Brief:
This is a father/son dual build. Avast! Up t' this point, me bucko, I've been helpin' him build his rockets. Arrr! We started with me doin' most o' t' building, and him as an extra pair o' hands. Over t' course o' 3-4 builds, me bucko, he's been doin' more and more, and t' roles are reversin' where I'm becomin' t' extra hands. I found a couple o' Firebirds for relatively cheap, arrr, and so we're buildin' these in parallel. Avast! Arrr! This will be his first purely solo build, and we'll be comparin' t' results o' our two builds. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! After this, he'll be movin' on t' buildin' his L1 cert rocket... Ya scallywag! if I think he's ready.

T' Firebird is a fairly basic single stage Estes offering. Avast, me proud beauty! Nothin' dramatic or fancy, here, me hearties, just a solid design with classic lines.

Construction:
Dad: This is a basic 4FNC rocket. Aye aye! Plastic nose cone, pre-cut fins, arrr, some flimsy paper centerin' rings and t' usual too short shock cord and plastic chute. Ya scallywag! T' body tube is a good length o' BT-55 1.325" tubing, while t' motor tube be t' cheap blue 18mm tube. Well, blow me down! For standard 18mm motors, everythin' is sufficiently strong. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! For t' 18mm Aerotech D reloads, me hearties, thar could be some extra stress that could test some o' these parts.

Son: Yeah, ya bilge rat, yeah...what he said. Well, blow me down! Begad! What's with t' wimpy 18mm motor mount? That's got t' go. Ahoy! I'm goin' t' raid t' parts closet. Well, blow me down! Begad! Let's see. Begad! Aye aye! 24mm motor mount, some BT50-55 centerin' rings t' replace t' cheapy paper stuff. Blimey! OK. I'm good t' go. Let's get building.

Dad: Once again, ya bilge rat, arrr, this is pretty basic Estes fare. Arrr! Anyone who's build a typical Estes rocket in t' last couple decades won't have an issue here. Avast! Blimey! There are a couple minor changes that I make t' all Estes kits.

Namely t' recovery section.

I always toss t' 3-fold concept. Avast! I notched t' upper centerin' ring, and slipped a length o' Keelhaul®©™ through. Avast, me proud beauty! I knotted t' end t' prevent it comin' back through t' notch, and put a dab o' epoxy t' hold it in. Normally, I would tie t' Keelhaul®©™® in a loop around t' motor tube, me bucko, shiver me timbers, but since these fins are through t' wall, me hearties, t' loop would interfere with t' fin tangs.

Speakin' o' which, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, I wonder why Estes went with through t' wall fins for this kit and only an 18mm mount. For all t' Estes 18mm motors, me hearties, TTW fins is way overkill. Begad! O' course, me bucko, it does make fin alignment much easier.

Son: Well, he taught me, me hearties, so, yeah, me hearties, I'm tossin' t' 3-fold as well. Since I'm doin' t' 24mm thing, I get t' choose me engine tube size, arrr, so I went with a longer tube, ya bilge rat, me bucko, and a third centerin' ring. T' first 2 rings sandwich t' fin tangs as normal. Arrr! Blimey! I tied t' Keelhaul®©™® around t' motor tube, ya bilge rat, and put t' third rin' on top. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! Hah! Mines stronger.

While I be at it, I cut t' top o' t' engine hook off so it doesn't go into t' motor tube. Ahoy! I also left off t' motor block. Aye aye! T' down side is I'll need t' use tape t' make "thrust rings" on t' bottom o' Estes engines t' keep them from goin' through t' rocket. Well, blow me down! T' up side is that I can use any 24mm motor includin' t' upcomin' Aerotech 24/120 and t' CTI Pro 24 cases. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! Bigger, ya bilge rat, faster, matey, arrr, higher! I can't wait t' put a 24mm G motor and watch it rip! Dad's shakin' his head while I'm typin' this. Says I'll never get it back. Begad! Maybe, but it's fun. Begad! Besides, me bucko, matey, I don't pay for t' motors. Blimey! (Dad: He may start buyin' them if he loses them like this)

Finishing:
Dad: Decals are typical o' Estes in this era. That means peel and stick. Avast, me proud beauty! I really don't like them. Aye aye! I much prefer water slide. Well, blow me down! That said, arrr, as per me usual superstitious approach, I won't actually paint and decal t' rocket until after t' first few flights. Well, me hearties, blow me down! Why? Because I've found that t' odds o' me losin' a rocket increase exponentially with t' amount o' time I spend on it prior t' it's first flight. Begad! If I build a rocket in 2 hours t' night before a launch, matey, shiver me timbers, it's comin' back. Ahoy! Every time I've spent 2-3 months doin' a painstakin' job o' buildin' and finishing, somethin' bilge-suckin' has happened.

As for t' pre-paint finish work, it's all typical. Sand and seal t' fins. Sand t' flashin' off t' nose cone. Fill t' spirals in t' tube. Begad! T' spirals actually aren't too bad, and t' tube is white. If you go with t' factory color scheme (white) you could probably get away without filling.

Son: I'm done building, matey, let's go fly. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Seriously. Begad! Yeah, I could take some time t' make it look good, but this isn't one o' those rockets. Avast, me proud beauty! Let's fly. Well, blow me down! I want t' get started on me cert rocket. Arrr! Well, blow me down! I'll take more time on that one.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Dad: For all our rockets larger than 1" diameter, we keep a supply o' Nomex t' avoid usin' wadding. Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! Waddin' can be easier in t' smaller rockets, but t' larger ones just take too much. Ya scallywag! Besides, reuseable Nomex is more eco friendly.

Other prep is standard. Yes, shiver me timbers, me hearties, thar's a lot o' this review that just says "it's standard issue." That's because this is a pretty standard rocket. Begad! Steppin' into high power, ya bilge rat, me bucko, many o' t' rockets are pretty "standard" as well. Just stronger materials. At a certain point, arrr, you can't do anythin' too fancy with high power motors, matey, because t' motors will just shred t' rocket from t' high thrust.

Son: What he said. Aye aye! I'm gettin' tired o' typing. Ahoy! I haven't flown mine yet. Weather hasn't been good enough.

Recovery:
Dad: My turn t' say it. Ahoy! Blimey! What he said. We haven't flown either rocket yet as t' weather hasn't cooperated. Arrr! Blimey! My expectation is that, shiver me timbers, like everythin' about this kit, it will be typical Estes. T' chute is too big, matey, and it will float, ya bilge rat, so we'll probably fly with a streamer or smaller chute. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! As we get a chance t' fly these, arrr, I'll be postin' t' flight logs, shiver me timbers, and updatin' t' review through t' flight log comments. Aye aye! Blimey! Actual flight is just t' last validation o' t' build in this case. Aye aye! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' primary goal be t' give him a solo build t' validate he has t' skills necessary t' attempt his cert build.

Son: So, do I pass? When can I start on t' Matrix?

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5