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

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

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

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

Dad: Once again, me bucko, this is pretty basic Estes fare. Begad! Begad! Blimey! Anyone who's build a typical Estes rocket in t' last couple decades won't have an issue here. Begad! 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. I notched t' upper centerin' ring, matey, me bucko, and slipped a length o' Keelhaul®©™ through. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I knotted t' end t' prevent it comin' back through t' notch, arrr, and put a dab o' epoxy t' hold it in. Aye aye! Normally, shiver me timbers, I would tie t' Keelhaul®©™® in a loop around t' motor tube, arrr, me hearties, 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. Begad! Arrr! For all t' Estes 18mm motors, TTW fins is way overkill. O' course, it does make fin alignment much easier.

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

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

Finishing:
Dad: Decals are typical o' Estes in this era. Ahoy! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! That means peel and stick. I really don't like them. Well, blow me down! I much prefer water slide. That said, as per me usual superstitious approach, matey, arrr, I won't actually paint and decal t' rocket until after t' first few flights. Aye aye! 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. Aye aye! Arrr! If I build a rocket in 2 hours t' night before a launch, it's comin' back. Arrr! Blimey! 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. Ya scallywag! Sand and seal t' fins. Sand t' flashin' off t' nose cone. Ahoy! Fill t' spirals in t' tube. Begad! T' spirals actually aren't too bad, and t' tube is white. Blimey! If you go with t' factory color scheme (white) you could probably get away without filling.

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

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

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

Other prep is standard. Aye aye! Yes, 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. Avast! Steppin' into high power, ya bilge rat, many o' t' rockets are pretty "standard" as well. Ahoy! Just stronger materials. Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! At a certain point, matey, me hearties, 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. Begad! I'm gettin' tired o' typing. I haven't flown mine yet. Arrr! Avast, matey, me proud beauty! Weather hasn't been good enough.

Recovery:
Dad: My turn t' say it. Aye aye! What he said. Aye aye! 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. Ahoy! T' chute is too big, arrr, arrr, and it will float, shiver me timbers, so we'll probably fly with a streamer or smaller chute. Begad! As we get a chance t' fly these, I'll be postin' t' flight logs, and updatin' t' review through t' flight log comments. Aye aye! Actual flight is just t' last validation o' t' build in this case. 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