Brief:
Accordin' t' me records, me bucko, arrr, me Refit USS Atlantis has been sittin' in me build pile for about a year. Blimey! That jives with my memory. Begad! It be one o' t' first kits I ordered and it has been intimidatin' me ever since. Well, blow me down! I really wanted t' build it but I wanted it t' look good too. Finally, I decided t' give it a try, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, nay because I think I can do it justice but because I want it so bad. Aye aye! Ahoy! Besides, I'll never develop t' skills if I don't actually try.

Construction:
Construction on this one started out as all such projects should but too many do not. Avast! I gave t' instructions a thorough reading. Begad! That certainly ratcheted up t' intimidation factor. Ahoy! Don't get me wrong, shiver me timbers, t' instructions are well written, me hearties, very thorough and chock full o' helpful hints and tips, but they did confirm that this be goin' t' be an intensive build.

T' first actual build step be t' buildin' o' t' motor mount. Ahoy! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! I made t' motor tube as directed, located the centerin' rings and engine hook and came t' a screechin' halt. I searched through t' bag and t' instructions and found no mention o' a thrust ring. Neither did I find t' actual ring. Blimey! Blimey! It may nay be needed but, I like them. Blimey! Blimey! I have a few rockets that have omitted them and always notice wear where t' engine hook is used as t' sole means o' blocking the motor. Begad! Blimey! Accordingly, I cut a rin' off o' a spent Estes E motor and used that as a thrust ring, ya bilge rat, mountin' it with yellow glue and spacin' it with a spent D casing.

With t' thrust rin' in place, matey, me hearties, me hearties, I cut t' slit for t' engine hook and then glued on t' three centerin' rings. T' forward and aft rings each have a notch. Aye aye! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! T' forward one allows passin' o' a Keelhaul®©™® thread and t' aft one accommodates t' engine hook. Aye aye! T' middle rin' has no notch and is located at t' midpoint. Aye aye! The end rings were mounted flush with t' ends o' t' motor tube and all were secured and filleted with yellow glue.

After t' glue on t' motor mount is dry, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, t' instructions call for t' fittin' o' a Keelhaul®©™® harness around t' motor tube. Blimey! T' end o' t' Keelhaul®©™® is then fed through a notch in t' centerin' ring. Begad! Begad! Blimey! Instead o' doin' this, I decided t' add a baffle system and anchor the recovery system t' that. Begad! Ahoy! Blimey! I chose a FlisKits BAF-55.

Since thar was no recovery system associated with t' motor mount t' worry about, matey, t' next step was t' actually install t' motor mount into t' main body tube. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! It was secured in place with yellow glue and with t' aft rin' flush with t' aft end o' t' tube.

T' kit came with a wraparound fin markin' guide. Begad! Blimey! I generally prefer these t' t' end alignment guides that some favor. Arrr! Blimey! Sirius has gone a step further than most o' t' competition though. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! Theirs is printed on its own sheet. You do not have t' butcher t' instructions t' use t' guide.

I cut t' guide out (you still have t' do a little trimming) and wrapped it around t' BT. Begad! Arrr! I aligned t' belly centerline with t' engine hook and taped t' guide an 1/8" forward o' t' end. Avast, matey, me proud beauty! I then transferred t' lines to the BT and labeled them. I slid t' guide off for t' time being, arrr, as it would be needed again in a later step, shiver me timbers, and all of t' lines were extended t' length o' t' BT usin' a door frame for alignment.

With t' lines extended, shiver me timbers, I again slipped t' wraparound guide onto t' BT and ensured that its marks lined up with those on t' tube. Ya scallywag! This time t' guide was taped in place flush with t' end o' t' tube. Arrr! T' purpose for putting it back on was t' use it t' cut t' slots for t' warp engine pylons.

T' ensure t' cuts would be straight, I taped a steel ruler along one o' t' lines for t' cutout. Then using multiple passes, me bucko, me bucko, a razor knife was used t' cut t' BT. Begad! You must be careful nay t' cut too deep and penetrate t' motor tube. Well, blow me down! When one line was cut, I repositioned t' ruler and cut another. Finally, shiver me timbers, all that be left was t' very short cut at either end o' t' slots. Avast! Aye aye! I cut these by simply insertin' t' razor knife until its width completed t' slices. These are by far t' straightest cuts I have made in a tube t' date. Arrr! Avast! T' guide was then removed.

