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

T' Firebird is a fairly basic single stage Estes offering. Arrr! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Nothin' dramatic or fancy, shiver me timbers, here, just a solid design with classic lines.

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

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

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

Namely t' recovery section.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Dad: For all our rockets larger than 1" diameter, shiver me timbers, we keep a supply o' Nomex t' avoid usin' wadding. Aye aye! Waddin' can be easier in t' smaller rockets, matey, matey, but t' larger ones just take too much. Ahoy! Besides, shiver me timbers, arrr, reuseable Nomex is more eco friendly.

Other prep is standard. Blimey! Yes, thar's a lot o' this review that just says "it's standard issue." That's because this is a pretty standard rocket. Avast, me proud beauty! Steppin' into high power, many o' t' rockets are pretty "standard" as well. Just stronger materials. At a certain point, you can't do anythin' too fancy with high power motors, because t' motors will just shred t' rocket from t' high thrust.

Son: What he said. Blimey! Avast! I'm gettin' tired o' typing. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! I haven't flown mine yet. Ahoy! Weather hasn't been good enough.

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