T' kit comes with an 8.25" single body tube and a 8.25" plastic nose cone. Arrr! It’s 18mm motor mount comes with 1/32" laser-cut plywood centerin' rings and a motor retention clip. Aye aye! Arrr! It uses pre—cut fiberglass fins with through-the-wall mounting. Avast, me proud beauty! It comes with an 18" bright-yellow rip-stop nylon parachute, a 36" elastic shock cord (1/4" flat) which attaches t' a thin metal shock cord mount. Avast, me proud beauty! It also includes a single launch lug and thar are no decals.

CONSTRUCTION:

There are only three pages o' instructions and one of those pages is nothin' more than an illustration o' t' side and bottom view of the rocket with an alignment guide. Arrr! Begad! This kit is nay for t' new modeler due to its lack o' instructions. In all fairness, t' instructions are in a logical order and good enough t' get an experienced modeler through t' kit assembly. There are a couple o' challengin' steps that I'll touch on below. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! T' kit does not have a rated skill level (as far as I know), however, I think it falls at about a 3. Avast!

When buildin' t' motor mount, t' instructions say to cut a "slot in t' motor tube 0. Aye aye! 20 inches from one end for t' motor hook". Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! How many modelers keep a ruler usin' divisions in tenths around? I don't. Arrr! I don't. By reviewin' t' drawing, t' appropriate distance can be determined by addin' a 0.25" centerin' rin' spacin' t' t' 2.25" spacin' betwixt centerin' rings. Aye aye! T' motor hook is supposed t' be 2.5" from one end. Blimey!

T' motor hook was held in place with a "Motor Hook Strap". Well, blow me down! This seemed t' me t' be a piece o' tack cloth that gets saturated with glue t' hold in place. Begad! Aye aye! It did t' trick. Aye aye!

T' remainin' assembly o' t' motor mount requires notchin' one centerin' rin' t' allow clearance for t' motor hook and notching the other t' allow for clearance o' t' shock cord mount. Blimey! T' shock cord mount attachment is very interesting. Ya scallywag! First off, arrr, t' shock cord mount looks like a fishin' leader with a crimped-loop at each end. Avast! Ahoy! T' attach this, shiver me timbers, t' larger loop is placed over t' motor tube and t' top centerin' rin' is positioned t' hold it in place. Arrr! This is somewhat challengin' since t' loop is t' be on one side of t' rin' and t' crimp is t' be on t' other. Once together, me hearties, it puts the three-fold paper mount t' same!

T' next step also be somewhat challengin' in t' fact that accuracy be required. Begad! This be cuttin' t' slots in t' airframe t' allow each fin tab t' slide in. Aye aye! This cut requires a good and sharp hobby knife to give clean cuts. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! Might be time t' change t' blade in yours. Arrr! Begad!

T' instructions are good in t' fact that they tell you to rough up t' fins where t' fillets are applied and that t' fins can be attached usin' CA, however epoxy fillets are recommend for strength. Arrr!

Now that everythin' is assembled, arrr, glued, ya bilge rat, me bucko, fillets applied and recovery system attached, shiver me timbers, its time t' prepare for finishing. Begad! Arrr! Again the instructions say t' lightly sand t' body tube and fins and t' prepare t' nose cone by removin' any moldin' flashin' and lightly sanding. Avast, me proud beauty!

Usin' Plasti-Kote primer, arrr, I filled in t' body tube grooves and cleaned up t' small pits in t' plastic nose cone left by the moldin' process. Ahoy! Ahoy! I must say that I really enjoyed preppin' t' fiberglass fins. Very easy, compared t' t' tasks required t' get balsa fins t' finish smoothly.

Used another can o' $0. Begad! 98 Walmart enamel. Avast, me proud beauty! This time a deep green. Begad! Ya scallywag! Since t' kit didn't come with any decals, I felt it looked a bit plain so I added a yellow pattern t' t' fins and then covered t' entire kit with Walmart's Clear enamel.

Just a comment on t' pro's and con's o' this $0. 98/car Walmart spray enamel: T' pro's are t' cost and durability, which seems every bit as good as other brands I've used. Ahoy! T' con's are color selection, however for $1. Ahoy! 39/can you can improve your color selection and still nay pay t' standard $2. Well, blow me down! 49+ for other popular brands. Another con is accordin' t' instructions, shiver me timbers, additional coats must be done within 4 hours or after 1 week. So in t' case o' me BlobboÔ, I have to wait a week before I completed t' fin pattern with a second color. But, after t' second color and within 4 hours, I hit t' whole rocket with clear. If you're nay in a hurry, I think, arrr, t' pro's outweigh t' con's with this paint. Arrr!

