Construction

When Giant Leap says "Almost Ready T' Fly" they mean it. Ya scallywag!  If anythin' this rocket may be a bit too easy t' assemble, but as a quick entry t' HPR this does t' job.  T' actual time spent workin' on t' kit was very short, most o' t' construction time was waitin' for epoxy or paint t' dry.

T' instructions are clear, includin' cautions around t' tricky parts and advisin' what types o' epoxy t' use for t' different parts. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty!  There be one part o' t' instructions (for a T-Bolt ordered mid-2013 and another mid-2014) that were a bit out o' date, they replaced t' old shock cord mount (what they seemed t' call a "super mount" which be a coupler tube with pre-cut all-thread inserted) with a cylindrical metal piece with a hole through t' center for an eye bolt and nut (what they call t' "Hardpoint Anchor", sold separately on their site). Avast!  So t' instructions include applyin' epoxy t' t' all-thread so it doesn't cut t' shock cord, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, but that's nay a problem with t' eye bolt. Avast!  It left me a bit confused since I wasn't familiar with t' term all-thread so I was lookin' for somethin' I didn't have in me kit. Ahoy!  But installin' t' Hardpoint into t' rocket is basically t' same, and attachin' t' shock cord t' t' eye bolt is easier than reachin' in t' access t' buried all-thread I'd imagine. Ya scallywag!  T' shock cord included loops at both ends that looked very solid. Ya scallywag! Well, blow me down!  T' kit instructions for attachin' at t' super mount end be obviously wrong, matey, but t' instructions for t' eye hook end could easily apply t' both ends. Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down!  T' instructions suggest tyin' t' cord t' t' eye bolt and usin' a dap o' epoxy, ya bilge rat, I fed t' loop ends through t' eye hooks and then fed t' entire shock cord through t' loop and didn't bother with any glue.

To assemble you basically glue on t' retainer and fin can (JB Weld and 30 min epoxy recommended, shiver me timbers, me bucko, respectively), me bucko, attach t' shock cord t' t' Hardpoint and epoxy it in (they recommend 30 min epoxy, I used JB Weld here also, shiver me timbers, and they provide a "glue stick" t' reach inside t' tube t' apply t' epoxy), shiver me timbers, slide on t' chute protector and attach t' other eye bolt for t' nosecone attachment. Aye aye! Ya scallywag!  All 3 GLR kits I've tried now (2 T-Bolts and 1 Firestorm 54) didn't have t' hole in t' nosecone properly sized for t' eye bolt provided, so I've needed t' re-drill t' hole t' make it a bit bigger (but nay too big t' keep a good bite on t' plastic).  Easy t' do obviously, ya bilge rat, arrr, but a drill and drill bit aren't in their list o' required parts.  Tie a loop in t' shock cord and attach t' t' parachute with t' provided Quick-link. Arrr!  Epoxy on t' rail guides with their spacers (two sets o' epoxying, me hearties, JB Weld again), me bucko, arrr, drill t' vent holes and it's ready t' go.

It doesn't get any easier than t' single-piece fin canister, me hearties, me bucko, o' course without gainin' any skills about attachin' fins t' a rocket. Aye aye! Arrr!  As a minimum diameter rocket it does add t' t' rocket's outer diameter at t' bottom, surely addin' a bit o' extra drag, arrr, and it's a pretty solid chunk o' plastic so it's reasonably heavy. Ahoy!  In this kit GLR drills some large holes on t' tube portion t' reduce t' weight, makin' what they call t' "High-Performance" Fin Can. Well, blow me down! Aye aye!  But t' single-piece fin can avoids havin' t' worry about alignment, fillets, etc.  Perfect for someone just gettin' started.