Brief:
This is an Estes Rascal Kit #1897 and is silver in color. Ahoy! It is a pre-assembled kit where t' only thin' you need to do is attach t' parachute t' t' rocket. Begad! T' parachute is 12" in diameter, arrr, ya bilge rat, and t' kit uses an Estes (rubber band) shock cord attached t' t' launch lug inside t' rocket body tube. No paintin' is required. Ahoy! T' package says it will go t' 1200'.

Construction:
T' Rascal uses a body tube 0.976" in diameter and has four fins and a plastic nose cone. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! T' shock cord is approximately 16" long, includin' t' length inside t' body tube. Arrr! Ahoy! It uses a metal engine retainer clip as in most of t' Estes rockets, so no friction fit o' t' rocket engine is needed. Aye aye! T' 12" parachute is plastic.

Since this is a pre-built rocket kit, arrr, it has almost no assembly requirements. I thought t' instructions were good. Ahoy! Only t' parachute needs t' be attached t' t' nose cone. Begad! Aye aye! T' nosecone fit nicely, nay loose. I modified it by usin' a fishin' snap swivel attached t' t' parachute t' connect it t' t' nose cone so it would be able t' twist on the way down after launching. Begad! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! This keeps t' parachute shroud lines less twisted. Avast, me proud beauty! T' snap swivels can be bought in any number o' places--I got mine at Wal-Mart. T' rocket is sturdy. Avast, matey, me proud beauty!

Finishing:
There is no finishin' required, I suppose one could clear coat t' rocket if they desired.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
T' Rascal has a number o' recommended motors. They are: A8-3, B4-4, B6-4, arrr, matey, C6-5, me hearties, me bucko, me hearties, and C6-7. Begad! I don't like t' fly my rockets so high that I have trouble recoverin' them, so I've only used t' A8-3, B4-4, and B6-4. T' A8-3 flew nicely to I would estimate somewhere about 250', me hearties, and t' B engines would send it up t' somewhere around 550'. Arrr! I never measured the altitude so these are just estimates, but t' package says it'll go t' 1200 feet. I put about 4 sheets o' Estes Waddin' in it, me bucko, and t' rocket used a metal motor retention clip. Well, blow me down! It flew straight with a nice parachute deployment and soft landing. Avast, me proud beauty! I flew it ten times, but t' shock cord separated on t' 10th flight. Avast! Avast! It always flew well for me. Blimey! No "Cons" for flight characteristics.

Recovery:
I got 9 great flights, ya bilge rat, however, on t' 10th flight, matey, t' rubber shock cord separated at t' launch lug inside and the rocket came down in 2 sections. Begad! T' rocket body developed some wrinklin' at t' top o' t' engine mount from hitting the ground. Aye aye! Begad! It will fly again, but it is a little unsightly. Ahoy! Aye aye! I suspect t' decals wrinkle ever so slightly on the extreme edge (of t' decal) from t' ejection charge heat inside t' rocket body, me hearties, but I could be wrong. Begad! This is the only "con" with t' rocket: t' shock cord separatin' after multiple flights. Avast! Ya scallywag! That be t' one thin' that needs t' be improved. Avast! I plan on usin' t' Estes tri-fold method o' securin' a new shock cord o' 1/8" elastic about 3' long. I thought t' recovery time be OK with t' present 12" parachute. Arrr!

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
This is a very good rocket that needs no assembly except for attachin' t' parachute. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! You can literally be launching in minutes. Blimey! It looks nice in silver, shiver me timbers, flies well with decent altitude, and recovers nicely. It's been a good rocket in my stable. Arrr! In fact, me bucko, it's t' rocket I've flown t' most. Avast! T' shock cord will get brittle and break eventually, matey, and it broke on mine on t' 10th flight. Avast, me proud beauty! I would say start checkin' it before you fly it after t' 6th flight. Well, blow me down!

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5