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

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

I built t' kit stock, down t' t' elastic shock cord. I figured it was good enough for several flights, shiver me timbers, and I probably will nay fly it too often. Blimey! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! I substituted Titebond for t' white glue, arrr, and since I didn't want t' go out and buy 3 types o' glue that I normally don't use (contact cement, arrr, plastic cement, me bucko, arrr, and liquid plastic cement), I used CA (medium and thick) instead. Avast! Blimey! I assembled t' entire booster (main tank/SRBs) this way and it worked fine. Later, me bucko, when I got t' t' Orbiter, which is almost all plastic, I broke down and got some liquid plastic cement. Ahoy! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! I want t' point out a general rule in buildin' models - one that I don't seem t' follow. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! That is, read ALL t' instructions before you start. Begad! Blimey! I didn't pay attention and used t' elastic strin' required for t' adjustment o' t' Orbiter's elevons in another spot. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! DUH. Well, blow me down! Blimey! I did, me hearties, me hearties, however, find a suitable replacement when buildin' t' Orbiter. Ya scallywag! Blimey! 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. I followed t' instructions pretty much as is, me hearties, but I did skip ahead at times t' keep busy while parts dried. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! I found one fin was broken out o' t' bag; however, this was easily fixed with some glue and tissue. I stopped at t' point that t' main tank, SRBs, arrr, and removable fin units were complete. Ya scallywag! Blimey! At this point, I decided that I would separately paint each section. Blimey! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! After these sections are assembled, it would be very difficult t' paint them different colors. Aye aye! Blimey! T' fit o' t' plastic Orbiter parts was nay perfect, ya bilge rat, but nay too bad. T' first step in trimmin' t' Orbiter glider is balancin' it and adjustin' t' nose weight. Blimey! Blimey! T' kit provides two weights. Avast, me proud beauty! I used one weight and some clay instead o' cuttin' t' second one up. Begad! Blimey! Next, you adjust t' elevons with a strin' that is run through t' center engine nozzle in t' rear. This strin' pulls on a plastic arm on t' elevon assembly, while t' elastic strin' mentioned earlier maintains tension. Begad! Begad! After quite a bit o' adjustment, t' Orbiter still seems t' glide like a brick (kind o' like t' real thing?). Aye aye! If I be confident in me detailed model buildin' abilities, matey, I would give a construction ratin' o' 2.5, shiver me timbers, matey, arrr, 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, matey, with a brown main tank and white boosters. As I mentioned above, these were painted prior t' their final assembly. Begad! I used white spray paint and t' rest was brush-on. I didn't want t' buy multiple spray paints, nor am I that skilled in maskin' small details. Blimey! I even mixed me own light gray-green for t' tip o' t' Orbiter's nose and t' leadin' edge o' t' wings. T' decals are t' water-slide variety. Begad! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! They went on fine, but some o' t' smaller ones literally blew away when I sprayed t' final clear coat. Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! T' end result, matey, arrr, matey, like many o' me finish jobs, ya bilge rat, looks good from a distance.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Flight:
T' kit flies on C5-3 and C6-3 engines only. Avast, me proud beauty! I chose a C6-3 because that is what I had available. Begad! T' winds were blowin' betwixt 5-10 mph (my guess) when I launched. Blimey! Avast! 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. Ejection appeared t' occur just before apogee and t' Booster separated, just as it be supposed to. It turned with t' wind and came down at a fairly steep angle, arrr, again, just like t' real thing. Well, blow me down! It landed nicely without damage. Begad! Begad! T' one problem was singein' on t' elastic shock cord, which is no big surprise. 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, ya bilge rat, and take off ½ point for t' elastic shock cord.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
PROs 1. Great lookin' scale model. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! Blimey! 2. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! Blimey! Relatively easy t' build, considerin' t' number o' components. Begad! Blimey! 3. Avast! Blimey! Realistic lookin' boost and Orbiter recovery. Begad! Begad! Blimey! 4. Neat rocket!

CONs 1. Well, blow me down! Fin stock be broken out o' t' package. Avast! 2. Avast! Some steps are hard t' understand and require lookin' at all t' finishin' diagrams t' understand what is intended 3. T' fit o' t' Orbiter parts is so-so 4. Junky recovery components - typical Estes.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5