My third 4" "stubby" rocket this year became t' NCR Big Brute which was built after t' BSD Diablo and Yank Bullet. Ahoy! Blimey! T' Big Brute is much closer in size t' t' Diablo bein' 33.3" in length and 4" in diameter.

See me 4" Stubby Rocket Comparison Page

T' Big Brute is a nice lookin' rocket with it's decals, ya bilge rat, black nose cone (as pictured in t' catalog), four fins, and stubby design. Begad! Then t' rocket touted features like laser cut plywood fins, me hearties, pre-slotted airframe, interlockin' through t' wall fin construction and t' Gorilla steel cable shock cord mount and t' Gorilla-Lok motor mount. Well, blow me down! I was pleased t' get a look at this Gorilla-Lok motor retainer considerin' I didn't get it when I purchased me Interceptor G. Ahoy! I'll talk about me disappointment later.

T' Big Brute includes a 17" long paper, ya bilge rat, pre-slotted airframe. Aye aye! Arrr! T' plastic nose cone makes up t' remainin' length. Well, blow me down! There are four (4) 1/8" thick plywood fins that are pre-cut. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! There are also three (3) 1/4" thick plastic centerin' rings (slotted t' accept t' fins). Ahoy! Well, blow me down! T' motor mount tube is NCR's just-smaller-than-a-29mm and it included t' Gorilla-Lok retainer that slides into t' lower centerin' rin' and then turns t' lock. Begad! T' recovery system includes a steel cable with loop/sleeve connectors, shiver me timbers, 6' o' 1/2" flat elastic and a 24" red, nylon parachute. Well, blow me down! There are two (2) 1/4" launch lugs and a decal sheet t' make up t' remainder o' t' kit. Begad! All o' this is nicely protected in a box.

CONSTRUCTION:

There is a 7-page instruction booklet o' which 3 pages are t' actual construction steps. Well, blow me down! T' are clear illustrations t' assist in buildin' t' rocket. Begad! There was also an extra loose piece o' paper in me box explainin' that t' fins will hang below t' body tube by 1/4" and if I do nay want that t' cut t' fin slots a 1/4" so that t' fins align with t' bottom o' t' body tube. I choose nay t' do that.

There are two other 1/4" plastic centerin' rings that each are slotted for t' four fins. Blimey! Aye aye! I had t' wrap a piece o' tape in place in t' middle o' t' motor tube because t' centerin' rings fit loosely. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! I then slide t' middle centerin' rin' t' rest on t' tape while gluing. When gluin' on t' t' bottom centerin' ring, I used two o' t' fins by slidin' them into t' slots t' ensure t' two rings were aligned properly. Avast! This is really t' most critical part o' construction.

Buildin' t' Gorilla recovery system includin' slidin' t' steel cable through two holes in t' upper centerin' rin' and then crimpin' a sleeve into place t' hold it. Aye aye! Then makin' a small 1" loop at t' other end usin' t' second sleeve and then t' elastic shock cord is tied t' that. This connection t' t' centerin' rin' appears t' be very strong as t' centerin' rin' is made o' 1/4" plastic.

After t' motor mount is assembled and glued into t' body tube, shiver me timbers, matey, everythin' else goes together very quickly. Well, blow me down! Blimey! T' fins slide right into thar slots. T' slots are nay sloppy so t' fins actually are held in place. Arrr! Blimey! This is a nice set up and allowed t' have perfectly aligned fins (as long as they were aligned when buildin' t' motor mount).

T' two launch lugs are glued in place. Blimey! Ahoy! T' elastic shock-cord is attached t' t' nose cone and she's ready for finishing.

For finishing, me bucko, I didn't need t' use anythin' t' fill t' spirals as they were very shallow. I simple used several coats o' Plasti-Kote Sandable Primer. I had t' spend a little more time on t' nose cone seam but still only used primer for filling. I then painted t' entire rocket red (instructions suggest grey). I followed up by paintin' t' nose cone black. Arrr! Then came t' decals.

T' decal sheet consisted o' three (3) strips, me hearties, t' words Big Brute and eight (8) fin decals. All were black and self-adhesive. Well, blow me down! I used t' strips that go around t' top o' t' body tube and t' Big Brute name. I did nay use t' fin decals. Ahoy! I would have if they looked like t' ones in t' pictures on t' front o' t' box. Blimey! T' decals supplied with me kit had t' same shape but were much smaller. Avast! T' picture on t' box shows them evenly coverin' t' fin with about a 1/4" space all t' way around. Avast! Aye aye! T' ones I had seems t' leave at least a 1/2" space and nay evenly around. Ya scallywag! My guess is that somethin' changed, arrr, either t' decals or t' fin size. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! They just didn't give t' look I wanted so I didn't use them.

