Brief:
This kit is brought t' you by t' Peter Alway, shiver me timbers, t' author o' Rockets o' t' World. Well, blow me down! It nay surprisingly packs in a lot o' intricate scale details into a very affordable and flyable kit. See me comparison review for other Saturn V options. Arrr! This one stacks up favorably in terms o' price and detailing. It is approximately 1:195 scale o' t' mammoth Saturn V.

Construction:
T' kit is produced by Balsa Machinin' Service featurin' top quality tubes, cones, transitions and laser-cut components. Blimey! Begad! There be no parts list in t' kit and it would be a very long one if I put one together. I will, me bucko, arrr, however, shiver me timbers, matey, shiver me timbers, attempt t' at least summarize t' main elements:

• BT-20 motor tube
• BT-60 body tube
• Plywood centerin' rings
• Basswood nozzles
• Plywood laser-cut fins and fin shroud supports
• Laser-cut adhesive strips for tube details
• Wood dowels for tunnels and details
• 5 Plywood liquid hydrogen lines
• Plywood tower parts, ya bilge rat, base + dowel
• Balsa nose cone for t' tower base
• Balsa transition
• Water slide decals from Tango Papa
• 18" plastic chute kit
• Scale data pack from Rockets o' t' World

On a scale o' 1-5, me bucko, I would rate this kit at least a 3 and probably leanin' towards a 4 on skill/complexity. Ya scallywag! Blimey! It is definitely for t' experienced builder and craftsman although t' instructions are certainly well enough written and illustrated that a less skilled modeler can get by. Avast! Blimey! This is such a wonderfully detailed kit though, me bucko, that t' builder owes t' rocket gods and designer/producer a good effort.

T' motor mount construction is a basic BT-20, pair o' centerin' rings, a motor block, me bucko, and metal hook. Nothin' terribly tricky about it.

Mounted t' t' base o' t' motor mount are 4 nozzles. Begad! In t' author's own words: "admire these parts--they are responsible for nearly a quarter o' t' cost o' this kit". Aye aye! Ahoy! They are indeed nicely turned wood bases that fit snugly into holes on t' aft motor mount centerin' ring. Ahoy! T' nozzles are topped off with paper shrouds. Ya scallywag! Well, me bucko, blow me down! Prior t' mountin' in t' body tube, ya bilge rat, arrr, t' lower portion o' this (below t' aft centerin' ring) gets painted silver.

One o' t' challenges o' buildin' a Saturn V be t' fin/shroud assembly. Arrr! Blimey! Basically, me hearties, t' fins protrude out o' a conic section shroud. Ya scallywag! Blimey! For this kit, this assembly consists o' a plywood back piece that mounts t' t' tube, a half-circle base, me hearties, and a plywood fin. Well, blow me down! Blimey! This forms t' basic structure and a cardstock shroud is then cut and formed that goes over this like a skin. Avast! Blimey! I found that everythin' lined up and fit very nicely.

T' instructions then call for maskin' and paintin' t' shroud assembly. Maskin' and paintin' a Saturn be t' other serious pain. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! In t' case o' t' shrouds, ya bilge rat, t' lower portion is silver and t' upper portion is black on t' left side and white on t' right side. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! This takes a lot o' time and care t' do. Avast! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! If I had a "do over" on this, me hearties, me hearties, me hearties, I'd try t' figure out a way t' paint t' shroud first, paint t' fin separately, me hearties, and then glue t' painted shroud over t' fin.

T' body tube for this kit is just wild. Ya scallywag! No markin' needed, as everything's covered via laser. Aye aye! Ahoy! There are etched alignment lines and laser cutouts. There are a number o' strips circlin' t' tube that are handled via laser cuts strips o' adhesive label stock. Begad! This was an incredibly anal-retentive approach, which I completely admire and it makes a huge difference in t' appearance o' t' finished product.

Additional tube details include a number o' tunnels (S-IC/S-II and S-IVB), hydrogen lines, me hearties, and LOX vent fairings. All o' which are made from dowel stock. Avast! Blimey! There are also laser cut plywood components for RCS nozzles, S-IVB Ullage rockets, and APS units.

T' tower assembly consists o' two base and frame pieces that slip together at right angles, a wood dowel tower, and paper shroud base. This assembly is then glued t' t' top o' a balsa nose cone. Begad! Ahoy! T' tower structure framework effect is pulled off through a set o' laser cut cardstock that is tacked very carefully into t' spaces betwixt sides o' t' base and frame.

