Brief:
A rocket glider made by T' Union Stadt Zeppelin Works, me bucko, called "die Fledermaus" that I got off eBay. It dates back t' t' seventies. Aye aye! It was nay a great performer for me. Ahoy! Arrr! Blimey!

Construction:
T' kit consists of:

• two sheets o' printed balsa
• one instruction sheet printed both sides, one o' which shows what t' plane will look like.
• a bit o' drinkin' straw as a launch lug
• a block o' balsa
• BT5

T' instructions are terrible. Lookin' through them, shiver me timbers, it looks like t' modeler has t' think their way through t' kit.

T' block o' balsa is t' make t' nose cone. Blimey! Avast! Blimey!

Step one is t' cut t' two fuselage side out, and then glue them together at t' rear.

As this joint will be takin' some stress durin' t' next stages, shiver me timbers, where t' front end has a bulk head and nose cone fitted, ya bilge rat, t' glue has t' have set hard.

Next step is t' glue t' nose cone in place--the nose cone is a block o' balsa! I did this a step later. Arrr! Instead I put in t' two struts for bulkheads. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! Even though t' two sides came from t' same sheet o' balsa, one o' t' sides is stiffer than t' other and thar be some warping. Well, blow me down! It still should help with a circular glide!

At this stage, I think I'm treatin' this as a prototype and I'll build a second one with better balsa afterwards.

Next comes gluin' in t' motor tube. Ahoy! T' BT-5 in t' kit be too long so it is cut down t' size. Avast, me proud beauty! T' motor must pop out at ejection, which means t' bulk head--a thin sheet o' balsa--is goin' t' take a hit each time. And t' tube must be flush with t' bulkhead--no gaps. Begad! Begad! I filleted t' tube and t' fuselage wall, me bucko, ya bilge rat, me hearties, as I don't want this bird t' rip herself t' pieces and I risked t' extra weight.

T' balsa block supplied is far too big and is very hard for balsa. T' instructions show it bein' glued t' the front edges o' t' fuselage. Well, blow me down! I opted for sittin' it back by about 5mm as this will give it a lot more strength. Heavy sandin' later would take t' front nose mass back t' where it should be. Avast! T' block be pinned whilst it dries. Ya scallywag! Well, blow me down! Again, the one stiff fuselage is distortin' t' weaker side.

T' next step is t' start addin' t' wings, etc. Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! I'm nay sure about t' lack o' dihedral, shiver me timbers, or that t' tail and win' are perfectly aligned with no liftin' surface on either. Ya scallywag! T' model plan shows a large curve for t' wing, arrr, but that is impossible t' achieve with t' thin balsa supplied. Arrr! I then added t' bottom o' t' fuselage and t' rudder, which also has t' grain in t' wrong direction, and then more o' t' fuselage sections. Well, blow me down! T' nose cone was sanded t' a better profile. Avast! I still got t' lug and t' bottom piece added too, me hearties, matey, matey, and it was nearly finished.

Stupidly I gave it a quick hand toss in me lab. Well, blow me down! It looked like it needs more nose mass but t' last piece may take care o' that. Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! I put a small dent in t' tail. Silver foil be added t' t' base t' prevent motor flames from settin' it on fire. Blimey! T' launch lug was added t' t' top o' win' off center t' avoid t' rudder.

It needed t' be trimmed as it was tail heavy at t' moment. Arrr! T' open cockpit was a perfect place for clay weight. I needed 2g t' make it balance.

Finishing:
I have nay gone for any sealing, ya bilge rat, as I reckon that thar would be some warpin' on t' thin balsa.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Flight:
First flight. Well, blow me down! Arrr! After trimming, I prepped her with an 1/2A3-2T. Begad! T' instruction recommend a 4 second delay, which would be too much. Well, blow me down! I popped her on a rod with a stand off and launched. Aye aye! And thar she sat: rod bind. T' ejection charge was powerful enough t' eject t' motor and t' blow a 13mm hole through t' front bulk head. Begad! Well, blow me down! T' silver foil on t' rear fuselage held up well, and was coated in black power residue. On t' positive side, me bucko, this would probably have happen even if she had got into t' air. Ya scallywag! I double checked t' make sure that t' motor (and therefore t' line o' thrust) was in line with t' lug, me hearties, me hearties, which it was.

I mended t' bulkhead, me hearties, matey, trimmed down t' launch lug t' 8mm, arrr, cleaned and graphite rubbed t' rod, arrr, so I hoped for a better second flight...

Second (and final) flight. Aye aye! Begad! No rod bind this time. Arrr! Begad! She arched straight off t' rod, me bucko, hit ground under full power, and snapped into two halves.

T' be fair t' t' kit, matey, others have cloned this rocket--plans have been posted t' TRF, and with some modifications their planes flew, shiver me timbers, matey, me hearties, returnin' with over 40 seconds o' glide, which isn't bad.

Recovery:
I can't really comment on flight recovery, as she never flew!

Flight Rating: 2 out o' 5

Summary:
I liked t' build o' this unusual rocket, arrr, and judgin' by t' amount o' rocketeers on TRF that wanted t' plans, so do other people. Avast, me proud beauty! My rocket might have failed just down t' me poor build or bein' unlucky. Hopefully, arrr, others will build her and if they have better luck, then I'll rebuild.

There are some modifications that are needed--better balsa, arrr, a heavier bulkhead, shiver me timbers, thrust ring, arrr, arrr, and maybe canting the motor mount.

Overall Rating: 2 out o' 5