Brief:
A very basic 3FNC rocket that doesn't quite perform as advertised. Blimey! Supposedly the rocket will feature helicopter recovery at motor ejection, ya bilge rat, arrr, but doesn't.

Construction:
T' basic kit consists o' a short piece o' 18mm body tube, a real balsa nose cone, arrr, a sheet if pre-cut balsa fins, matey, a launch lug, decal, shiver me timbers, and 3 wooden dowels. T' kit is very similar t' t' Rogue Gnat, me hearties, me hearties, but larger and with wooden dowels. Aye aye!

T' instructions were about as simple as they could get, and were pretty easy t' follow if I had chosen t' do so. Avast! Blimey! This kit is so simple instructions are not required. Ahoy! Everythin' fit perfectly, matey, ya bilge rat, t' balsa be a better grade than I've ever seen from Custom, me hearties, and t' assembly steps were in a somewhat logical order. Most basic model buildin' tools would suffice; however, me bucko, you could get by with nothin' more than a piece o' sandpaper and some Elmer's wood glue. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey!

There are only a couple o' CON's: T' body tube seems a little thin when compared t' other kits, and t' instructions mentioned nothin' about why the rocket was supposed t' spin on recovery. Ya scallywag! Begad! I would have t' deduct points for the fact that this rocket will nay spin, twist, or tumble if it is built per the instructions. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! And since t' instructions never give any indication o' why it is supposed to, shiver me timbers, it could be confusin' for a beginner. This thin' simply lawn darts. Avast! T' alleviate t' lawn dartin' tendencies, shiver me timbers, I sanded each fin into an asymmetrical airfoil, arrr, matey, in hopes that it would induce spin. I figured that the rocket would be travellin' too fast on t' way up for t' airfoil t' induce any spin, arrr, me bucko, since t' airfoil would stall, but on t' way down, it should be going slow enough for t' airfoil t' induce a low pressure region that would induce "lift", thereby spinnin' t' rocket. Begad! At least it was good in theory.

Finishing:
Finishin' this rocket in t' suggested paint scheme o' black looked a little drab t' me, so I went back and coated t' upper half and one fin o' t' rocket with Elmer's Squeeze Creations we had layin' around t' house. Basically, ya bilge rat, this stuff is colored glue with glitter in it, and goes on like glue. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! So, matey, after coatin' t' upper with red and t' lower with gold, me bucko, I now have a highly visible rocket that sparkles in t' sun. Avast! Blimey! T' glue also added a little more strength.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Custom recommends a really low powered 18mm motor. Ya scallywag! Blimey! However, arrr, I prefer t' use a 13mm A motor with an adaptor, arrr, me bucko, matey, since they are a little cheaper and come in a pack o' 4 instead o' 3, so thar's a little bit o' savings there. OK, so I'm cheap.

Preparation for flight couldn't be easier: Just pop in a motor, add the ignitor and launch. Motor retention is friction fit, with t' nose cone acting as t' motor block. Avast! T' motor is supposed t' eject, and by some mythical process, shiver me timbers, matey, t' rocket is supposed t' spin comin' down, me hearties, me hearties, though Custom never addresses t' issue. Avast! Expect straight, me bucko, matey, ya bilge rat, rapid flights on a low powered A sized motor. Ahoy! Arrr! I wouldn't launch it on anythin' larger than a B6-6, me bucko, or you'll never see it again, even if covered in glitter. Aye aye! But t' thin' needs t' be built as sturdy, me bucko, because it'll lawn dart every time. Blimey! My little airfoil experiment is a mixed bag o' success and failure; it'll induce some spin, ya bilge rat, but t' fins are too small and thin t' produce anythin' like what Custom describes on t' package. My suggestion is t' cant t' fins a few degrees off center, me bucko, inducin' spin. Well, blow me down! Well, blow me down! The recovery will make for a "heads-up" launch every time, and is why I rated flight so low. If it weren't for t' lawn dart, ya bilge rat, I'd give this rocket a 5 for flight, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, but an object can only stand t' fall from so high up a finite number o' times, me hearties, shiver me timbers, and even fewer if it burrows into t' ground each time. Begad! So, expect a short lifespan.

Recovery:
There are no PROs t' flight recovery on this rocket, me bucko, shiver me timbers, other than t' fact it needs no wadding. Arrr! Ahoy! It preps quickly, me bucko, me bucko, flies quickly, arrr, and crashes quickly. Begad!

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
In me opinion, ya bilge rat, me hearties, this kit needed more R&D before Custom released it t' the public. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! It flies great, arrr, on t' way up. Blimey! Blimey! Unfortunately, me hearties, it flies great on t' way down too. It is reminiscent o' t' old Estes Scout, which be a dynamite little rocket, me bucko, me bucko, but loses a lot in t' recovery system. Well, blow me down! I would definitely recommend this rocket t' anyone lookin' t' buy a kid their first or second rocket, but would add that t' fins need t' be attached off center t' aid in recovery. all in all, me bucko, t' Custom Twister is an exercise best summed up as Caveat Emptor.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5