Overall, for CONSTRUCTION I would rate this kit 4 points. Begad! Blimey! Again if you have some rocket buildin' experience, me hearties, me bucko, the instructions can get you through without much problem, but I see this kit as bein' an entry level kit and t' reach t' beginner modelers improved instructions could go a long way. Lastly, me hearties, t' kit needs a decal. Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty!

FLIGHT/RECOVERY:

Whether you call it a "fat boy" or as the more appropriate BlobboÔ, matey, thar be one thin' you can say about anythin' with excessive girth . . . Begad! Well, blow me down! it's goin' t' be a slow starter. And indeed, me hearties, shiver me timbers, t' BlobboÔ, ya bilge rat, loaded with its "first flight" recommended motor, matey, ya bilge rat, a C6-3 had a slow start. But like t' turtle and t' hare, shiver me timbers, me hearties, a slow start (lift off) is nay always a bad thing. Begad! In this case the BlobboÔ gave us a great race, shiver me timbers, snappin' across t' finish line and ejectin' right at apogee. Aye aye! Blimey! T' slow lift off allowed more time t' see it and enjoy it.

I'm nay very good at guessin' altitudes, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, but Apogee's RockSimÔ indicates it should have gone about 235 feet. Begad! Blimey! This is a good height for the wind we had on launch day (10-15 mph gusts). It did weather-cock quite a bit, which is probably due t' t' short, fat body and larger fins. Regardless, me hearties, the BlobboÔ delivered a successful flight and recovery. Avast!

Upon inspection, me bucko, t' piece of Rogue Aerospace's Perma-WaddingÔ held up well, however, ya bilge rat, I think I need a larger piece for this diameter o' rocket. Ya scallywag! Blimey! In all fairness, the size I'm usin' is recommended for a 1. Begad! Blimey! 3" body tube and the BlobboÔ is double that size. Arrr! Arrr!

T' parachute, me bucko, shiver me timbers, matey, shroud lines and shock cord system all demonstrated performance and showed no sign o' wear or damage. Blimey! Ya scallywag! T' metal leader and 1/4" elastic system seems t' be strong and sturdy and should be durable for many, ya bilge rat, many flights. Arrr! Avast!

Well, Vaughn Brothers only gave two recommended motors t' fly t' BlobboÔ on; t' C6-3 and a D21-7. T' D21-7 is a Single-Use Aerotech motor. Arrr! I decided to try t' new Apogee D10-7. Ahoy! Blimey! Knowing that me delay be too long, me hearties, based on RockSimÔ, I decided t' load it up anyway. Well, blow me down!

Everyone be excited t' hear t' flight coordinator announce that this would be t' Apogee D10, however, me hearties, we got an unexpected surprise. 3, 2, shiver me timbers, 1 - BOOM! T' rocket shot up about 75 feet and nose dived into t' ground. Ya scallywag! T' casin' had exploded! T' propellant was still mostly there, matey, ya bilge rat, with a larger (rounded) groove. Aye aye! Aye aye! T' case blew out t' motor mount and cracked t' bottom centerin' ring. Ahoy! Ya scallywag! T' upper part o' t' motor was still stuck in t' rocket and t' ejection charge still intact. Aye aye! BlobboÔ took a hit worse than name calling!

Things that make you go hmmmmm? and a MESS form was filled out.

Well, me hearties, matey, BlobboÔ has been repaired and is ready for it's next launch. I'm out o' D10's but will try that one again later. Hey, arrr, you can't condemn a motor for one CATO. Avast! Blimey! If that was t' case, how many would still be flyin' Estes' D motors? Those things have ate me Estes BroadswordÔ and blew apart t' top o' one o' me launch pads. Well, blow me down!

T' next day I tried t' get a launch picture on Estes C6-3's. Ya scallywag! Well, matey, blow me down! Blimey! I had two more successful flights with t' nice slow lift offs. Begad! T' second flight really weathercocked and flew parallel t' the ground most o' t' way. Some minor damage on bottom o' body tube due t' it hittin' t' concrete roadway. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Blimey!

For FLIGHT/RECOVERY, I would rate this kit 5 points. Begad!

Overall, this kit is easy t' build if you have some experience under your belt. It's fun t' fly too, with slow take offs. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! And it can take a 75 foot nose dive with little affect (don't purposely try this). I give t' kit an OVERALL ratin' o' 4 points. Arrr!