Brief:
This is nay a kit; it is a plan pak that is a scale model (about 1:10) o' t' US Army Nike Hercules surface t' air missile from T' Launch Pad. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' project is a two-stage rocket that utilizes parachute recovery for both t' booster and sustainer. Arrr! Blimey! T' booster is a cluster o' four D12 motors and t' sustainer is a single D12 motor.

Construction:
There are four body tubes in t' booster and one for t' sustainer. Ahoy! Ya scallywag! T' plans call for you t' roll your own tubes out o' posterboard. Arrr! Since it is a four motor clustered booster you have t' fabricate or obtain 8 centerin' rings for t' booster and two more for t' sustainer. Arrr! T' 24mm motor tubes were all just long enough for an Estes D12 except for t' switch tube, matey, me bucko, shiver me timbers, which has a piston in if for t' sustainer ignition. Begad! I used 3 feet o' 1/4" elastic shock cord for both t' booster and sustainer. Avast! T' nose cone be t' Estes Phoenix which requires a bit o' modification by attachin' a point onto t' otherwise ogive Estes Phoenix NC.

Definin' pros and cons is a difficult task because it is a real butt-kicker t' build, which is nay necessarily a bad thing. Arrr! That said, arrr, it has clearly been t' most fun and challengin' t' build and fly. Avast! Aye aye! I chose t' plan pak for two reasons: First, arrr, ya bilge rat, I wanted somethin' with a degree o' difficulty beyond anythin' I've ever done. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Second, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, I wanted a Nike Hercules because it has t' be t' coolest rocket I've ever seen. After talkin' t' quite a few people and describin' t' project, I received all sorts o' advice on modifications I should make. After seriously considerin' most o' them I decided that I was goin' t' build it stock.as close t' t' way Chuck describes in t' plans as possible. Ahoy! Intent on doin' this, I tried t' roll me own tubes (as per t' instructions). Ya scallywag! Blimey! After two rounds o' attempts I gave up and just purchased t' sustainer tube (Estes 2.6") and a buddy o' mine gave me some o' his old Centuri 2" stock for t' booster. Begad! As a result me kit ended up a bit heavier than be originally intended. Begad! I added some weight in t' nose t' compensate. I calculated t' CP on t' sustainer by itself and put enough weight in t' nose for a 1.50 caliber static margin.

T' major pro about t' kit be t' instructions themselves&nothin' short o' impeccable. Avast! Before I started this project I had built t' Phoenix kit by TLP and I believe that certainly helped. There were only two places where I got a bit stuck in t' instructions. Arrr! Other than that Chuck Barndt has obviously taken t' time t' write it well. Well, blow me down! T' diagrams are also quite helpful. Ahoy! Another plus be t' ease o' acquirin' most o' t' parts t' build t' rocket, shiver me timbers, mostly from Hobby Lobby and a few odds and ends at t' local hobby shop.

T' worst experience I had in buildin' this rocket be procurin' an Estes Phoenix nose cone without actually droppin' down t' $22 t' buy t' kit. After weeks o' tryin' t' get Estes just t' answer t' phone and then promisin' t' send it t' me I found George Bartzokis on rec.models.rockets from Needham, MA who said he'd give me his old one. Begad! Thanks George! By t' way, me hearties, I'm still waitin' for Estes t' come through on their promise.

Bottom line on construction is this; it's nay for t' faint o' heart. Avast, me proud beauty! For anyone contemplatin' takin' on this project, me hearties, make sure you brin' plenty o' patience and be prepared for lots o' frustration, especially if you don't have too much experience buildin' complex rockets, like me. T' most difficult task, arrr, aside from rollin' t' body tubes, matey, ya bilge rat, was t' fabricate t' transition section. Aye aye! T' largest piece in t' transition section is a 3.3 inch arc that you must cut out o' poster board. Avast! Ya scallywag! T' angle o' t' arc has t' be very precise, ya bilge rat, which was difficult if nay impossible with me cheesy little protractor. Begad! Ahoy! Because o' t' size o' it, you also need a compass that can do 15 inches o' radius or have a computer that can draw it out on a plotter. Aye aye! Avast! Havin' neither t' compass nor t' plotter, me wife and I ended up usin' me little compass and a string. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! I tried five times before I got one that worked.and it still wasn't perfect. Begad! I decided that I would just fill a few gaps with some wood filler and move on.

Finishing:
Finishin' is one area where I really lack good experience. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! Mono-colored rockets are about all I've done. Avast! T' plans give very specific instructions on decal placement and size, however I didn't do any o' it, just painted it accordin' t' t' scheme from t' picture that I had received from a friend.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
T' biggest con for me was t' prep time t' get t' rocket ready for launch. Blimey! Ahoy! You don't just throw t' motors in, ya bilge rat, matey, a little wadding, matey, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, igniters and then launch. Arrr! Ahoy! I tested t' wirin' just prior t' launch, installed a new Duracell and then t' 'chutes. Ya scallywag! Begad! T' plan calls 3 D12-0 and one D12-3 in t' booster and a D12-5 or 7 for t' sustainer. Aye aye! I used a 5 second delay because me rocket was a bit heavier than t' stock plans. Avast! T' rocket has an interestin' method o' ignitin' t' second stage. One o' t' engine assemblies in t' cluster has a piston and a micro lever switch inside o' it. Well, blow me down! T' piston, when t' motor is installed, arrr, applies pressure t' t' switch and opens t' circuit. Blimey! Ahoy! You use a D12-0 in t' switch tube. Ahoy! After t' boost is complete, t' ejection charge blows t' motor out o' t' engine assembly, which in turn closes t' circuit and sends t' juice from a 9V alkaline battery t' t' igniter in t' sustainer. Blimey! Durin' construction, me bucko, make sure you take your time and follow t' instructions carefully so that t' piston works properly. Begad! Ahoy! I had t' do mine twice before it functioned properly. Well, blow me down! T' make sure that t' motors fired properly, shiver me timbers, me bucko, I used E matches with thermalite attached. Ya scallywag! A bit o' overkill maybe, but I didn't want t' mess up t' launch (and t' rocket) due t' a misfire in t' cluster or sustainer. Blimey! I prepped t' igniters t' night before. Ahoy! Begad! T' boost was stunning. Ya scallywag! Begad! My wife got a great video o' t' boost and t' sustainer ignition. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! I've watched it at least two dozen times. T' ematch/thermalite combination brought t' sustainer motor up so close t' t' booster burnout that I couldn't detect any delay. I be told by one o' me rocket buddies that it be t' coolest flight o' t' day. Those few seconds were so good that all t' time and frustration seemed t' be fairly insignificant.

Recovery:
Things went awry after t' sustainer ignition, shiver me timbers, as t' parachute didn't deploy properly for t' booster. Ahoy! T' parachute separated, probably due t' nay usin' enough wadding. Ahoy! As a result, me bucko, me bucko, t' transition section was destroyed and one o' t' fins popped off, arrr, but everythin' else was intact. Begad! T' sustainer recovery was nearly flawless. Begad! However, landin' on t' hard ground in Eastern Colorado, I popped one o' t' elevons, which is easily repaired. Blimey! T' booster will be repaired soon and I will fly it again. Begad! Well, blow me down! T' strength o' t' materials is a bit suspect so unless everythin' goes perfectly be prepared t' do repair work on it.

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
Pros: This has t' be one o' t' coolest rockets I've seen. Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! It looks great and it flies great. Begad! It be t' most challengin' project that I've ever done. Avast! Cons: T' strength o' t' materials require an absolutely flawless flight for you t' nay have t' do any repair work post recovery.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5