Brief:
T' Madcow Rocketry Honest John Style M31 is a mid t' high power fiberglass scale model o' t' 1950's vintage US Army Artillery Rocket. This Honest John uses a 29mm engine mount and a 2.6" diameter main body tube (it's basically t' same size/scale as t' Estes Maxi-Brute Honest John). Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! I noticed this kit while puttin' together an order on t' Apogee web site. I'd lost an Estes Maxi-Brute Honest John that I'd converted t' 29mm mount at NARAM 50 (rocket eatin' tree), and I was intrigued by t' idea o' an all fiberglass rocket so I added it t' me order.

Construction:
T' kit arrived in a clear plastic bag. Arrr! In t' bag:

• 1 Fiberglass nose cone
• 1 G10 nose cone base plate
• 1 Pre-slotted G10 main body tube
• 2 G10 centerin' rings
• 1 29mm G10 motor tube
• 4 G10 fins
• 2 Eyebolt, nut, washer sets
• 1 Nylon shock cord
• 2 ¼" launch lugs
• 2 Plywood launch lug standoffs
• 4 Plywood nose cone rocket facade
• 1 Vinyl decal
• 1 9" x 9" chute protector
• 1 30" nylon parachute

Although nay shown on t' Apogee website, me bucko, ya bilge rat, Madcow sells this kit with or without t' parachute and chute protector. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! If desired, you can save $20 by gettin' it without t' recovery components.

T' parts are all high quality and construction is pretty straightforward and typical for a through-the-wall fin rocket, me hearties, however, ya bilge rat, I do have a grip about t' kit, matey, ya bilge rat, specifically t' 'fit' o' t' parts. Avast! Ya scallywag! T' through-the-wall fin tangs are intentionally too long--the idea bein' t' sand them down t' get a perfect fit against t' motor tube and t' body tube. That'd be fine if we were talkin' maybe 0.01 inches, shiver me timbers, me hearties, but t' fin tangs were about 1/16 inch too long. Well, blow me down! It takes a lot o' filin' and sandin' t' take 1/16" o' G10 material off four fin tangs (and keepin' everythin' square is important). Begad! Worse, me bucko, thar be a potential gotcha: thar be a radius on t' fin tang such that, me bucko, even with t' tang t' correct depth, arrr, t' fin will 'bottom' on t' radius before t' fin touches t' main body tube. Avast! Begad! If you don't notice that, arrr, me bucko, you can make t' tang too short tryin' t' get t' fin t' match up t' t' body tube. Begad! Begad! It's necessary t' either elongate t' body tube slots a bit or trim down t' radius before t' fin will sit flush with t' body tube. Begad! Well, blow me down! Similarly one o' t' centerin' rings be very loose on t' motor tube (as in a readily visible gap), matey, shiver me timbers, t' second centerin' be better but still a loose fit. It was necessary t' tack them in place with thick CA before I was able t' properly epoxy them. Ya scallywag! Lastly, ya bilge rat, arrr, t' shoulder o' that huge nose cone was too large t' fit into t' body tube--it took quite a bit o' sandin' t' obtain t' correct fit (at least now that I have a good fit, I don't have t' worry about it changin' with t' humidity). Aye aye! On t' plus side this thin' is impressively strong. It genuinely looks like it could lawn dart and still be flight worthy.

T' instructions are good and straightforward. Avast! It's really a pretty simple kit, and if everythin' had fit properly, matey, me hearties, it could easily be built in an afternoon. Scale detail is lacking, me hearties, but that's nay what this rocket is about. Heck, me bucko, it even lacks a boat tail. Ya scallywag! (If you want scale detail go with t' same size Estes Maxi-Brute Honest John, shiver me timbers, assumin' you can find one.) In fact, arrr, me bucko, t' only scale 'details' outside o' t' basic size/shape are t' four 'spin motor facades' (since t' real Honest John was an unguided missile, shiver me timbers, small rocket motors on t' nose imparted a spin t' improve accuracy). Even these are rather crude, arrr, simply four sided pieces o' laser cut 1/4" plywood. Avast! Begad! I used a Moto-tool t' shape t' plywood pieces t' somethin' resemblin' t' real spin motors, matey, but as I noted, arrr, this rocket isn't about scale accuracy.

I made two changes durin' assembly. First, me hearties, while perhaps nay necessary, I had a couple feet o' 1/4" Keelhaul®©™® cord lyin' around that I added betwixt t' engine mount eyebolt and t' nylon shock cord. Aye aye! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! Second, ya bilge rat, me hearties, I added an Aero Pack retainer for positive engine retention.