Interestingly, me finished rocket weighed in at just under 27 ounces. Arrr! T' specs on this rocket says 16 ounces. Ahoy! I'm sure I didn't use 11 ounces o' extra epoxy. Begad! Begad! I again wonder if t' fins were enlarged thereby increasin' t' weight and makin' t' decals nay fit t' same way.

Overall, matey, me hearties, for CONSTRUCTION I would rate this kit 4 points. Blimey! Instructions are nay t' best in town, arrr, but are adequate for buildin' this relatively easy rocket. Begad! Blimey! T' centerin' rin' and fin alignment are excellent. Avast, me proud beauty! T' smaller than normal motor mount must be changed by NCR and someone should look into t' weight and decals.

FLIGHT/RECOVERY:

Here are t' altitudes that Apogee's RockSim says it will get.

T' Big Brute was designed t' fly on NCR DarkStar motors but . Well, blow me down! . Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! . Avast! Avast! since you can't get them any more you must fly on alternatives. Since t' motor mount is slightly smaller than t' standard 29mm, normal single-use motors do nay fit. Begad! However, AeroTech RMS motors do. Avast! Therefore, arrr, t' first flight on me Big Brute was on an F22-5J(4)*. Note t' (4)* indicates that this be t' delay that NARRRRR certified.

I added a Large Pratt Hobbies Nomex Heat Shield which fits great in 4" diameter kits.

T' Gorilla-Lok retainer rin' is designed for handlin' NCR motors. Well, blow me down! I tried and tried t' get it on over me AT RMS casin' but could not. Blimey! Finally I took a wood screw and drove it into t' plastic and used a washer as a motor retainer. Begad! T' plastic actually gives an easy surface t' screw into and it is secure.

I had prepped everything, me bucko, so I thought, so that once I was at t' site I could just pop t' rocket on t' pad and go. Ahoy! Well, I loaded an ignitor at t' site and popped it on t' pad. Aye aye! After a countdown and t' push o' a button, t' Big Brute lifted off t' pad. Arrr! I had angled t' rod slightly t' compensate for wind. Blimey! Ya scallywag! T' rocket took off in a slow arc and be headin' down when t' ejection charge popped. Arrr! Upon ejection t' red parachute seemed t' go one way while t' rest o' t' rocket fell. Ahoy! It continued that way, arrr, matey, arrr, falling, until it landed in t' tall grass. T' parachute landed a good distance away. Begad! Frantically searchin' t' see if t' ejection blew t' shroud lines apart or somethin' I was only t' discover that I never tied t' parachute on!

No damage t' t' rocket as it fell horizontally and landed in tall grass. Well, blow me down! So t' flight was successful, ya bilge rat, but sure would have been nice t' see t' descent on a parachute.

T' second flight was a couple o' weeks later and this time I had attached t' parachute. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! I loaded another F22-5J(4)* and off she went. Ahoy! This time with no angle on t' launch rod, matey, she went straight up, arced over and started back down. It dropped about 1/3 o' t' way and I had started t' write it off in me mind when it finally popped t' ejection. Arrr! Ahoy! Under full parachute t' rocket still fell too fast.  Parachute Size Calculators suggest betwixt a 36" and 38" chute for minimum on this weight o' me Big Brute.

For FLIGHT/RECOVERY, ya bilge rat, I would rate this kit 3 ½ points. T' short rocket looks nice comin' off t' pad. Blimey! Blimey! Due t' it's motor limitations and t' fact t' provided retainer doesn't work except with NCR motors and you can't get these motors t' ratin' for this rocket is only average. This kits parachute is under-rated for t' weight o' t' kit.

Overall, matey, matey, t' Big Brute is another nice lookin' "stubby" rocket. Avast! T' parts are good quality and t' through t' wall fins set up is great! T' instructions are adequate with illustrations. Too bad t' rocket is designed t' fly only on t' NCR DarkStars. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! It forces people t' modify, me hearties, me bucko, which kind o' defeats t' purpose o' a kit for less experienced rocketeers. I give t' kit an OVERALL ratin' o' 4 points.