Brief:
P.O.N.G. Aye aye! Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! is a highly-detailed single-stage futuristic sport model offered by Custom Rockets. Arrr! Aye aye! This is an inexpensive kit that packs a lot o' fun, me bucko, challenge, and parts in a small package. Arrr! This is a skill level 3 rocket that won't disappoint.

Accordin' t' t' kit label, ya bilge rat, matey, P.O.N.G. Aye aye! is an acronym (er, me hearties, backronym, arrr, me bucko, really) for Protector o' Ninth Galaxy. Ya scallywag! There was no background story included with t' kit, me bucko, which is too bad really. Arrr! Well, blow me down! T' look o' t' kit is intriguing. I would be pretty cool t' have it backed up by a little story.

My finished model weighed 1.2 ounces, me bucko, but t' kit's glossy claims 0.7 ounces. Ahoy! I'm unsure o' where t' additional weight came from... paint, ya bilge rat, glue, me bucko, me hearties, me hearties, and sandin' sealer?

Construction:
Included with t' kit are:

• 1 instruction sheet, tri-fold, shiver me timbers, 8.5" x 11"
• 1 standard pin' pong ball
• 2 body tubes, BT-5, matey, 9" long
• 2 body tubes, arrr, arrr, BT-50, me bucko, 1.85" long
• 2 tube couplers, arrr, BT-5
• 4 centerin' rings, matey, matey, fiber, BT-5 t' BT-50
• 2 wooden dowels, arrr, matey, 1/8" dia., 6" long
• 2 launch lugs, 1/8" dia., me hearties, 1.5" long
• 1 engine block, shiver me timbers, 13mm
• 1 shock cord, shiver me timbers, flat elastic, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, 1/8" wide, ya bilge rat, 17" long
• 1 balsa sheet, ya bilge rat, die cut fins, me bucko, 1/16" thick
• 1 streamer, pink vinyl, 3cm wide x 60cm long
• 1 dummy engine tube, shiver me timbers, 13mm
• 1 reducer shroud sheet, printed, light card stock
• 1 decal sheet, pressure-sensitive plastic, arrr, nay die-cut
• 1 decal sheet for shroud, adhesive-backed paper, shiver me timbers, nay die-cut

Because I no longer have faith in t' tri-fold shock cord mount when nay protected by a baffle, I added t' followin' items for a Keelhaul®©™® and elastic alternative:

• 1 Keelhaul®©™® thread, 10" long
• 1 shock cord, round elastic, arrr, 1/16" dia., 24" long
• 1 cotton thread, shiver me timbers, me hearties, crochet-style, shiver me timbers, 4" long

T' body tubes have a fairly shallow spiral, so they should be easy t' fill.

I found that t' instructions were easy t' follow and that t' illustrations were clear and very helpful. Well, blow me down! The assembly order was logical. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! T' implement t' Keelhaul®©™®/elastic shock cord, I tied t' Keelhaul®©™® cord t' t' engine block just prior t' gluin' in t' engine block.

When gluin' in t' engine block I ran into a snag. Well, blow me down! Blimey! T' motor tube got stuck in t' body tube, and I pretty much destroyed t' dummy engine tube when gettin' it out with a pair o' needle-nose pliers. Avast! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! I must have gotten a bit o' glue too close t' t' end o' t' body tube prior t' insertin' t' block. Luckily, arrr, t' main body tube be nay damaged.

In general though, assembly was a lot o' fun... Far more engagin' than piecin' together a 3FNC model. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Hobby knife skills were important and were well exercised, havin' t' separate t' die-cut fins and centerin' rings, shiver me timbers, cut t' dowels, cut t' reducer shroud pieces, shiver me timbers, me hearties, cut t' shroud decal, and cut t' individual decals from t' pressure-sensitive decal sheet.

There's so much here that you just don't get with plastic laden kits. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' paper reducer needed a bit o' patience and skill t' curl just right. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' use o' a separate tab glued t' t' inside edge o' t' shroud's adjoinin' ends made a nice even seam without t' uneven layers you get with a one-piece overlap arrangement.

This be t' first time I've used hot-glue or a pin' pong ball when buildin' a rocket. Ahoy! Avast! I ran into a snag as I wasn't satisfied with t' alignment o' t' ball's center seam with t' centerin' ring, matey, and I attempted t' move things around where they were still hot... Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! Bad move. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! T' ball distorted badly where t' glue in contact with t' ball was still hot. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! I replaced t' ball and tried again. I had much better results this time. Blimey! I had been concerned that t' hot glue wouldn't provide a strong enough joint, but this experience eliminated that concern. Begad! Ahoy! Hot glue is very effective in this case.

Overall, construction be interesting, me hearties, fun, and educational. Begad! Blimey! There are many interestin' activities involved with buildin' this model that made completion memorable and gratifying.

Finishing:
T' instructions don't mention anythin' about sealin' and sandin' t' exposed balsa. I can understand that, arrr, since the decals cover most o' t' balsa anyway. Arrr! T' decals come pretty close t' t' edges o' t' balsa pieces, shiver me timbers, so you probably don't want t' round balsa edges. Avast, me proud beauty! I didn't want any grain t' show, so I finished t' balsa surfaces with three coats of sandin' sealer, me hearties, sandin' betwixt coats.

I spray painted with model with a couple o' coats o' last o' me old-style Krylon white primer, sanded, and applied a couple o' coats o' white satin.

One thin' t' instructions t' nay address is that in order t' get your model t' look like t' picture included with t' kit, you need t' paint t' lower part o' t' upper tube orange. Usin' t' kit's picture as a guide, shiver me timbers, I painted the lower 5" o' t' upper tube with Krylon pumpkin. Begad! Oddly enough, t' color matched t' orange o' t' decals perfectly.

Paintin' t' view plate on t' pin' pong ball be an interestin' challenge. Begad! T' instructions shows what this should look like. Ya scallywag! You are instructed t' mark t' shape with a pencil, shiver me timbers, but it doesn't tell how t' get t' shape onto the ball accurately. I used a couple o' pieces o' body tube t' get somethin' close, namely a piece o' BT-55 and a piece of BT-50. I've included some pictures t' give you a step-by-step.

After markin' t' ball, matey, I used a superfine Microbrush t' apply Testors gloss black enamel inside t' lines. Avast! Ahoy! I'd never used this technique before. Aye aye! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! It works very well with a steady hand, patience, arrr, and care.

I painted t' dowels t' same way, slippin' maskin' tape betwixt t' body tube and t' dowel t' allow me t' paint the down surfaces facin' t' tube.

There were many, many decals t' place. Begad! Blimey! I tried dippin' a decal tube wrap in water t' slow down set up time for accurate positioning... Don't do this! Blimey! It causes t' decals nay t' stick at all. Begad! T' kit's picture was adequate for figurin' out what decals go where.

When all decals are in place, t' P.O.N.G. Arrr! Blimey! looks very impressive. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Blimey! T' balsa surfaces are mostly cover by opaque parts o' t' decals. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' decals applied t' t' BT-5, unfortunately, me bucko, shiver me timbers, me hearties, tend t' lift their edges no matter what I try. Well, blow me down! I kinda wish these were thinner, more pliable wet transfer decals instead, t' avoid this issue.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Recommended motors are A3-4T and A10-3T. Begad! Blimey! I tried them both.

P.O.N.G. Aye aye! requires some waddin' t' prevent t' vinyl stream from melting. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! I used some cellulose insulation t' good effect. Avast, me proud beauty! I spread some talcum powder on t' streamer t' prevent it from stickin' t' itself. Aye aye! It was tricky rollin' the 24" streamer tight enough t' fit into t' BT-5 tube so that it would slide out easily. Ahoy! Begad! I might cut t' streamer down a bit in future t' address this issue.

There is no motor retention in this design, so motors have t' be friction fit by wrappin' bits o' maskin' tape around t' motor t' make a snug fit. Begad! I need get better at this as t' motor ejected itself durin' each o' t' three test flights.

I used an A3-4T for t' first flight, as recommended in t' instructions. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! Boost and coast be very straight and of moderate height with no noticeable spin. It definitely flies like a long rocket, me bucko, smooth and without wobble. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! P.O.N.G. arced past apogee and with nose down, deployed t' streamer perfectly. Begad! Avast! P.O.N.G. Avast! landed gently in t' grass field. Upon recovery, me hearties, me bucko, I noticed that t' motor must have been kicked out at deployment.

I used an A10-3T for t' second flight. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! Boost was noticeably faster. Coast was again very straight, but the height was noticeably lower. Blimey! Arrr! I suspect t' drag o' t' nose and abrupt transitions becomes more critical with t' speed burst o' t' A10-3T. Well, blow me down! Arrr! T' slower, arrr, gentler A3-4T is a better match. Begad! P.O.N.G. Blimey! arced past apogee and deployed t' streamer with nose down. Avast! Another gentle recovery, shiver me timbers, and t' motor had been kicked out again.

I used a A3-4T for t' third flight. Avast, me proud beauty! I got t' a nice moderate height after smooth, me hearties, straight boost and coast. Deployment happened with nose down, matey, but t' streamer didn't come out. Ya scallywag! Arrr! P.O.N.G. Aye aye! landed in t' grass without damage. Ya scallywag! I found that t' cellulose waddin' had jammed up in t' tube. Begad! Well, blow me down! T' motor kicked out before t' streamer could deploy.

Recovery:
T' standard P.O.N.G. Begad! Blimey! is kitted with a 24" elastic and a couple o' tri-fold shock cord mounts. Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! I did nay use these, me hearties, favorin' a Keelhaul®©™® cord with a round elastic. Arrr! T' Keelhaul®©™® cord and elastic were very easy t' install durin' construction, and seemed t' work well in flight.

After three flights, shiver me timbers, t' streamer is undamaged. Aye aye! When t' streamer deployed, it seemed t' do an effective job of slowin' descent and bein' seen durin' descent and on t' ground. P.O.N.G. Aye aye! survived three flights with no damage.

Havin' t' rely on friction fit motors nay bein' kicked out is an issue. Begad! Blimey! I guess I've got t' figure out how best to tape t' motors in there. Some sort o' motor retention device would be a welcome addition.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
P.O.N.G. is a fun rocket t' build, finish, and fly. Aye aye! This is a skill level 3 kit. Ahoy! Arrr! I agree with that due t' t' number of parts, arrr, variety o' construction activities, and finishin' details. Begad! It's a nice looking, attention gettin' model when its all built, me hearties, and it flies very well. And when you look at t' price tag, wow! Big bang for t' buck!

T' design and instructions are very good, me hearties, but I would suggest addin' positive motor retention and a mention in the instructions about paintin' t' orange section o' t' upper body tube and how t' accurate draw t' view plate pattern onto t' pin' pong ball.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5