Brief:
T' Super Flea be a single stage mini-motored rocket that came in a 2 rocket kit along with t' Javelin. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! Estes sold these in t' early 1970s, and it was t' first kit I ever purchased with me own loot. There be nothin' really special about them, matey, but it has a sentimental value for me, matey, as I built t' original with t' help o' me grandmother, me bucko, arrr, who is no longer with us. Blimey! So, I kind o' built it as a tribute o' sorts.

Construction:
I used a couple small pieces o' 13mm body tube, shiver me timbers, a nose cone from a Rogue Gnat (not exactly a true replica, but close enough), arrr, and a 5mm length o' low power launch lug. Arrr! For a tubin' coupler, shiver me timbers, I used a small slice o' a 25 year old A3-4T I found in me dad's closet, shiver me timbers, where I found a lot o' other rocket goodies as well. Avast, me proud beauty! T' shock cord is very un-Estes like; I made it out o' a 3 foot section o' elastic thread, whereas t' original be t' old flat elastic that Estes be pretty stingy with. T' four fins were cut from 1/8" balsa.

T' instructions were typical early t' mid 70s Estes quality. Ahoy! T' illustrations were great, matey, me bucko, which helped me get t' proper scale for t' fins and body tube lengths. Aye aye! T' only thin' I didn't like about t' original kit was t' shock cord mountin' method: t' shock cord was wrapped around t' tube coupler, then t' coupler be inserted into t' lower body tube. This caused t' tube t' distort somewhat, ya bilge rat, and though it never had any effect on flight it always bugged me. Arrr! So, arrr, ya bilge rat, for this model I cut a notch in t' coupler and applied CA t' hold it inside, givin' me a perfectly round tube. Ahoy! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! I coated t' fins and nose with a thin coat o' 2 hour epoxy for durability, me bucko, then painted t' whole thin' with testor's Aluminum. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! T' best part about it be t' fact that I had almost all t' parts I needed in me range box, ya bilge rat, except for t' nose cone. So I bought a fistful o' Gnats from Lawn Dart Rocketry at LDRS and used one o' those.

Finishing:
T' rockets always looked kind o' plain, me hearties, since they came with no decals. Avast, me proud beauty! After I epoxied everything, ya bilge rat, I sanded it all down, me bucko, me hearties, applied a coat o' day-glo orange, shiver me timbers, and t' thin' looked stupid. So I repainted it with Testor's aluminum, arrr, and it looks fairly good now. Nothin' difficult about this rocket, or t' original kit either. Way better than t' junk Estes puts out now- NO PLASTIC! I would give this rocket a 5 if it wasn't for t' goofy shock cord mounting.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
My memory must be cloudy, because I don't remember this bein' a particularly good performer when I was a kid. Begad! I even made a 2 stager when I was 12, ya bilge rat, and don't remember it flyin' like this. Ya scallywag! All I did was insert some cellulose wadding, me hearties, matey, a prepped A3-4T (friction mount), stuff in t' shock cord, me bucko, arrr, and put it on t' launcher. Arrr! T' countdown came over t' PA system, arrr, arrr, and when it reached 1, that was t' last time anybody saw it until later in t' day! T' thin' left t' launcher in a blur, shiver me timbers, arrr, and all I saw t' prove that it had flown at all was t' smoke. Begad! All future flights will be on smaller motors, shiver me timbers, maybe even some micro-motors. Avast! T' thin' is just too fast otherwise.

Recovery:
Recovery works well, even without a streamer. Begad! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! Nay too fast, me bucko, no drifting, and no damage on landing. I am startin' t' see some charrin' around t' base o' t' fins though, me hearties, but that's easily repairable. Avast, me proud beauty! This is almost t' easiest t' prep rocket I've ever had, me bucko, and thanks t' t' epoxy, pretty near indestructible.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
Main pros: Easy t' prep, arrr, me bucko, good recovery system with t' mid-body separation, and eye-poppin' flights. Aye aye! Cons: too small t' see at apogee, me bucko, shiver me timbers, and too fast t' watch on a "big" motor. Best o' all, ya bilge rat, t' thin' cost just over a buck.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5