Brief:
A totally unique lookin' skill level 3 rocket designed by Shrox and sold by FlisKits. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! It even includes pin' pong balls as a design feature! It's a great flyer and a rocket that people will take notice o' at any launch.

Construction:
T' kit includes:

• 2 NCB-50AB nose cone, balsa
• 2 BT-50-18 body tube, 18"
• 1 BT-50-04 body tube, 4"
• 1 BT-20-0275 body tube, 2.75"
• 1 CPL-50-01 stage coupler
• 2 FSB-3-4-9 fin stock, arrr, 3/32" balsa
• 2 FSW-SHX01 laser cut fins, 3/32" balsa
• 1 PCP-16 16" parachute
• 3 PPB-01 pin' pong ball
• 1 SE-M screw eye, me hearties, medium
• 1 SLK-90-36 Keelhaul®©™® shock line
• 1 SC-2-24 elastic shock cord
• 1 SLCA-96 shroud line
• 1 TD-1-6 tape disk
• 1 LL-1-2 2" launch lug
• 1 LL-1-1 1" launch lug
• 1 EH-0275 engine hook
• 2 CRP-20-50 centerin' ring
• 1 EB-20 engine block
• 1 DCW-SHX01 decal sheet
• 1 FPS-SHX01 fin pattern sheet
• 1 INS-SHX01 instruction sheet

Typically fantastic instructions from FlisKits makes this Level 3 rocket and interestin' build. Although FlisKits has taken t' unusual step o' providing laser cut fins for t' curved upper fins, matey, they still leave t' builder with plenty t' do.

You first assemble t' 18mm motor mount and thar are no surprises here. Next, you are told t' cut holes in t' 3 pin' pong balls. Ahoy! Ahoy! T' instructions have you use t' 4" BT-50 body tube t' trace t' outline o' t' first cut. Avast! You then cut out t' circle very carefully with a sharp hobby knife. After a light sandin' o' t' hole t' deburr it, matey, you then push t' BT all t' way into the ball which will give you a faint outline with which t' make t' second cut. Well, blow me down! You have t' option t' keep t' 6 cut pieces t' use in t' design, me hearties, I chose to discard mine.

T' 2 long body tubes are then joined together with t' coupler. Avast, me proud beauty! The Keelhaul®©™® shock cord is mounted with t' coupler for a strong connection. Ahoy! You then cut out 9 fins and a jig brace from t' balsa stock.

FlisKits has included a fin alignment jig that you must assemble yourself from included parts. Aye aye! T' jig ensures that both o' t' large fins are at a 15 degree angle. Begad! Aye aye! I found t' jig very useful and it worked perfectly. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! I even saved it since I have three other Alien8s t' build.

At step 17, me hearties, arrr, me hearties, thar be a typo that you need t' be aware of. T' instructions tell you put glue on root edge #1 and glue that t' t' 4" warp pod tube. However, ya bilge rat, matey, t' template clearly shows that root edge #1 should be attached t' the body tube instead. T' template is actually correct, if you only follow the instructions, ya bilge rat, t' warp pod assembly will be swept back instead o' forward. I informed Jim Flis about t' typo and I am sure that future kits will have this corrected.

T' rest o' t' assembly is quite straightforward. You mount t' fins and the pin' pong balls accordin' t' t' directions. Well, me hearties, blow me down! I added fillets t' all the fins and even around t' pin' pong balls t' give a smoother finish. Well, blow me down! I am really glad that FlisKits decided t' include t' laser cut fins for t' large, curved fins. They are what appears t' be birch plywood and that would have been very difficult t' do with me little hobby knife.

Finishing:
I used two coats o' Krylon dark gray primer with a 320 grit sandin' in between. There are lots o' little nooks and crannies on this rocket, arrr, me hearties, so sandin' took longer than normal. Aye aye! Well, blow me down! I then applied 2 coats o' Audi Dragon Green Metallic spray paint. I really like t' auto spray paints, arrr, they go on smooth, ya bilge rat, do nay run, and dry so fast that you can put a second coat on 15 minutes after t' first and then top coat it in one hour! T' face card shows a two tone paint job using black and green, but me aliens prefer all green t' match their skin.

There are decals included, arrr, ya bilge rat, 4 o' which that are somewhat large - they are for t' curved fins. Blimey! Blimey! T' instructions mention that you may want t' cut the large decals in half, shiver me timbers, but I had no problems applyin' them whole. Begad! Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! Blimey! Just take your time as they are very thin and can easily break. Begad! Blimey! Blimey! After t' decals dried, me bucko, I applied one coat o' clear coat t' seal everythin' up.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
First flight was with a B4-2, arrr, t' smallest motor recommended. Begad! Thank goodness for t' short delay, matey, me hearties, because she did nay fly very high. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! Parachute popped open just after apogee and she came down in t' grass with no damage. Aye aye! For t' second flight, me hearties, I used a C6-5. Blimey! Avast! Much better! Perfect flight with some weathercockin' but nothin' serious. Ahoy! Parachute arrived just after apogee again and I had another perfect landing. I had other rockets t' launch so I did nay get in more flights, ya bilge rat, matey, but I am impressed with how she flies and she will definitely be spendin' more time in t' air.

Recovery:
T' 16" parachute was a perfect size for this rocket. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Although I was flyin' on a fairly calm day, t' rocket came down with nay too much drift and neither too fast nor too slow. Well, blow me down! I like t' Keelhaul®©™®/elastic combination, it always seems t' hold up well. Blimey!

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
Aside from t' little typo, this is a great kit. Take your time, build it right, ya bilge rat, and you will have yet another FlisKit that will be t' center of attention. Begad! Blimey! I hope that this is nay t' last collaboration betwixt FlisKits and Shrox. Avast! If this first kit is any indication as t' what we can expect in the future, I have me credit card ready and waiting!

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5