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

T' Firebird is a fairly basic single stage Estes offering. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Nothin' dramatic or fancy, matey, here, just a solid design with classic lines.

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

Son: Yeah, yeah...what he said. Begad! What's with t' wimpy 18mm motor mount? That's got t' go. Avast, me proud beauty! I'm goin' t' raid t' parts closet. Let's see. Blimey! 24mm motor mount, shiver me timbers, arrr, some BT50-55 centerin' rings t' replace t' cheapy paper stuff. Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! OK. Avast! I'm good t' go. Let's get building.

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

Namely t' recovery section.

I always toss t' 3-fold concept. I notched t' upper centerin' ring, and slipped a length o' Keelhaul®©™ through. Blimey! I knotted t' end t' prevent it comin' back through t' notch, and put a dab o' epoxy t' hold it in. Ya scallywag! Normally, I would tie t' Keelhaul®©™® in a loop around t' motor tube, ya bilge rat, but since these fins are through t' wall, t' loop would interfere with t' fin tangs.

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

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

While I be at it, me bucko, matey, I cut t' top o' t' engine hook off so it doesn't go into t' motor tube. Well, blow me down! I also left off t' motor block. Avast! 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. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! T' up side is that I can use any 24mm motor includin' t' upcomin' Aerotech 24/120 and t' CTI Pro 24 cases. Well, blow me down! Bigger, matey, faster, 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. Avast, me proud beauty! Says I'll never get it back. Begad! Maybe, ya bilge rat, but it's fun. Begad! Besides, arrr, I don't pay for t' motors. (Dad: He may start buyin' them if he loses them like this)

Finishing:
Dad: Decals are typical o' Estes in this era. Aye aye! Ahoy! That means peel and stick. Ya scallywag! I really don't like them. Begad! I much prefer water slide. Aye aye! That said, as per me usual superstitious approach, I won't actually paint and decal t' rocket until after t' first few flights. Begad! 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! Blimey! If I build a rocket in 2 hours t' night before a launch, it's comin' back. Avast! Every time I've spent 2-3 months doin' a painstakin' job o' buildin' and finishing, somethin' bad has happened.

As for t' pre-paint finish work, me bucko, it's all typical. Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Sand and seal t' fins. Sand t' flashin' off t' nose cone. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Fill t' spirals in t' tube. Begad! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! T' spirals actually aren't too bad, me hearties, 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, let's go fly. Seriously. Blimey! Yeah, me bucko, I could take some time t' make it look good, but this isn't one o' those rockets. Begad! Begad! Let's fly. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! I want t' get started on me cert rocket. Begad! 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. Begad! Waddin' can be easier in t' smaller rockets, ya bilge rat, but t' larger ones just take too much. Ahoy! Besides, reuseable Nomex is more eco friendly.

Other prep is standard. Blimey! Arrr! Yes, thar's a lot o' this review that just says "it's standard issue." That's because this is a pretty standard rocket. Steppin' into high power, shiver me timbers, 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. Avast! Well, blow me down! I'm gettin' tired o' typing. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! I haven't flown mine yet. Weather hasn't been good enough.

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