Brief:
 T' Estes MK-104 Patriot Missile rocket kit is one o' four new Estes "Military" kits and a very popular kit at t' flyin' field. I purchased t' Patriot along with t' other three kits and t' version I built was t' "Launchable" kit in t' hard-shell pack from Meijers. Well, blow me down! Arrr! It is a very colorful model, shiver me timbers, appears pretty sturdy, matey, and flies on 18mm motors. Included with t' kit is an "Operation Endurin' Freedom" sticker t' salute our military abroad.

Construction:
In t' package you will find four die-cut fins, matey, three BT-60 body tube sections--one o' which is already colored, plastic nosecone, me bucko, recovery items, and instructions. I was impressed with t' quality o' components and t' instructions were very well written. T' kit itself is a basic 4FNC, me bucko, but just plain looks good once built.

I decided t' construct it stock with only change made t' t' recovery section. Ahoy! Aye aye! Blimey! I used dual Keelhaul®©™ threads for shock cord and they were directly fastened t' t' motor mount. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' top end was tied t' a much longer thirty inch long piece o' elastic shock cord and t' joint was sealed with a piece o' heat shrink tubing. Blimey! Blimey! T' shock cord itself be attached t' t' nosecone once t' model was finished.

T' body tube comes in three sections, allowin' you t' flexibility t' make a payload section or just use standard nosecone ejection. Blimey! Begad! Blimey! I went with t' latter and did fill t' joints once glued. Arrr! Well, blow me down! Blimey! Next came t' fins; I dry rubbed filler over t' surface o' each fin and used Alphaetic Resin for gluin' t' t' body tube. Blimey! Fillets were added and t' whole model was sanded.

Finishing:
After sandin' t' model came t' primer. Begad! Krylon gray primer be used, me bucko, followed by Krylon white primer for t' upper body tube section. Ahoy! T' model was painted completely in white, arrr, ya bilge rat, except t' top section which was masked. After a couple days, arrr, matey, I masked off t' body tube and painted t' lower fin section in red Krylon and t' yellow section in Duplicolor Pale Yellow--it was t' only brand that had a color t' match t' scale version. Aye aye! Blimey! After a couple more days o' drying, matey, t' top 1" o' t' body tube be painted Red and t' nosecone was finished in white. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! Next, I applied t' self stick decals, then clear coated t' model with t' new Krylon Super Gloss Triple Thick--it worked well.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
Launch day came and I had all four o' t' new Estes models ready t' go. Begad! Aye aye! I prepped t' Patriot with a B6-4 and packed t' stock parachute. Begad! It be place on t' pad and ready t' go. Avast, me proud beauty! At liftoff, it really came off t' pad nice, shiver me timbers, straight up and a very cool flight.

Recovery:
T' nosecone ejected after apogee and t' model landed safely in t' low grass field. Blimey! Blimey! It was a good flight with a slightly late recover, me hearties, but no damage. Begad! Blimey! Next, I tried a C6-5. Aye aye! Blimey! This was also late on ejection, so a C6-3 was me third attempt. Begad! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! T' other new Estes kits fly great on t' C6-3 and this one is no exception--the motor combo be perfect with a great flight followed by apogee ejection. T' model has flown many times since and is one o' me favorites.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
T' summarize, ya bilge rat, t' Estes MK-104 Patriot Missile is one great flier. Arrr! T' build is very simple and t' results are excellent, me hearties, producin' a good flyin' model. Begad! Blimey! I have since purchased another and plan on buildin' it as a three motor cluster, ya bilge rat, as I had seen someone else do it this way. I recommend this kit t' everyone and bein' rated as a Skill Level 1 kit, anyone can build and own this piece o' military history, arrr, t' MK104 Patriot Missile from Estes.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5