Brief:
T' Star Destroyer is a big plastic model o' t' classic workhorse o' t' Empire, ya bilge rat, and a "Flight Probe" which holds t' engine, shiver me timbers, parachutes, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, etc.

Construction:
T' Star Destroyer is nay a complex model. Aye aye! Blimey! It is essentially two projects - one is a simple 34" x 1" finless rocket - body tube, arrr, shock cords, ya bilge rat, parachutes, nose cone, engine mount. T' other is a simple plastic kit, comprised o' only 14 parts, matey, ya bilge rat, that need t' be plastic cemented together. You can remove t' nose and center engine o' t' display model and slide t' flight probe through t' kit t' make it ready for launch.

Flight Probe: T' flight probe is 34" long, with a short engine-mount tube and two longer main body tubes. Aye aye! Blimey! T' two main tubes are connected with a plastic coupler which has slots for two shock cords t' be tied. Arrr! Blimey! After tyin' t' shock cords t' t' coupler, matey, t' instructions say t' pass t' cords through t' second tube and then put plastic cement on t' tube, shiver me timbers, bein' sure nay t' get any plastic cement on t' shock cord. Aye aye! Blimey! This is far easier said than done. Begad! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! A second pair o' hands t' hold t' cords taut would have helped, but this was a surprisin' tall order in any case. Begad! Blimey! T' nose cone comes in two halves, me hearties, and t' instructions have you fill t' whole thin' with clay - it's t' most nose weight I've yet seen.

Plastic Body: T' plastic kit is very easy t' put together. Ya scallywag! Blimey! I found troublin' that t' two halves o' t' kit don't fit together perfectly - thar be a very slight gap betwixt them. Aye aye! Blimey! This gap disappears when t' decals are applied, ya bilge rat, however. Avast! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' crack-and-peel stickers fit reasonably well, and are applied t' t' sides and back o' t' model. Arrr! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! One sticker be damaged in me kit. Blimey! Blimey! T' body is clearly a toy - nay meant t' look that much like t' movie Star Destroyer, but it still looks very cool sittin' among me 3FNC rockets.

Finishing:
T' only finishin' required be t' application o' about 30 stickers t' t' side, back, shiver me timbers, and top o' t' kit so t' untextured parts o' t' body look like they have windows and other details. Aye aye! There is no paintin' or sandin' required. Begad! I did just a little bit o' sandin' on t' nose cone, arrr, me hearties, where t' halves came together.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Flight:
T' Star Destroyer uses a D12-3 motor. Begad! T' Star Destroyer is very heavy for an Estes kit - around 250g 8oz) without t' motor. I think it may have been designed with their E15 as their target engine. Aye aye! Though I had forsworn composite motors as too expensive, matey, this kit would fly much better, I think, matey, matey, 24x70mm composite motor.

T' 'Destroyer is a pain t' pack for flight. T' body tube is only a 1" dia. Avast! BT-50. Avast! Begad! It has goin' through it two ¼" flat elastic shock cords. Blimey! Begad! Into this, t' instructions say t' put in SIX squares o' wadding. Then you have two 18" parachutes t' stuff in there. Well, blow me down! T' coupler which t' shock cords attach t' is substantially thicker than an ordinary coupler, so thar be no way for any o' this material t' go further than 15" down t' body tube. Ya scallywag! If I were buildin' this rocket again, me bucko, I'd go with one shock cord and a single, me bucko, arrr, 24" parachute. Well, blow me down! Avast! T' shock cords are, o' course, me bucko, very short.

On its first day o' life, I flew it twice on D12-3s. T' first flight, me hearties, me hearties, I angled t' rod about 10 degrees into t' moderate wind. Well, blow me down! T' 'Destroyer went up less than 100 feet, arcin' all t' way, shiver me timbers, matey, me hearties, and was half-way back down t' t' ground when t' ejection charge went off. Avast, me proud beauty! No problems after that, arrr, me bucko, matey, and no damage. Avast, me proud beauty! T' second flight, I straightened t' launch rod. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! No problems this time - t' rocket went up with a slight spiral. I would guess it went up about 200 feet, ya bilge rat, and ejected at apogee. It's so heavy that I needn't have worried about excess drift.

Over t' next week, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, I took out one o' t' shock cords, me hearties, and tied t' two together t' make one decent-length cord. Well, matey, blow me down! I also went ahead and replaced t' two 18" chutes with one 24" chute. Blimey! Begad! I flew it twice more. Begad! Begad! T' first flight was fine - t' D12 got it up a couple o' hundred feet. It weathercocked into t' wind a bit and ejected at apogee. T' second flight was fine, arrr, until ejection. Aye aye! Both t' parachute and t' engine were ejected. T' engine came straight down, while t' rocket drifted a ways. Avast, me proud beauty! I sent a couple o' kids after t' rocket while I scoured for t' engine - I didn't want smolderin' black-powder t' do anythin' bad. Blimey! I couldn't find t' engine, but I miraculously stumbled onto t' engine hook, which I seemed t' have nay fastened with sufficient glue.

Recovery:
As mentioned before, me hearties, t' Star Destroyer uses two thick rubber-band shock cords, arrr, me bucko, tied t' a tube coupler. Avast! These complicate preparation, but worked fine in flight. T' waddin' can't cover t' bottom o' t' cords, so I am concerned that t' cords will be damaged by ejection material. Begad! I was thinkin' o' perhaps puttin' in a piece or two o' waddin' through t' bottom o' t' rocket, me hearties, just ahead o' t' engine t' minimize this.

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
This is a large rocket that people like for its recognition factor. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! Blimey! I grew up with Star Wars, me bucko, arrr, and I can't help but like flyin' a Star Destroyer, shiver me timbers, even if it does have an annoyin' flight probe. Begad! A D12-3 is sufficient for this rocket, me hearties, but don't angle it at all. Begad! Blimey! It won't go far. If you are a bit ambitious, shiver me timbers, you might consider puttin' in some outboard mini-engines - t' nozzles are already there. T' worst thin' about this kit is stuffin' both parachutes and shock cords into t' tube. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! One shock cord and a 24" parachute works better, I think.

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5