Brief:
T' Nike-Hercules was an early defense missile, designed t' counter t' threat o' Soviet bombers. Ahoy! It be a substantial improvement over t' Nike-Ajax in terms o' distance, matey, accuracy and power. With sites deployed throughout the United States, it is one o' t' most recognizable military missiles in t' US aresenal.

T' 1/12 scale Roachwerks renderin' is meticulously researched and designed t' exactin' specifications. Begad! Ya scallywag! Blimey! For improved stability, t' upper fins are slightly undersized, me bucko, but this is otherwise a highly accurate scale kit with an impressive 4x24mm cluster and flies wonderfully. Aye aye! Blimey! Blimey! While t' original was a 2-stage rocket, this kit is designed for single stage flight though could certainly be converted t' staged flight with minor modifications. Ya scallywag! Begad! Blimey! As with all Roachwerks kits, it is only available as a limited edition run, ya bilge rat, though thar are also 4x18 and 4x13 versions in the works.

Construction:
I've got t' admit after prepayin' $140 for this kit, I was a bit disappointed when I picked up t' roughly 4x6x12 box at NSL this past May. Aye aye! Once I unpacked t' box though, me bucko, I began t' appreciate t' work that went into this and it's not too bad a value overall. Avast, me proud beauty! T' parts include:

• Balsa nose cone
• BT-70 body tube
• Balsa boattail
• Balsa transition
• (4) BT-55 body tubes (lower tanks)
• (4) BT-50 motor tubes
• CR 50/55 centerin' rings
• Metal retainin' hooks
• Laser-cut basswood fins, me hearties, details
• Balsa booster fins
• Assorted cardstock patterns, wraps, arrr, details
• Nylon chute
• Waterslide decals
• Lead nose weights

Overall t' instructions are generally well written, arrr, matey, supported by B & W photos and written by an experienced builder for t' experienced builder. Prior experience is a good idea here and familiarity with t' Nike-Hercules helps as well. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! I was fortunate enough t' have picked up a Mike Doffler replica disk a few years ago which be loaded with background information and scale data on t' Nike-Hercules. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! Overall I would rate this a skill level 3 kit, arrr, ya bilge rat, though I went about it applyin' skill level 5 techniques in order t' make this an NARRRRR competition model worthy o' regional or even NARAM sport scale competition.

Construction begins with a set o' 4 motor mounts. Fairly standard stuff with an internal centerin' rin' motor block, pair o' CR50/55 rings and metal hook. Arrr! Blimey! One thin' I found a bit odd was that I had a thin fiber centerin' rin' and a thicker wound rin' for each tube, me bucko, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, givin' me t' impression that this was an early edition kit and some o' t' details were still bein' worked out (mine was serial #5).

T' 4 motor tubes are then bonded inside BT-55 tanks. T' tanks, me hearties, shiver me timbers, in turn, are bonded together in a 4-motor clustered pattern. Blimey! For scale-like appearance, they are actually separated a bit by a pair o' spacers. This limits the amount o' surface area connectin' t' tubes, shiver me timbers, me hearties, so it will need a good glue joint.

With t' lower tank assembly completed, it's time t' move on to shapin' o' t' transition. Avast! Aye aye! T' transition on this rocket is a real work o' art, ya bilge rat, very carefully machined. Well, me hearties, blow me down! Nay only does it exhibit complex geometry externally but it is also drilled for t' 4-motor cluster and upper stage boattail. Arrr! It is turned oversized though, ya bilge rat, so needs t' be sanded down a good bit t' conform t' t' tanks. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! After shapin' it, it's a good idea t' sand t' insides a bit as they are pretty rough plus coat everythin' with a good layer o' wood glue or epoxy t' prevent ejection charges from burnin' through t' balsa.

