Brief:
Several years ago, Semroc introduced t' first o' what promised t' be a family o' Thunder designs, me bucko, each featurin' long sleek profiles, swept fins, matey, me bucko, and progressin' up in size. Aye aye! Aye aye! T' first o' these was t' Thunderbee, one o' me favorite 13mm models, but t' ensuin' bigger brothers never came t' light until now. Blimey! Ya scallywag! At NARAM-51, Semroc released t' upscale Thunderchief, me bucko, which is about double t' length o' t' Thunderbee, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, and t' Thunderstrike, matey, me bucko, a 54" long 24mm brute. Begad! Aye aye! Down t' road, t' rest o' t' family will hopefully make it t' market as well (Thunder Roc, Thunder Storm, me bucko, ya bilge rat, Thunder Hawk and Thunder Bird), since these are such great fliers and simple builds.

Construction:
T' bag appears a bit small for t' $14.50 price, me bucko, arrr, me bucko, but that's partly because t' body tube is comprised o' 3 shorter tubes. Ya scallywag! T' parts were all excellent quality, especially t' nose cone.

• Balsa nose cone
• 3 Series 8 body tubes
• 2 tube couplers
• BT-20 motor tube, centerin' ring/tube
• Laser cut balsa fins
• Metal hook
• Keelhaul®©™/elastic shock cord
• 12" plastic chute
• Waterslide decals
• 1/8" launch lug

Instructions are standard Semroc: well written and illustrated. This would be a Skill Level 1 kit with about three pages o' instructions. Begad! Aye aye! My build time be under an hour plus finishin' time.

T' motor mount on this is a little different, shiver me timbers, since t' tube is slightly smaller than a BT-50 and doesn't leave room for a normal pair o' centerin' rings. Blimey! Begad! T' solution in this case is t' use a coverin' tube which slips down t' motor tube, holdin' t' motor hook in place and fittin' t' t' ID o' t' body tubes.

I stupidly built this concurrently with several other Semroc NARAM releases, so I anchored me Keelhaul®©™to t' forward end o' t' motor hook just like t' other kits. Ya scallywag! That would be wrong accordin' t' t' directions, matey, which call for anchorin' t' Keelhaul®©™to t' forward coupler. Ahoy! Blimey! Due t' me goof, arrr, I only have about 7" o' shock cord outside t' model, so I'll need t' add more elastic on me own.

T' body tube is marked for fin placement usin' a template. Ahoy! Aye aye! Early editions o' t' kit (includin' mine) had an oversize/incorrect template, me hearties, shiver me timbers, although this has been corrected in later editions. Ahoy! After markin' t' first body tube, t' other body tubes are bonded usin' t' provided couplers.

Fin attachment is straightforward: tack on with CA then follow up with wood glue fillets. Aye aye! Add on t' lugs (one at a fin joint, t' other about a foot forward) and construction is done.

Finishing:
I very much like t' color scheme o' me Thunder Bee with white on t' forward section and Dayglo yellow on t' aft section. Well, blow me down! Unfortunately, Krylon's reformulation wouldn't cooperate and I was optimistic in takin' t' chance that it would.

I prepped all surfaces via grain and spiral filling, givin' extra attention t' t' tube seams where t' separate pieces are joined. Aye aye! I then hit everythin' with two coats o' light gray primer and three coats o' gloss white. Avast, me proud beauty! So far, matey, so good. Blimey! Avast! For t' yellow, arrr, I masked off t' upper portion and hit t' aft end with Krylon's old formula Dayglow yelow. Begad! Big mistake. Avast! Well, blow me down! It crazed and crackled. Blimey! It wound up takin' me 3 subsequent passes o' sandin' off t' coat o' paint, me hearties, wipin' everythin' down with rubbin' alcohol, me hearties, me hearties, shootin' with a light old formula primer, then toppin' off with t' Dayglo yellow. Ahoy! T' finished result looks nice but be hardly worth t' effort.

There is also a basic name/logo waterslide decal provided, matey, which is perfectly produced--nice and clear background, arrr, tough enough t' allow t' decal t' be moved around for alignment, shiver me timbers, and thin enough nay t' stick up with that peel n stick look.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
For t' maiden flight, I caught a wonderful day over Labor Day weekend, ya bilge rat, light winds, me hearties, clear skies, moderate temps. Begad! Since I had this and t' bigger Thunder Strike both ready, I decided t' dig up t' Thunder Bee and make a family outin' o' it.

I went for t' max, me bucko, choosin' a C6-5 over a 7. Avast! Boost was straight up with a slight trace o' weathercocking. Begad! T' -5 delay was just about perfect, and I think in general t' recommended -7 would be too long under all but t' most perfect o' conditions.

I'm nay sure what t' apogee wound up being, but I suspect it was a tad less than t' estimated 950' on t' header card. Still, it strained me 44-year old deadlights a bit t' pick it up.

Recovery:
T' 12" chute is just about right for this. Avast! I caught a little thermal on t' way down but once out o' it started comin' down fairly quickly. Begad! Arrr! I have t' admit, me hearties, though, given t' altitude I hit on boost, matey, t' blue and white plastic chute included in t' kit was nay exactly an optimal color scheme as it be very difficult t' pick up a 12" chute at that altitude, especially without strong contrast t' t' skies.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
I'm biased and really like t' Thunder line overall. There's just somethin' about those long, arrr, sleek models that appeals t' me. Arrr! O' t' 3 currently available, this one strikes me as t' most flexible, bein' able t' handle A through C (and comically could fly OK on a 1/2A6-2).

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5