T' CiCi is a traditional canard-style boost glider. Ahoy! The canard be t' name for that smaller front wing, ya bilge rat, or horizontal stabilizer. Blimey! Ahoy! A canard-style glider is simply a glider where t' canard is forward o' t' main wing. Blimey! Arrr! A boost glider is a glider that boosts straight up like a rocket, me hearties, me bucko, and then ejects some part, usually t' engine, to change into a glider. Blimey! This is as opposed t' a rocket glider, matey, where no parts are jettisoned, but rather other changes are made (movin' t' wing surfaces, arrr, changin' t' angle o' elevons, me bucko, ya bilge rat, etc. Arrr! ) t' make t' transition from vertical boost mode t' horizontal glide mode. Aye aye! Aye aye!

Upon openin' up t' zip-lock-bag-style package o' t' CiCi, matey, I was first surprised by t' fact that t' instructions consisted entirely o' a single 8 1/2 x 11 sheet o' paper, ya bilge rat, matey, shiver me timbers, printed on one side only! This be particularly surprisin' for this rocket, considerin' that t' Deltie, ya bilge rat, also from Edmond's Aerospace, shiver me timbers, had a 10+ page booklet for instructions. Avast! Blimey! Although sparse, arrr, t' instructions here are obvious and straightforward. Unlike most rockets, matey, t' order o' assembly for t' CiCi is largely irrelevant. Begad! Blimey! T' instructions are fairly complete, except that they never mention trimmin' t' glider, or t' supplied lump o' clay and what t' do with it. Basically, matey, t' instructions seem t' assume that you have trimmed a boost glider before. T' second thin' that I noticed about t' kit contents was that a piece was missing. T' instructions say that thar be a small, triangular piece o' wood, curved on one side, that can be used t' mark a straight line on t' engine tube, arrr, matey, but thar wasn't one in me kit. Begad! Avast! Blimey! No big deal, there are o' plenty o' ways t' mark a straight line on a tube. T' third thing that I noticed was that another piece was missing: t' launch lug. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Again, nay a show-stopper, matey, since I have some extras lyin' around, but a rather inauspicious beginning.

T' kit itself is quite nice, with thick, sturdy balsa parts that have been precision cut. Avast! All parts fit well, me bucko, and there was absolutely no confusion about how t' assemble t' rocket. Construction was simple, arrr, quick and easy, with no fuss. Full assembly took me about 1 hour, but could be done much faster. Begad! Blimey! Make no mistake, ya bilge rat, t' quality o' t' parts is first-rate, and t' kit be well thought out. Well, blow me down! T' only time I deviated from the instructions was with t' clay. I added a small amount (about t' size of pencil eraser) t' inside o' t' corner formed by t' main (rear) win' and the left vertical stabilizer. T' purpose here be t' make t' CiCi tilt left a little bit in flight so that it would glide in circles, me bucko, matey, rather than in a straight line. Begad! You want it t' glide in circles so that it stays on t' flying field. Avast! Avast, matey, me proud beauty! (Note that these pictures were taken before I added t' clay. Arrr! Aye aye! )

T' instructions don't mention it, but I attempted some hand-tossed glide tests prior t' flight. Ahoy! Hmmm. Aye aye! . . Ahoy! it glides ok, but flies and lands in a rather nose-down attitude. Nose-down enough that t' balsa nose cone hits before the front edge o' t' canard. Begad! Perhaps a small amount o' weight in t' aft might help. Well, blow me down! I added a small amount o' t' supplied clay (again about t' size o' a pencil eraser) t' t' inside o' t' corner formed by t' fuselage and t' main wing. Avast! Avast! More hand-toss glide tests. Hmmm. Arrr! . Begad! Blimey! . Blimey! Aye aye! a slightly better glide attitude and landing, ya bilge rat, but still noticeably nose-down, arrr, and thar was no discernible arc to t' left (so that it will glide in circles). Begad! I added just a tiny bit more clay t' t' inside o' t' corner formed by t' main win' and t' left vertical stabilizer. Begad! After a couple more throws, I still couldn't discern any arc t' the left, but I didn't want t' add too much weight for fear o' adversely affecting the flight characteristics. Time for some real flight tests.

