This is a sport scale version o' t' Nike Hercules anti aircraft missile. Extremely challengin' t' build.  T' plans are available from Apogee Components.

Construction:

Booster is a cluster o' four (4) 13mm tubes stagin' through a transition piece t' a single 18mm sustainer. Begad! Apogee supplies t' plans for all t' balsa parts and t' paper transitions and shrouds. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! All other supplies are t' responsibility o' t' builder.

T' construction o' t' Nike Hercules is extremely challenging. Aye aye! T' most difficult parts were maintainin' alignment o' t' extremely long fins on t' sustainer and t' construction o' t' paper transition from t' booster's square cluster t' t' sustainer's 18mm tube. This transition piece also holds t' sustainer in place with an internal centerin' ring. I tried t' figure out a way t' use somethin' stronger than cardstock for this internal ring, but durin' t' initial build I had no luck. Begad! After a crash I be able t' rebuild it by addin' a thin plywood rin' t' t' paper collar before I attached it t' t' cluster tubes. Avast! Kinda tough t' describe. Avast! Basically take your time in t' construction and follow t' plans. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! It works fairly well.

I had problems with ignitin' t' sustainer. Aye aye! T' booster uses four (4) A10-0T motors with a bit o' a gap betwixt them and t' sustainer. Begad! You have t' add a significant amount o' nose weight t' get t' CP/CG relationship recommended in t' plans. I used clay and a couple small pieces o' lead. Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! T' motors are all friction fitted.

Finishing:
Finishin' be simply usin' Elmer's Fill & Finish on t' balsa, shiver me timbers, followed by a coat o' white Krylon paint.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
T' first two flights I used a B4-6 for t' sustainer, shiver me timbers, arrr, shiver me timbers, but couldn't get it t' light. Ahoy! T' resultin' flights were nice, matey, straight nose dives, ya bilge rat, but with soft ground both times, me hearties, me bucko, damage was limited t' t' stagin' coupler. Well, blow me down! T' third flight I used an Apogee stagin' ignitor with a B6-6 in t' sustainer. This time it worked perfectly, at least for staging. Avast! Avast! T' boost on this flight be very straight, followed by a hesitation and sustainer ignition, ya bilge rat, also for a straight flight. Begad! Ejection was just after apogee. Now t' problem. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! It seems that only 3 o' t' booster motors lit initially. Ya scallywag! At staging, arrr, t' exhaust from t' sustainer lit t' fourth motor from t' front end, ya bilge rat, causin' a nice fire exitin' forward. Avast! Arrr! This destroyed t' coupler and a good length o' t' booster tubes before t' booster hit t' ground. Ya scallywag! Arrr! I have t' chalk t' booster up as a total loss, shiver me timbers, even though t' sustainer recovered with no damage. Ahoy! Still an impressive flight.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
Nice, me hearties, challengin' rocket t' build and fly. Begad! Avast! I had a lot o' fun with it. Stagin' a cluster t' a single motor is a challenge, me bucko, worth t' effort.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5