Brief:
This is a review o' t' OOP Estes Master's Series Space Shuttle, arrr, EST# 1284. Avast! It is a 1/162 scale replica o' t' Space Shuttle and includes both Orbiter and booster sections. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! These sections are connected at launch, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, boost on a single C5-3 or C6-3 engine, and separate when t' 'main engine' ejects. Blimey! T' Orbiter uses glide recovery while t' booster uses a parachute. Ahoy! For flight, thar are removable fin units that mount in t' SRBs. For display, plastic nozzles are provided.

Construction:
T' Space Shuttle came packaged like a typical Estes kit (plastic bags, etc). Begad! Ahoy! This is definitely a skill-level-4 kit with 16 pages o' detailed instructions containin' 53 steps. Begad! It claims t' require 4 types o' glue and 6 colors o' paint. T' parts list includes 27 line items includin' t' chute, ya bilge rat, decals, me hearties, etc. Begad! T' balsa fins, cardboard body wraps/detailing, and vacuum-molded Orbiter components are all die cut. Aye aye! Begad! T' die cut plastic components made t' Orbiter assembly a lot easier, as I never seem t' get a good fit when I have t' cut them with a cutlass.

I built t' kit stock, down t' t' elastic shock cord. Well, blow me down! I figured it be good enough for several flights, ya bilge rat, and I probably will nay fly it too often. I substituted Titebond for t' white glue, and since I didn't want t' go out and buy 3 types o' glue that I normally don't use (contact cement, plastic cement, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, and liquid plastic cement), shiver me timbers, I used CA (medium and thick) instead. I assembled t' entire booster (main tank/SRBs) this way and it worked fine. Avast! Later, me bucko, when I got t' t' Orbiter, me hearties, which is almost all plastic, I broke down and got some liquid plastic cement. I want t' point out a general rule in buildin' models - one that I don't seem t' follow. Blimey! That is, shiver me timbers, read ALL t' instructions before you start. Begad! Avast! I didn't pay attention and used t' elastic strin' required for t' adjustment o' t' Orbiter's elevons in another spot. Begad! DUH. Ya scallywag! Arrr! I did, however, find a suitable replacement when buildin' t' Orbiter. Blimey! Ya scallywag! My feeble mind was confused by t' fact that t' chute came pre-assembled, and t' instructions called for a piece o' twine from t' chute. Blimey! I followed t' instructions pretty much as is, but I did skip ahead at times t' keep busy while parts dried. Ahoy! Well, blow me down! I found one fin be broken out o' t' bag; however, this was easily fixed with some glue and tissue. Ahoy! I stopped at t' point that t' main tank, matey, matey, SRBs, me hearties, matey, and removable fin units were complete. Arrr! Blimey! At this point, I decided that I would separately paint each section. Begad! After these sections are assembled, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, it would be very difficult t' paint them different colors. Ya scallywag! T' fit o' t' plastic Orbiter parts was nay perfect, me hearties, but nay too bad. Ahoy! Well, me bucko, blow me down! T' first step in trimmin' t' Orbiter glider is balancin' it and adjustin' t' nose weight. Ya scallywag! Avast! T' kit provides two weights. Ya scallywag! I used one weight and some clay instead o' cuttin' t' second one up. Next, you adjust t' elevons with a strin' that is run through t' center engine nozzle in t' rear. Well, blow me down! This strin' pulls on a plastic arm on t' elevon assembly, while t' elastic strin' mentioned earlier maintains tension. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! After quite a bit o' adjustment, t' Orbiter still seems t' glide like a brick (kind o' like t' real thing?). Blimey! If I was confident in me detailed model buildin' abilities, me bucko, I would give a construction ratin' o' 2.5, me hearties, matey, but will give it t' benefit o' t' doubt and bump it up a point.

Finishing:
I decided t' use t' current Shuttle paint scheme, me hearties, with a brown main tank and white boosters. Begad! Begad! As I mentioned above, these were painted prior t' their final assembly. I used white spray paint and t' rest was brush-on. Ahoy! I didn't want t' buy multiple spray paints, me hearties, ya bilge rat, nor am I that skilled in maskin' small details. Ya scallywag! I even mixed me own light gray-green for t' tip o' t' Orbiter's nose and t' leadin' edge o' t' wings. Ahoy! T' decals are t' water-slide variety. Well, blow me down! They went on fine, ya bilge rat, me bucko, but some o' t' smaller ones literally blew away when I sprayed t' final clear coat. T' end result, like many o' me finish jobs, looks good from a distance.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Flight:
T' kit flies on C5-3 and C6-3 engines only. Arrr! Begad! I chose a C6-3 because that is what I had available. Aye aye! T' winds were blowin' betwixt 5-10 mph (my guess) when I launched. Ya scallywag! T' boost be slow (read that realistic) and thar was some wobble and weathercocking.

Recovery:
T' recovery system is typical Estes with an elastic shock cord and a plastic chute. Blimey! Ejection appeared t' occur just before apogee and t' Booster separated, just as it was supposed to. It turned with t' wind and came down at a fairly steep angle, again, just like t' real thing. Begad! It landed nicely without damage. Begad! T' one problem was singein' on t' elastic shock cord, me bucko, which is no big surprise. Begad! I will have t' replace it before t' next flight - should have done it at t' start! I rate t' flight/recovery at 5/5, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, and take off ½ point for t' elastic shock cord.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
PROs 1. Arrr! Blimey! Great lookin' scale model. Begad! Blimey! 2. Begad! Blimey! Relatively easy t' build, considerin' t' number o' components. Blimey! Blimey! 3. Avast! Blimey! Realistic lookin' boost and Orbiter recovery. 4. Aye aye! Blimey! Neat rocket!

CONs 1. Ahoy! Aye aye! Fin stock be broken out o' t' package. Begad! 2. Aye aye! Some steps are hard t' understand and require lookin' at all t' finishin' diagrams t' understand what is intended 3. Avast! T' fit o' t' Orbiter parts is so-so 4. Ya scallywag! Arrr! Junky recovery components - typical Estes.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5