Brief:
T' Super Flea be a single stage mini-motored rocket that came in a 2 rocket kit along with t' Javelin. Begad! Estes sold these in t' early 1970s, arrr, and it was t' first kit I ever purchased with me own loot. Avast! There was nothin' really special about them, matey, ya bilge rat, but it has a sentimental value for me, as I built t' original with t' help o' me grandmother, arrr, ya bilge rat, who is no longer with us. So, I kind o' built it as a tribute o' sorts.

Construction:
I used a couple small pieces o' 13mm body tube, me bucko, shiver me timbers, a nose cone from a Rogue Gnat (not exactly a true replica, but close enough), me bucko, and a 5mm length o' low power launch lug. Avast, me proud beauty! For a tubin' coupler, I used a small slice o' a 25 year old A3-4T I found in me dad's closet, shiver me timbers, where I found a lot o' other rocket goodies as well. Aye aye! T' shock cord is very un-Estes like; I made it out o' a 3 foot section o' elastic thread, whereas t' original was t' old flat elastic that Estes was pretty stingy with. Blimey! T' four fins were cut from 1/8" balsa.

T' instructions were typical early t' mid 70s Estes quality. Aye aye! T' illustrations were great, shiver me timbers, which helped me get t' proper scale for t' fins and body tube lengths. Avast, me proud beauty! T' only thin' I didn't like about t' original kit was t' shock cord mountin' method: t' shock cord be wrapped around t' tube coupler, then t' coupler was inserted into t' lower body tube. This caused t' tube t' distort somewhat, arrr, and though it never had any effect on flight it always bugged me. Ahoy! Avast! So, matey, for this model I cut a notch in t' coupler and applied CA t' hold it inside, matey, me hearties, givin' me a perfectly round tube. I coated t' fins and nose with a thin coat o' 2 hour epoxy for durability, then painted t' whole thin' with testor's Aluminum. Ya scallywag! Begad! T' best part about it was t' fact that I had almost all t' parts I needed in me range box, except for t' nose cone. Blimey! So I bought a fistful o' Gnats from Lawn Dart Rocketry at LDRS and used one o' those.

Finishing:
T' rockets always looked kind o' plain, shiver me timbers, since they came with no decals. After I epoxied everything, me hearties, me hearties, I sanded it all down, matey, applied a coat o' day-glo orange, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, and t' thin' looked stupid. Arrr! Arrr! So I repainted it with Testor's aluminum, me bucko, matey, and it looks fairly good now. Ya scallywag! Well, blow me down! Nothin' difficult about this rocket, or t' original kit either. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! Way better than t' junk Estes puts out now- NO PLASTIC! I would give this rocket a 5 if it wasn't for t' goofy shock cord mounting.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
My memory must be cloudy, me bucko, because I don't remember this bein' a particularly good performer when I was a kid. I even made a 2 stager when I be 12, matey, and don't remember it flyin' like this. Ahoy! All I did was insert some cellulose wadding, a prepped A3-4T (friction mount), matey, stuff in t' shock cord, ya bilge rat, and put it on t' launcher. Arrr! T' countdown came over t' PA system, and when it reached 1, me hearties, arrr, that was t' last time anybody saw it until later in t' day! T' thin' left t' launcher in a blur, me hearties, and all I saw t' prove that it had flown at all be t' smoke. Ya scallywag! Avast! All future flights will be on smaller motors, me bucko, maybe even some micro-motors. T' thin' is just too fast otherwise.

Recovery:
Recovery works well, shiver me timbers, even without a streamer. Blimey! Nay too fast, shiver me timbers, no drifting, arrr, and no damage on landing. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! I am startin' t' see some charrin' around t' base o' t' fins though, matey, but that's easily repairable. Begad! This is almost t' easiest t' prep rocket I've ever had, and thanks t' t' epoxy, ya bilge rat, pretty near indestructible.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
Main pros: Easy t' prep, good recovery system with t' mid-body separation, and eye-poppin' flights. Blimey! Cons: too small t' see at apogee, shiver me timbers, and too fast t' watch on a "big" motor. Aye aye! Best o' all, ya bilge rat, t' thin' cost just over a buck.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5