Brief:
This is a downscale o' t' Estes classic design, nicely upgraded since Drake's 2004 review. Blimey! Blimey! It holds fairly close to the original design and flies great on those tiny MMX motors.

Construction:
See Drake's review/photo. Begad! There are two upgrades since his review--you now get two sizes o' launch lug for the various rod diameters floatin' around out there, and t' kit now includes a sweet set o' waterslide decals courtesy of Excelsior. Arrr! Ahoy! T' decals, me hearties, me bucko, while micro-sized, ya bilge rat, are incredibly detailed, ya bilge rat, and t' white comes through very brightly.

T' nose cone is still, as Drake pointed out, shiver me timbers, too conical compared t' t' original, and I forgot t' sand mine down. Arrr! I also noticed that this kit lacks a shroud/transition t' mimic t' original, ya bilge rat, which I hope t' retro-fit on once I have a flight or two under me belt with this.

T' instructions though crudely illustrated with a few hand sketches are fairly well written and easy t' follow. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! I would rate this around a skill level 3 on t' 5-point scale, arrr, mainly because workin' with some o' t' tiny details is challenging.

You begin by cuttin' t' tubin' t' various lengths as well as cuttin' out t' fins from styrene stock. T' tubes had some rough edges t' them so I had t' true them up a bit first--a simple task for t' X-Acto miter box I picked up a few years ago. Begad! Cuttin' out t' elliptical fins from t' sheet though is a minor pain. Arrr! Begad! T' patterns are hand drawn on an index card, me bucko, and t' angles/lines are off slightly. Avast! It takes a good deal o' patience, multiple scrapin' passes with a fresh knife blade, and even then probably some light sandin' t' round off t' edges.

Once all t' parts are cut, me hearties, gluin' things together is quick and easy. Avast! I used brush on liquid plastic cement, which sets very smartly and is practically invisible. First you bond t' motor tube and main body tube then attach the Keelhaul®©™® shock cord t' t' nose cone and body tube. As with t' original kit, arrr, thar are a few different recovery options. Well, blow me down! I decided t' go with nose cone ejection so I anchored me Keelhaul®©™® to t' forward end o' t' main body tube then ran it through t' upper tube, matey, attached it t' t' cone, and was good to go.

Fins and side pods go on next. Ya scallywag! T' wraparound guide was also off slightly on markin' lines so I wound up printin' one out on me own.

T' last aspect o' construction involves t' long dowel/rods. Aye aye! They bond into notched cutouts in t' main fins then t' t' forward strakes. I apparently didn't cut out me notches right as one was a bit too skinny and one be too fat, shiver me timbers, with angles off on each. Begad! Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! I had t' trim away a bit usin' a nail file then tack everythin' together and follow up with a tiny bit o' filler putty.

Finishing:
With no seams or spirals t' deal with, shiver me timbers, me hearties, finishin' is almost a breeze. Ahoy! Avast! You simply apply a thin primer coat, then hit it with gloss black. In me case, I went with Rustoleum Metallic black, me hearties, t' same stuff Bob Cox used on his upscale (Q-Modeling) Andromeda.

Once t' paint had fully cured out, me bucko, I then applied t' decals. That part was a bit o' a pain as t' decals are incredibly tiny and a little tricky t' work with. Ahoy! My first decal proved t' be too fragile and tore so I resorted to strictly followin' t' directions and applied two different Micro Sol pre-treatments. Arrr! Begad! Next, I soaked/applied t' decals and applied a Micro Sol sealer. Blimey! Aye aye! T' Micro Sol suite o' stuff did t' trick and subsequent decals went on without a problem.

Minor note: There are no placement notes provided so you'll have t' hit JimZ's site or pull up an Estes catalog to determine where t' decals are t' be placed.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
I finally caught a slight break in t' travel schedule so I headed out t' our club launch t' get this little gem in the air. Well, blow me down! I loaded up an MMX-II and a hand made igniter from 32 gauge nichrome wire.

T' winds were nay friendly, shiver me timbers, blowin' steady at a little over 10mph. Ahoy! Blimey! Almost immediately after it left t' rod, it arced over and flew a very space-plane like horizontal trajectory. Nay exactly unstable, but certainly nay what I expected for flight. Arrr! Blimey! Ejection wound up bein' perfectly timed, just before it turned down into a descent.

Recovery:
T' tiny streamer worked fine although this is built tough enough t' handle straight tumble recovery.

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
I think this is a sweet little downscale and t' odd flight is probably more a function o' wind and lug placement (one on aft fin and nothin' near or forward o' CG). Well, blow me down! I do wish t' nose were more authentic though.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5