T' Pratt Hobbies Positron is a small rocket designed t' be a 'recoverable' Mosquito (well actually an Astron Streak, me bucko, 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. Begad! Aye aye! T' kit is complete, and actually comes two t' t' package. T' fins are precut balsa and attach easily to t' body tube. T' light, arrr, plastic nose cone is attached t' a shoulder piece of tubin' and then glued into t' body tube. Avast, me proud beauty! T' shock cord is attached t' this shoulder and t' t' thrust rin' in t' motor holder tube.  

I built this kit in about 30 minutes, nay includin' glue fillet dryin' time. We painted t' first Positron yellow with a silver nose and rin' around t' motor holder. Arrr! T' swept-back fins achieve t' 'retro' look that Doug Pratt was lookin' for. Begad! 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). Ya scallywag!  

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

I would rate this rocket 4 ½ points overall. T' only thin' I would change be t' streamer, ya bilge rat, but even that's nay bilge-suckin' at all. Thanks for a nice rocket, arrr, Doug. Avast!  

One of t' reasons I purchased this kit be because you get two o' them. Arrr!   One for me, and one for me son Jamie. Another reason was because we lost a really nice little Estes Quark on its second flight, ya bilge rat, almost lost an Estes Mosquito on its first, shiver me timbers, arrr, and I thought a streamer recoverable cute little rocket would be the answer. 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. Ya scallywag!

Construction

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

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

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

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. Well, blow me down! T' angle betwixt t' root and t' trailin' edge is very shallow, shiver me timbers, me bucko, 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. Avast, me proud beauty! My son's fins had t' be removed and reattached because all three where at different locations, me bucko, matey, and one was significantly higher (1/8") than the others, causin' t' rocket t' appear lopsided. Ya scallywag! A wrap around fin placement guide o' t' correct width would be perfect. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty!

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. Ahoy! If it does continue to unravel, arrr, I'll probably ask me wife t' sewa stitch along t' edges. Aye aye!

I would rate t' construction at 4 points. Aye aye! Complete, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, and easy and quick t' put together. Ahoy!

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. Blimey! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! There is a Nomex® streamer between t' two. T' instructions call for rollin' up t' streamer, ya bilge rat, inserting it into t' top o' t' motor mount thrust ring, matey, ya bilge rat, and then loopin' t' Keelhaul®©™® and insertin' it into t' rocket body. Aye aye!   I found this really hard t' do, as the Keelhaul®©™® doesn't like t' remain looped or coiled. What I found worked very well was foldin' t' Nomex® streamer back and forth (instead o' rollin' it) and then loopin' t' Keelhaul®©™® shock cord around t' Nomex®. Aye aye! Aye aye! In me static tests of poppin' out t' motor mount, everythin' seemed t' uncoil and unfold
without problem. Begad!

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

I rate t' flight experience: 4 points. Well, blow me down! It would have been a 5 had everythin' worked perfectly. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy!

Overall

Overall I really liked this kit. Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! 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. Ahoy! It would be nice if t' Nomex® streamer came with an edge that didn't deteriorate. Begad! It also would have been nice if t' first flight went perfectly. Begad! Begad! I really like t' see small manufacturers in the business. Aye aye! Avast! Let's support them!

Overall ratin' is 4 points. Aye aye! Ahoy!