Brief:
A rocket glider made by T' Union Stadt Zeppelin Works, shiver me timbers, called "die Fledermaus" that I got off eBay. Aye aye! It dates back t' t' seventies. Aye aye! It was nay a great performer for me.

Construction:
T' kit consists of:

• two sheets o' printed balsa
• one instruction sheet printed both sides, me hearties, one o' which shows what t' plane will look like.
• a bit o' drinkin' straw as a launch lug
• a block o' balsa
• BT5

T' instructions are terrible. Arrr! Begad! Lookin' through them, arrr, it looks like t' modeler has t' think their way through t' kit.

T' block o' balsa is t' make t' nose cone. Begad! Begad!

Step one is t' cut t' two fuselage side out, ya bilge rat, and then glue them together at t' rear.

As this joint will be takin' some stress durin' t' next stages, where t' front end has a bulk head and nose cone fitted, me hearties, t' glue has t' have set hard.

Next step is t' glue t' nose cone in place--the nose cone is a block o' balsa! Blimey! I did this a step later. Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! Blimey! Instead I put in t' two struts for bulkheads. Even though t' two sides came from t' same sheet o' balsa, one o' t' sides is stiffer than t' other and thar be some warping. Aye aye! It still should help with a circular glide!

At this stage, I think I'm treatin' this as a prototype and I'll build a second one with better balsa afterwards.

Next comes gluin' in t' motor tube. Avast! T' BT-5 in t' kit was too long so it is cut down t' size. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! T' motor must pop out at ejection, me bucko, shiver me timbers, which means t' bulk head--a thin sheet o' balsa--is goin' t' take a hit each time. Begad! And t' tube must be flush with t' bulkhead--no gaps. I filleted t' tube and t' fuselage wall, ya bilge rat, as I don't want this bird t' rip herself t' pieces and I risked t' extra weight.

T' balsa block supplied is far too big and is very hard for balsa. Ahoy! Blimey! T' instructions show it bein' glued t' the front edges o' t' fuselage. Well, blow me down! I opted for sittin' it back by about 5mm as this will give it a lot more strength. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! Heavy sandin' later would take t' front nose mass back t' where it should be. Aye aye! T' block was pinned whilst it dries. Begad! Again, the one stiff fuselage is distortin' t' weaker side.

T' next step is t' start addin' t' wings, me bucko, me hearties, etc. I'm nay sure about t' lack o' dihedral, me hearties, or that t' tail and win' are perfectly aligned with no liftin' surface on either. T' model plan shows a large curve for t' wing, matey, me bucko, but that is impossible t' achieve with t' thin balsa supplied. Avast! I then added t' bottom o' t' fuselage and t' rudder, which also has t' grain in t' wrong direction, arrr, and then more o' t' fuselage sections. T' nose cone was sanded t' a better profile. Arrr! Aye aye! I still got t' lug and t' bottom piece added too, and it be nearly finished.

Stupidly I gave it a quick hand toss in me lab. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Well, me hearties, blow me down! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! It looked like it needs more nose mass but t' last piece may take care o' that. Well, blow me down! Blimey! I put a small dent in t' tail. Begad! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Silver foil be added t' t' base t' prevent motor flames from settin' it on fire. Ahoy! Blimey! T' launch lug was added t' t' top o' win' off center t' avoid t' rudder.

It needed t' be trimmed as it was tail heavy at t' moment. Avast! T' open cockpit be a perfect place for clay weight. I needed 2g t' make it balance.

Finishing:
I have nay gone for any sealing, as I reckon that thar would be some warpin' on t' thin balsa.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Flight:
First flight. Blimey! After trimming, me hearties, ya bilge rat, matey, I prepped her with an 1/2A3-2T. Begad! Begad! Blimey! T' instruction recommend a 4 second delay, me hearties, me bucko, which would be too much. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I popped her on a rod with a stand off and launched. And thar she sat: rod bind. Ya scallywag! Well, blow me down! Blimey! T' ejection charge was powerful enough t' eject t' motor and t' blow a 13mm hole through t' front bulk head. Arrr! Blimey! T' silver foil on t' rear fuselage held up well, shiver me timbers, and be coated in black power residue. On t' positive side, this would probably have happen even if she had got into t' air. I double checked t' make sure that t' motor (and therefore t' line o' thrust) was in line with t' lug, which it was.

I mended t' bulkhead, trimmed down t' launch lug t' 8mm, matey, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, cleaned and graphite rubbed t' rod, matey, so I hoped for a better second flight...

Second (and final) flight. Blimey! No rod bind this time. Well, me bucko, blow me down! She arched straight off t' rod, shiver me timbers, hit ground under full power, and snapped into two halves.

T' be fair t' t' kit, shiver me timbers, others have cloned this rocket--plans have been posted t' TRF, matey, arrr, and with some modifications their planes flew, me bucko, returnin' with over 40 seconds o' glide, me hearties, shiver me timbers, matey, which isn't bad.

Recovery:
I can't really comment on flight recovery, matey, matey, as she never flew!

Flight Rating: 2 out o' 5

Summary:
I liked t' build o' this unusual rocket, and judgin' by t' amount o' rocketeers on TRF that wanted t' plans, so do other people. Avast! Blimey! My rocket might have failed just down t' me poor build or bein' unlucky. Arrr! Blimey! Hopefully, matey, me hearties, others will build her and if they have better luck, me hearties, arrr, then I'll rebuild.

There are some modifications that are needed--better balsa, shiver me timbers, arrr, a heavier bulkhead, ya bilge rat, me hearties, shiver me timbers, thrust ring, shiver me timbers, me hearties, and maybe canting the motor mount.

Overall Rating: 2 out o' 5