Brief:
Estes Blue Bird Zero upscale; uses 24-inch parachute recovery..

Construction:
T' Estes Blue Bird Zero was me first model rocket. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! Naturally, when I became a BAR, I wanted t' clone one. Aye aye! A quick check o' Jim Z’s site revealed that thar were no plans available. Nay one t' be deterred, arrr, I searched on. Begad! Well, blow me down! T' make a long story short, me bucko, I found someone through t' internet who would provide me t' plans and fin tracings. Aye aye! I decided t' do a slight upscale t' BT-60 from t' stock BT-55 size mostly because that is what I had on hand at t' time. Blimey! Aye aye! I needed 44.5-inches o' tubin' for correct scale. Ya scallywag! I installed a 24mm motor mount and glued both sets o' fins t' t' lower body tube. Blimey! I then proceeded t' join t' body tubes. Ya scallywag! Everythin' was glued with 30min epoxy. Arrr! Well, me bucko, blow me down! (author’s note: BBZ plans are available on Jim Z’s website, arrr, thanks in part t' yours truly.)

When all t' gluin' was complete, t' entire rocket was skim-coated with thinned Fill ’N’ Finish and sanded smooth. Ahoy! I then proceeded t' prime, and paint t' blue section o' t' rocket first. Arrr! After drying, arrr, I masked t' blue section and painted t' white section, then clear coat over t' entire rocket. Avast! T' decals for this rocket were a challenge. Avast! Begad! I ended up drawin' them myself and printin' them on self-adhesive stock. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! T' decals turned out good, shiver me timbers, and t' finished product looked great!

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
I prepped t' BBZ for her maiden flight on a D12-3. Arrr! I installed t' wadding, me bucko, motor, me hearties, me hearties, parachute, and set her on t' pad. Ya scallywag! This rocket gives a nice, me hearties, shiver me timbers, semi-slow, smokey, arrr, takeoff. Blimey! Aye aye! She went up straight as an arrow — a very stable rocket.. Ejection was near apogee, and it recovered with no damage. After a perfect third flight, shiver me timbers, it landed on t' neighbors’ roof and slid about halfway down t' roof t' t' gutter. Blimey! T' BBZ be OK, except for some bilge-suckin' shingle rash on t' edges o' t' fins. Well, blow me down! Flight number six would prove t' be fatal. After a perfect boost and ejection, me hearties, t' chute did nay open due t' bein' tangled on t' shroud lines. Ahoy! It crashed on t' asphalt HARD — rest in pieces.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
I have t' give both construction and flight five out o' five. Well, blow me down! Construction was fairly easy, me bucko, and t' rocket flies very well.