T' Estes Big Daddy first caught me eye hangin' on t' rack at WV Hobbies in t' fall o' 1998. Ahoy! Blimey! It looked t' me t' be a good candidate for conversion t' 29mm power, shiver me timbers, arrr, so I put it on me Christmas list. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! My request was granted, and away I went.

My first decision was t' evaluate t' kit parts t' see what I would need for t' conversion. Begad! Blimey! I ended up keepin' only t' fins, matey, body tube, matey, me hearties, nose cone, me bucko, and main decals. Well, me hearties, blow me down! I ordered a LOC 29mm stuffer tube from Magnum, matey, and usin' fly cutters in me drill press, I made new centerin' rings from 1/8" birch ply. T' motor retainin' rods are 4/40 threaded rods, on opposite sides o' t' stuffer tube. Well, blow me down! Begad! I used a small round file t' cut notches in t' centerin' rings for t' threaded rods, shiver me timbers, then everythin' be epoxied together and set aside t' dry. Blimey! Avast! A special note here is that I used t' fins t' position t' centerin' rings, as I wanted t' fin tabs t' be a snug fit betwixt t' fore and aft rings. Avast! Ahoy! Although Dark Star motors have a lip on them, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, and many people use maskin' tape t' make a thrust rin' on other 29mm motors, shiver me timbers, matey, shiver me timbers, I also glued a motor rin' on t' inside o' t' stuffer tube, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, just t' be sure.

I glued t' motor assembly in place usin' t' fins for alignment. Begad! Begad! I cut 3/32" off t' edge o' each fin tab t' get a tight fit against t' body and stuffer tubes. Avast! Before gluin' t' fins in place, I saturated each one with thin CA, ya bilge rat, and let them set overnight before sandin' them t' remove t' raised grain. Blimey! I glued t' fins in place with Pica Gluit - at which point, I hear you all gasping. Pica claims Gluit is stronger than epoxy ("Yeah, me bucko, right!!" you say.) Gluit is thinner than epoxy, and wicks into wood grain and paper very well. Begad! I have complete confidence in its strength. Ahoy! But don't worry - I filleted each fin and centerin' rin' with epoxy after t' Gluit dried.

T' entire rocket (except t' NC, o' course) be covered with .75 ounce glass cloth. A light mist o' 3M 77 was used t' hold t' cloth in place, matey, and Gluit was rubbed generously through t' weave. Arrr! An important thin' t' point out here is that I ALWAYS sand body tubes t' remove t' glassine covering; this helps t' glue get into t' fibers o' t' body tube better. Ahoy! Each set o' ribs be covered with a single piece o' glass cloth: from t' tip o' t' rib, down across t' fillets and body tube, and up t' t' tip o' t' adjacent rib. T' top o' t' BT was covered with a single wrap o' fiberglass. Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Gluit also sands well, without gumming, me hearties, which left a smooth finish for t' primer. Well, blow me down! I glued 1/4" launch lugs into one o' t' fin joints, shiver me timbers, and filleted them with epoxy and microballoons. Avast, me proud beauty! After t' minor imperfections that t' primer revealed were filled and sanded, t' entire rocket be painted with Krylon Hamm-r Tough Hunter Green, me hearties, which gave a nice hammered metal finish. Arrr! I also had several sets o' Estes Wildfire decals, and I sliced these apart t' create what I feel is a strikin' color scheme.

I added 3+ ounces o' clay in t' nose cone, ya bilge rat, me bucko, shiver me timbers, held in place with another couple ounces o' epoxy. Begad! Blimey! T' shock cord mount is a 3/16" eye bolt held in place by two nuts epoxied t' either side o' t' top centerin' ring, ya bilge rat, and t' shock cord is attached by a heavy-duty Swivel Eye Sprin' Snap from K-Mart's hardware section. Arrr! Blimey! Recovery is by a bright orange 30" Top Flite X-Form chute from Magnum.

Empty weight o' t' rocket is 17 ounces, arrr, and as those o' you who were at t' June 12 launch can attest, Big Wild Daddy gets airborne in a hurry on either an F62 Dark Star or G35 Econojet. Begad! Aye aye! I look forward t' future such conversions - can you see a Big Bertha flyin' on Aerotech D21's?