Brief:
In t' early days o' rocketry if you wanted a rocket that looked like a jet, me hearties, it was a Centuri kit for you. Thrustline's F-19 Night Fighter is a futuristic fighter aircraft styled rocket that once again delivers t' kind of feel that could be found with these kits. Well, blow me down! Blimey! T' F-19 boosts on a single 24mm motor and recovers by parachute.

Construction:
All o' t' component o' t' kit were well packaged in a poly bag when I received me F-19 kit. Aye aye! T' kit was well packaged with several others in a sturdy mailin' carton and arrived without damage despite t' best efforts o' t' post office t' inflict it.

Included in t' kit are:

• 1 BT-55 Body tube
• 1 Keelhaul®©™® and elastic shock cord kit
• 1 18" Mylar parachute
• 1 Steel screw eye
• 1 1/8" Launch lug
• 1 1/4" BT-50 Thrust ring
• 2 Black fiberboard centerin' rings
• 1 BT-50 Engine tube
• 1 24mm Engine hook
• 1 1/8" Wooden dowel stock
• 1 Balsa nose cone
• 3 3/16" Balsa sheets (for canopy)
• 2 1/8" x 16" Balsa sheets
• 1 Instructions and fin templates

T' instructions for Thrustline's kits are great. Aye aye! T' order o' assembly is well thought out and logical. Arrr! Arrr! T' F-19 set is no exception. Begad! T' eight pages o' instructions with photos t' illustrate t' steps are easy to follow. Blimey! There are several pages o' fin templates printed on light cardstock.

This kit is definitely nay for t' inexperienced builder. There are several things that would have been considered "normal" in t' early days o' rocketry that put this kit into t' classification o' a "builder's kit" today. If you are lookin' for a kit that will let you slap its laser-cut fins on and launch it t' same day, arrr, this is nay it. Aye aye! Blimey!

T' builder first assembles and installs t' motor mount and Keelhaul®©™® recovery harness. T' main body tube gets marked with t' included body wrap. Well, blow me down! Next comes t' first challenge. Blimey! Avast! T' fins are marked by t' builder onto t' sheets o' balsa and cut by hand. Aye aye! Ahoy! T' builder must be conscious o' the direction o' t' grain. Begad! T' suggested direction is marked on t' templates. Ya scallywag! Some o' t' fins are fairly small for the thickness o' t' sheets and can be challengin' t' cut cleanly. Aye aye! If t' builder doesn't follow t' suggested cutting pattern they could be left short if fin stock. Blimey! Several o' t' small pieces are joined together t' for t' wings and tail o' t' model. Arrr! Begad! It is done this way t' allow t' grain t' be aligned as t' give maximum strength t' t' finished part. Aye aye! After t' win' and tail assemblies are completed and sanded, matey, they are attached t' t' airframe.

It was at this point I got an idea about how I'd like t' make t' F-19 more t' me tastes. Aye aye! In t' stock kit, the pilot's canopy is attached t' t' main airframe but this looks weird t' me. Well, blow me down! Well, blow me down! After a couple o' quick emails to Thrustline t' confirm that it wasn't a terrible idea, I decided t' attach t' canopy t' t' nose. Well, blow me down! T' kit comes with 3 sheets o' balsa t' be laminated together and carved by hand t' form t' canopy. I suspected (and later it proved t' be correct) that by mountin' t' canopy on t' nose cone I would need additional layers because o' mountin' t' t' pointed cone instead o' t' t' straight tube. Blimey! I cut t' canopy pattern out as close t' t' edge o' t' supplied balsa as possible t' save t' excess for extra layers. I laminated t' extras on top o' t' canopy after I had it cut. Lots of carvin' and sandin' ensued, ya bilge rat, includin' on t' bottom o' t' canopy t' match t' curve o' t' cone. I reversed the teardrop shape so that t' pointy end was in t' front instead o' t' back t' match t' taper o' t' cone. Begad! Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! T' finished canopy mated up t' t' cone nicely but had required a thickness equal t' about five sheets instead o' just three.