Finishing:
Finishin' is relatively easy if you decide t' paint it. Blimey! Arrr! I flew it 'naked' for its first flight and no one even commented. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! It looks OK unpainted, and t' semi-translucent G10 main body tube means that you can make out t' primary components (parachute, shiver me timbers, me bucko, engine mount, and chute protector) through t' unpainted body. Blimey! However after that flight I did go ahead and give it a proper paint job. Two coats o' primer with just a light sandin' after each coat, then a coat o' Krylon Olive Drab did t' trick. T' only areas that required any particular attention t' get a first rate finish are t' plywood parts (spin motors and launch lug standoff) and t' epoxy fin fillets. Blimey! Begad! T' kit includes a pre-cut vinyl "US ARMY" appliqué that went on easily and is a nice touch.

While overall this is a good build, ya bilge rat, I have t' downgrade it t' four stars. Aye aye! Blimey! While I'm big into scale, I don't mind t' lack o' details--that's nay what this rocket is about. Aye aye! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! What I do mind be t' mediocre fit o' t' parts. Avast! Blimey! I expected better. On t' plus side everythin' is high quality, ya bilge rat, and t' fiberglass and G10 components make this an impressively strong rocket.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Since t' first flight was goin' t' be on a relatively small field, I selected an F40W-4 RMS for first flight. Blimey! Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! Interestingly, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, this motor isn't included on t' list o' recommended motors. Ya scallywag! However, me hearties, RockSim said it would be fine. Aye aye! I was usin' a six foot launch rod, so stable velocity nay occurrin' until 60" wasn't a concern. Ahoy! (T' Apogee website has a downloadable RockSim file for t' Honest John, arrr, a nice bonus.)

Although t' rocket has a chute protector, I like t' add a little dog barf waddin' betwixt t' motor and chute protector for t' extra protection. (Plus it protects t' chute protector from t' worst o' t' hot gases, arrr, so it lasts longer as well.)

Liftoff with t' F40W was impressive and noisy. Well, blow me down! T' boost was near perfect. Avast! RockSim had predicted 675 ft and that appeared t' be about right. Blimey! Avast! Motor ejection was within a few feet o' apogee and t' chute opened moments later.

Recovery:
Although t' chute was fully deployed, arrr, I noticed t' descent was fairly rapid and when it landed t' rocket bounced several feet in t' air. Begad! There was no damage t' t' G10 body or fins, ya bilge rat, but thar were obvious cracks in t' epoxy fillets on two fins and one o' those fins was loose. Begad! T' damage be readily repairable, but I be rather disappointed that a seemingly indestructible rocket suffered enough damage landin' on a grass field that it needed repairs before it could be flown again. Arrr! Madcow lists t' rocket as 28 ounces. Arrr! Aye aye! Mine came out a little heavier at just a touch under 30 ounces. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! Either way, flight ready weight is goin' t' be on t' plus side o' two pounds so a 30 inch parachute seems a little small. Aye aye! Aye aye! There is always t' trade off o' touchdown velocity vs wind drift and I expect that I'll normally fly this on G or H motors, so t' smaller chute would help prevent excessive drift. Well, blow me down! Arrr! (This kit is nay provisioned for dual deploy so implementin' dual deploy would require some creativity.) Dependin' on where and how you plan t' fly this Honest John, shiver me timbers, you may want t' consider usin' a larger parachute.

It flies very nice, ya bilge rat, but I'm givin' it a one star demerit for t' rapid descent/touchdown damage - 4 stars.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
This is a nice kit, but I'm a little disappointed. Avast! I'd recently built a Madcow Jayhawk and everythin' fit like t' proverbial glove, so I be more than a little surprised at t' mediocre fit o' some o' t' Honest John parts. Avast, matey, me proud beauty! Similarly I be surprised when, shiver me timbers, in spite o' t' incredibly strong components, me hearties, it suffered enough damage after a nominal recovery that it needed repairs before it could be flown again. On t' plus side, arrr, this rocket is stout. Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! I suspect it can handle any engine that'll fit, even if you modify it with a larger engine mount. It's also a relatively quick, arrr, easy build--even with t' ill-fittin' parts--and is a breeze t' finish. It does lack scale details, but I didn't downgrade for that as I don't think that is what this rocket is about (as noted earlier, if you're lookin' for a nicely detailed scale model Honest John, go find t' Estes Maxi-Brute kit).

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5