Brief:
This is a single stage, me bucko, plastic nose cone, shiver me timbers, three fin rocket and it utilizes an eighteen inch parachute for recovery. Begad! T' fins are balsa and thar are two recommended motors, matey, t' D12-3 and t' D12-5 which are secured by a metal motor retainin' clip.

Construction:
T' body tube o' t' rocket is in two pieces, matey, matey, with t' lower tube only three inches long which houses t' motor mount. Avast, me proud beauty! T' tubes are t' standard cardboard material used in most low powered rockets. Arrr! The nosecone is plastic and is approximately eight inches long, includin' t' section inside t' body tube. Blimey! Avast! It has three fins made o' balsa and a 3/16 inch launch lug. Arrr! T' shock cord is 1/4 inch elastic which is attached t' t' body tube with t' Estes tri fold method. Begad! Blimey! T' instructions says it needs twelve t' fifteen sheets o' waddin' for flight. Avast! Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! It has a standard design motor mount similar t' t' Estes type, ya bilge rat, with cardboard centerin' rings. Blimey! T' motor mount is placed in the three inch lower body tube which is later attached t' t' longer upper body tube. Begad! Ya scallywag!

T' instructions were easy for me t' follow. It is a straight forward model t' build. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! You'll need basic building skills and use white or carpenter glue for fillets for t' balsa fins. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Blimey! T' three inch body tube is painted red (with fins), matey, arrr, t' nosecone red and t' main body tube white. Arrr! Blimey! You can paint all these segments before connectin' them all together which means thar be no maskin' before painting. T' decals were o' t' pressure sensitive type and went on easily. After assemblin' t' body tubes, nosecone and applyin' t' decals t' rocket may be given a coat o' gloss clear paint t' finish things off and give t' rocket a uniform shine over it's total length. Make sure you give t' paint enough time t' dry before applyin' t' gloss finish. Ya scallywag! Blimey! This time could be a few days long dependin' on t' paint used. Aye aye! I found it an easy rocket t' build. T' only thin' I can think o' that is a problem is that t' inside edge o' t' fins can get slightly damaged by t' motor exhaust heat and may need t' be touched up a few times with paint. Avast, me proud beauty! I've had t' touch mine up with red paint two times already. Begad! This can be minimized by usin' a clothes pin on the launch rod t' give t' rocket a little more room betwixt t' blast deflection plate and t' bottom o' t' rocket.

Finishing:
Because t' sections o' t' rocket are finished separately, matey, and then assembled, t' painting o' this rocket is simple with no maskin' needed, me bucko, matey, except for maskin' off t' shoulder o' t' nose cone so it will fit inside t' body tube. Begad! Be careful when takin' t' tape off t' nosecone after paintin' it since it may have a tendency t' flake off on t' section you want t' keep red. Ahoy! Ahoy! Takin' t' maskin' tape off t' nosecone before t' paint is fully hard minimizes this I think. Aye aye! Aye aye! T' decals are nice and went on easily. Aye aye! Blimey! T' gloss paint finish will help keep them from peeling. I feel t' rocket looks pretty nice when finished. I modified me rocket by usin' a blue nylon parachute instead o' t' plastic one provided. Begad! I wanted t' treat this one a little special since it is one o' t' larger rockets in me fleet. With t' large body tube it will fit a nylon parachute easily. Ahoy! Begad!

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
T' recommended motors are t' D12-3 and t' D12-5. Ahoy! Begad! I've only flown it with D12-5's so far. For me, it gets decently high on t' D12-5. Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! It's hard for me t' tell where t' ejection is at t' apogee since it is so high. For all me flights, it has flown well and had soft landings. Arrr! I use both Estes and Quest wadding, usin' two sheets of Quest waddin' first, then about ten sheets o' Estes wadding. T' Quest waddin' is a little bigger and somewhat tougher than t' Estes.

Recovery:
I used 1/4 inch elastic for t' shock cord. For me rocket I used a longer length, I think about six foot long, matey, me hearties, t' avoid any problems with t' nosecone bouncin' back and hittin' t' rocket body durin' ejection. So far I have had no problems with t' nosecone hittin' t' rocket. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! T' fins seem t' get slightly damaged on t' inside edge by t' motor exhaust heat and may have t' be touched up periodically with paint (the paint seems t' bubble). After five flights t' finish is startin' t' show some wear from scratches. Blimey! T' parachute descent may be a bit slow, but is acceptable for me. Arrr! I've never timed it, but It flies so high it may need over a minute to come back to t' ground. Begad! It's just an estimate. Well, blow me down!

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
It's a great rocket. Ahoy! Aye aye! Blimey! T' assembly is easy, matey, paintin' is simple, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, and it flies straight and smooth. Well, blow me down! Well, blow me down! Blimey! It looks really nice once assembled. Aye aye! Blimey! On t' other hand, it only uses D12 motors, ya bilge rat, t' plastic which t' nosecone is made o' may cause t' paint t' flake off if you are nay careful, me hearties, shiver me timbers, and t' paint on t' inside edge o' t' fins may bubble from t' motor exhaust heat. Aye aye! On t' whole I really like this rocket and try t' fly it as much as possible.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5

Other:
Simple t' build and has a lot t' offer for t' price.