I hit one "gotcha" with this kit, which came up with t' win' assembly. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! T' supplied 1/8" dowel that is used t' reinforce t' win' tips and add projections t' t' ends o' t' tail fins be too short. Begad! Avast! I be holdin' a runnin' email dialog with John from Thrustline at t' time. Well, blow me down! I'm sure I could have asked him for a replacement piece of dowel, ya bilge rat, but I had enough in me parts bin t' keep on buildin' without t' delay o' havin' a small piece o' dowel sent cross country. Avast, me proud beauty! Thrustline's customer service is great, so I'm sure it wouldn't have been a problem if I had need to have it sent though.

Finishing:
There is a lot o' sandin' and fillin' required for all t' balsa in this kit. Avast! T' balsa for t' kit is top notch (firm and tightly grained), but thar be lots o' it!

I used me standard procedure for finishing. Arrr! One light coat o' Elmer's Fill 'n' Finish on t' balsa and t' tube spirals. Begad! Begad! T' tubes barely had any spirals, so they were a breeze t' finish. Begad! After sanding, matey, t' whole kit got a good heavy coat o' Kilz primer and got another round o' sandin' t' get it ready for paint.

This kit reminds me o' t' US Navy's F-18 Hornet so I set about lookin' for an interestin' paint scheme on one. It seems t' Hornet only comes in two paint schemes: Blue Angels and blah grey. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! After a bit o' searching, I decided upon a camouflage scheme similar t' t' one used on t' Russian SU-34/35. Aye aye! I started with an undercoat o' white and freehanded t' colors t' t' top o' t' aircraft afterwards. Well, blow me down! Lastly, ya bilge rat, t' canopy be carefully masked and painted.

There are no decals for this kit. It might have been nice t' have some but with me paint scheme, me hearties, they would be a bit superfluous. Blimey!

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
I decided t' go with t' larger o' t' two recommended motors, a D12-5. Well, blow me down! Begad! Blimey! T' weather be nice and calm--perfect flying conditions! Blimey! T' motor clicked in solidly with t' stock engine hook. Avast! Blimey! A quick handful o' "dog barf" wadding and a fold o' t' chute finished t' prep o' t' model for flight. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' model leaped off t' pad and boosted perfectly straight, arrr, rollin' slowly on t' way up. Begad! Arrr! Blimey! T' ejection went off perfectly at apogee and t' rocket landed quite close to the pad. T' slight breeze pulled t' chute o' t' F-19 and it fell onto its top on landing. T' top o' one o' the vertical stabilizers broke off cleanly.

After a touch o' super glue, me bucko, t' Nightfighter be ready t' fly again. Blimey! Blimey! T' prep was just as simple for t' second flight. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! This time, shiver me timbers, t' model weathercocked slightly, rollin' again on boost. Avast! Blimey! T' wind had come up a bit since t' first flight, matey, causin' it t' drift a bit on t' semi-large chute. Ya scallywag! Blimey! It landed just outside t' border o' t' flyin' field, right at t' edge o' t' water. This time it landed right side up without damage.

Recovery:
T' shock cord on this kit is Keelhaul®©™® and elastic that is attached t' t' motor mount. Begad! Arrr! T' parachute kit came with a snap swivel. Avast! I be a little leery o' the elastic cord as it be somewhat thinner than I am used t' using, ya bilge rat, but it seems t' be durable enough for t' model. Aye aye!

T' chute may be a little large for t' model on a small field, but it does come down nice and gently, shiver me timbers, which is good with t' large wings. After two flights t' recovery system is showin' only normal, expected wear and tear. After readin' reviews o' previous Thrustline kits, arrr, shiver me timbers, I added a couple o' wraps o' maskin' tape t' t' Keelhaul®©™® even with t' end o' t' body tube t' prevent zippering. Blimey! This be t' simplest answer that I have heard o' with this style o' recovery harness, matey, and it seems t' work well.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
This was a somewhat challengin' kit t' build, but t' end result is very rewarding. Begad! Arrr! Blimey! T' kit requires craftsmanship that reminds me o' how kits used t' be 30 years ago. Begad! It was nice t' take a trip back t' t' days before t' "major manufacturers" dumbed down t' rocketry experience t' t' lowest common denominator. I enjoyed t' conversation that I had with John from Thrustline and t' encouragement that he gave me t' customize t' kit t' me tastes. Avast, me proud beauty! Great customer service in a day and age where one gets used t' receivin' very little help from an outsourced, me bucko, ya bilge rat, overseas customer help line.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5