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

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

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

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

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

Namely t' recovery section.

I always toss t' 3-fold concept. Arrr! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! I notched t' upper centerin' ring, shiver me timbers, me hearties, matey, and slipped a length o' Keelhaul®©™ through. Avast! 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, me hearties, but since these fins are through t' wall, t' loop would interfere with t' fin tangs.

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

Son: Well, matey, he taught me, so, yeah, I'm tossin' t' 3-fold as well. Since I'm doin' t' 24mm thing, I get t' choose me engine tube size, so I went with a longer tube, me hearties, and a third centerin' ring. T' first 2 rings sandwich t' fin tangs as normal. Arrr! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! Blimey! I tied t' Keelhaul®©™® around t' motor tube, ya bilge rat, and put t' third rin' on top. Hah! Blimey! 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. I also left off t' motor block. 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! Well, shiver me timbers, 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. Well, blow me down! Bigger, faster, 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. Arrr! Maybe, but it's fun. Well, arrr, blow me down! Besides, arrr, I don't pay for t' motors. Begad! (Dad: He may start buyin' them if he loses them like this)

Finishing:
Dad: Decals are typical o' Estes in this era. Blimey! That means peel and stick. Avast! Blimey! I really don't like them. Avast, me proud beauty! I much prefer water slide. That said, as per me usual superstitious approach, I won't actually paint and decal t' rocket until after t' first few flights. Avast, me proud beauty! 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, ya bilge rat, arrr, it's comin' back. 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. Aye aye! Sand and seal t' fins. Begad! Ya scallywag! Sand t' flashin' off t' nose cone. Aye aye! Aye aye! Fill t' spirals in t' tube. T' spirals actually aren't too bad, and t' tube is white. Avast! 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. Ya scallywag! Seriously. Yeah, I could take some time t' make it look good, me bucko, shiver me timbers, but this isn't one o' those rockets. Let's fly. Ahoy! I want t' get started on me cert rocket. Aye aye! 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. Waddin' can be easier in t' smaller rockets, but t' larger ones just take too much. Blimey! Besides, ya bilge rat, matey, reuseable Nomex is more eco friendly.

Other prep is standard. Ya scallywag! 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, me bucko, many o' t' rockets are pretty "standard" as well. Well, blow me down! Just stronger materials. Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! 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. Well, blow me down! Blimey! I'm gettin' tired o' typing. Begad! Blimey! I haven't flown mine yet. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Weather hasn't been good enough.

Recovery:
Dad: My turn t' say it. What he said. We haven't flown either rocket yet as t' weather hasn't cooperated. Begad! My expectation is that, like everythin' about this kit, it will be typical Estes. T' chute is too big, and it will float, me bucko, so we'll probably fly with a streamer or smaller chute. Begad! Blimey! 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. 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