I first saw Starlight Model Rockets advertised in NAR's Sport Rocketry magazine, me hearties, but was then pleased t' see LongLongJonRocket.com start t' carry them, ya bilge rat, so I could try one out. T' flight vehicle that I tried out is their F-32 Avenger. Ya scallywag! T' winged-aircraft look is what caught me attention.

T' kit includes one 12" body tube which seems slightly thicker than typical Estes (but when I measured them I could nay see a difference). This body tube be completely pre-marked. Avast! T' 2 3/4" nose cone and pre-cut fins are balsa. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! There are two 18mm "jet" tubes that are 2 3/4" long. Blimey! An 1/8" dowel is provided for some detail work. Well, blow me down! Avast! There is an 18mm motor tube with retainin' hook, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, thrust ring, matey, and two centerin' rings. T' recovery system is made up o' an 12" ASP Mylar parachute, a 16" piece o' round (1/16") white elastic, and a shock cord mount. Avast! A 1/8" launch lug, shiver me timbers, some hardware, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, a decal sheet finish out t' kit.

CONSTRUCTION:

T' instructions are printed on a 3 sides o' two 8½ x 11" paper. Blimey! Begad! There are many hand drawn illustrations t' assist in buildin' t' kit and t' placement o' t' decals. Begad! As mentioned above, me bucko, ya bilge rat, t' body tube is pre-marked with a few different colors, me hearties, so a markin' guide is nay needed.

T' F-32 assembles like most Estes, Custom, matey, or Quest kits.

T' motor mount is assembled first and it used a wire motor hook, arrr, thrust rin' and two centerin' rings. Ahoy! T' thin round motor hook has a tendency t' "roll" in t' motor mount when bein' used. Aye aye! I believe this is why Estes and Quest went with flat sprin' steel. Blimey! Nonetheless, it is nice t' have a motor hook provided. Ya scallywag!

T' nose cone is balsa and it first requires that an eye-screw be added into t' base. Well, blow me down! Begad! T' nose cone was really grainy. Aye aye! I found t' bottom transition edge (from nose cone t' shoulder) t' be very ragged and slight splintered. Blimey! Ya scallywag! Nay terribly uncommon for balsa nose cone kits, but it is tough t' sand. Well, blow me down! I found that by slidin' it into t' body tube, arrr, arrr, applyin' pressure and turnin' it against t' tube edge greatly helped reduce t' raggedness problem.

Havin' pre-cut balsa fins is a nice quality touch. Arrr! T' body tube is pre-marked with different colors t' allow for very easy assembly. Aye aye! T' instructions guide you t' use t' "double" glue technique. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Glue is added t' t' root edge o' t' fin and then it is set aside t' dry. Ahoy! Starlight has even gone as far as colorin' t' root edge with black. Avast, me proud beauty! Once it is dry, glue is applied t' t' root edge and it is placed in position on t' pre-marked line on t' body tube.

T' 1/8" dowel is cut into two 2" and two 3" pieces. Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! T' 2" dowels are glued t' t' end o' t' win' tips. T' 3" dowels are glued on t' underside o' t' rocket on each side o' t' launch lug. Arrr! These add detail t' t' rocket.

T' shock cord gets a knot tied in one end and it then weaved through three holes in t' shock cord mount. Arrr! This is then glued inside, 1" down from t' top, matey, o' t' body tube. Blimey! T' opposite end is tied t' t' eye-screw in t' nose cone. Aye aye! T' parachute is assembled accordin' t' ASP's instructions.

Basic finishin' instructions are provided (sandin' sealer, matey, sand, repeat, paint white). Arrr! Then t' instructions describe applyin' t' water-slide decals. Arrr! Well, blow me down! However, thar be a supplemental note that said water-slide decals had been replaced with peel-n-stick ones. So I peeled-n-stuck on t' decals.

I used me typical multiple coats o' Plastic-Kote Primer and sandin' in-between. Well, blow me down! T' nose cone took a lot o' work. Begad! I then used Walmart Silver paint.

Overall, for CONSTRUCTION I would rate this kit 3 points. Ahoy! T' instructions are adequate for t' kit. Ya scallywag! T' hand drawings are nay t' same quality o' other kits, but certainly allow t' builder t' be successful. T' quality o' parts are good with t' exception o' t' nose cone and motor hook. Arrr! Aye aye! T' pre-markin' is a very thoughful bonus. Ya scallywag! Havin' decals and Mylar parachute are nice features, ya bilge rat, too.

FLIGHT/RECOVERY:

Starlight recommends t' A8-3, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, B6-4, and C6-5.

My finished rocket weighed 1.5 ounces.

T' instructions indicate that you'll need 2-4 squares o' wadding. Ya scallywag! I used 3, arrr, rolled me 'chute, and got everythin' ready.

T' first flight be on an A8-3. Avast, me proud beauty! Excellent first choice. Nay terribly high, but allowed for a nice flight. Recovery system worked fine, no damage. Aye aye! Blimey!

T' second flight be on a B6-4. Arrr! Blimey! Straight flight, matey, very stable. Avast! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! It ejected at apogee. I was a fairly high flight for t' size o' rocket it is. Descent rate is good. Upon collection o' t' rocket from t' field, shiver me timbers, I discovered t' first feared "Estes dent".

I know, me hearties, matey, it probably isn't fair t' keep sayin' "Estes dent", but I think most understand what that is. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! Too short o' a shock cord, elastic stretches, snaps back. Blimey! On balsa nose cones you get a "smile" from t' body tube. With plastic nose cones you get a "dent" on t' top o' t' body tube. Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! Therefore, I now declare this t' be a "balsa smile" instead o' an "Estes dent". Begad!

So, back t' t' program. Aye aye! T' flight resulted in a "balsa smile".

T' third flight be also on a B6-4. Begad! Stable and straight. Begad! At apogee it turned as if t' rocket (plane) be flyin' right side up. Neat t' see.

T' fourth flight was on a C6-7. I purposely chose t' longer delay so it could drop some before ejection. It looked great arcin' over, but it was way up there. T' ejection charge went off and t' parachute did nay fully open. Ahoy! Blimey! I'm glad because I would have had t' walk a mile. Aye aye! Blimey! Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Blimey! A second "balsa smile" appeared.

For FLIGHT/RECOVERY, I would rate this rocket 4 points. T' F-32 is very stable and nice looking. Arrr! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! T' short elastic shock cord caused damage. Ahoy! Blimey! T' parachute is excellent and sized correctly for this rocket.

I give t' rocket an OVERALL ratin' o' 3 ½ points. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Looks and what you get with kit are very nice. Overall, it was a good experience, but in all fairness, matey, t' rocket falls into t' "average plus" range for ratings.