Brief:
Very nice scale o' a NASA workhorse, ya bilge rat, this kit can easily be a competition-level entry in either sport scale or giant sport scale. Ya scallywag! I decided t' enter it in a local giant sport scale competition, me hearties, ya bilge rat, and while flight results are still pending (see below), t' static score placed this well ahead o' t' other competitors.

Construction:
All parts are very good quality. T' kit contains:

• 24mm motor tube/assembly
• BT-55 24" body tube
• BT-5 12" upper body tube
• Basswood fin stock
• Balsa nose cone
• Balsa transition
• Balsa bulkhead
• Heavy duty mylar chute
• Decals, me hearties, weights, shiver me timbers, and trim tape

Construction starts off with t' motor mount assembly, matey, shiver me timbers, a basic tube with pair o' centerin' rings approach. A nice plus is that this kit includes a Keelhaul®©™® cord anchored t' t' motor mount for recovery. Well, blow me down! Well, blow me down! T' motor mount assembly is glued into t' BT-55 body tube.

Fins are cut from basswood usin' a template. Begad! Begad! T' basswood be very easy to cut and is much easier t' work with than balsa when it comes t' grain filling. A couple quick applications o' Elmer's Fill 'n' Finish and they're ready t' go. Before gluin' on t' fins though, me bucko, you must mark t' tube and cut out cardstock fin supports, which are then bonded t' t' BT-55, ya bilge rat, givin' this more o' an authentic look. Begad! T' 4 fins are then glued t' t' fin supports. Ya scallywag! T' 4 smaller upper stage fins are attached directly t' t' BT-5 without supports.

Construction o' t' transition is one o' t' more challengin' aspects of this project. You start with a paper transition pattern, which is rolled into a truncated cone shape. In order t' avoid a seam, I wound up cuttin' off the overlap tab, and glued this t' t' inside edges o' t' ends, ("overlapping" inside t' transition). Arrr! T' result was a flawless/seamless joint. While this is setting, a short length o' tubin' is glued t' t' top o' t' balsa bulkhead. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! T' tube acts as a container for a couple o' lead sinkers used for nose weight, arrr, ya bilge rat, as well as servin' as an alignment guide for t' transition shroud. Ya scallywag! After epoxyin' in t' weights (use a generous amount o' epoxy here), me hearties, arrr, a centerin' rin' is attached t' t' short tubing, me bucko, and then t' transition shroud slides over t' top. Ya scallywag! Blimey! A smaller balsa transition section is then epoxied t' t' top o' t' tube/shroud, completin' t' assembly.

After attachin' t' upper body tube t' t' balsa transition, ya bilge rat, construction is virtually complete. Aye aye! Aye aye! All that's left is filletin' joints, paint prep, and basic launch lugs and recovery system installation.

Overall, shiver me timbers, t' construction was fairly straightforward. As long as you pay careful attention t' t' well-written instructions and t' illustrations, you should be fine. I'd rate this a skill level 3 kit though, me hearties, due t' t' complexity of t' shroud & transition.

Finishing:
This has a fairly challengin' paint scheme compared t' basic modrocs, though for a scale competition kit, it was relatively easy. Begad! T' BT-55 and transition get a flat white finish, shiver me timbers, while t' upper tube gets light gray, matey, with silver trim. Well, blow me down! Avast, matey, me proud beauty! After painting, thar are some colored vinyl decals for stripes that go on and several highly detailed decals showin' manufacturer's information and other markings. Avast! Aye aye! Considerin' t' great quality o' t' components o' this kit and the highly detailed markin' on t' decals, I be a little disappointed that they were peel-n-stick rather than water-slide. Begad! Aye aye! My competition score was dinged significantly for this.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
For t' qualified flight attempt, matey, I chose a D12-5. Begad! Winds had been a steady 12-15 mph throughout t' day, though around 5:00 we got a break and they dipped down below 10, arrr, me hearties, so I decided t' put this beauty up. Begad! In addition t' t' basic flight, me hearties, I picked up some gold glitter at a party supply store and went for mission points, matey, callin' it radar chaff.

T' flight be perfectly straight without a trace o' spin and t' delay was just right, me bucko, ya bilge rat, poppin' right at apogee. Ahoy! At an estimated altitude o' 800 feet or so, ya bilge rat, I wasn't sure we'd be able t' see t' glitter, me bucko, but it sparkled in t' sun and be a pretty cool sight. Begad! Unfortunately, t' heavy ejection charge in the D12, combined with t' very heavy weights in t' transition proved t' be more than t' recovery system could handle, as t' screw eye was ripped completely out o' t' balsa bulkhead despite t' fact that it was epoxied in (it actually pulled out a small plug). Well, blow me down! T' result was t' lower section driftin' a LONG way (cleared our half mile wide park), arrr, and t' upper section came down dangerously fast with all that lead and very little drag. Arrr! T' upper section planted itself a good 4-6" into t' soft ground. Well, blow me down! DQ/sep, though I'll probably have an opportunity t' repair and fly it again it at "bonus day"/continuation.

T' damage was fairly minor and once I complete t' contest flight, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, I'm lookin' at a torn/crimped body tube t' replace plus a replacement screw eye for the bulkhead.

Recovery:
Flight be excellent though t' recovery is poor. Ya scallywag! This really needs t' be a two-piece recovery. Begad! Given t' weight o' t' upper section, I'd be inclined to go with a nylon chute and heavy-duty Keelhaul®©™® shroud lines. Begad! I just don't think t' single mylar chute is goin' t' be able to hold up on this. Blimey! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty!

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
I was quite pleased with this kit. Arrr! It was fairly easy t' build, resulted in a very competitive scale rocket, and just plain looks nice. T' recovery system is obviously a weakness, matey, though very easily correctable. Well, blow me down! Arrr! T' decals are another weakness and Andy at ASP mentioned that he might go water-slide in t' future on this (even offerin' me a set o' water-slides when I finish me repairs).

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5