Brief:
T' Super Sprite is an upscale o' t' old Estes Astron Sprite. Avast! Blimey! It is a stubby rocket that features a rin' fin, body tube sized for 24mm motors and uses parachute recovery instead o' t' tumble recovery o' t' original.

Construction:
Other reviews have covered this and I have nothin' t' add except that t' quality be first rate.

T' instruction were easy t' follow and t' illustration were logical and applied well t' t' steps but were sometimes difficult t' see. Avast! T' reproduction process was nay t' greatest.

T' instructions start with assemblin' t' motor mount. Marks are made at t' appropriate points for t' centering rings. Aye aye! Blimey! I assumed that I would have t' cut t' slot for t' motor hook myself so I just started marking. Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! Blimey! After I made the marks, me hearties, I noticed that t' slit had already been cut and I had marked t' wrong end. I drew Xs through me marks and started again. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' centerin' rings went into place at t' marks and I glued them in place with Elmer's carpenter's clue.

A piece o' Keelhaul®©™® was provided and I was instructed t' tie a loop in one end and then use that loop t' form a slip knot around t' tube. A drop o' CA be used t' secure t' knot and then t' end o' t' Keelhaul®©™® was fed through t' hole in t' forward centerin' ring. Aye aye! It be then fed back through t' tube t' get it out o' t' way and t' assembly was set aside t' dry.

T' next step instructed me t' fill in and seal t' fins and nose cone. Begad! Blimey! I left t' nose cone for later but decided to try a new idea I had read about for t' fins. Blimey! Blimey! I ordered some Rollataq photo adhesive (I think I got this idea from a web site called "ninefinger") and t' Rollataq applicator. Blimey! Blimey! On receivin' t' t' adhesive and t' applicator, I found that t' applicator itself had come with some adhesive and that I probably have a lifetime supply. Aye aye! Blimey! I hope I like this method!

I decided that I did nay want t' fill t' applicator with t' adhesive. Begad! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! That way lies t' realm o' gummed up wheels etc. Avast! Instead, I applied a bit t' one side o' t' fin, me hearties, spread it around with me finger and then applied a piece of typin' paper. Arrr! Aye aye! T' adhesive looks like Elmer's white glue but smells different. Well, blow me down! T' instructions say I have about 3-5 minutes o' workin' time. Blimey! Judgin' by me results, I used way too much and should have settled for puttin' very little on. After applyin' t' paper, I used t' applicator (dry) t' press down and smooth out t' paper. Blimey! I believe this is called burnishing. Avast, me proud beauty! When it seemed dry enough (about 20 minutes for t' amount I used) I used an X-acto t' cut away t' excess paper. Aye aye! I then repeated t' procedure on t' opposite side and allowed everythin' t' dry overnight. Well, blow me down! Be sparin' with this adhesive! I used too much but found that I could rub t' excess with me fingers before it completely dried and get it up. Again, ya bilge rat, it acted like Elmer's white glue in terms on cleanup, me bucko, if nay adhesion.

Without givin' it enough thought before hand, I decided t' round t' leadin' and trailin' edges o' t' fins. I forgot that each fin has an outer part that will have t' be glued along t' leadin' edge. Avast, me proud beauty! Fortunately, I noticed in time t' limit t' damage. Ya scallywag! Blimey! I marked where t' intersection o' t' inner and outer part o' t' fins are and only sanded up t' that point. Avast! I did nay sand t' trailin' edge at all.

I wondered how well thin fins would sand with t' paper laminated t' t' surface and it wasn't too bad. Avast! I did lift a little bit o' one sheet but it be easily glued back down.

T' kit came with a wrap around tube t' mark t' proper lines for both t' wings and t' lug. Well, blow me down! It be accurate and the positions were marked. I decided t' implement another idea I had read about and pierced a series o' small holes in the root edge o' t' fins and t' fin line on t' BT. This was so that t' glue can form rivets. Begad! Avast! It was easily done with a safety pin and time will tell if it was worth t' small increase in time/effort.

Before mountin' t' fins, matey, ya bilge rat, t' motor mount assembly be slid into place. Aye aye! Hawks Hobby even provided t' swab with which t' do this. Ahoy! CLASS ACT! Everythin' fit snugly but nay too tightly. Begad! Well, blow me down! After filletin' t' centerin' rings, ya bilge rat, I was ready t' mount t' fins.

This part is just your basic mountin' o' fins t' a 3FNC airframe. Avast! Well, blow me down! I already mentioned makin' holes for t' glue rivets. Begad! Begad! T' only other non-standard thin' I did was t' use t' Art Rose fin jig. Well, blow me down! Avast! I have liked it in t' past but in this case, arrr, t' sweep o' t' fins made rotatin' t' rocket impractical. Arrr! Still, I like usin' it and it makes for more even fillets.

