Brief: T' Harpoon is a scale model o' a US Air-Launched Anti-Ship Missile, matey, T' Launch Pad's kit is an excellent first mid power and scale rocket.

Construction: I be so glad when I finally got me hands on me AGM-84 Harpoon. Avast, me proud beauty! One o' t' members o' me club was goin' down t' t' US and was kind enough t' brin' it back for me. Aye aye! I received t' Harpoon with all pieces present, in good condition, shiver me timbers, and good quality. Aye aye! I have heard some nay so great things about TLP's balsa wood, but I found t' wood for t' Harpoon great, with a little help from CA.

T' instructions were clear, arrr, but I wish they would have included more help and info on how t' get t' little hat that sits on top o' a FatBoy style nose cone, arrr, straight and in t' middle, that was tricky, me hearties, but I think mine is close enough for me standards. Arrr! Blimey! That was t' only real "gotcha" for this rocket, t' fins aligned great, and everythin' fit together perfectly.

Finishing: T' only thin' that really disappointed me in t' beginnin' with t' Harpoon be t' lackin' o' decals. Ahoy! Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! But, arrr, me hearties, now I know that it much easier for t' consumer t' use his or her own techniques. Ya scallywag! Blimey! I just painted t' bands that go around t' rocket, and for all o' t' small pinpoint rivets that are suppose t' be on t' rocket, matey, I used a decal pack that I got from a local hobby store (East Coast Model Center) that was 1/5 rivet decals, shiver me timbers, perfect, shiver me timbers, matey, went on with ease, ya bilge rat, me hearties, ya bilge rat, and made t' rocket look great. Arrr! Blimey! Still ponderin' what t' do for t' small amount o' letterin' that will go on t' rocket. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! Just a note, matey, I am nay a perfectionist, or a great scale buff, me Harpoon was just sports scale, but I like how it turned out.

Construction Rating: 4 ½ out o' 5

Flight: T' recommended motors for t' harpoon are a D12-3, me hearties, me hearties, shiver me timbers, E15-4, and a RMS F24-4 (24mm). Aye aye! I plan on usin' all o' t' recommended motors, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, me hearties, but instead o' t' E15, an E18 (reload).

T' day for t' maiden flight for t' Harpoon finally came. Well, blow me down! Well, blow me down! First flight would be on a D12-3. Everythin' was setup, pictures were taken, and after makin' sure t' wind be perfect, arrr, that t' launch rod was perfect, me hearties, and that everythin' was perfect, it be ready t' launch. Ahoy! Aye aye! I pushed t' launch button and t' Harpoon lifted off. T' flight was perfect. Well, blow me down! Avast! T' Harpoon flied straight as a rail, nice altitude on a D, arrr, me hearties, me bucko, and then right at apogee t' ejection charge fired, and t' nice mylar parachute deployed, me bucko, and t' Harpoon drifted down. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! Perfect flight and recovery.

Second flight, same day. Begad! Arrr! I be goin' t' fly me LOC Aura on an Aerotech E engine, that was t' plan, but when I launched that on a D, t' stock streamer didn't slow it down enough and it broke a fin off, me hearties, so I thought I would fly it in t' Harpoon. Ya scallywag! Everythin' was set, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, and was readied again. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! I hit t' launch button, and t' Harpoon lifted off t' pad, t' igniter clips didn't come off, it soared... Well, blow me down! wait a minute (my exact thoughts). Begad! T' Aerotech igniter clips didn't unattach themselves from t' Harpoon, shiver me timbers, when it be about ten feet off o' t' pad, me bucko, t' leads ran out o' slack, which caused them t' pull on t' harpoon, ya bilge rat, causin' it t' go horizontal. Well, blow me down! T' leads did finally come unattached. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! T' Harpoon sailed directly away from us and over t' small hill we launch on. Ya scallywag! Amazin' sight. Then t' realization set in. T' slow walk started towards t' crash site. Avast! As we got closer t' it, we noticed that t' parachute had deployed. Good sign. Begad! Arrr! It landed in some alders, shiver me timbers, pretty good sign, but then we notice what we thought was t' nose cone, me bucko, me bucko, was actually t' top six inches o' t' rocket's body tube smashed.

Damage report. Begad! Blimey! First six inches o' t' rocket are destroyed. Blimey! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! T' nose cone be completely smashed t' bits, shiver me timbers, one broken fin, ya bilge rat, and all fins had small slits from t' alder branches. Blimey! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! It is fixable, it will be fixed, and it will fly again, and hopefully soon. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I contact TLP and they were great enough t' help me by givin' me t' length o' t' rocket, help me with a parts list, and are sendin' me a replacement 'little hat' that goes on t' t' top o' t' nose cone t' give it t' scale.

Recovery: One thin' I really enjoy about t' Harpoon is its green mylar parachute, arrr, shiver me timbers, matey, it's easy t' see, matey, shiver me timbers, easy t' pack, me hearties, arrr, and has a snap for easy removal from t' Harpoon. T' 18" seems t' be fine from t' tests I have conducted (throwin' it off me deck). Aye aye! Avast! T' recovery system is a snap t' put together, but instead o' usin' t' shroud line material t' connect t' nose cone t' t' swivel, shiver me timbers, me hearties, I just tied t' shock cord t' t' nose cone, arrr, and put t' swivel 10" or so down, me hearties, ya bilge rat, didn't want t' trust that thin string).

Flight Rating: 4 ½ out o' 5

Summary: This rocket looks awesome, that be t' best thin' I feel about it. Aye aye! Ahoy! It is a nice lookin' rocket, t' right size, ya bilge rat, nice motors size, nice scale touch, and a nice finish. Begad! Well, arrr, blow me down! T' only thin' I would say that I disliked about t' rocket would be that little hat that goes on top o' t' nose cone. Blimey! Ahoy! Other than that, all o' t' pieces went together easily. A good first mid power or scale rocket.

Overall Rating: 4 ½ out o' 5