T' first o' t' fins t' go in place be t' belly fin. Aye aye! It is actually composed o' 3 pieces o' plywood. T' first central piece be t' largest and has a notch in t' leadin' edge t' accommodate a dowel. Ya scallywag! T' other two pieces have the same lower profile but only extend t' just above t' slot for t' dowel. Taken together, they form a slot for the dowel.

T' center fin is installed first. Well, blow me down! I used a needle t' prick a set o' holes along t' line it was t' be mounted on. Blimey! This be so that t' glue could form "rivets" that penetrate t' BT. Ahoy! I then put some yellow glue on the root edge o' t' fin, me bucko, pressed it place and immediately removed it. Ahoy! I then let both glue trails dry so that I could form the double glue joint. Begad! Ahoy! When dry, arrr, I applied some more glue t' t' root edge and carefully placed t' fin. Blimey! The instructions warn that you should nay try t' form a fillet at this point.

T' reason you are warned nay t' fillet t' fin yet is that t' two outer pieces still have t' be applied. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! When the fin was dry, I applied glue t' t' interior face o' t' outer piece and t' root edge and pressed it into place on the central fin. I noticed that both o' me side pieces were ever so slightly warped and did nay want t' sit flat against t' central piece. I could find none o' t' clamps that are hidden around t' disaster area I call a workshop but I did notice t' battery leads t' me battery charger. Avast! They did t' clampin' just fine.

T' battery clamps came off after a day and it was time t' insert t' wooden dowel antenna into t' pocket formed by t' two side pieces and t' center piece. Begad! Ahoy! It was glued in place with yellow glue and periodically checked t' make sure that t' dowel be aligned with t' BT and parallel t' t' BT.

T' dowel antenna was followed by two rounded decks, one on either side o' t' tail assembly. Ahoy! They too were fixed in place with yellow glue.

Another, arrr, me hearties, longer dowel is provided as an antenna that sits on t' tail assembly. Begad! This was put in place with yellow glue. Ya scallywag! Note well t' side that t' instructions have you mark: I marked as indicated and then made an "assumption" and glued it on backwards. Avast! Fortunately, me bucko, me hearties, I discovered me mistake before it has set up and was able t' correct it.

T' dish antenna is up next. Avast! It is an oval disk with a notch in one side t' accommodate t' first dowel antenna mentioned above. Begad! T' disk is glued t' t' 3 layered tail assembly and helps t' support t' dowel.

All o' t' wood assembly up t' this point had been fairly easy, but I be worried about t' next step: inserting the fin/engine pylons. Blimey! These were t' go in t' slots I had cut earlier. Ya scallywag! I be confident that t' slots were in the right place but was worried about alignment. Begad! T' engine hook was nay perfectly centered in t' slot o' t' centering rin' and when I had sighted along t' tube, ya bilge rat, t' asymmetry tended t' throw off me perceptions. Begad! This rocket would not work in me Art Rose fin jig so I had t' do it by eye.

I decided t' use 5 minute epoxy for this step and do t' pylons one at a time. Aye aye! Accordingly, shiver me timbers, I mixed a small batch and began t' ladle it into t' slot. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! I then inserted t' pylon and did me best t' ensure it be at t' proper angle to the tail assembly. When t' epoxy had set, I mixed another batch and did t' same for t' other side. Ya scallywag! When both had set, I mixed a third batch and used it t' fillet t' joint with t' outer BT. Avast! They turned out t' be easier than I had feared.

After t' pylons were in place, I turned t' what I thought would be another easy section, me hearties, arrr, t' two side decks. There was nothin' really difficult about them except that thar be a slight bow in t' wood. Avast! Begad! One is applied t' each side o' t' BT. Blimey! For this, ya bilge rat, I used a safety pin t' drill rivet holes along t' application line and put them on with a double glue joint o' yellow glue. I actually started at one end and held that in place until t' deck would nay move. When stable, I gently bend t' wood t' apply some more glue and then set t' remainder in place, holdin' it until it was dry. T' process be repeated on t' opposite side. Avast! It turned out nay t' be difficult, matey, but it was tedious.

From t' side decks I turned t' a simpler task, shiver me timbers, however, it was t' first one involvin' any o' t' vacuum formed parts. Well, blow me down! T' top deck is plywood and extends most o' t' length o' t' BT. On t' deck, me bucko, however, shiver me timbers, is mounted t' bridge, reminiscent o' t' bridge o' t' Star Trek Enterprise. Avast, me proud beauty! This is vacuum formed plastic.

