Brief:
This is truly a unique kit. Begad! It has a sleek, non-symmetric, shiver me timbers, futuristic look with an elaborate fin pattern and a split body tube design that creates an ejection baffle. It is a Skill Level 3 with recommended engines, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, B6-4 and C6-5. There are a lot o' parts, includin' many fins that have t' be cut from balsa stock and aligned. T' fin design and arrangement are truly unique--three different sizes o' t' same oval shape placed at non-symmetrical sites with alternatin' slants. Arrr! T' pictures in t' catalog and on t' package do nay give it justice. In fact, unless you have actually seen a Night Whisper in person, you do nay realize t' full fin pattern until you are well into construction. T' decals are extensive, very imaginative, ya bilge rat, and give added detail and authenticity t' t' rocket. Ya scallywag! My wife purchased the Night Whisper for me because she liked its sleek look (Thank you Mr. Begad! Flis!).

Construction:
T' parts list:

• 18" BT-50 Body Tube - 2
• 2.75" BT-20 Body Tube - 1
• 3" BT5 Body Tube - 1
• 1/8 " Balsa Fin Stock
• 3/32" Balsa Fin Stock
• 1/32" Balsa Fin Stock
• Balsa Nose Cone - 1
• 18 mm engine mount with hook - 1
• Centerin' Rings - 2
• Fiber Slugs - 2
• 0.062" Basswood Square - 1
• 0.040" Basswood Square - 3
• 24" Shock Cord - 1
• FlisKits 16 " Parachute Kit - 1
• 36" Keelhaul®©™® Shock Line - 1
• Screw Eye - 1
• 1/8" x 2" Launch Lug - 2
• Decal Sheet - 1
• Fin Pattern Sheet - 1
• Instruction Booklet - 1

T' warnin' upfront on t' Night Whisper is that it has a lot fins and a number o' small parts that need t' be cut and sanded from 3 different balsa stocks and basswood sticks. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! This takes some time and even more patience. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! Cuttin' and sandin' fins is nay one o' t' things I enjoy about rocketry. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! So I really had t' slog through this. Begad! Blimey! But in t' end, matey, ya bilge rat, it be worth t' effort.

As is usual for FlisKits, shiver me timbers, me hearties, t' instructions with accompanyin' illustrations are excellent. Begad! T' construction starts with a standard 18mm engine mount that is inserted into one o' t' BT-50 body tubes. Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! T' BT-50 body tubes are then trimmed t' give a curved end and a narrow rectangle is cut just below this on both tubes usin' t' pattern guide provided. Well, blow me down! A plug for each body tube is made from a centerin' rin' and a fiber slug. One plug is glued t' t' curved/top end o' what will be t' lower body tube (the body tube with t' engine mount) and one t' t' straight/bottom end of what will be t' upper body tube. Ahoy! I put a coat o' wood glue on t' inside portion o' t' plug for t' lower body tube as added protection since this plug would catch t' blast from t' ejection charge. T' plug for t' upper body tube has t' Keelhaul®©™® strin' tied t' it, which is threaded through t' upper body tube before gluing. Blimey! Begad! I filleted both plugs. Avast, me proud beauty! A cap for the curved portion o' both body tubes is made from t' 1/32" balsa stock. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! Usin' t' fin patter provided, arrr, a small teardrop pattern is cut from t' balsa and glued t' t' curved end o' each body tube. Avast, me proud beauty! T' thin balsa is flexible and can bend t' match t' shape o' t' body tube. Begad! Arrr! Once t' glue is dry, arrr, it is sanded t' smoothness. Aye aye! Arrr! Usin' t' flexibility of t' 1/32" thick balsa t' fit a curved end is a neat idea and works really well. Avast! T' two tubes are then glued together alignin' t' rectangle slits such that they appose each other. Ya scallywag! This gives t' Night Whisper its unique design and creates a de facto baffle, since t' ejection charge has t' take two 90 degree turns t' reach t' nose cone. Avast, me proud beauty! After alignin' t' two tubes, arrr, arrr, I taped them together and allowed t' glue t' dry.

Now for t' fins. Arrr! I mentally prepared myself for this part o' t' construction, poured myself a glass o' wine and just got t' it. Well, blow me down! Begad! I spread t' fin cuttin' and sandin' over two nights so as limit any mistakes due t' "fin fatigue". Ya scallywag! Aye aye! Once t' fins were cut and sanded, ya bilge rat, t' next step is t' glue both o' t' two main fins, arrr, me hearties, labeled Fin #1 and Fin #2 on t' t' lower body tube usin' markings made earlier with a fin markin' guide. Fin #1 is actually split in two with a portion removed and replaced with t' BT-5 body tube. Ya scallywag! Fin #2 is glued 180 degrees from Fin #1 and aligned such that t' appearance is o' a single fin separated by t' lower body tube and slanted upward left t' right. Avast, me proud beauty! T' instructions call for Fin #2 t' be glued 15/16" from t' bottom o' t' lower body tube t' give this affect. Blimey! However, shiver me timbers, t' me eye, shiver me timbers, this didn't align properly. Begad! So I aligned Fin #2 by eye t' give the slanted affect, which resulted in placin' Fin #2 1-1/8" from t' bottom o' t' body tube. Ahoy! T' secondary fins are next glued t' t' primary fins. Well, blow me down! Two secondary fins are glued directly t' Fin #2 t' give a similar affect o' a single fin split by Fin #2 and slanted upward. Ahoy! T' accomplish this, one secondary fin is glued t' markings made with t' Fin markin' guide. Once t' glue is dry and t' fin set, t' second secondary fin is glued on t' opposite side o' Fin #2 to give t' slanted affect. Begad! T' placement is left t' t' builder. This is a little too free form for me. Avast! So I penciled a line on this side o' t' fin t' match t' placement o' t' secondary fin on t' opposite side. This would at least give me t' proper distance from t' body tube. Arrr! Alignment forward and aft be done by eye. Arrr! Arrr! T' remainin' two secondary fins are glued t' t' BT-5 body tube o' Fin #1 in such a way as t' give t' same slanted affect, but with a slant in the opposite direction.

