Brief:
This rocket is bein' reviewed by Dale Marshall and Tim Reidy. Well, blow me down! Tim has more buildin' experience so his comments are listed first.

Tim:
When I saw t' list o' kits that Estes was re-releasin' as part o' its Classic Series, matey, I was delighted t' see t' Satellite Interceptor on t' list. Aye aye! It had been on me list o' kits t' clone, and now Estes had saved me t' work.

Dale:
Well I took a long hiatus from rocket building, shiver me timbers, so this one would be new for me. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I have t' “younger brother” o' this kit, t' Crossbow SST, shiver me timbers, and it was a fun one t' build and fly. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I was lookin' forward t' gettin' this one done.

Construction:
Tim:
Upon openin' and examinin' t' kit, ya bilge rat, I saw it was just like t' original, with a couple o' exceptions. Arrr! Since thar are no molded plastic parts, matey, thar be no tail cone in t' new kit, me hearties, although a centerin' rin' and piece o' card stock would fix that. Arrr! T' balsa nose cone means a little more work t' finish t' kit, but it is well worth it t' ensure t' new generation o' modelers keeps up with the fundamentals. Ya scallywag!

Dale:
Yea, arrr, I was a little surprised t' find a balsa nosecone in this one. Avast! Arrr! I have a larger version o' this nosecone in plastic and it looks really nice. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! I be pleased with t' packagin' o' t' kit, with all o' t' smaller pieces in a separate plastic bag.

Tim:
So it be time t' start building. Aye aye! Assembly starts with fine sandin' t' laser-cut fins while still attached t' t' balsa sheet. Ya scallywag! A good technique t' save some finish sandin' later. Blimey! You then remove t' fins from t' scrap balsa, square t' root edges and round t' leadin' edges. Begad! No problem there. T' engine mount is next. Aye aye! It is straight forward, ya bilge rat, arrr, matey, except that I don't care for t' new Estes engine hook, so I omit that and opt t' friction fit later.

Dale:
I actually didn’t start with t' fins, arrr, arrr, optin' t' build t' engine mount first t' let it dry while I did some other work. Begad! I did include t' engine hook because I don’t have a lot o' luck friction-fittin' engines. I was very disappointed in t' quality o' t' balsa fins in me kit. Begad! Begad! It was rough and took a LOT o' sandin' t' resemble anythin' near smooth. This be t' first time I’ve run into this poor quality o' balsa in any kit from any manufacturer.

Tim:
Next step is t' cut t' tube markin' guide from t' instructions and mark the tube. Arrr! I still use t' door frame method as illustrated. Begad! I marked t' tube, extended t' lines and dutifully labeled them.

Dale:
Be sure t' do all that after you fill t' spirals with filler and sand it down. Nay that I’m talkin' from experience or anything.

Tim:
Time t' attach t' fins. Blimey! Here I ran into me first issue with t' new version. You first attach t' wings, which end up bein' perpendicular t' t' vertical and sub fins. After t' wings come the stabilizers. Ya scallywag! Per t' markin' guide and t' illustration in t' instruction, t' stabilizers are attached on t' line above t' wings and angled down. Nowhere does it mention that it would be a good idea t' sand t' root edges o' the stabilizers at an angle t' get a good glue joint with t' body tube. Begad! Arrr! I've looked at t' instruction for t' original Satellite Interceptor, shiver me timbers, and t' setup be a little better. Blimey! T' stabilizers were perpendicular t' t' vertical fins, and t' wings were angled down, although below t' stabilizers, so they still came straight out o' t' body tube. Arrr! Aye aye! A much easier and stronger joint. Avast, me proud beauty! I added t' vertical and sub fins, and finished with t' win' tubes and dowels t' make it look cool.

Dale:
I noticed t' same thin' with t' aft fins – but nay until I had tried gluin' them on stock first. Ahoy! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! Oops. Had t' wipe off t' glue, bevel t' fins, and then attach them again. Arrr! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! One thin' I did differently (by mistake, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, actually) was t' mount t' lower fin pointin' backwards towards t' tail in t' same direction as t' upper tail fin. Well, blow me down! Blimey! I like t' way it looks. Begad! Blimey! T' support t' fins I used some o' me small paint bottles which turned out t' be t' perfect size t' make t' angle correct. I used those bottles t' support t' rocket as I glued on each of t' fins and t' win' tubes.

Tim:
After installin' t' last few steps involve addin' t' engine mount, launch lug and shock cord, ya bilge rat, as well as t' nose cone. I still prefer sewin' elastic t' t' bare rubber shock cord Estes returned t' a few years ago, so I substituted a longer piece o' that. Aye aye! Avast! Engine mount and launch lug went on as directed. Begad! Then I came t' t' nose cone. I've built a fair number o' Estes kits and cloned many more with balsa cones. We all know thar are times you get balsa that seems as hard as oak and other times it is like warm butter. Begad! You are directed t' screw in t' screw eye and go on your merry way. Old time kits always had you take it back out and squirt glue in t' give t' eye a better setting. My son just built t' Mini Max, and t' eye isn't glued on that one either. Begad! Personally I think it's an oversight that Estes should correct, me hearties, but maybe it is by design. Aye aye! I still opted for t' glue.