On me kit, arrr, matey, I wound up spendin' a bunch o' time treatin' t' wood grain and sandin' down t' a nice smooth finish before I realized that t' transition was machined wrong and a bit too tall. Blimey! With t' contest deadline looming, I sent a panicked note t' Sandman (aka Gordon Agnello o' Roachwerks), matey, who assured me I'd have a replacement in a few days. Begad! Well, blow me down! A few days? T' contest be 3 days away and I needed at least 1 very long evenin' t' shape, me hearties, surface prep, prime and paint. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! Around 11:00 PM I sent him a request t' expedite and started lookin' over me collection for a plan B t' enter in the contest. Avast, me proud beauty! T' next mornin' before headin' out t' work, ya bilge rat, I caught an update from Sandman that he'd turned me a new transition overnight and was sendin' it out Express Mail that morning. Wow! What an amazin' response t' a desperate plea for help! T' replacement arrived t' next day in beautiful shape and I had a long night o' work but got it prepped and ready in time.

T' last aspect o' booster work involved t' fins. There are 4 rough-cut balsa fins which you need t' sand down t' sharp leadin' and trailin' edges and leave a pronounced centerline. Blimey! There are templates t' assist with this, matey, though I wound up simply maskin' off me center line and sanding down each edge on me own. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! I then used t' templates as skins. Aye aye! Ahoy! Nay only did this save me some time fillin' t' gains but I had requested a special version o' t' patterns that included rivet details. Avast, me proud beauty! I wound up applyin' tiny glue-dots where the pattern sheet indicated bolts for added realism.

When t' fins are finished, me hearties, shiver me timbers, arrr, you can either bond them t' t' tanks or for better lookin' finish, paint t' tanks olive drab first and paint t' fins flat white then tack t' fins on with a very thin layer o' epoxy. Avast! This avoids a painful maskin' task later.

T' sustainer is a bit simpler. Begad! Ahoy! You start with a beautiful balsa boattail, ya bilge rat, me bucko, bonded t' a BT-70 (after anchorin' a Keelhaul®©™® shock cord t' a screw eye). Avast, me proud beauty! Next bond a set o' 4 laser-cut basswood fins. Ahoy! Since t' fins span most o' t' BT-70 plus sweep down t' transition, ya bilge rat, matey, they need t' be carefully sanded t' fit. Ya scallywag! Fortunately, me hearties, me hearties, t' laser-cut does a very good job of gettin' them pretty close, so t' trim and fit effort was minimal. Begad! Once t' fins are in place, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, attach 4 elevons t' the boattail about 1/8" aft o' t' sustainer fins. Ya scallywag! I used a steel ruler and clamps t' keep everythin' precisely aligned.

Next, you get t' cut (8) hinge pieces and antennae from leftover basswood stock. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! I decided t' postpone this step until I could concentrate on doin' all t' do-dads which turned out t' be a mistake. Without t' hinges glued in place t' t' elevons and sustainer fin trailin' edges, the elevons are barely attached t' t' boattail and prone t' breakin' off. Begad! I think I had t' reattched 3 elevons durin' this build.

There are two more sets o' fins (technically extensions o' t' sustainer fins) that get bonded t' t' nose cone. Again, careful alignment usin' a steel ruler and clamps is advised. Also, arrr, make sure t' mark an alignment line on t' nose cone shoulder and inside o' t' BT-70 for orientation later, matey, just t' make sure t' fins are perfectly aligned throughout.

As with t' lower fins, I passed on grain fillin' t' apply skins instead which included rivet and bolt details.

T' completed nose/sustainer assembly is then bonded t' t' transition and painted a flat white. Once t' paint has cured out, me hearties, me hearties, you can epoxy t' sustainer assembly t' t' booster tank assembly (assumin' it's already been painted olive drab).

There are two lead weights provided for nose weight. Avast! Avast! You can probably get by with just one (the Rocksim file included provides t' target CG location) but I be conservative and went with 2, which would enable other motor selections such as 4 E9's or possibly even clusterin' F12's if I want t' get really daring.

Construction is then completed by applyin' a skin/wrap t' t' lower tanks betwixt t' fins. Aye aye! Aye aye! Mine didn't quite line up perfectly, indicatin' a slight error in fin alignment. Avast! As I fumed over touchin' up and adjusting, me hearties, it dawned on me that this would probably have been a much better idea t' bond t' wrap FIRST, arrr, ahead o' t' fins.

