Brief:
Small enough t' fly on an LMR, arrr, rugged enough t' get an L1, this versatile 29mm kit is a good introduction into higher powered rocketry.

Construction:
I won this little bad boy in EMRR's Mach 1-2-3 virtual contest. Aye aye! Arrr! About two weeks later, t' box arrived, complete with a kit label on t' outside. T' parts were carefully packed, individually wrapped, and very good quality.

Parts list includes:

• Phenolic airframe tube
• Plastic nose cone
• 29mm motor tube
• 1/8" birch fins (3)
• Plywood centerin' rings
• 30" nylon chute
• Rail buttons
• Quick link/eye bolts
• T-nuts for retention
• Vinyl decal

I've only got about 8 high-power capable rockets on me resumé, so most o' me comparisons are based on low/mid-power experience. In general, I'm amazed at how little attention is placed on motor retention in high power kits. Ahoy! Given t' safety factor, plus cost o' hardware, you would think that would be a high priority in kit design. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! This kit, however, shiver me timbers, includes T-nuts and detailed instructions for buildin' in positive motor retention.

Instructions were fairly well written with a number o' pictures. Ahoy! By high power standards, I'd say they were above average although compared t' lower power kits such as FlisKits, Semroc, me hearties, and t' like, they are definitely lackin' details. Suffice it t' say you should have prior experience and/or a good introductory book on high power rocketry before buildin' this kit.

Motor mount assembly consists o' a couple o' centerin' rings and t' motor tube with 15-minute epoxy t' hold in place. Arrr! There's an eye bolt attached t' t' forward rin' and t' shock cord is then anchored t' this. Ahoy! T' finished assembly is incredibly strong, matey, especially compared t' t' plastic nose cone bracket that t' other end attaches to.

T' fins are thru-the-wall, me bucko, and you get t' slot t' body tube yourself. Ahoy! Blimey! I know some builders find this enjoyable, ya bilge rat, but I find it a pain. Aye aye! It took a good utility knife blade t' score through t' heavy duty tube. Avast! I epoxied t' fins and used thin epoxy for fillets.

One thin' I be very pleased with about t' fins are that t' forward edge o' t' root has an angled cutout. Considerin' me epoxy fillets around t' centerin' rin' were a bit large and messy, shiver me timbers, arrr, me hearties, t' cutouts enabled t' fins t' still fit flush against t' motor tube.

Fins and motor tube assembly fit perfectly with no additional trimmin' or sandin' necessary. Very impressive.

I then drilled t' body tube for rail button mountin' holes and a pressure relief hole. Arrr! Begad! At that point, me hearties, shiver me timbers, t' rocket was ready t' prep for finishing.

Finishing:
While t' body tube was good quality, t' "spirals" were more like grooves, ya bilge rat, and I think I've actually driven on tires with less tread depth. After two liberal applications o' wood filler and two coats o' Plasti-Cote primer, I still had traces o' spirals. I then applied two more coats o' primer with light sandin' between, matey, followed by 4 coats o' Rustoleum gloss white, t' last o' which be fairly heavy. Begad! he result be a nearly perfect finish. Aye aye! I decided t' go with a two-tone finish, and topped t' upper portion with a nice blue.

T' kit includes a nice gold band for trim (and coverin' any maskin' flaws betwixt colors. It also includes a couple o' fantastic vinyl decals. While t' vinyl decals aren't adjustable like waterslide, me bucko, they look much better. Begad! Arrr! As a result, me bucko, I'm kickin' around ideas for a few custom vinyl decal designs for future projects.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
While thar are a lot o' recommended motors, me bucko, none o' t' recommendations included delays, ya bilge rat, nor was thar a RockSim file included for quick/easy simulation. Begad! Based on an educated guess, I went with a G35-4.

T' motor chuffed a little bit then fired up for a nice slow ascent. Begad! It weathercocked a bit into t' 6-8 mph winds. T' ejection was just a hair earlier than t' nominal 4 seconds although I think t' full 4 would have been a fine delay choice.

Recovery:
I was a bit worried about t' 30" chute for this 21.7 ounce rocket but nay in t' least worried about t' durability o' t' recovery system--heavy-duty anchor bolts and yards o' nylon cord are goin' t' last for more flights than I'll ever log.

T' slightly early deployment didn't pose any zipper problems, matey, but t' rocket came down pretty fast and landed on a small road bisectin' t' field. Begad! On grass, t' speed would probably have been fine, shiver me timbers, but on t' pavement, matey, t' tip o' t' nose chipped off. Arrr! Arrr! I also suffered a few chips and scratches on an otherwise beautiful paint job. Blimey! A larger chute wouldn't have helped on t' pavement (it would probably have drifted over it though), shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, but I think I'll be usin' at least a 36" t' play it safer on future flights.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
I think this is a very nice rocket and can handle a wide variety o' 29mm motors. Ya scallywag! Small enough t' fly on modest fields with lower F/G power but rugged enough t' handle full Hs for certification flights.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5