Brief:
 T' Estes MK-104 Patriot Missile rocket kit is one o' four new Estes "Military" kits and a very popular kit at t' flyin' field. I purchased t' Patriot along with t' other three kits and t' version I built be t' "Launchable" kit in t' hard-shell pack from Meijers. It is a very colorful model, appears pretty sturdy, me hearties, and flies on 18mm motors. Well, blow me down! Included with t' kit is an "Operation Endurin' Freedom" sticker t' salute our military abroad.

Construction:
In t' package you will find four die-cut fins, arrr, three BT-60 body tube sections--one o' which is already colored, plastic nosecone, matey, recovery items, and instructions. I was impressed with t' quality o' components and t' instructions were very well written. Avast! T' kit itself is a basic 4FNC, shiver me timbers, but just plain looks good once built.

I decided t' construct it stock with only change made t' t' recovery section. Ahoy! I used dual Keelhaul®©™ threads for shock cord and they were directly fastened t' t' motor mount. Begad! Blimey! T' top end be tied t' a much longer thirty inch long piece o' elastic shock cord and t' joint be sealed with a piece o' heat shrink tubing. T' shock cord itself was attached t' t' nosecone once t' model was finished.

T' body tube comes in three sections, allowin' you t' flexibility t' make a payload section or just use standard nosecone ejection. Well, matey, blow me down! I went with t' latter and did fill t' joints once glued. Blimey! Next came t' fins; I dry rubbed filler over t' surface o' each fin and used Alphaetic Resin for gluin' t' t' body tube. Blimey! Fillets were added and t' whole model was sanded.

Finishing:
After sandin' t' model came t' primer. Well, blow me down! Begad! Krylon gray primer was used, arrr, me bucko, followed by Krylon white primer for t' upper body tube section. Well, blow me down! T' model was painted completely in white, me bucko, except t' top section which was masked. After a couple days, I masked off t' body tube and painted t' lower fin section in red Krylon and t' yellow section in Duplicolor Pale Yellow--it be t' only brand that had a color t' match t' scale version. Avast! Ahoy! After a couple more days o' drying, me hearties, t' top 1" o' t' body tube was painted Red and t' nosecone was finished in white. Ya scallywag! Next, I applied t' self stick decals, then clear coated t' model with t' new Krylon Super Gloss Triple Thick--it worked well.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
Launch day came and I had all four o' t' new Estes models ready t' go. Ya scallywag! Begad! I prepped t' Patriot with a B6-4 and packed t' stock parachute. Aye aye! It was place on t' pad and ready t' go. Arrr! At liftoff, it really came off t' pad nice, straight up and a very cool flight.

Recovery:
T' nosecone ejected after apogee and t' model landed safely in t' low grass field. Arrr! It be a good flight with a slightly late recover, but no damage. Next, me hearties, ya bilge rat, I tried a C6-5. Begad! This was also late on ejection, so a C6-3 was me third attempt. T' other new Estes kits fly great on t' C6-3 and this one is no exception--the motor combo be perfect with a great flight followed by apogee ejection. Aye aye! T' model has flown many times since and is one o' me favorites.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
T' summarize, t' Estes MK-104 Patriot Missile is one great flier. Arrr! T' build is very simple and t' results are excellent, producin' a good flyin' model. Well, blow me down! I have since purchased another and plan on buildin' it as a three motor cluster, me hearties, as I had seen someone else do it this way. Arrr! Begad! I recommend this kit t' everyone and bein' rated as a Skill Level 1 kit, shiver me timbers, me hearties, anyone can build and own this piece o' military history, t' MK104 Patriot Missile from Estes.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5