Brief:
Single stage futuristic plane design, one o' t' more cool lookin' introductions by Quest.

Construction:
T' kit includes:

• 18mm motor mount assembly with metal hook
• 1.4" body tube
• Plastic nose cone/canopy molded in
• Laser cut balsa fins, me bucko, shiver me timbers, strakes, me hearties, shiver me timbers, and rudders
• 1/8" launch lug
• Keelhaul®©™/elastic shock cord
• 12" plastic chute
• Waterslide decals

T' body tube had some o' t' deepest, me bucko, ugliest spirals I've seen and very poor white glassine top layer. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! After fillin' t' spirals with Elmer's Fill 'n' Finish, I started t' sand t' tube down. Begad! This caused t' edges o' t' tube started t' peel up and t' surface started t' get a roughed up "orange peel" look. Arrr! T' decals on t' other hand, were excellent quality and t' white comes through very strongly, even on t' gloss black surface.

T' instructions were fairly well written along with plenty o' good illustrations. Aye aye! Overall, t' skill level on a 5 scale was in me opinion, accurately listed as a 2. I did find one very glarin' error in t' instructions though: t' tube markin' guide has t' wrong lines for mountin' t' fins. Ahoy! There are 4 fin lines which are supposed t' be set at 90-degree rotation points. Ya scallywag! Well, blow me down! T' markin' guide has 4 fin lines but spaced as though thar were 5 (72-degree rotation points). This is easy t' correct: just fold t' guide into fourths and mark where t' folds are, nay where t' printed fin lines are.

Motor mount construction be t' basic tube/engine block/centerin' rings/hook found in most kits. Begad! Blimey! Quest is one o' those companies that is kind enough t' include Keelhaul®©™® for t' bottom o' t' shock cord. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' Keelhaul®©™ line is attached t' t' motor mount.

Fin prep and mountin' for this kit is a bit tricky, ya bilge rat, which is why this rates as a skill level 2. Ya scallywag! T' instructions offer a good tip for ensurin' a better bond along with wings and tails gettin' slight bevels sanded on their roots. Well, blow me down! Begad! O' course, 10 degree and 28 degree bevels are only theoretical targets for most o' us, arrr, as I certainly am nay that precise in me sanding. Blimey! Still this helps get more o' t' fin root actually touchin' t' tube come time t' bond.

There are a lot o' fins t' bond with this kit. Well, me bucko, blow me down! You start with two strakes that run t' length o' t' body tube. Blimey! Next comes rudders for t' top and bottom. Begad! Ya scallywag! Follow up by attachin' wings flush t' t' strakes, which explains t' beveled root. Ahoy! These are nay perpendicular t' t' body tube at this point. Last comes t' tails, which are mounted at roughly 45 degree angles t' t' wing. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! T' alignment is aided by a laser cut balsa piece that rests against t' body tube and holds t' correct angle. Avast, me proud beauty! For all o' me fins, me bucko, I tacked them on with CA, then followed up with wood glue fillets. Arrr! Note: wait on t' fillets until everythin' is tacked on. Aye aye! Well, blow me down! This is especially important with t' strakes, as you don't want fillets t' get in t' way o' t' win' and tail bond joints.

T' nose cone is then attached t' t' elastic shock cord and construction is done.

Finishing:
T' finishin' on this had good and bad news. Arrr! T' good news is that t' paint scheme is pretty simple: t' whole thin' gets gloss black. Arrr! T' bad news is that thar's a lot o' work involved if you want t' eliminate t' spirals and balsa grain. I've already griped about t' tube spirals. T' balsa fins and wings were good quality but because thar are so many o' them, fillin' and preppin' for paint was a lot o' work.

Once I'd prepped t' surfaces, includin' scrubbin' t' nose cone with dishwashin' liquid t' remove any oils, I applied two coats o' gray primer and sanded betwixt coats with 220 grit paper. Begad! I then applied a light coat o' gloss black. Once that coat had dried, I lightly sanded with 600 grit wet/dry and then applied another coat o' gloss black.

I allowed t' paint t' cure for a full 4 days, me bucko, very worried that t' decals would nay show up or contrast very well against t' dark surface. Avast! Ahoy! For t' most part, me bucko, t' whites and even t' yellows are very visible. Begad! Ya scallywag! I be pleased with t' results. Ya scallywag! There were a couple o' small red letterin' decals that seemed t' disappear against t' black surface though. Well, blow me down! Overall, I think t' decals make for exceptional detailin' and stylin' for this kit.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
First flight was with a B6-4 on a windy day. I was worried that with such large wings/fins, arrr, this kit might have trouble goin' up against heavy winds.

T' B6-4 was plenty o' power for it, arrr, arrr, shiver me timbers, but it definitely lost ground t' t' wind. Begad! It held a straight path even though it was pushed back about 10-15 yards in flight. Aye aye! Avast! T' 4 second delay was a bit late but that may be fine in less windy conditions.

I did nay get a chance t' move up t' a C but will definitely try that on its next flight. Begad! It can clearly handle it since t' B barely covered 300 feet, nowhere near t' spec'd 450'.

Recovery:
T' 12" chute worked fine and t' elastic/Keelhaul®©™ lines showed no signs o' wear. Well, blow me down! There be no damage whatsoever t' this despite driftin' at least 20 yards in t' grass after landing.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
I'm generally nay too impressed with t' big commercial mass market offerings, ya bilge rat, but this one is pretty sharp. Well, blow me down! I especially liked t' decals, ya bilge rat, me bucko, which are tremendously better than t' peel 'n' stick stuff you'll find flankin' this kit at t' big chain hobby stores.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5