T' Pratt Hobbies Positron is a small rocket designed t' be a 'recoverable' Mosquito (well actually an Astron Streak, me hearties, ya bilge rat, matey, t' 18mm version o' the Mosquito). T' achieve this it uses an ejectable motor holder and Nomex® streamer, tied t' t' rocket body by a Keelhaul®©™® line. Aye aye! Begad! T' kit is complete, and actually comes two t' t' package. Well, blow me down! Arrr! T' fins are precut balsa and attach easily to t' body tube. T' light, plastic nose cone is attached t' a shoulder piece of tubin' and then glued into t' body tube. Ya scallywag! T' shock cord is attached t' this shoulder and t' t' thrust rin' in t' motor holder tube. Begad!  

I built this kit in about 30 minutes, matey, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, nay includin' glue fillet dryin' time. Ahoy! Ya scallywag! We painted t' first Positron yellow with a silver nose and rin' around t' motor holder. Aye aye! Begad! T' swept-back fins achieve t' 'retro' look that Doug Pratt was lookin' for. Avast! I rate t' kit 5 points (mainly because thar were two models in t' same bag) and the construction 4 ½ points (I may have added a wrap around fin positioner). Begad! Begad!  

T' recommended motors for t' Positron are a 1/2A6-2 and an A8-3. Well, blow me down! Begad! So far we have only launched with the 1/2A6. Arrr! Well, me bucko, blow me down! T' Positron leaps off t' pad, even with a 1/2A6, I can't imagine you would ever find t' Positron with a B or C motor. Avast! Aye aye! Flight be very stable and quite high. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! T' motor holder ejects well and deploys t' Nomex® streamer. T' streamer is quite short and doesn't slow t' rocket down that much. Avast! Well, me bucko, blow me down! This one would probably fly well in fairly high wind. Ahoy! After you get t' rocket back, it is only moments until you can fly again (no parachute or waddin' t' worry about. Avast! )I rate t' flight performance 5 points, me bucko, but t' recovery 4 points (the streamer is a bit too short). It is still really fun t' fly.  

I would rate this rocket 4 ½ points overall. Well, blow me down! T' only thin' I would change be t' streamer, me hearties, but even that's nay bilge-suckin' at all. Blimey! Thanks for a nice rocket, Doug. Begad! Ya scallywag!  

One of t' reasons I purchased this kit be because you get two o' them. Ya scallywag! Ahoy!   One for me, ya bilge rat, and one for me son Jamie. Another reason be because we lost a really nice little Estes Quark on its second flight, ya bilge rat, almost lost an Estes Mosquito on its first, ya bilge rat, and I thought a streamer recoverable cute little rocket would be the answer. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! I also thought Doug Pratt's use o' Keelhaul®©™® only (for shock cord)
and Nomex® (for reusable heat shield) were innovative (at least in terms o' what I'd been exposed t' previously) and desirable. Ahoy! Begad!

Construction

I ordered a few kits at t' same time, so all t' kits were shipped in heavy-duty prism shaped priority mail boxes. Ahoy! Ahoy! Blimey! I knew thar was no chance of damage even before openin' t' boxes. Arrr! Blimey! All t' parts for both Positron kits come in t' same heat-sealed plastic bag. Begad! Arrr! Blimey!   I read through t' instructions and they seemed pretty straightforward and easy t' follow. Begad! Blimey!

T' instructions recommend usin' white glue for construction. Ya scallywag!   I happened t' have some yellow glue from woodworking, and some USA Gold CA I purchased in t' same order, so I used these. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! I used t' CA on paper t' plastic joints (like body tube t' nose cone), me hearties, arrr, and for reinforcin' body tube edges where they might be stressed by t' Keelhaul®©™® shock cord, matey, matey, and t' tips o' t' fins because I faired them t' a more fragile profile than t' kit provides. Compare my pictures with those in t' review provided by Mike Rangitsch. Begad! Usin' CA was probably unnecessary, but I just couldn't resist usin' me new stuff. Aye aye!

T' fins on all o' Pratt's kits are laser cut. Well, blow me down! Blimey! I think this is a really nice feature, especially with t' curved leadin' edge o' t' Positron's fins. Begad! Blimey!

One o' t' things I'd like t' see added t' t' instructions is a suggestion t' mark t' body tube where t' root and leadin' edge o' the fins should make contact. Ahoy! T' angle betwixt t' root and t' trailin' edge is very shallow, me hearties, so it's difficult t' tell from lookin' at t' bottom o' t' body tube whether or nay t' fin is positioned properly along t' length o' t' body tube. My son's fins had t' be removed and reattached because all three where at different locations, arrr, and one be significantly higher (1/8") than the others, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, causin' t' rocket t' appear lopsided. Aye aye! A wrap around fin placement guide o' t' correct width would be perfect.

T' Nomex® streamer material seems t' unravel along t' edges rather easily. I don't know how long it would be before it unraveled t' unusable state, but I found myself thinkin' about how t' reinforce t' edges. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! If it does continue to unravel, arrr, shiver me timbers, I'll probably ask me wife t' sewa stitch along t' edges.

I would rate t' construction at 4 points. Ahoy! Avast! Complete, arrr, shiver me timbers, me bucko, and easy and quick t' put together. Arrr!

Flight

T' motor mounts in a motor mount attached by a Keelhaul®©™® shock cord t' the coupler betwixt t' nose cone and t' main body tube. Begad! There is a Nomex® streamer between t' two. T' instructions call for rollin' up t' streamer, me bucko, inserting it into t' top o' t' motor mount thrust ring, me bucko, and then loopin' t' Keelhaul®©™® and insertin' it into t' rocket body.   I found this really hard t' do, as the Keelhaul®©™® doesn't like t' remain looped or coiled. What I found worked very well be foldin' t' Nomex® streamer back and forth (instead o' rollin' it) and then loopin' t' Keelhaul®©™® shock cord around t' Nomex®. In me static tests of poppin' out t' motor mount, arrr, everythin' seemed t' uncoil and unfold
without problem. Ya scallywag!

First flight (and only flight so far) was rather eventful.   Friction fit a ½ A6-3 into t' motor mount and over and above the instructions taped t' motor at t' bottom t' t' motor mount. Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Blimey! Flight was perfect with t' ½ A motor. Begad! Nosed over beautifully at apogee and then dove right for t' ground. Well, blow me down! Turned out t' motor ejected, me hearties, but nay t' motor mount, so it did exactly what me Estes Quark did. T' motor mount must have had a tighter fit than t' motor itself, matey, arrr, though I really didn't think it did. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! Blimey! I'm used t' permanently mounted motor mounts with clips, so I have some self-education ahead o' me. I would have attempted t' try again, matey, but one o' the fins came loose and I didn't have any CA with me. Begad! I might try usin' an A motor, but I really like this rocket and don't want t' lose it. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I'm lookin' forward to flyin' this rocket a lot. Begad! Blimey!

I rate t' flight experience: 4 points. Avast! It would have been a 5 had everythin' worked perfectly.

Overall

Overall I really liked this kit. Begad! T' quality o' t' components is good, the instructions are clear, and I like havin' a cute little rocket that I can actually find after launching. Begad! Well, blow me down! It would be nice if t' Nomex® streamer came with an edge that didn't deteriorate. It also would have been nice if t' first flight went perfectly. Arrr! Well, blow me down! I really like t' see small manufacturers in the business. Let's support them!

Overall ratin' is 4 points. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag!