Brief:
This is a two-stage scale model o' t' WAC Corporal with Tiny Tim Booster from Aerospace Specialty Products. It has a 24mm booster stagin' t' an 18mm sustainer.

Construction:
Tiny Tim Booster Parts consist of:

• 1 Body Tube (BT-55)
• 1 Engine Tube (BT-50)
• 1 Stuffer Tube (BT-20)
• 1 Lower Telescopin' Tube (19mm)
• 1 Upper (Short) Telescopin' Tube (19mm)
• 1 Tube Coupler (BT-20 coupler)
• 3 1/16" Wood Dowels, 2 20/50 Centerin' Rings
• 3 50/55 Centerin' Rings
• 4 1/4" wide Strip Styrene
• 1 1/8" wide Strip Styrene
• 1 Paper Shroud
• 6 Rubber Bands
• 1 Basswood Strip
• 1 Launch Lug
• 3 Pre-Cut Fins

WAC Corporal (Upper Stage) parts consist of:

• 1 18mm motor tube
• 1 18mm Motor Block
• 2 20/50 Centerin' Rings
• 1 50/55 Centerin' Ring
• 1 Stuffer Tube
• 1 BT-55 Body Tube
• 1 Keelhaul®©™Shock Cord
• 1 Elastic Shock Cord
• 1 3/16" Launch Lug
• 1 1/4" Square Balsa Stick
• 1 Balsa Nose Cone
• 1 Screw Eye
• 3 Washer Nose Weights
• 3 Pre-cut Fins
• 1 Balsa Boat tail
• 1 Parachute Kit
• 2 Stagin' Tubes

T' BT-55 tube for t' upper stage had a significant crease in it. I'm nay sure where t' damage originated, but I contacted BRS Hobbies, which is where I purchased t' kit, ya bilge rat, and Brian sent me a replacement tube immediately. Begad! Blimey! BRS Hobbies is a great company t' deal with. Also, t' booster stage BT-55 tube was uneven on one end. I had t' trim about 1/8" t' make it even.

T' instructions were well documented with detailed steps and helpful illustrations. Begad! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! There is a checkbox beside each step t' help keep up with what you have done. Well, blow me down! Blimey! If you read through them beforehand, you'll see some steps that can be done concurrently. There is also good information on how t' use t' necessary adhesives and different options for finishing. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! T' templates and illustrations were excellent except for t' fin marking/alignment guide. T' problem with t' fin markin' guide be t' body tube eclipses t' circle for t' body tube, so you don't know if it is perfectly aligned with it or not. Arrr! Blimey! Instead o' usin' t' provided guide, I made me own with t' fin position wrapper and fin alignment guide printed from t' freeware program VCP. Ahoy! Blimey! T' only other deviation I made was leavin' out t' washer nose weights. Well, me hearties, blow me down! Blimey! Based on t' CP/CG relationship they were nay necessary for stability. Begad! Blimey! I learned a lot o' new scale modelin' techniques buildin' this rocket. Begad! Blimey! T' styrene strips on t' booster section looked awesome. Well, blow me down! Blimey! T' fins took a bit o' work though but were nay too hard t' shape. Well, blow me down! Blimey! I worked hard t' get them t' way ASP suggested.

Finishing:
I prefinished t' body tubes with 3 coats o' Elmer's Fill 'n' Finish. After shapin' t' fins, I coated them with 3 light coats o' yellow wood glue and sandin' lightly betwixt coats. I also did this t' t' balsa nose cone, boat tail, and balsa conduit. Arrr! After t' glue treatment, I used 2 coats o' Fill 'n' Finish on t' balsa sections. I used Krylon primer and paint with a matte finish.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
I had some really bad flights with this, but none o' it was due t' t' rocket. Ahoy! T' recommended motors seem appropriate compared t' what I saw and simmed. Avast, me proud beauty! Please note, me hearties, ya bilge rat, nay t' try t' fly t' upper stage by itself on an A motor. T' recommended minimum is a B4-2. Avast, me proud beauty! I tried it on an A8-5 and it lawndarted before t' ejection occurred. Ahoy! For t' first flight, shiver me timbers, me hearties, I attempted a 2-stage configuration but forgot t' install t' upper stage motor. Avast! Avast! T' booster still pressurized t' upper stage enough t' deploy t' chute while boostin' and t' chute be destroyed. Well, blow me down! When it landed, me bucko, t' booster suffered a broken fin, me bucko, but I fixed it at t' field. Ya scallywag! Begad! I tried again t' same day. On t' second flight, matey, t' upper stage motor lit but did nay separate. I think I didn't secure it well enough and it got stuck on t' passport tube. Arrr! It fried t' entire inside o' t' booster section. Arrr! Through both flights, ya bilge rat, t' upper stage was nay damaged. Blimey! I repaired t' booster section later and tried again. Blimey! I flew t' upper stage by itself on too small a motor and lawndarted. Begad! Avast! T' only damage was t' very tip o' t' nose cone. Blimey! It looked a little mashed and I trimmed it at t' field. Begad! Ya scallywag! I then flew t' 2-stage configuration again. Well, blow me down! T' stagin' and flight were perfect, shiver me timbers, me hearties, but t' field was a little too small and wind a little too strong. Avast! I recovered t' booster, me bucko, me hearties, but t' upper stage drifted off far away. Arrr! I never found it. Arrr! Arrr! I noticed afterwards thar was a big difference in me RockSim weight and t' ASP weight, shiver me timbers, which probably affected t' differences in estimated altitude. RockSim was predictin' only 400+ feet but ASP calculated 710'. Well, blow me down! Arrr! I think t' rocket be probably a lot lighter than what I had modeled in RockSim. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! If I had weighed it beforehand and adjusted t' RockSim design, I probably would have gotten a more accurate estimation. I should have used a smaller chute and/or waited t' fly it in a bigger field.

Recovery:
T' booster uses tumble recovery and on t' one successful flight, it came in undamaged. Arrr! Begad! T' upper stage comes with a 12" mylar chute. Blimey! Aye aye! Mine was destroyed on t' first flight when it came out too early. Aye aye! For subsequent flights I used a 12" military silk chute. Arrr! Seein' as how I lost it, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, I'd say it came down too slow, especially in 10+ mph wind. Blimey! In me opinion, t' upper stage is sturdy enough t' come down faster and nay sustain any damage.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
I think this is an excellent kit. Arrr! I learned a lot about scale modelin' and stagin' . Blimey! Begad! Even though t' flights were all ill-fated, it be from no fault o' t' rocket. Begad! This rocket suffered lots o' abuse and with minor repairs was still flyable. Ya scallywag! T' durability is one o' t' main PROs o' this kit. Begad! It also provides a good education t' those gettin' into scale modelin' and t' learn about direct staging. Blimey! Ya scallywag! I think t' only CON I found be t' alignment guide, me hearties, which was probably usable I just didn't trust it. Begad! Blimey! This be an awesome rocket, matey, and I look forward t' buildin' more kits from ASP in t' future.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5