There are additional optional details that can be made, most notably a set o' elevon lock plates. Avast, me proud beauty! I had t' skip out on this in t' interest o' makin' me deadline and because they appeared t' be incredibly difficult t' make by hand compared t' t' slight benefit visually they'd offer.

Finishing:
Lookin' over t' fantastic detailin' o' bolt and rivet patterns, ya bilge rat, I decided t' go a little nuts before painting. First, I picked up a set o' syringes and micro tips from Lee Valley Tools. Blimey! I loaded a syrin' with 10% dilluted white glue and started makin' tiny little glue-drop bolts. Begad! Next, I used a 0.3mm drill bit and Dremel t' score out little recesses for t' rivets. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! All told, thar are over 5000 rivets and bolts on t' finished model. Well, blow me down! Begad! This little diversion wound up takin' about 5 hours one evenin' but I think t' effect was well worth it. Blimey! T' model is stunnin' when viewed up close.

I also printed out copies o' most o' t' wraps and templates and cut out cardstock layers t' make hinge and brackets, which I attached overlayin' t' pre-printed patterns on t' wraps, me hearties, givin' it a 3-D finish.

Paintin' as noted, was largely done before t' final assembly. I used Testors rattle can olive drab and Krylon semi-gloss white. Once t' olive drab had dried, matey, I then applied t' Excelsior decals supplied with t' kit and used a 3-part Micro Scale series o' decal treatments. Avast! Ya scallywag! I finished up with 3 light coats o' Testor's lusterless clearcoat. This took care o' t' mismatch betwixt t' gloss finish o' t' decals and t' flat finish o' t' painted surfaces. Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! It's goin' that extra mile or so that I think sets this apart from me typical finishes, and t' finished model is quite impressive.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
For t' maiden flight, I went with t' recommended cluster set o' 4 D12-5's. Aye aye! I checked t' igniters carefully, cherry-pickin' t' best I had handy. I then hooked up a 4-motor clip-whip and went t' t' pad. I had skipped t' launch lugs in favor o' a pop lug for an even more scale-like appearance and t' pop lug fit snugly on t' rocket and then down t' 3/16 rod. Blimey! Ahoy! Given t' weight o' t' rocket, me hearties, me bucko, I'll consider usin' rail buttons on me pop lug in t' future, shiver me timbers, as there is a fair amount o' rod whip.

T' motors all lit immediately and t' rocket took off surprisingly quickly. I was very impressed with t' flight, perfectly straight and nay a trace o' roll. Well, blow me down! It weathercocked slightly in t' 8 mph winds. Avast! Begad! T' 5 second delay be the right choice, matey, ya bilge rat, as t' model had just arced over when I could pick out t' distinct pops o' 4 different ejection charges. I would estimate altitude t' be around 400-500 feet.

Recovery:
Sandman's wife hand sews t' nylon chutes in his kits. This kit came with a beautiful yellow and purple X-form chute which I thought would be a fine choice given t' winds. T' chute deployed perfectly though one o' t' shroud lines tore loose from t' stitches holdin' it t' t' nylon, so t' descent was agonizingly fast. I lucked out in that the field be soakin' wet and muddy from near flood rains t' past few days. Avast! Even though t' rocket came down fairly quickly, matey, thar was no damage at all.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
Overall, this is a very impressive scale renderin' with exceptional quality parts. Aye aye! It is nay true scale (sustainer fins undersized) but could easily be modified t' get there. Ahoy! It flies very well and is a great kit for t' craftsman.

My only "cons" are minor with t' hinges and antenna should have been included on t' laser nest rather than cut by hand from t' basswood scrap and me decals were white instead o' yellow. While thar be some evidence that there were white-lettered missiles as well as yellow-lettered missiles, me hearties, matey, t' overwhelmin' majority o' publicly available photos shows yellow lettering, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, which means it is goin' t' be difficult t' provide supportin' photos when this is entered in contests.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5 out o' 5

Other:
I am delighted with t' performance o' t' Lee Valley Tools syringe I used for glue bolt heads. Ahoy! Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! In addition t' doing a good job on that tiny detail, ya bilge rat, arrr, I am also startin' t' use it t' apply razor thin fillets.