T' instructions suggest that you use a sharp pencil t' trace around t' vacuum formed parts. Ahoy! Well, blow me down! This makes it much easier t' see t' line along which cuttin' should occur. Blimey! I then used an X-Acto knife and made about 4 passes t' get the part cut out. Avast, me proud beauty! Sandpaper was used t' clean up t' edges and t' make sure o' a flat mountin' surface. Aye aye! T' bridge was then mounted t' t' wood with a very small application o' tube type plastic cement.

In addition t' t' two dowels provides for t' tail assembly, arrr, matey, shiver me timbers, thar are 2 more long ones t' serve as conduit. These were easily applied along t' marked lines with yellow glue.

T' launch lugs came next. T' kit actually came with one and instructions t' cut it into a longer segment and a shorter one. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! T' shorter one was then glued in place at t' back o' one o' t' side decks and t' longer one in place even with t' aft end o' one o' t' conduit dowels.

By t' time t' lugs were in place, shiver me timbers, t' bridge be sufficiently dry so that t' top deck could be glued into place. Ya scallywag! I again drilled rivet holes along t' length o' t' alignment line and glued it in place with yellow glue.

T' warp pods o' t' engine derive their strength from a pair o' body tubes glued together inside o' each pod. Each pair consists o' a shorter and a longer tube. Aye aye! Blimey! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! Blimey! Each pair is glued together with t' forward edges aligned. Begad! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! Yellow glue was used.

T' vacuum formed warp pods were cut out in t' same manner as t' bridge and sanded likewise. Aye aye! A pair o' the tubes be then set in place in t' plastic and glued with a small bit o' tube type cement. When dry, arrr, t' opposite side of t' pod was glued on with liquid type plastic cement.

Then came t' most tedious part o' t' whole build. Begad! Blimey! T' edges o' t' pods were sanded down. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Periodically, this would "break into" t' glue joint and t' assembly would have more o' t' liquid cement applied and tape would be put on t' hold it closed until it dried. Then t' whole process would be repeated over and over again until the join lines disappeared. Avast! Blimey! Eventually, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, I got t' t' point where I did nay want t' remove any more material but still had some fairin' t' do and putty be used t' build these places up. That resulted in even more sanding.

When I be satisfied with t' pods, I needed t' cut t' slots for t' pylons. Well, blow me down! An X-Acto blade was used in multiple passes t' cut out t' plastic. T' process was continued until t' tubes were broached and cut as well.

T' warp engine pods were attached t' t' pylons with 5 minute epoxy. I did one side at a time and mixed a small batch. Begad! This be ladled into t' slot on t' pod so that it would clin' t' t' area where t' pylon would hit the opposite wall o' t' tube. Aye aye! T' pylon was then slid into t' slot and held straight until t' epoxy set up. Begad! Another small batch o' epoxy was then mixed and used t' fillet t' joint betwixt t' pylon and t' outer edge o' t' pod. Avast! When dry, me bucko, shiver me timbers, arrr, t' opposite side o' t' same pod was filleted and t' entire process was repeated for t' opposite engine.

PROs: Nay as difficult as it looks...and it looks great.

CONs: Vacuum formed plastic takes some time t' get used t' workin' with, but it can be done.

Finishing:
Finishin' o' this model actually started durin' construction. Ya scallywag! Blimey! As t' plywood pieces were assembled, me hearties, they were sealed with balsa filler coat with rounds o' light sanding. This resulted in an exceptionally smooth finish after t' fifth coat. I decided nay t' try and fill t' spirals, arrr, although I very much appreciated t' advice for a good way t' do so in the instructions because they were barely visible. Begad! Blimey! T' quality o' t' tubes be excellent. Begad! Blimey! T' nosecone was a little rough and I started off by usin' some balsa filler coat on that as well. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! After 2 coats, ya bilge rat, however, it was apparent that it would need many more and I sped things up with Elmer's Wood Filler. Ahoy! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! With that, me hearties, me bucko, me hearties, I thought I was ready t' prime using Kilz. I figured t' Kilz would fill in any spiral that might be visible.

Accordingly, I set t' Atlantis up in t' booth and me first problem became readily apparent with t' first coatin' o' Kilz. Ahoy! T' Kilz brought out a few hairline cracks in t' joints betwixt t' sides o' t' plastic warp pods. I realized right away that I needed some more filler.

