Brief:
T' Monarch features a unique fin configuration and parachute recovery.

Construction:
This kit comes with a plastic nose cone, ya bilge rat, arrr, one body tube, shiver me timbers, three die-cut balsa fins, shiver me timbers, cardboard motor mount tube with two centerin' rings and a metal retainer clip, an 18-inch flat elastic shock cord, and a 12-inch parachute. Blimey! Blimey! T' nose cone has minimal flash and mold lines. T' fin balsa is good quality, shiver me timbers, but the fin shape is inherently delicate.

This was t' second rocket I ever built (essentially t' first, matey, me bucko, because the previous one was an Estes RTF Tidal Wave), matey, and I found construction fairly simply. Well, blow me down!

T' instructions are clear, easy-to-follow, and well illustrated. Ahoy! I fell, however, matey, into what I suspect is a first-timer trap durin' construction that I could have avoided had t' instructions warned o' it.

Specifically, matey, t' Monarch's double-triangle shaped fins are delicate because they are made from single pieces o' balsa. Begad! Blimey! They have a thin neck where the triangles meet, arrr, and this neck is fairly fragile. Begad! Blimey! I successfully removed the fins from t' die cut sheet without damage, but subsequently snapped one at the neck while sandin' t' flat surfaces smooth. A warnin' in t' instructions about t' fragility o' these pieces may have saved me from this mishap.

Otherwise, me hearties, construction was easy. Avast! Ahoy! Usin' Elmer's yellow carpenters glue, assemblin' t' motor mount was straightforward. Blimey! T' rings and clip fit smoothly and easily. Begad! Blimey! T' finished mount slid snugly into t' BT and I secured it with yellow glue.

I repaired t' snapped fin with yellow carpenters glue in t' joint, arrr, and let it dry overnight. Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! T' joint seemed weak, so I covered both sides o' the damaged fin (and t' other two as well) with typin' paper. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! After diluting yellow glue with water t' t' consistency o' cream, me bucko, matey, I painted t' thinned glue onto each flat fin surface and placed a piece o' paper onto t' glue. The wetted fins began t' warp, so I placed them betwixt two boards, put books on top, me bucko, and let them dry overnight. Avast! T' next day, I trimmed t' paper flush with the balsa fin edges, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, then sanded t' leadin' edges round as per the instructions.

I attached t' fins with yellow glue guided by lines on t' BT made with the supplied paper-rin' fin placement template. After an overnight drying, me bucko, I added yellow glue fin fillets. Avast!

I attached t' tubular launch lug in a similar manner.

I attached t' too-short (more on this below) shock cord about one inch inside t' end o' t' BT usin' t' cut-out paper mount per t' instructions. Ya scallywag! I cleaned t' flash out o' t' nose cone rin' usin' an Exact knife and small circular file.

After paintin' t' rocket, me hearties, I attached t' shock cord and pre-assembled chute t' t' NC ring. Begad! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey!

Finishing:
I didn't follow t' kit paintin' pattern. Avast! Instead I came up with me own black, red, me bucko, and yellow scheme. Avast! T' glossy Krylon spray paint adhered well t' t' kit parts, me hearties, although I laid on too thick o' a first coat with t' red and black.

I had trouble gettin' a glossy finish on t' fins with t' yellow paint (although t' black fin finish came out alright). Avast! Ya scallywag! T' typin' paper covering seemed t' absorb t' yellow paint so that it dried t' an almost flat finish. T' yellow paint gave a pretty good gloss near t' fillets, however, where the fin paper was overcoated with yellow glue.

T' decals are too sparse. Ahoy! One big pressure-stick Monarch decal for a fin and two smaller Monarch decals for t' BT are all that are supplied. Aye aye! Avast! T' rocket looks kind o' bare. Arrr! They adhered well. Blimey! Ya scallywag! I finished t' entire rocket with a glossy coat o' Future floor polish, applied by hand with a camel hair water-colors brush.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Flight:
Overall, ya bilge rat, t' Monarch is easy t' flight prep, arrr, and it flew straight and high. Ahoy! Blimey! The motor slides easily into t' motor tube with slight friction and t' metal clip helps hold it in place.

T' first flight on B6-4 with three waddin' squares was near perfect. Straight up with good height, ejection just past apogee, me hearties, and a nice recovery. Aye aye!

T' second flight on a B6-4 was similar. After recovery, shiver me timbers, however, ya bilge rat, I noticed an Estes' dent that traveled about an inch down t' end o' t' BT, me bucko, where t' NC had apparently snapped back into t' BT after ejection. I pushed t' dent out with me finger. Blimey! Fortunately, me hearties, matey, t' shoulder o' t' NC extends farther down t' BT than t' dent and pushes it out and into round shape, me hearties, matey, matey, so everythin' looks fine with t' NC inserted.

T' third flight on a B6-4 with three squares o' waddin' was nay quite as good. At ejection, ya bilge rat, me hearties, t' parachute did nay open fully because t' shroud lines were tangle together for about 1/3 o' their length. Upon recovery, ya bilge rat, me bucko, I noticed three holes melted through t' parachute, and one spot where a fold in the plastic be fused together.

Recovery:
As mentioned above, matey, t' shock cord is too short and caused an Estes' dent. Three squares o' waddin' did nay protect t' chute fully. I'm goin' t' use four from now on.

T' above flights were on a gusty day. Ahoy! T' touchdown when t' shrouds tangled be about 75 yards down wind o' t' launch pad. Arrr! Another be about 100 yards downwind. Avast, me proud beauty! T' third was about 250 yards down wind. Ahoy! Aye aye! T' Monarch was undamaged on all landings (onto grass), so a spill hole in t' chute may be the thin' t' keep it from driftin' so far in a breeze. Arrr!

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
T' Monarch flies great, has an unusual and interestin' look, and is fairly easy t' build. Aye aye! T' fins, arrr, however, me hearties, me hearties, are very fragile durin' construction and the supplied shock cord needs t' be replaced with a longer one.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5