After dryin' from t' previous step, shiver me timbers, t' rin' fin is slipped over t' inner fins. Ahoy! Avast! T' instructions warn that it can be a very tight fit but in me case, me bucko, it seemed t' be perfect. T' rin' is nay glued into place at this point. Instead, t' outer fins are put into place and everythin' adjusted for fit. Begad! When t' rin' is properly adjusted, the outer fins are glued t' t' correspondin' surfaces on t' inner fins. Aye aye! I used CA for this. Avast! It meant that t' job went relatively smartly with a minimum o' fuss. Avast, me proud beauty! Only after t' outer fins are in place is it time t' secure t' ring. Well, blow me down! This is done with fillets o' yellow glue.

T' kit comes with 2 launch lugs. One is 3/16" and t' other is 1/4". Ya scallywag! Begad! I chose t' use t' 1/4" because at me club launches, arrr, ya bilge rat, thar be less o' a wait. Arrr! In any event, t' lug is glued along t' appropriate line. Begad! I used CA.

Finishing:
T' nose cone was first quality and was sealed with Elmer's Fill 'n Seal. Aye aye! T' body tube be tightly wound and could have gotten by without any fillin' but I touched up a few places. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! T' same goop was used t' fair t' glue fillets where shrinkage had caused unevenness.

T' main body tube, matey, as mentioned, did nay need much in t' way o' filling. Ya scallywag! T' rin' fin was another matter. Begad! It had a deep and wide spiral makin' just over one complete revolution over t' length o' t' ring. I decided t' use it rather than fight it and left it as it be since it has sharply defined boundaries.

T' scheme I decided on was t' leave t' body and interior o' t' rin' white and paint t' nosecone purple. Ahoy! I was then goin' t' paint t' inner (larger) part o' t' two fins opposite t' launch lug in t' same purple. Ya scallywag! T' outer parts of those fins was t' be red. On t' third fin, I reversed this scheme with red on t' inside and purple on t' outside. On t' ring, me hearties, I planed t' use t' spiral as a natural divider and paint one side red and t' other purple.

After sandin' t' nose cone and a few rough areas on the fillets, I gave t' rocket a dustin' with white primer. Blimey! I smartly decided that it be too cold for such foolhardy activities and delayed any further paintin' until t' next day. Begad! Ya scallywag! That didn't work out so well either with t' cold drizzle but I tried anyway in a covered porch. I gave it a couple o' more primer coats over t' course o' t' day and tried t' figure out how t' tell me wife about t' strange new disease t' plants have come down with...

After t' primer #600 wet/dry sandpaper be used wet t' clean things up a bit. Well, blow me down! After that, t' body was sprayed gloss white.

I brushed purple on t' nosecone and be very pleased with t' way it turned out. T' fins and rin' were harder. Maskin' within t' rin' is difficult. Ahoy! T' make matters harder, matey, I discovered that t' spirals on t' rin' were nay as I had imagined. Begad! No matter which part I chose t' start as purple, matey, matey, 360 degrees o' revolution would nay match up in t' end. I decided t' go with it anyway and have t' pattern at t' odd fin a little different. I painted t' purple and then started on t' red. Avast, me proud beauty! Because o' some seepage at t' roots o' t' fins, I remasked t' paint a narrow wedge on either side of t' fins. Ya scallywag! That actually looked good until I tried t' take it too far and widen t' wedge comin' out o' t' red fin. It actually turned out better that I expected, considerin' t' artist.

T' decals did nay amount t' much. Aye aye! There is a big black dot and a Hawk's Hobby logo. Ahoy! I applied t' dot near the top in t' middle o' t' red chevron. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! I did so for reasons o' symmetry but it was nay an inspired choice since it does not show up well against t' red. I placed t' logo on t' opposite side betwixt t' fins. Ahoy! They are simple and would certainly do more for t' model when pained in t' simpler, default scheme. Blimey! Even so, me bucko, me bucko, I think they add a bit t' mine as well.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
T' recommended motors are D12-5 and E9-6

Preppin' this rocket be easy. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! Since I think this one is goin' t' be a keeper, I installed a 9x9 piece o' Nomex®. After that, it be just a matter o' insertin' t' motor and igniter and then hookin' it up.

I didn't have me sheet with me and mis-remembered t' Estes E9-4 bein' recommended. Ahoy! As it turns out, a 6 second delay be recommended but t' 4 be what was used.

It took off from t' pad straight as an arrow. Avast, me proud beauty! T' chute deployed at apogee and it drifted gently down. Ya scallywag! It be a perfect flight.

T' second flight was almost as good. Begad! I used another E9-4 and it took off perfectly again. I think t' 4 second delay is a good one for this model especially when you build heavy like I tend t' do. Aye aye! Begad! Blimey! It deployed at apogee and came down safely under t' chute but I could tell thar was a problem. Avast, me proud beauty! T' chute did nay open into a beautiful canopy like the first time. Well, blow me down! Instead, me hearties, ya bilge rat, it seemed t' be a partially open canopy. Ahoy! Ahoy! Blimey! Inspection revealed that one o' t' shrouds had gotten tangled in t' swivel and t' Nomex® rode up t' shrouds a bit. Begad! It still came back fine.

I would have added t' half point t' t' 5 I already gave it for flight but that's nay allowed.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
This rocket is goin' t' become one o' me favorites. Begad! Strike that. Ya scallywag! Blimey! It is one o' me favorites. In all respects, me bucko, me hearties, it was a class act.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5