T' only other aspect left in construction, shiver me timbers, other than tackin' on all t' details after painting, arrr, arrr, be t' nose weight and recovery system. Because t' fins are scale-like, me bucko, nose weight will be needed for stability. Avast! This is added t' t' service module in t' form o' a washer and lead beads.

In order t' protect t' tower durin' recovery, t' instructions show attachin' a Keelhaul®©™ loop from t' base o' t' balsa transition t' t' washer that goes under t' service module. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! Since this would result in a permanently exposed line, shiver me timbers, me bucko, I decided t' use t' approach taken in t' Apogee kit and leave t' line inside t' tube until time for flight prep, arrr, at which point I tie and tape a loop t' t' base o' t' tower.

Finishing:
Most o' t' details are t' be painted before bondin' and can then be tacked into place with CA. Maskin' and paintin' a Saturn is a fairly dauntin' task although t' instructions do an excellent job o' explainin' what t' mask and t' proper sequence for painting. Ahoy! After maskin' bond areas, arrr, me hearties, t' main body gets a couple o' light primer coats (and I used white primer) then a gloss white topcoat or two. Arrr! Light paint be t' key so that you don't cover up t' details with a thick paint job.

Don't be faked into thinkin' that Krylon that is dry t' t' touch can be painted on right away. Blimey! Give it a couple o' days! After t' white has had plenty o' time t' cure, t' accent areas can be painted black and t' service module gets silver.

One aspect o' t' finished scheme that irked me was t' transition (S-II/S-IVB adapter). Ya scallywag! This has a tricky pattern o' black and white, shiver me timbers, me hearties, which was "simplified" by t' inclusion o' a pair o' vinyl decals. Avast! One decal forms t' all black quarter section and t' quarter section that is only black on top. Arrr! Aye aye! A smaller decal forms t' quarter section that is black on t' bottom. Begad! Unfortunately, ya bilge rat, t' decals aren't quite tall enough which leaves a small gap at t' bottom. T' instructions suggest touchin' up this area with a Sharpie marker. Avast! Considerin' t' vinyl decal doesn't quite match t' paint finish and thar would be an obvious visual difference betwixt t' decal and t' Sharpie area, ya bilge rat, I think it would have been a much better idea t' just mask and paint this pattern.

T' Tango Poppa decals included in this kit are o' a beautiful quality although extremely fragile. Aye aye! I especially had difficulty in applyin' t' long, thin United States decals t' t' upper section. Avast! T' result is a slightly flawed finish that will forever keep me up at night (or eventually drive me t' buy replacements from Tango Papa).

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Recommended motors for this kit are B4-4, arrr, B6-4, shiver me timbers, matey, ya bilge rat, and C6-5. Begad! Considerin' I was flyin' in fairly windy conditions (10+ mph winds) on a farm field o' hard clay and mud, me hearties, I decided t' start off with t' B6-4 option.

Stability be no problem at all and it wound up weathercockin' a little bit in t' wind. Aye aye! Blimey! T' 4 second delay was fine--it was nose down just past apogee. Altitude was fairly timid--only about 150 feet so I'll definitely by movin' up t' a C6 for t' next flight.

Recovery:
T' 18" red plastic chute is a good size for this kit and certainly is easy t' pick up in t' sky. Ahoy! Unfortunately, by followin' t' instructions for mountin' and attachin' t' chute, me bucko, t' upper portion is likely t' come down nose first, me bucko, shiver me timbers, which might cause damage even in soft grass. Blimey! I'll blame this one on t' hard dirt, but a fairly slow descent still resulted in a broken tower and one broken and lost RCS nozzle.

Author's note and update--Disregard me gripe about t' shock cord mount. Aye aye! T' instructions DO suggest a yoke, which I ignored in construction t' go with t' Apogee mount approach. Aye aye! I then forgot t' actually USE that method when I flew it...

This really needs a yoke-type recovery harness looped around t' base o' t' tower and then t' t' transition base with t' chute attached t' t' shroud about 2/3 forward so that it comes down at an angle. Arrr! Blimey! This would avoid most o' t' stress on t' tower from landing.

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
PROs for this kit include exceptional detailin' and scale accuracy. It's a true modelers kit.

CONs for this kit would be t' damage prone recovery system and t' relatively high cost o' this kit, although I do think given t' details that this kit is a decent value and accurately priced.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5