Brief:
This rocket, matey, arrr, which as yet had no name when I was asked t' test it, is part o' an education series designated t' teach rocketry. Aye aye! Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! It is a simple kit but achieves its aims well, providin' an introduction t' such topics as baffles, me hearties, motor selection, shiver me timbers, changin' CP/CG relationships, etc.

Construction:
Construction begins with t' buildin' o' t' 24mm motor mount. Ya scallywag! A slit is made t' accommodate t' engine hook and t' hook is inserted and secured with tape. Blimey! Aye aye! A thrust rin' is inserted in t' forward end o' t' motor mount and seated against t' engine hook. Well, blow me down! Arrr! Mine be a bit loose but nothin' out o' t' ordinary. Blimey! Ahoy! T' glue will easily keep it in place. Blimey! Havin' t' glue still wet on t' thrust rin' be no impediment t' mountin' t' centerin' rings. Well, blow me down! They easily slid into place and were glued and filleted with yellow glue.

T' motor mount was given a few hours t' dry and then test fit into t' body tube. Ya scallywag! A little sandin' was needed on both rings and then t' motor mount be secured and glued into place with t' aft centerin' rin' flush with t' end o' t' tube.

I used a fin markin' template generated in VCP but am assured that t' production model o' t' kit will include a similar wrap. Begad! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! With t' wrap, it be an easy matter t' transfer t' correct lines t' t' body tube. Arrr! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! T' fins were high quality balsa which almost fell out o' t' sheets. Aye aye! Blimey! I gave a gentle roundin' t' t' leading, trailing, and outside edges with sandpaper. Avast! Blimey! Its nay a real airfoil but done mostly (in me case) for cosmetic reasons.

T' fins were applied usin' a double glue joint and yellow glue. They went on flush with t' aft end o' t' BT. Arrr! Blimey! When dried, fillets were applied t' each o' t' joints.

T' launch lug had its forward edge cut at an angle and be then glued with its back edge 6" from t' back o' t' rocket.

T' nosecone is somethin' I really like about this rocket. Well, blow me down! Blimey! It had a long and pleasin' shape and was o' high quality. It was also clever.

Instead o' insertin' t' screw eye in t' center, as is usually done, ya bilge rat, t' instructions said t' offset it one one side. This be done and t' screw was set in yellow glue. Aye aye! Ahoy! With t' screw eye in place t' one side, I chose a drill bit that had t' approximate diameter o' t' plastic wall anchor that came in t' kit. Aye aye! Begad! I twisted it betwixt me fingers t' drill a hole long enough t' accommodate t' anchor and then squirted t' hole with yellow glue. Avast! T' anchor be then pushed in all t' way and t' washer and screw provided in t' kit were threaded in. Begad! Avast! T' purpose for this was t' give an easy way t' add washers as weight so that t' rocketeer can experiment with CG/CP relationships. Ya scallywag! I think this is great!

T' kit comes with a baffle that uses plywood for t' baffle plates. A notch is cut into t' edge o' t' top plate t' accommodate a Keelhaul®©™ thread looped through one o' t' holes and tied. Aye aye! Both sides o' t' baffle plate were given healthy fillets and t' plate surfaces as well as t' interior o' t' coupler tube were painted with glue t' provide some protection. Begad! Begad! When t' glue was dry, t' baffle be glued into place about 6" down t' BT.

PROs: Well thought out, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, into t' new areas o' rocket construction for beginners, me hearties, matey, and logical and easy t' build.

CONs: none.

Finishing:
Finishin' began with sealin' t' balsa. T' nose cone and t' fins were coated with Elmer's Wood Filler and allowed t' dry.

When t' filler had a day t' dry, it was sanded down. Blimey! T' balsa was in good shape so needed little extra. Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! T' sanded rocket was put in t' spray booth and primed with Kilz. Avast, me proud beauty! A few hours later, it received a second coat.

I really had very little idea o' how I wanted t' paint this rocket. Arrr! Blimey! I'm nay very creative that way. Well, blow me down! Blimey! While lookin' around t' shop, I saw a can o' fluorescent pink that had never been opened. Well, me bucko, blow me down! Blimey! It was sittin' next t' a couple o' others which gave me an idea. Aye aye! Blimey! I sanded down t' Kilz and then gave it a coat o' pink. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! It would need another.

In fact, me bucko, it took a total o' three coats o' t' fluorescent pink t' get decent coverage and you can still see a bit o' a pencil line, matey, but I was finally pleased with t' resultin' color.

To contrast with t' hot pink, I wanted t' use a light blue for t' nose cone. Aye aye! I also left a rin' around t' BT for about 3/8" below t' NC. Aye aye! I also taped all but one fin so that that one will match t' NC.

For some reason, I wanted t' differentiate t' other two fins. Arrr! Blimey! I decided on a dark/medium blue. Avast! Blimey! T' other two fins were uncovered and t' base be masked t' take t' medium blue o' t' other 2 fins. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! T' fins were thin sprayed with 2 coats.

When t' maskin' finally came off, I was inordinately pleased. Avast! I liked t' looks o' t' rocket and it reminded me o' a locally made candy from when I was a kid. Avast, me proud beauty! I'm callin' it t' Kool Peppermint.

PROs: easy t' finish.

CONs: a decal or somethin' would be nice t' keep it from lookin' generic.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
I missed lots o' flight opportunities with this rocket before actually takin' it out. Aye aye! Somethin' always seemed t' go wrong. When I did finally get it out t' t' field, I decided t' enter it into me club's informal D streamer duration contest. I loaded a pair o' 4" streamers from Hartle Engineerin' and put in a D12-3. I set it on t' pad and made sure t' timers were ready. It took off and flew brilliantly. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! One o' t' streamers came off but it still turned in t' respectable time o' 39.6 seconds. Avast! A video o' t' flight can be seen here.

For me second flight, shiver me timbers, arrr, I replaced t' second streamer and found somebody who be willin' t' sell me a D12-5. T' rocket again flew beautifully and clocked an almost identical time. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! Havin' t' extra streamer did no good. A video o' t' second flight can be seen here.

I got off one more flight, this one again on a D12-5. Begad! This time I borrowed Dave Hein's streamer and that added 5 seconds t' t' time and put me in second place, except that we agreed that this flight would nay officially count. Ya scallywag! It was a good flight but unfortunately t' Kestrel popped a fin on a hard landing.

Recovery:
This rocket is intended t' be used with a parachute but performed well with a streamer. Well, blow me down! It probably should use t' chute, especially in light o' me broken fin, me hearties, but I am very happy with its performance.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
This is a great learnin' rocket that's nay very difficult t' build. Begad! I can easily see it bein' a great classroom rocket as well. Ahoy! It might be a 3FNC but its a very well designed one.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5