Dale:
I, arrr, too, arrr, did t' "glue t' screw eye in t' nosecone bit". Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! I find myself doin' that on every kit now. My nosecone had a pretty good consistency, but I found it difficult t' get the screw eye t' go in straight. Aye aye! Arrr! I used t' stock rubber band and tri-fold mount and parachute.

Finishing:
Tim:
On t' finishing. Begad! I prefer the smooth look and strength o' epoxy fillets, arrr, me bucko, matey, so I reinforced me fins with some 5 minute epoxy, and finished t' fine sandin' o' t' nose cone and fins. Aye aye! I used thinned out Elmer's wood filler t' finish all t' balsa, and applied 2 coats o' Krylon white primer, sandin' after each coat. I finished with 2 light coats o' Krylon semi-gloss white. Ya scallywag! T' decals are sharp, so I be careful and took me time applyin' them. Ya scallywag! They are pretty thin, so I can see where they might tear easily if nay careful. Well, blow me down! Begad! Two light coats o' Krylon clear acrylic, me bucko, and I was done.

Dale:
I haven’t done t' epoxy fillets before but I have read about them so I may try that on me next build. Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! I used two coats o' gray primer (three on t' fins) t' get a pretty smooth finish. Avast! Blimey! I still have t' work on me fin-fillin' techniques. I don’t like t' Krylon white, but that’s all I had t' work with so that’s what I used. This time I did it without any runs in t' paint. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! I saved t' many decals until after launching. Blimey! Blimey! This kit comes with a LOT o' really nice decals!

Tim:
Build 4 out o' 5 due t' t' angled stabilizers and nay anchorin' t' eye in t' nose cone.

Dale:
Agreed. I think me rough fin balsa be an anomaly so I won’t din' Estes for that even though it should have been caught in quality control.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Tim:
I had a beautiful calm evenin' on a nice grassy soccer field for t' maiden launch. Begad! I prepped with a B6-4 and let 'er rip. Begad! I'm horrible at judgin' altitude, ya bilge rat, matey, so let's just say it went straight up, me bucko, plenty high. Begad! I'm glad Estes replaced t' plain white parachute with plain red ones now. Arrr! They are much easier t' see against a cloudy sky. Aye aye! It came down softly with no damage. Ahoy! Since t' rocket is light, and thar was no wind, I decided t' try it on an A8-3 even though nay on t' recommended list. Begad! Aye aye! It be a recommended motor on the original, ya bilge rat, so I thought it should do just fine. Well, blow me down! Blimey! I was right. Again it flew straight and true, matey, and returned safely.

Flight 5 out o' 5. Arrr! Blimey!

Dale:
Unfortunately I didn’t have a calm day t' fly me SI. Winds were reasonably consistent, me bucko, me bucko, shiver me timbers, mostly about 5-10 MPH with occasional gusts (blew over me launch pad twice with a heavier rocket on the pad). Begad! Because o' t' winds, matey, and t' local RC plane club flyin' on t' field at the same time, I opted for t' A8-3 for t' first flight. Blimey! I don’t have a large selection o' engines right now because o' many recent launches. T' first flight was straight up for about 150 feet, me hearties, I think, nay even arcin' into t' wind all that much. Ya scallywag! Beautiful flight and t' ‘chute popped just after apogee. Avast! It came down pretty fast, though, probably because o' t' wind, and popped one o' t' aft fins when it hit t' hard ground. Blimey! A little Gorilla Glue and t' SI be ready t' fly again. Ya scallywag! This time I used a B6-4 like Tim did, ya bilge rat, and t' flight be amazing! Much higher and still straight, me hearties, and still a reasonably fast descent and that darn fin popped loose again. Avast, me proud beauty! I found out why though – my parachute was slightly melted. Ahoy! I must nay have put enough waddin' in. Oh well. Ahoy! Since I don’t have a spare ‘chute, matey, matey, I unfolded it as best as I could (there are now several spill holes in t' ‘chute), me bucko, me hearties, stuffed some more waddin' in, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, and set it up on another B6-4. Well, blow me down! T' wind be just too strong t' try a C engine. Arrr! T' last flight be just like t' second one, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, except this time t' 4-second delay was too much and t' ‘chute got tangled in t' fins and t' whole thin' came down horizontally… which be a good thin' because t' rocket body created enough drag to brin' it down softly even though t' ‘chute was full o' holes.

Flight 4.5 out o' 5 due t' a possibly undersized parachute. Arrr! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty!

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
Tim:
Overall impressions: I already have t' Satellite Interceptor's big and little brothers, matey, namely t' S.W.A.T. Ya scallywag! and Crossbow SST, arrr, so t' SI is a fine addition t' my collection. Thanks Estes, shiver me timbers, and keep bringin' back t' Classics.

Dale:
Overall impressions: I agree with Tim that this is a great addition t' the fleet. Ya scallywag! I’m sure I’ll fly it many times in t' future once I replace t' parachute with somethin' a little bit larger. Begad! Blimey! I’d really like t' try it on a C6!

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5