It was a pretty nice day for launchin' rockets. Moderately windy, shiver me timbers, but not too bad. Ya scallywag! I was anxious t' try out t' CiCi, so it be first in line. Avast, me proud beauty! I figured the light weight o' t' rocket, combined with t' moderate wind and t' fact that this be t' maiden flight, me hearties, shiver me timbers, dictated usin' an A8-3. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad!

It was a good, quick boost, me hearties, as you can tell from t' blur it gives in this photo, shiver me timbers, even with 400 speed film. Avast, me proud beauty! In spite what this photo o' t' early flight path might indicate, it was, ya bilge rat, overall, me hearties, a fairly straight boost to, ya bilge rat, me hearties, oh, me hearties, me hearties, maybe 150 feet or so (I didn't measure it). Aye aye! Ahoy! Even though it arced over on its back after burnout, shiver me timbers, it make a smooth, controlled transition t' right-side-up glide. Blimey! The glide was ok, me hearties, arrr, but still with a bit o' nose-down attitude, and it definitely falls faster than a Deltie. Ahoy! It made about 1 3/4 circles before landing. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! . Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, matey, me proud beauty! . with a crack. Uh-oh. Arrr! Begad!

As you can see from this photo, it snapped clean in half on landing. Begad! Note that although it's photographed here on cement (for clarity), shiver me timbers, arrr, it did land in t' grass when it broke. Blimey! Disappointing, ya bilge rat, but not the end o' t' world. Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! A bit o' thin CA, me bucko, and she'll be good as new. Begad!

Also visible in this photo be t' slight blackenin' in t' forward half of the center o' t' main wing. Begad! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! This is just soot from t' black powder, not scorchin' o' t' wood. Ya scallywag! Blimey! A bit dirty, me hearties, but nay a safety concern. Blimey! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey!

Unfortunately, t' second flight, matey, arrr, under nearly calm wind conditions, me bucko, was an exact duplicate o' t' first. T' A8-3 gave a good, straight boost, with a nice transition t' glide, arrr, matey, a decent but slightly too rapid, nose-down descent, me bucko, and a landin' with a crack. Broke clean in half again, arrr, arrr, this time about 3mm further rearward (CA is strong stuff). Aye aye! Begad!

Warning! Do nay try t' followin' with your model!Bein' a bit o' a tinkerer, matey, I thought I'd make a more serious attempt t' fix that nose-down attitude. Avast! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! So, prior t' t' third flight, I sanded an airfoil into t' top o' t' canard. Begad! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! I left t' bottom o' t' canard completely flat. Ahoy! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! I left t' bottom o' t' canard completely flat. Avast! Blimey! T' idea was to have this canard generate more lift, arrr, ya bilge rat, and thereby lift t' nose in flight, givin' a flatter glide. Hand-tossed glides didn't show any visible difference, but I was confident that it would be noticeable at speed. DO NOT TRY THIS WITH YOUR MODEL! T' airfoil be much too severe, ya bilge rat, and caused t' model t' arc over under power and plow into the ground at full speed! Ironically, me hearties, t' damage was only slightly worse on this flight, with a small piece breakin' off o' t' canard as well as t' model snappin' in two at t' usual spot. Ahoy! If your model also breaks on landing, me bucko, shiver me timbers, and you want t' try t' airfoil t' canard t' help that situation, start with a very slight airfoil, arrr, me bucko, and perform actual launches before sandin' any further. Begad!

Overall, I give t' CiCi a 3 out o' 5 points. Begad! Blimey! T' kit itself gets a 4 out o' 5 points, havin' high quality parts, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, me bucko, but missin' a couple minor pieces. Blimey! T' instructions should include trimmin' instructions, matey, but were otherwise adequate, arrr, despite their brevity. Aye aye! T' construction gets a ratin' of 4. 5 out o' 5 points bein' simple and straightforward. Avast! T' flights (before the airfoiling, at least), me hearties, ya bilge rat, were both excellent, ratin' a 4 out o' 5 points. O' course, t' big downer was t' recovery, particularly t' landin' damage, which is easily fixed, shiver me timbers, though nay easily avoided. T' recovery gets a 1. 5 out o' 5 points.

I'll probably repair t' CiCi again when I get a chance. Well, blow me down! Arrr! If you're looking to buy your first boost glider, matey, I'd have t' recommend t' Edmond's Aerospace Deltie. Well, blow me down! Blimey! But, t' CiCi certainly has t' potential t' be a great boost glider, perhaps as your third or fourth boost glider model. Begad! Ya scallywag!