Brief:
Odin's Spear is a single stage, tube finned, ya bilge rat, 18mm, me bucko, minimum diameter rocket with parachute recovery.

Construction:
T' kit contains:

• 18.25" BT-20 brown body tube
• 3" BT-20 Nosecone, 2 piece
• 3" BT-80 brown Tube fin
• 4" x 15/16" x 1/8" Balsa
• 25" Keelhaul®©™®
• 24.5" Elastic
• 18mm Engine block
• 1" x 1/8" launch lug
• Decal & Decal instructions
• 8" Rocketman Rocket pre-assembled parachute
• Empty engine casin' for engine block installation

Odin's Spear is Vertical Force's first kit and they are off t' a good start. Arrr! T' kit arrived by Priority Mail just 8 days after it was ordered. It be well packed in a sturdy 4"x 4"x20" cardboard box. All t' parts are good quality and fit well together. T' tubes are precut t' length. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! Particularly nice is the pre-assembled Rockethead Rockets 8" red mylar parachute. Aye aye! It came with Keelhaul®©™® shroud lines with reinforced attachments and a brass snap swivel. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! Blimey!

There is an entertainin' story at t' beginnin' o' t' clearly written and well illustrated, 8 page instruction booklet. T' steps were presented in a very logical order and it is for anyone who has built a rocket with balsa fins. It takes about 4 hours t' complete and most o' that time is waitin' for the glue t' dry.

T' shock cord made from a generous 25" piece o' Keelhaul®©™® cord and a 24" piece o' elastic. T' fins are 1/8" thick balsa and require a single straight cut for each. Aye aye! Blimey! T' leadin' and trailin' edges o' the fins are rounded before they are attached t' t' body tube and then the 3.5" long, BT-80 rin' fin is glued t' them. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! T' precut length o' t' fins was perfect for t' tube fin t' fit without any additional sanding. Avast! Blimey! T' base of the nose cone is glued t' t' nose cone top with CA and t' shock cord tied to the nose cone. Ahoy! Blimey!

Finishing:
I elected nay t' paint mine and I didn't apply t' distinctive, matey, water slide decal.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
With burn bans in effect in most Central Texas counties this Summer I had to wait nearly a month t' fly it. Arrr! T' first opportunity was t' Austin Area Rocketry Group's launch at Hutto, arrr, matey, Texas on August 20, 2005.

It be quite windy so I elected nay t' use t' long delay motors the instructions recommended. T' rocket was prepared like most small, parachute-recovery types with 3 squares o' recovery waddin' and friction fittin' t' motor. Aye aye! It jumped o' t' pad and flew very straight but t' A8-3 don't carry it very high. Begad! Begad! Ejection be just before apogee and recovery was quick, ya bilge rat, close t' t' pads. Blimey! T' second flight on a B6-2 was about twice as high with ejection well before apogee and an easy recovery. T' third flight on a C6-3 went much higher with ejection while t' rocket was still goin' up. Well, blow me down! The wind carried it into a recently harvested cornfield about 1500 feet from the pads. I was very glad t' Rocketman Rockets parachute was a bright metallic red, matey, otherwise I might have had some difficulty findin' t' unfinished rocket among t' short, brown corn stalks.

All t' flights were very straight with very little weathercockin' despite 10-15 mph winds.

Recovery:
T' combination o' Keelhaul®©™® and elastic cord is very durable. Blimey! T' 8" parachute was easy t' pack into the BT-20 body tube and t' rocket is so light it could use a streamer for recovery instead. Ahoy!

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
Pros: Good instructions, easy t' build, unique design, great parachute

Cons: None

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5