T' second problem became apparent as I went back t' me desk and started rummagin' around waitin' for t' Kilz to dry. Aye aye! Blimey! I found a pair o' parts I had forgotten t' install. These were 2 plywood rails that are applied t' t' bottom of the warp pods. Begad! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! I immediately began t' seal them with filler coat.

When t' Kilz had dried, I gave t' rocket a sandin' and then applied t' 2 rails with 5 minute epoxy. Arrr! I also applied putty t' t' cracks.

When t' putty was dry, arrr, ya bilge rat, I had t' sand it down smooth. T' result be ugly but t' finish was smooth. Begad! Begad! After painting, I felt it should look very good.

T' rocket be then put back in t' booth and given another coat o' Kilz. Aye aye! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! It was then sanded some more.

After sanding, shiver me timbers, t' entire rocket be sprayed with a light coat o' Rustoleum Silver Metallic. Begad! After t' first coat, arrr, you could barely tell that t' rocket had been painted--it puts out a very fine mist. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! That was fine with me. Every few hours, ya bilge rat, or when I could get back t' t' shop, ya bilge rat, I would give it another coat and it did build up over time. Begad! Aye aye! A total o' six coats were applied but they are more like 2 "normal" coats.

After I thought I be finished with t' silver paint, ya bilge rat, I looked more closely and found that thar were some unpainted places in t' shadows o' t' intricate woodwork. Begad! I sprayed these areas and let t' rocket dry for another day.

T' first o' t' trim that I attempted were t' rhomboids molded into t' engine nacelles. I taped o' t' edges with cellophane, a big mistake (I should have known better) and paited with Tamiya copper usin' a brush. Arrr! There were several problems with this. T' main one is that t' cellophane did nay produce a good seal and thar was some leakage. I had a plan for this. Ya scallywag! Well, blow me down! T' second problem stemmed from me own clumsiness. Aye aye! I fumbled t' brush and in me attempts to catch it, splattered some paint. Aye aye! Ahoy! T' make matters worse, me bucko, I also smudged some with me fingers. Avast! Much was cleaned up with a paper towel but some copper stainin' remained. Blimey! When dry, I planned t' touch up usin' some o' t' sprayed silver paint, sprayed into a puddle, and brushed on.

I also painted t' radar dish and antenna o' t' superstructure with t' same copper.

I decided t' use some bright red paint t' highlight t' dots runnin' along t' outside o' t' nacelles. Avast! I used Model Master and applied it with a brush.

While starin' at t' red dots and ponderin' t' relative dryin' time o' acrylics and enamels, shiver me timbers, I decided that I wanted t' do somethin' with t' 2 dowel "conduits" on t' ventral side. Begad! Blimey! I masked them off and painted them copper as well.

Each o' t' engine nacelles has an elongated area on each side which you are instructed t' paint blue. Blimey! I masked the areas and brush painted them with Tamiya metallic blue. Well, blow me down! Well, me bucko, blow me down! T' color looks good but, on liftin' t' tape, matey, I found the same bleedin' problems I had experienced with t' copper. Begad! Again, I planned t' take care o' this problem before adding the decals.

My method for dealin' with t' paint blunders seemed simple enough. I took t' spray can from which t' original silver had come and sprayed a big puddle into a paper plate. I then brushed t' paint onto t' blunders. Begad! Blimey! Coverage was not as good as I had expected. I had t' put on a "first coat" and let it dry before tacklin' it again.

T' touch ups with t' brushed silver spray did nay go perfectly but they certainly improved things. While I was at it, I brushed a bit o' blue onto t' bridge assembly t' make it stand out better.

Before t' major task o' applyin' all t' decals could begin, matey, I needed t' "smooth out" t' graininess of t' metallic paint finish. This be done by sprayin' with Rustoleum clear. Aye aye! A total o' 3 light coats was applied.

One o' t' more intimidatin' parts o' this kit be t' sheer number o' decals. Begad! Blimey! There are four sheets and I knew when I began that me decal application skills are merely adequate. This kit be goin' t' push me limits.

I decided t' start simply and add t' name and hull numbers t' t' nacelles. Avast, me proud beauty! There are four instances o' this decal, two in black and two in red. T' instructions indicate placement but nay color. Avast! I elected t' put t' black on the outer faces and red on t' inner.

Since it was on t' same sheet, I decided t' go with one for t' tail assembly next. I cut it out and it was a tight fit. I had t' do some trimmin' t' keep it from overlappin' t' edge.

