Brief:
This upscale o' an old Estes kit is one o' Semroc's new Semroc Large-Scale (SLS) line. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! It flies on 24mm and 29mm motors in t' C t' F range. T' kit features thick walled body tubes, ya bilge rat, laser cut basswood fins, nylon chutes, me hearties, a laser slotted tube, and a Keelhaul®©™ recovery leader.

Construction:
T' kit from BRS Hobbies came nicely packed with a colorful insert, which also holds the instructions. Begad! Arrr! As you can see in t' photos, matey, individual parts such as t' motor mount, me bucko, ya bilge rat, chute, matey, fins, ya bilge rat, and miscellaneous small parts are all individually packaged. Well, blow me down! Arrr! No more droppin' some small item followed by t' associated searching. T' parts themselves are o' outstandin' quality. Well, blow me down! T' fins are flat and identical, t' body tubes are very thick, ya bilge rat, arrr, t' balsa nose cone is smooth and hard. Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! T' instructions are short but clear and include plenty o' diagrams. There is even a brief history o' Estes and o' t' kit itself. Aye aye! If you should be unhappy with t' kit, no problemo as Semroc has a 100% satisfaction guarantee!

So t' parts include:

• one 1.34" diameter body tube, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, matey, 12.25" long
• one 29mm motor tube
• one balsa nose cone, arrr, 4.75" long (exposed)
• three laser cut, basswood, through t' wall fins
• one 3/16" lug
• one thrust ring
• one screw eye
• one elastic cord
• one Keelhaul®©™® thread
• one 18" nylon chute
• one 24mm engine mount adapter kit, arrr, consistin' o'
• one motor tube
• two centerin' rings
• one engine block
• one engine hook (for long 24mm motors)
• one spacer tube (to adapt short 24mm motors)
• one large waterslide decal
• one small specification decal, includin' t' s/n (mine is #00040)

To build t' kit, you require all t' normal tools and supplies: white or wood glue, filler, me bucko, shiver me timbers, paint, matey, sandpaper, matey, shiver me timbers, etc. Avast! Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! I used wood glue throughout.

This was a simple kit t' build and I followed t' order o' the instructions. I started with t' 24mm motor mount, matey, which had its own instructions. Begad! T' slot for t' motor clip be pre-cut and from thar you glue in t' motor block and t' two wide and thick centerin' rings. Ya scallywag! Avast! These were actually pieces o' tube that telescoped over t' 24mm tube. Ya scallywag!

From thar I proceeded t' glue t' motor block in t' 29mm tube. You first tie t' Keelhaul®©™® twine around t' block. My first impulse was t' go for t' epoxy, but I decided to keep with t' recommended wood glue. Avast! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey!

T' next step was t' round t' edges o' t' fins and test their fit. They required a few swipes o' sandpaper along their tabs. Arrr! As you can see, matey, me bucko, since t' motor tube fits directly into t' body tube, thar isn't much o' a tab. Ya scallywag! You weren't asked to fill t' grain at this point, so I didn't. Blimey! Begad! On t' EMRR review o' another SLS kit, I noticed a fin popped off. I decided t' see how this kit fared. Avast! If I have to make repairs, I'll try t' epoxy.

T' install the motor mount, you swab a liberal amount o' glue just ahead o' t' fin tabs and push in t' mount. T' fit o' t' tube is a little loose and you immediately glue on t' fins. Blimey! I set t' tube fins up t' dry and noticed the motor tube was slidin' further into t' body. Glad I caught that one! T' TTW fins, shiver me timbers, despite bein' shallow, shiver me timbers, should add a lot o' strength and made fin alignment trivial. Blimey! Up t' this point, me bucko, everythin' was done in one sitting. Blimey! I then paused t' let t' motor mount and fins dry. Aye aye! I went back later and added an internal fillet above t' motor mount.

