Brief:
Single stage mid-power rocket.

Construction:
All o' t' parts were contained in a plastic bag and they were all intact and high quality. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! Blimey! T' airframe had a very small spiral groove, t' fins were top quality plywood, and t' nose cone be sturdy plastic. Ya scallywag! T' centerin' rings were also quality plywood. T' parachute provided was hot pink in color and 15" diameter.

T' instructions were contained on t' back o' t' title card that was in t' bag. Ya scallywag! There be nay a great deal o' detail in t' instructions and for t' simple design o' t' Onyx, arrr, matey, it be nay necessary. T' parachute retention was contained in a small bag by itself and had its own instruction sheet. T' airframe be pre-marked for t' placement o' t' fins and t' launch lug and assembly was straight forward and simple. This rocket is a good choice for someone that is new t' mid-power rocketry. Aye aye! No surprises or unexpected troubles. Well, blow me down! T' parts were all glued together usin' 2 ton epoxy, matey, t' instructions direct you t' use epoxy throughout. Begad! Ahoy! After everythin' was glued, I applied healthy epoxy fillets t' each fin and t' t' launch lug.

There is a note on t' instruction card for t' 24mm motors, that says they are t' be used with LOC's MMA-1 adapter. Avast! This adapter is nay included.

T' recovery system has a nice hot pink rip stop nylon parachute with ample gage nylon leaders sewn t' it, t' 3/8" elastic shock cord is about 72" long and is secured by LOC's standard method o' attachment. Aye aye! Avast! This entails a nylon strin' that is looped, me bucko, tied, arrr, shiver me timbers, and then epoxied t' t' inside o' t' airframe. Avast! Then, t' end o' t' shock cord is tied t' t' end o' t' loop that protrudes from t' top. Avast! Just make sure t' glue t' nylon strin' down far enough t' fit t' nose cone it without interference.

Finishing:
I asked me son how he wanted t' have this one finished. For some strange reason, arrr, matey, he wanted green. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! (go figure) Green it shall be I said, ya bilge rat, but it's goin' t' be fluorescent green and nay grass green or leaf green. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, me bucko, blow me down! After a few coats o' sandin' sealer followed by primer, I sprayed on some fluorescent green paint. Ahoy! Aye aye! Strange thin' about that fluorescent paint, me bucko, it doesn't finish very smooth. T' compensate for that, ya bilge rat, me hearties, I sanded t' paint after each coat with 400 grit sandpaper. Begad! Once I was satisfied with t' amount o' paint, I coated t' finished rocket with clear paint. Blimey! Well, blow me down! I applied t' LOC decal and be finished.

I got t' self stick decal by a little bit o' callin' around. Begad! Ahoy! T' kit did nay originally come with any decals but, matey, Magnum's website says that thar be one included with every kit. Blimey! I e-mailed them and be told that thar should have been one and t' call LOC t' get one. Blimey! Aye aye! Upon callin' LOC I was told that they were discontinuin' t' decal so that all o' their rockets didn't have a "predetermined" personality. Ahoy! Arrr! But, matey, me hearties, they also told me that they had about a dozed or so left that they had just sent t' Magnum. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! I e-mailed Magnum again and be told that he would mail a decal t' me. Well, blow me down! I wanted t' LOC decal because I wanted everyone t' know that t' quality product that they were lookin' at was, in fact, me bucko, a LOC/Precision rocket.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Recommended motors are D12-3, E30-7, F50-9, shiver me timbers, G40-10. I chose t' go somewhat bold with t' first flight, arrr, so I used t' F-50. Begad! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! There was nay retention provided and I didn't take t' opportunity t' add anything. Begad! Blimey! It is just as easy t' use maskin' tape for motor retention sometimes. Ya scallywag! Blimey! I just poured some parachute protection in and packed t' chute in. Avast! Blimey! It lifted off fast, real fast. Aye aye! Blimey! Flew straight and true and went out o' sight; well out o' me sight because I'm nearsighted. But, when t' chute popped, matey, we followed it t' t' ground for a nice landing. Blimey! Blimey! No trouble at all.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5