Next up were t' win' pylons. Avast! These require 4 decals (each side, me hearties, top and bottom) and differ only in their being mirror images o' each other. Begad! They went on without too much fuss.

T' upper deck, ya bilge rat, aft o' t' bridge is one long decal. T' look right, t' "bull's eye" needs t' be centered in t' circular section. Arrr! This sounds easy but thar be some asymmetry which makes it just a touch more difficult that might be imagined. Avast! T' decals forward o' t' bridge went on with t' same attention t' t' misleading asymmetry.

T' tops o' t' side decks each got a decal and t' bottoms got a longer version. Begad! One o' them had t' be trimmed to fit around t' launch lug.

T' tail assembly had already gotten its main decal, but t' instructions provide for another one on each side higher up on t' 3-ply area. Begad! For me, this was confusin' because it was obvious that t' decal would nay fit as outlines, and I don't mean minor trimmin' here. Aye aye! T' lower part o' t' decal has t' be cut off and applied below the horizontal projection. This is nay difficult but it gave me pause because everywhere else, me hearties, t' decals were marked with a dotted line where they were supposed t' be cut and this one had no such dots, arrr, leadin' me t' t' conclusion that I was not understandin' something. Begad! Blimey! I finally cut it and applied it. Aye aye! Whether I am correct or not, me bucko, I am satisfied with the result.

T' antenna dish got a grill pattern over its top half. Begad! On t' forward section o' t' BT, from t' bottom, there are 3 principal decals. Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! T' aftermost features a yellow circle and more o' t' patternin' that has predominated on the bottom o' t' hull. Near t' nosecone thar be a pretty cool lookin' Atlantis logo. In betwixt these two is a hull number. Well, blow me down! On t' top surface, shiver me timbers, near t' front, shiver me timbers, goes a much bigger hull number.

With t' decals applied on t' top and bottom o' t' rocket, t' 2 sides were left t' do. These consisted o' 3 longer decals on each side forward o' t' side decks and then a few small "detail" decals. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Several were just logos and one on each side consisted o' 3 colored squares.

After all t' decals were dried, arrr, I set t' Atlantis up in t' spray booth and began applyin' light coats of clear. Begad! I gave it a total o' 4 coats. Begad! With that, arrr, t' Atlantis was ready t' fly...the next day.

PROs: This is a good lookin' rocket but t' decals take it t' a whole new level. Begad! Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! They really make a superior kit awesome.

CONs: gettin' those nooks and crannies painted can be hard but t' effort is worth it.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight and Recovery:
T' day o' t' maiden flight o' t' Refit Atlantis arrived and it was prepped with a D12-5. Blimey! Avast! People wanted t' see this one. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! On takeoff, matey, it weathercocked a bit but was very stable. Blimey! It ejected and recovered nay far away. Avast, me proud beauty! I wanted t' try it on somethin' bigger.

A video o' t' flight can be seen here.

For t' second flight, I wanted t' use an E15 but I didn't have one. Begad! Like a dunce, I loaded an E30-4. Avast, me proud beauty! It flew stable but whipped off t' pad very fast. It also flew with t' wind a long way away. Avast! We managed t' see where it landed and I started t' long hike t' get it back.

T' landowner be kind enough t' open a gate and let me on his property but warned me about Sweetie. Ya scallywag! Arrr! It turns out that Sweetie is a dog but I was nay worried because Sweetie be a dachshund. Sweetie seemed...sweet until I went past t' gate and then she became a hellhound. It's humiliating, me bucko, really, I never thought I would ever meet t' dachshund who could outrun me. Ya scallywag! I bet she was funny looking, but I be too busy looking where I was running. Begad! Ahoy! At least I got me rocket back.

A video o' t' second flight can be seen here, but don't blink.

PROs: This one is bound t' look good, no matter what. Ya scallywag! Seein' it in t' air is even better.

CONs: It is prone t' weathercockin' but that be t' hazard o' all that area aft. Ya scallywag! Without it, shiver me timbers, it would just be another rocket.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
I love this one. Arrr! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! It looks cool. Blimey! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! It was challengin' but nay impossible. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! I am actually proud o' it, shiver me timbers, nay somethin' I say about too many o' mine in terms o' appearance.

I'm glad I waited t' get started...I didn't have t' skills t' build it when I bought it. Blimey! I hope it has a long career.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5