Next came fillets, addin' t' eye hook t' t' cone, me hearties, and completin' the recovery system. Begad! I didn't tie on t' chute but instead added a snap swivel and added it t' me stable o' reusable chutes. After it was all together, shiver me timbers, I went to slide on t' nose cone and found t' shoulder was too large. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! Bein' balsa, sandin' it down wasn't a problem and t' result is a nice snug fit.

So far t' PROs are: Great parts, ya bilge rat, clear instructions, straightforward build, matey, very sturdy. Begad! Arrr!

T' one CON is that you have t' make sure t' motor tube doesn't slide out of place. This could be avoided if you let t' glue set first, matey, arrr, but the instructions say t' proceed. Some sandin' on t' fins and cone was required, but this nay a big deal and was discussed in t' instructions. Blimey! Ahoy! As a result, I don't really consider them CONs.

Finishing:
There are finishin' instructions and they are typical. Ahoy! Minimal fillin' is required due t' t' fine grain o' t' cone and basswood fins. Avast! I painted the body white, nose black, and fins red, just like t' cover drawing. Blimey! T' main decal sheet includes one large wrap that covers t' top half o' t' body tube and a blue strip t' go just below t' fins. There is also a small specs decal. On t' plus side, matey, t' decals are thick and easy t' work with. Arrr! Begad! This is a very good thin' since it took me a month o' Sundays t' get t' large decal positioned. Arrr! I also swabbed t' bubbles forever, and thar are still a few. Anyway, I shot a clear coat t' help t' decals stay put. Ya scallywag! Begad! T' decal color is reasonably good, shiver me timbers, especially if t' background is white.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
T' recommended motors include a C11-5, me bucko, D12-7, E9-8, me bucko, ya bilge rat, and F25-9. I suspect it will fly well on any other motor in this range, such a 24mm F21 or a 29mm F20. As built, mine weighs in at 3.46oz without t' adapter and 4.12oz with. Ahoy! This is heavier than t' specified 3.0 oz. Avast! Begad!

For its maiden flight, I loaded it with t' 24mm adapter and a C11-7. Ahoy! This is a longer delay than recommended but it's what I had. Plus I had added a strip o' 'anti-zipper' cloth tape where t' Keelhaul®©™® meets t' top o' t' body tube, me hearties, so I went for it. I held t' adapter in with a lot o' maskin' tape. Arrr! T' waddin' was dog barf wrapped in Quest wadding. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! The flight was nice but ejection was late as predicted. Ahoy! Recovery was good on the largish chute. Avast, me proud beauty! When I got t' t' rocket I found t' eye-hook had pulled out of the cone, ya bilge rat, which was gone, and it also spat t' adapter. Avast, me proud beauty! I will split t' blame on t' cone since I used t' wrong delay and t' adapter was probably user error. Avast! All parts were recovered.

I CAed t' eye hook back in, ya bilge rat, matey, me bucko, reseated t' adapter, matey, arrr, and swapped t' chute for a 12 incher--there was a bit o' wind early and I didn't want t' feed the trees. T' motor choice was a D12-5. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! This time t' delay be shorter than recommended, but I angled t' rod some t' keep it from t' tree line. Ahoy! It tore off like a bat and I didn't see where it ejected. Well, blow me down! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! However, ya bilge rat, recovery was 100% good this time. It was a grass landin' and thar were no cracked fillets even with t' smaller chute.

I will try it on an E9-8 (this time a recommended motor) next weekend. Begad! I will have already submitted this review, me bucko, so watch t' logs below.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
T' materials in this kit were as good as I've ever seen and it be a pleasure to build. Avast! T' only build issue is t' make sure t' motor tube doesn't slip while t' fins dry. Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! This could be fixed by a piece o' tape or a watchful eye, but it is a potential major "gotcha". Avast! I had t' deduct a construction point here.

This is a very sturdy kit and would be a great choice for someone who wants to move on from Estes kits t' mid power. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! Blimey! With t' bigger motors, you better have a nice sized field!

My thanks t' Brian at BRS Hobbies for sponsorin' this review!

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5