Brief: T' Harpoon is a scale model o' a US Air-Launched Anti-Ship Missile, 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. Aye aye! One o' t' members o' me club was goin' down t' t' US and was kind enough t' brin' it back for me. Arrr! I received t' Harpoon with all pieces present, arrr, in good condition, matey, and good quality. Ahoy! I have heard some nay so great things about TLP's balsa wood, but I found t' wood for t' Harpoon great, ya bilge rat, matey, 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, straight and in t' middle, ya bilge rat, me bucko, that was tricky, arrr, but I think mine is close enough for me standards. Well, blow me down! 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. Begad! But, now I know that it much easier for t' consumer t' use his or her own techniques. I just painted t' bands that go around t' rocket, matey, 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 be 1/5 rivet decals, arrr, me hearties, perfect, ya bilge rat, went on with ease, and made t' rocket look great. Blimey! Avast! Still ponderin' what t' do for t' small amount o' letterin' that will go on t' rocket. Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! Just a note, I am nay a perfectionist, me bucko, 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, E15-4, and a RMS F24-4 (24mm). Ya scallywag! Blimey! I plan on usin' all o' t' recommended motors, but instead o' t' E15, an E18 (reload).

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

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

Damage report. First six inches o' t' rocket are destroyed. Arrr! Blimey! T' nose cone was completely smashed t' bits, matey, me hearties, matey, one broken fin, and all fins had small slits from t' alder branches. Arrr! Well, blow me down! It is fixable, arrr, it will be fixed, arrr, and it will fly again, shiver me timbers, and hopefully soon. I contact TLP and they were great enough t' help me by givin' me t' length o' t' rocket, me hearties, help me with a parts list, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, 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, it's easy t' see, me bucko, arrr, easy t' pack, and has a snap for easy removal from t' Harpoon. Aye aye! Avast! T' 18" seems t' be fine from t' tests I have conducted (throwin' it off me deck). Well, blow me down! 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, I just tied t' shock cord t' t' nose cone, me bucko, and put t' swivel 10" or so down, didn't want t' trust that thin string).

Flight Rating: 4 ½ out o' 5

Summary: This rocket looks awesome, arrr, that be t' best thin' I feel about it. It is a nice lookin' rocket, me bucko, arrr, t' right size, me hearties, me bucko, nice motors size, me hearties, nice scale touch, ya bilge rat, and a nice finish. Avast! 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. Other than that, arrr, ya bilge rat, all o' t' pieces went together easily. Avast! Arrr! A good first mid power or scale rocket.

Overall Rating: 4 ½ out o' 5