Brief:
Semroc has gone "retro repro" again, arrr, bringin' out a modern reproduction o' one o' t' last Centuri designs before t' Damon Corporation consolidated their product line under t' Estes brand. Arrr! T' kit, although a Centuri model, ya bilge rat, featured Estes parts in its day. Arrr! Blimey! T' Semroc reproduction features laser-cut fins, me hearties, me hearties, a balsa nose cone, matey, and upgraded Keelhaul®©™/elastic shock cord, plus includes a chute instead o' t' original streamer. It's a basic four-fin design, matey, but with t' flexibility t' fly on either 18 or 24mm motors, you can lob it up over a small field or load in a D and send it into orbit.

Construction:
T' parts list includes t' following, all o' excellent quality:

• BNC55AC Balsa nose cone (Estes Cherokee D style)
• BT-55 body tube
• BT-50 motor tube
• Laser-cut balsa fins
• Laser-cut thin cardboard centerin' rings
• Metal motor hook
• 12" plastic chute
• Keelhaul®©™/elastic shock cord
• Waterslide decal
• 18/24 adapter kit (motor tube, ya bilge rat, centerin' rings, ya bilge rat, metal hook, motor block)

Semroc has made one minor change t' their instruction sheet format with this kit. T' instructions remain printed on 8.5" x 11" paper, but instead o' printin' booklet style folded in half, shiver me timbers, you'll need t' open up t' whole thin' flat. T' left side o' t' sheets are perforated. Aye aye! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! T' idea is that some builders will want t' keep their instructions in a binder, arrr, and this makes it easy t' do so and still read through t' plans. It's probably a cool idea, matey, but I have so many sets o' instructions tucked away that it's probably a little too late t' try and teach this old disorganized dog t' trick o' filin' and neatness.

Overall, construction consists o' about 30 steps over 3 full pages includin' illustrations and runs around 2 hours plus whatever time you invest in finishing. Ya scallywag! Begad! I built this side by side with t' Magnum Sprint and found they are almost identical in build.

I started off with t' motor mount, which consists o' a simple 24mm tube with metal hook, motor block (20/50 centerin' ring) and a pair o' thin centerin' rings. Blimey! A loop o' Keelhaul®©™ slips under t' metal hook t' anchor t' shock cord. Begad! Begad! T' completed assembly is later glued inside t' body tube flush with t' aft end. Blimey! Note that t' motor hook and tube are sized only for D's, me bucko, so if you are nutty enough t' want t' try an E, me hearties, you'll have t' swap out tube/hook.

T' fins are symmetrical trapezoids mounted 1/2" forward o' t' aft end. Blimey! Blimey! Tube markin' is via a markin' guide on t' instruction sheet with no lug line indicator. Begad! Blimey! Lug placement is nay that critical, but for aesthetics I'd have preferred a lug line included on t' pattern (and a wraparound guide is easier for me). Begad! Blimey! I tacked t' fins on with medium CA then applied wood glue fillets.

Tackin' on t' launch lug and puttin' t' screw eye on t' nose cone wraps up t' main construction.

Because this is a fairly small/light model, matey, a 24mm motor could be a little excessive. Therefore, a neat little adapter is included that supports 18mm motors. Avast! This adapter is a standard 18mm motor tube, matey, me hearties, block, matey, matey, and metal hook but with 3 centerin' rings. Blimey! One o' these rings has a cutout t' allow t' metal hook t' open out o' t' way for removin' t' motor. Ahoy! If you place t' centerin' rings carefully per t' instructions, ya bilge rat, what you'll get slides perfectly into t' BT-50, lockin' in place through t' outer motor hook, arrr, me bucko, matey, and t' 18mm motor is held in place by t' inner hook.

Finishing:
Finishin' is a breeze although t' stock paint scheme does require a very tiny bit o' masking. Aye aye! T' main body got a couple coats o' gray primer after t' standard Elmer's Fill 'n' Finish for spirals and grains. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! I then followed up with Rustoleum yellow. Begad! After allowin' a couple days t' cure, I masked off all but one fin and t' nose and then hit those with gloss black.

T' waterslide decals are minimal but add a nice touch and are excellent quality and are easy t' work with.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
For t' first flight, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, arrr, I was lookin' at winds holdin' steady at 12-15 mph and gustin' t' 20, arrr, so t' thought o' chasin' this for t' expected drift o' a 24mm motor be out o' t' question. Blimey! Blimey! I was surrounded by lake, ya bilge rat, trees, matey, and soccer games so needed t' minimize t' drift t' about 150 yards.

Thankfully, shiver me timbers, this comes with a handy little 18mm adapter so I be able t' smartly load up a B6-4 for t' first flight. I flew off a 3' length o' 3/16" rod, matey, and this rocket held its own against t' wind very nicely, with just a hint o' weathercocking. Aye aye! I didn't get much altitude with t' B6-4 (maybe a couple hundred feet), but it would at least remain in t' park. Begad! Ahoy! T' -4 delay in this instance was perfect.

Recovery:
T' 12" plastic chute is certainly up t' t' task, and I be able t' recover this with no problems.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
PROs: Classic design/tribute and great versatility. Can fly on large or small fields with A-D motors (potentially even 24mm F's).

CONs: None t' speak of.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5