Brief: T' Harpoon is a scale model o' a US Air-Launched Anti-Ship Missile, T' Launch Pad's kit is an excellent first mid power and scale rocket.

Construction: I was so glad when I finally got me hands on me AGM-84 Harpoon. Begad! One o' t' members o' me club be goin' down t' t' US and be kind enough t' brin' it back for me. I received t' Harpoon with all pieces present, ya bilge rat, matey, in good condition, me hearties, and good quality. I have heard some nay so great things about TLP's balsa wood, but I found t' wood for t' Harpoon great, arrr, with a little help from CA.

T' instructions were clear, but I wish they would have included more help and info on how t' get t' little hat that sits on top o' a FatBoy style nose cone, me hearties, matey, straight and in t' middle, that was tricky, arrr, me hearties, but I think mine is close enough for me standards. Begad! Blimey! That was t' only real "gotcha" for this rocket, t' fins aligned great, and everythin' fit together perfectly.

Finishing: T' only thin' that really disappointed me in t' beginnin' with t' Harpoon was t' lackin' o' decals. Ya scallywag! But, me hearties, now I know that it much easier for t' consumer t' use his or her own techniques. I just painted t' bands that go around t' rocket, me bucko, and for all o' t' small pinpoint rivets that are suppose t' be on t' rocket, shiver me timbers, matey, I used a decal pack that I got from a local hobby store (East Coast Model Center) that was 1/5 rivet decals, perfect, went on with ease, me bucko, and made t' rocket look great. Still ponderin' what t' do for t' small amount o' letterin' that will go on t' rocket. Just a note, me hearties, I am nay a perfectionist, or a great scale buff, shiver me timbers, me Harpoon was just sports scale, ya bilge rat, matey, but I like how it turned out.

Construction Rating: 4 ½ out o' 5

Flight: T' recommended motors for t' harpoon are a D12-3, me hearties, arrr, E15-4, me hearties, and a RMS F24-4 (24mm). I plan on usin' all o' t' recommended motors, matey, but instead o' t' E15, ya bilge rat, an E18 (reload).

T' day for t' maiden flight for t' Harpoon finally came. Begad! First flight would be on a D12-3. Begad! Aye aye! Everythin' was setup, pictures were taken, shiver me timbers, and after makin' sure t' wind was perfect, me hearties, arrr, that t' launch rod was perfect, me hearties, and that everythin' be perfect, it be ready t' launch. Blimey! Blimey! I pushed t' launch button and t' Harpoon lifted off. T' flight be perfect. Blimey! Begad! T' Harpoon flied straight as a rail, nice altitude on a D, and then right at apogee t' ejection charge fired, shiver me timbers, and t' nice mylar parachute deployed, and t' Harpoon drifted down. Perfect flight and recovery.

Second flight, same day. I be goin' t' fly me LOC Aura on an Aerotech E engine, that was t' plan, but when I launched that on a D, t' stock streamer didn't slow it down enough and it broke a fin off, arrr, so I thought I would fly it in t' Harpoon. Blimey! Everythin' was set, matey, and be readied again. I hit t' launch button, matey, and t' Harpoon lifted off t' pad, ya bilge rat, t' igniter clips didn't come off, it soared... Blimey! Well, blow me down! wait a minute (my exact thoughts). Blimey! T' Aerotech igniter clips didn't unattach themselves from t' Harpoon, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, when it was about ten feet off o' t' pad, ya bilge rat, arrr, matey, t' leads ran out o' slack, me bucko, which caused them t' pull on t' harpoon, me bucko, ya bilge rat, causin' it t' go horizontal. T' leads did finally come unattached. T' Harpoon sailed directly away from us and over t' small hill we launch on. Avast! Begad! Amazin' sight. Avast, me proud beauty! Then t' realization set in. T' slow walk started towards t' crash site. Well, blow me down! Avast! As we got closer t' it, ya bilge rat, me hearties, we noticed that t' parachute had deployed. Ahoy! Good sign. Ya scallywag! It landed in some alders, matey, arrr, pretty good sign, but then we notice what we thought was t' nose cone, was actually t' top six inches o' t' rocket's body tube smashed.

Damage report. Avast, me proud beauty! First six inches o' t' rocket are destroyed. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! T' nose cone was completely smashed t' bits, one broken fin, and all fins had small slits from t' alder branches. Begad! Aye aye! It is fixable, me hearties, it will be fixed, me hearties, and it will fly again, me bucko, and hopefully soon. I contact TLP and they were great enough t' help me by givin' me t' length o' t' rocket, help me with a parts list, ya bilge rat, and are sendin' me a replacement 'little hat' that goes on t' t' top o' t' nose cone t' give it t' scale.

Recovery: One thin' I really enjoy about t' Harpoon is its green mylar parachute, me bucko, it's easy t' see, easy t' pack, me hearties, and has a snap for easy removal from t' Harpoon. Well, blow me down! T' 18" seems t' be fine from t' tests I have conducted (throwin' it off me deck). Aye aye! Blimey! T' recovery system is a snap t' put together, but instead o' usin' t' shroud line material t' connect t' nose cone t' t' swivel, I just tied t' shock cord t' t' nose cone, and put t' swivel 10" or so down, arrr, me hearties, didn't want t' trust that thin string).

Flight Rating: 4 ½ out o' 5

Summary: This rocket looks awesome, that be t' best thin' I feel about it. Begad! Aye aye! It is a nice lookin' rocket, t' right size, matey, matey, nice motors size, nice scale touch, me hearties, and a nice finish. Arrr! Begad! T' only thin' I would say that I disliked about t' rocket would be that little hat that goes on top o' t' nose cone. Other than that, ya bilge rat, all o' t' pieces went together easily. Blimey! A good first mid power or scale rocket.

Overall Rating: 4 ½ out o' 5