Brief:
This is a fairly simple 2-stage, ya bilge rat, 18mm rocket from Estes. I have slightly modified mine with shortenin' and a modified booster motor mount t' repair damage.

Construction:
T' parts list:

• 18" o' BT-50; mine only has 10" left.
• 1-15/16" o' BT-50 for booster
• 2 magenta plastic fin units
• PNC-50YR: 2-part magenta nose cone
• 2 blue 18mm engine mount tubes o' rather poor quality
• 2 green 18mm-24mm centerin' rings
• 2 green 18mm engine blocks
• 1 long green 18mm-24mm adapter ring
• 1 yellow 24mm reinforcement ring
• Launch lug
• 1/8" x 18" shock cord
• 1.2" x 30" orange streamer
• Decal sheet

I barely remember anythin' about construction o' t' original. Be very careful t' align t' launch lug halves perfectly. Blimey! I would suggest goin' with a single, matey, longer lug. Ahoy! Mine currently uses t' scavenged plastic lug assembly from a Space Bus and that works well.

I took about 8" off o' t' sustainer body tube after it crimped twice--right above t' fin unit and about 6" above it--and glued t' fin unit on again. Aye aye! Five inches o' t' scavenged tube now resides in t' pop-pod o' me new boost glider; t' rest was crumpled and trashed. T' Mongoose is still perfectly stable and flyable even when shortened.

T' other major modification is that I no longer have t' lower motor mount tube. Blimey! Ya scallywag! It was crushed t' first time I tried t' put a motor in it. Well, blow me down! All o' t' tubes in t' kit are too thin and poor quality. Begad! Begad! I simply removed t' tube and glued t' lower engine block into t' bottom centerin' ring. Well, blow me down! I now simply wrap t' booster motor with a bit o' maskin' tape and everythin' works great.

I suggest replacin' t' 2 crappy motor mount tubes with better, arrr, stronger BT-20 pieces. Aye aye! Be prepared t' either shorten t' body tube or repair it with tube couplers or fiberglass.

Two and a half points for buildin' alone because t' rocket is too flimsy for its own good, but t' fin units make a lot up.

Finishing:
There's no paintin' t' be done. Begad! T' decals are sticker type--much easier for fumblefingers like me--and look halfway nice. Arrr! Ahoy! T' yellow and magenta colorin' looks nice. Aye aye! My only complaints are t' plain launch lug that doesn't fit in t' color scheme and that t' spirals on t' body tube are visible. Blimey! Picky, shiver me timbers, picky.

Four and a half points for finishin' alone.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Flight:
My first "flight" be on an A8-3 in 2004. Aye aye! T' launch lugs weren't aligned enough and it stuck on t' pad. That was me mistake.

T' next flight was sometime last year on a B6-4. Aye aye! It was a perfect flight with a loud, me hearties, straight boost t' about 300 feet. Well, blow me down! Although t' streamer deployed fine, matey, t' body tube crimped on impact, promptin' me t' make t' changes.

T' next flight was 2-stage on a B6-0/B6-6 combo. Aye aye! It was straight and fast, me hearties, but stagin' be low enough t' be seen. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! Blimey! T' sustainer disappeared into t' darkenin' sky, me hearties, only t' reappear under its streamer 30 seconds later. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Blimey! Both o' me modifications worked fine.

Its latest flight was on an A8-3. Avast, me proud beauty! T' flight was low, about 120 feet, arrr, but stable. T' streamer didn't deploy, but it landed with no damage in a puddle o' water. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! After drying, ya bilge rat, thar was no damage, shiver me timbers, weakening, me hearties, or warping.

However, either from deployment or more likely me handling, ya bilge rat, t' loop broke off t' nose cone. I simply drilled a small hole on t' end o' t' nose cone shoulder, shiver me timbers, inserted a small screw, ya bilge rat, arrr, matey, and glued it in with CA. Avast! T' shock cord ties firmly t' t' screw head.

Estes recommends t' A8-3, B4-4, B6-4, me hearties, and C6-5 for single stage flights and C6-0s stagin' t' B6-6s and C6-7s. I find that t' B6-0 is a good booster for smaller fields (the A8-0 would be even better), and t' rare A8-5s a good upper-stage motor.

Recovery:
T' shock cord is 1/8" x 18" elastic, barely adequate. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! A 24" or 36" piece o' 3/16" elastic would have been better.

T' 1" x 30" streamer is too long and it doesn't flap. Arrr! A 2" x 20" streamer would be better. Well, blow me down! For A and B single-stage flights, me bucko, shiver me timbers, a 12" parachute would be fine, but t' streamer is needed for C and 2-stage flights because it is fairly light and would drift away quickly, arrr, shiver me timbers, especially from 1600 feet on a C6-0/C6-7 combo.

T' main complaint I have though, is that t' booster is marginally stable after separation and t' front tends t' crumple a bit. Ahoy! T' reinforcement ring, however, arrr, excellently prevents it from crumplin' too much.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
Estes calls t' Mongoose an excellent first 2-stage rocket. Begad! I say t' Loadstar, matey, shiver me timbers, me bucko, Solar Flare, or one o' Quest's L1 2-stagers would be a bit better. This was t' first 2-stagers I built and t' second I flew, me bucko, so it's nay too off t' mark.

T' Mongoose is a great flier for large and small fields. Except for t' too-stable booster, me bucko, it flies excellently. Avast, me proud beauty! T' main problem is that t' tubes, ya bilge rat, especially t' engine mount tubes are substandard. Avast! T' plastic fin units are excellent and prevent beginners from havin' t' mess with 8 fins, me hearties, and t' pre-finished look is excellent.

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5