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

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

T' instructions were typical early t' mid 70s Estes quality. T' illustrations were great, which helped me get t' proper scale for t' fins and body tube lengths. Blimey! T' only thin' I didn't like about t' original kit was t' shock cord mountin' method: t' shock cord be wrapped around t' tube coupler, me bucko, then t' coupler was inserted into t' lower body tube. Avast! This caused t' tube t' distort somewhat, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, and though it never had any effect on flight it always bugged me. Well, blow me down! So, for this model I cut a notch in t' coupler and applied CA t' hold it inside, givin' me a perfectly round tube. Avast, me proud beauty! I coated t' fins and nose with a thin coat o' 2 hour epoxy for durability, then painted t' whole thin' with testor's Aluminum. Begad! T' best part about it was t' fact that I had almost all t' parts I needed in me range box, shiver me timbers, except for t' nose cone. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! 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, since they came with no decals. Ya scallywag! After I epoxied everything, me bucko, I sanded it all down, matey, applied a coat o' day-glo orange, ya bilge rat, and t' thin' looked stupid. Ya scallywag! So I repainted it with Testor's aluminum, arrr, ya bilge rat, and it looks fairly good now. Avast, me proud beauty! Nothin' difficult about this rocket, me hearties, 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, shiver me timbers, because I don't remember this bein' a particularly good performer when I was a kid. I even made a 2 stager when I be 12, and don't remember it flyin' like this. Aye aye! Blimey! All I did was insert some cellulose wadding, ya bilge rat, me hearties, a prepped A3-4T (friction mount), arrr, stuff in t' shock cord, me bucko, shiver me timbers, and put it on t' launcher. Ahoy! Avast! T' countdown came over t' PA system, shiver me timbers, 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, and all I saw t' prove that it had flown at all was t' smoke. Ahoy! All future flights will be on smaller motors, me bucko, matey, maybe even some micro-motors. Blimey! T' thin' is just too fast otherwise.

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

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
Main pros: Easy t' prep, good recovery system with t' mid-body separation, and eye-poppin' flights. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! Cons: too small t' see at apogee, arrr, and too fast t' watch on a "big" motor. Ya scallywag! Best o' all, t' thin' cost just over a buck.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5