Brief: Single stage, me bucko, all phenolic construction rocket for 54mm, me bucko, ya bilge rat, 38mm and 29mm motors. Recovers with bright blue and orange 34 inch parachute. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! Uses piston recovery system too.

Construction: All parts are there, arrr, me hearties, and thar are many. Begad! My first impression be that t' kit is definite quality. Everythin' is strong and precision machined. Aye aye! Blimey! T' fins are G10 phenolic. Ya scallywag! Avast! Strong indeed. Well, blow me down! T' body tube is kraft phenolic. Avast! Well, blow me down! In case you haven't used phenolic yet, I believe it's what you get if you take a kraft paper tube and impregnate t' paper with epoxy. Avast! You get a strong tube that can stand high power motor speed and pressure, but may be brittle material. Ya scallywag! Take care nay t' drop or bang it.

T' nose cone is a standard PML ogive hollow plastic cone for t' 2.56 inch diameter tube. Avast, me proud beauty! T' chute is rip stop nylon, made up o' eight gores of alternatin' blue and orange. Begad! Very bright and pretty. Ahoy! Aye aye! T' shock cord is 1 inch wide flat white elastic, 5 feet long. Blimey!

There is a piston recovery system, ya bilge rat, with t' piston bein' phenolic with a plywood bulkhead. Begad! Begad! T' bulkhead houses a screweye with bolts t' keep it in place, me hearties, and attached t' it and t' main motor tube is 5 feet o' 1 inch wide web strapping--the piston strap. T' shock cord attaches t' t' piston as well, makin' t' shock system about 10 feet long overall. Ya scallywag! Aye aye!

T' launch lug accepts 1/4 inch rods and is 4 inches long and brass.

T' instructions have a few pictures, me bucko, but could use more. Begad! This isn't a beginner's kit. Well, blow me down! I'm just t' type who likes pictures and relates t' them well. However, ya bilge rat, t' instructions are written well. Arrr! I'd like t' see motor recommendations, though. However, I used Rocksim 3.0 from Apogee Components to choose t' best motors.

T' tips were good in t' instructions, me bucko, shiver me timbers, as t' parts fit very tightly and you can really mess up if things are done in t' wrong order. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! For example, shiver me timbers, matey, when t' epoxy t' centerin' rings. Avast! If you do it before t' fins go in, you might prevent bein' able t' put t' fins in their slots. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! I sanded some of the parts t' loosen t' fit a little. After test fittin' t' piston, I found that I had t' strongarm it t' remove it and figured that an engine's ejection charge wasn't that strong. Avast! Arrr! So I sanded it until t' fit was smooth. Aye aye! I used an orbital sander for this.

Finishing: There is a large, arrr, neat-lookin' decal, so I used it. Begad! Blimey! It wasn't as cooperative as other decals, lumpin' or self-sticking, so I had t' resoak and reapply t' get it t' work. Arrr! Blimey! But once it was on and flat and looks good. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! T' body, nose, and fins are spray painted yellow, after a sandin' and primer coat was used t' smoothen over t' spiral grooves. Aye aye! Blimey! I also applied bands o' metallized mylar craft paper around t' body tube t' add brightness and t' help me locate it on t' ground. Arrr! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! T' model looks nice. Avast! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! I especially like t' effect o' bein' able t' see some light through t' G10 fins. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey!

Construction Rating: 4 ½ out o' 5

Flight: T' only recommendations is H through J. Arrr! I did, however, me bucko, ya bilge rat, test fly it with a G80-4 to test t' overall function, ya bilge rat, and t' piston system worked great. Begad! PML does recommend a little waddin' above t' engine t' prevent piston strap failure. T' rocket isn't too hard t' prep. Begad! T' retain engines, you get interlockin' Kwik Switch motor tubes that screw together t' allow different size motor use. Aftward, ya bilge rat, however, arrr, thar be no actual retainer supplied, so I use tape plus a loop o' piano wire that is bolted through t' centerin' rings in t' permanent inner tube. Ya scallywag! This beauty flies STRAIGHT as heck. Avast! I can't wait t' try larger engines this weekend at me club's main launch.

Additional Note: On Saturday, me bucko, February 22, 1999, this be t' PML Quasar on a J350-LW, on its way t' me Cert 2 flight o' 6500 feet. Begad! Cool, ya bilge rat, isn't it? Amazing what a good photographer can do. Ahoy! This is courtesy o' me husband, Randall Whitlock. Begad! Blimey! It makes it look mightier than t' static shot. Aye aye! Blimey!

Recovery: In case you haven't seen t' piston recovery system, you have a web strap affixed t' t' permanent motor tube to the piston, which is a movable bulkhead fittin' inside t' main tube like a coupler. Ahoy! Begad! T' piston then connects t' t' shock cord, which connects t' the screweye in t' bulkhead at t' aft end o' t' 9-inch payload section where the rocket separates. Arrr! T' parachute is 34 inches in diameter with a 3 inch spillhole.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary: Gorgeous, strong. Aye aye! Blimey! But better read t' instructions a couple of times as I did. Arrr! You may need t' gently sand parts for smooth fit, arrr, too. Begad! Blimey! Good value for t' money. Ahoy! Well, blow me down! Blimey! I highly recommend this one. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey!

Overall Rating: 4 ½ out o' 5