My wife gave me t' Estes Flash as a retirement gift from me second job.  T' Flash is one o' Estes E2X tm (Almost Ready t' Fly tm) kits and has a prismatic payload section. Begad! Begad! Blimey! This translates t' fast assembly and no painting. Begad! Blimey! I haven't informed me wife that I really don't like E2X kits. Tell a wife bearin' a rocket as a gift you don't like it.....I don't think so. Well, blow me down! I do, however, me hearties, I do, ya bilge rat, however, prefer t' work with balsa and white/yellow glue. 

This kit was packaged in plastic and came in a box and was probably around $12.99. Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! All t' parts were included and none were damaged.  T' instructions were typical Estes and were excellent. Begad! Begad! Blimey! If you like buildin' challengin' rockets stay away from t' E2X kits. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' kit contains plastic Estes chute, me hearties, fins and nose cone and engine mount, along with all t' other standard Estes hardware. 

Durin' assembly, make sure t' scrape away t' flashin' on t' plastic engine mount and dry fit t' t' engine tube. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Carefully follow t' instructions on assemblin' t' engine mount, shiver me timbers, especially if you're usin' CA. Avast! Another thin' t' be wary o' is alignment o' t' fins since they use through t' tube mounting. Begad! Arrr! If you glue t' launch lugs into t' proper area o' t' engine mount through t' tube you will be just fine.  Tools needed for this kit are an exacto knife and CA or plastic cement. 

I used plastic cement and assembled all t' parts and let them dry overnight.  If you used CA you could probably assemble this in an hour or two and launch t' same day. Ya scallywag! T' followin' day I slapped on t' decals and painted t' nose cone (to hide scrape marks). Begad! Begad! I also made a modification t' t' recovery system. Aye aye! I modified t' shock cord mount due t' a bad experience with through t' BT mounting. Begad! Begad! I cut out a similar shape o' t' standard Estes shock cord retainer and glued t' shock cord inside it and folded it. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! I then glued t' retainer inside t' BT over t' plastic area o' t' through t' tube mount. Although over 2 feet, t' rocket be pretty light, matey, so I decided t' go with a streamer. 

I rate construction o' this rocket 3 points on t' Essence scale since I don't like workin' with plastic on model rockets. 

I launched t' rocket in July on a slightly windy day (0-5 from t' NE). This rocket flew high and straight on a C6-5. This rocket flew high and straight on a C6-5. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Well, me hearties, blow me down! Blimey! Recovery was nay so pretty. Aye aye! Blimey! T' streamer came out after ejection but I could tell t' rate o' descent be too fast. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! I think I needed more streamer or a chute because t' rocket landed pretty hard and one o' t' fins popped off. Aye aye! Blimey! I repaired it and replaced t' streamer with t' 12 inch chute. 

I rate flight and recovery 3 points on t' Essence scale thanks t' me own stupidity. 

For an E2X kit this turned out t' be a pretty slick lookin' and flyin' rocket. Avast, me proud beauty! Overall I rate this kit  3 1/2 points on t' Essence scale.