Brief:
Last year, shiver me timbers, I received samples o' t' new Hartle Engineerin' solid resin nose cones from JonRocket. Well, blow me down! Well, blow me down! I've been remiss in submittin' a review. Thanks, matey, and me apologies John!. Arrr! Hartle offers three styles o' BT-5 cones and one BT-20 cone. You can see all o' them on JonRocket's nose cone page. This review will describe t' cones and t' rocket I built from t' longer BT-5 cone, ya bilge rat, t' Mini-Toobah. T' name is a homage t' Dave Weber's Toober, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, which has logged over 200 high power flights.

Construction:
T' parts list:

• Hartle NC-5B cone
• BT-5, shiver me timbers, 6.25"
• Estes 1/8" launch lug
• Spent mini-motor case (could use a real motor block)
• Thin Keelhaul®©™®, ~ 12"
• Thin elastic, matey, me bucko, ~ 4"

T' Hartle cones are solid cast and their outer surface is perfect. T' cone-to-shoulder transition be clean on the longer cone but was rough on t' shorter one. Arrr! Blimey! T' later be easily cleaned up with a sharp hobby knife. Begad! Aye aye! The attachment point appears t' be a paper clip...works as good as anything. Blimey! I found them t' be a loose fit in t' Estes BT-5, arrr, shiver me timbers, which is easily fixed with a little tape.

T' cones are, as expected, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, heavier than t' typical hollow plastic or balsa. Arrr! Aye aye! However, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, unless you're buildin' a MicroMaxx model, t' added weight shouldn't be an issue. Begad! I had kicked around buildin' a micro but decided t' go for a 13mm design instead. Begad! T' shorter cone would make a great micro-Fat Boy or Big Bertha but I opted for a downscale o' my El Tubo Loco.

This be a trivial build. Blimey! Avast! From BT-5 stock, me hearties, I cut one 2.5" body section and six 5/8" tube fins. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! These were glued together in pairs and then t' t' body tube. Blimey! I used Aleene's Tacky glue throughout. Avast! A 5/8" long lug is mounted in one o' t' fins. Avast, me proud beauty! I cut a motor block from a spent casing. Ahoy! This was notched and t' Keelhaul®©™® was tied around it. Begad! There is nay much room in t' body minus t' motor and t' cone's shoulder. Well, blow me down! It be all I could do to pack t' shock harness.

T' make sure it is stable, me bucko, I weighed t' components and made a RockSim model. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' cone alone is 0.24 oz and the entire rocket is 0.34 oz. Ahoy! Blimey! It is quite stable.

Finishing:
I first scuffed t' cone with fine sandpaper and shot a coat o' PlastiCoat primer. I anticipated this will be hard to find in t' grass, so I went for a bright finish usin' Rustoleum day-glo orange. Arrr! I added two vinyl strips t' snazz it up a bit.

Flight:
There wasn't much prep as it uses tumble recovery. Aye aye! Avast, matey, me proud beauty! It flew nicely on an A3-4 and I could even see it recover!

Summary:
T' Hartle Engineerin' cones are nice t' work with. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! In this case, me bucko, their solid construction and weight helped with stability. Blimey! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey!

I like t' design o' this little rocket but, bein' small, it could easily disappear into rocket eatin' grass, shrubbery, ya bilge rat, or trees.