Next up are two small structures, matey, t' Long Range Sensors and Hyper-TAC Antennae. Ya scallywag! Any Trekkie will know what a Long Range Sensor is and I'm told by Jim Flis that t' Hyper-TAC Antenna is: "Hyper for Hyper-space and TAC for Tachyon Acceleration Channel. Ya scallywag! Arrr! Think o' it as t' United Solar Planetary Federation version o' sub-space radio..." I never new balsa was so versatile! (And glad that somethin' good would come out o' cuttin' and sandin' all those #@&$% balsa parts!). Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! Both t' Sensors and Antennae have support "skins" that are cut from t' Fin Pattern Sheet and wrapped around and glued t' each t' give more strength. T' Sensors are attached t' Fin #2 yieldin' t' same slanted affect as t' primary and secondary fins. Begad! T' Hyper TAC Antennae are small and delicate and t' instructions say they are prone t' breakage and can be moved t' another location or nay used at all. Begad! Flyin' through hyperspace without any communication is a little too risky for me so I installed them on me craft. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! Havin' said that, I inadvertently slanted one antenna in t' wrong direction. Well, blow me down! I decided nay t' re-cut and sand another antenna (really?) but use it as is and point t' antenna in t' opposite direction on t' upper body tube. Ahoy! T' logic bein' that this would lead t' better communication with one antenna pointin' forward and one pointin' aft!

T' instructions next call for t' installation o' antenna and guns usin' t' remainin' basswood sticks. Arrr! The instructions give an example but say that this step is up t' t' user and his/her imagination as t' placement. The warnin' given is that, me hearties, like t' Hyper TAC Antenna, these are prone t' breakage. Well, blow me down! I chose t' leave these off.

T' last part o' construction was t' install t' launch lugs, screw eye, and shock cord and assemble the parachute. After that I filleted all fins, me hearties, launch lugs, matey, me bucko, and attachment site for t' upper and lower body tube.

Finishing:
I gave all o' t' balsa parts six coats o' sandin' sealer, sandin' in betwixt each coat with 320 grit sandpaper. I primed with 4 coats o' Krylon white primer, me bucko, me bucko, sandin' with 400 grit paper in betwixt each coat and wet sandin' after the last coat. I then gave t' Whisper four coats o' Rustoleum Painter's Touch Gloss Black. Begad! T' decals were next. Aye aye! Aye aye! There are a lot o' them and took some time and patience t' place and I spaced this out over two days. Avast! There be one extra decal (number 13, what appears t' be two rows o' square port holes). Arrr! I placed it on t' upper body tube, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, me hearties, near the intersection with t' lower body tube. Blimey! Avast! My only complaint about t' decals (and it's a minor one) is that t' individual decals are arranged very close t' each other on t' sheet, arrr, makin' cuttin' t' decals a little tricky. I let t' decals dry for 24 hours and then gave t' Whisper three coats o' Rustoleum Painter's Touch Crystal Clear Gloss.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight and Recovery:
T' maiden three flights were in mid-April on a cloudy New England day with winds at about 15 t' 20 mph. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Nay t' best conditions, shiver me timbers, but we were eager t' start t' season. Blimey! Blimey! T' first flight was with a B6-4. Blimey! Blimey! Just t' be safe, me hearties, I used one sheet of waddin' stuffed into t' upper body tube. T' Night Whisper struggled and wavered and made it t' about 100ft with ejection well past apogee. Begad! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! A B6-4, matey, especially under these wind conditions, definitely does nay have enough power for the Night Whisper. Begad! Blimey! Because o' t' strong winds, ya bilge rat, I used a 12" parachute. T' rocket came down hard on t' grass and I lost t' forward Hyper TAC Antenna. Avast! Blimey! T' second flight was with a C6-3, me bucko, shiver me timbers, also with one sheet o' wadding. Ahoy! Blimey! This flew much better. Arrr! Blimey! There was no struggle or waver and t' rocket reached approximately 300ft with ejection right at apogee. It also came down hard on t' grass usin' a 12" parachute but with no damage this time. Finally, matey, shiver me timbers, t' third flight was also with a C6-3. This time without any wadding. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Again thar be a nice straight flight t' about 300ft, ejection at apogee, and again a hard landin' on t' grass with no damage. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! There was also no burn damage t' t' parachute.

On a still day, a B6-4 and a longer delay C6 may work fine for t' Night Whisper. Ya scallywag! Avast! But with significant winds I'd recommend stickin' t' a C6-3. Avast, me proud beauty! I would also recommend a larger parachute, me hearties, even under strong wind conditions. Ya scallywag! I was lucky to have only minor damage on me three flights with a 12" parachute. Blimey! And no waddin' is needed.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
PROs: T' sleek futuristic look, split body tube with a truly unique fin pattern and decals are all definite PROs. No other kit looks like this. Well, blow me down! T' built-in baffle is also a great plus, arrr, and t' instructions with illustrations are excellent. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! And for all me complainin' about cuttin' and sandin' fins, shiver me timbers, I really enjoyed buildin' and flyin' t' Whisper. But...

CONs: ...if any kit screams for laser cut fins, this one is it.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5