Brief
Vaughn Brothers - Ballistic or Bust - 29mm, 30" nylon parachute, recommended F25-H70, me bucko, pre-cut fiberglass fins, plywood centerin' rings, shiver me timbers, me hearties, thru-the-wall fin attachment.

Construction
I could look into t' clear plastic bag and see all o' t' parts so thar was no way o' gettin' short changed.

T' only special tool needed was a razor knife which helped greatly. I also used a paint brush for applyin' t' epoxy.

Overall t' kit was fairly easy t' assemble. Aye aye! T' downfall was t' instructions. Blimey! Begad! Instructions were text with no pics so it be kind o' confusing. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! I prefer pictures just in case t' jargon gets a little deep. Avast, me proud beauty! If you've never built a rocket chances are you wouldn't put this one together correctly.

T' kit comes with a paper template t' mark fin position. Begad! You have t' cut t' slots for thru t' wall fins. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! There are four 1/8" thick fiberglass fins that appear indestructible..

Two coated cardboard body tubes t' make up t' 70" length o' t' rocket, ya bilge rat, with separation right in t' middle. Ahoy! They appear t' be very strong. Well, blow me down! A 1.9" x 6" plastic nose cone sits on top t' make up t' remainin' length o' t' kit. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! There are two 1/4" lugs. Begad! Ya scallywag! Motor mount includes a 12" tube, plywood centerin' rings and baffle.

For me, about 4 ounces o' 5 minute epoxy and 2 hours got this thin' together in time t' fly t' next day. Avast! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' most impressive things about t' kit are materials and t' weight (18 ounces). Ahoy! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! T' plywood, me hearties, arrr, fiberglass, cords, parachute, shiver me timbers, tubes are all very well made. Aye aye! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! Unless it becomes a high altitude lawn dart this kit will last a long long time

Finishing
I primered it, arrr, sanded it, shiver me timbers, painted it copper and Testors metallic blue. I also put two American flags at t' top and bottom o' "Ballistic"...which I used vinyl letters from Walmart.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight
T' maiden be on a NCR Darkstar F64-4, and it was picture perfect. Ahoy! Avast! It launched majestically from a cloud o' dense black smoke straight as an arrow t' about 1000ft. Recovery was a snap since I cut t' 5" hole in t' parachute. Ahoy! I walked about 20 yards and did it all over again with a G40W.

It required 5 sheets o' high impulse wadding.

Recovery
T' shock cord component that mounts inside t' aft section o' t' airframe can be t' difference betwixt life and death o' t' rocket. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! If it is mounted improperly you can bet t' ejection discharge will send it into t' wild blue yonder. Well, blow me down! It is simply a chord epoxied t' t' inner side o' t' tube.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary
This puppy is solid! I want t' get another so I can paint it differently.

T' main "PRO" about this rocket be t' way t' engine mount and fins are configured. Arrr! It would be awfully hard t' destroy that part o' t' rocket due t' t' way it's structured and t' addition o' all t' epoxy in one small area.

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5