characteristics, matey, will really rip on G motors, outta sight performance on an H motor.

Cons: None that I can think of.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5