(Contributed - by Andy Hobbs - 01/17/07)

Brief:
Lance covered t' components and construction o' t' rocket very well in his excellent review. Begad! I also built t' model exactly t' t' plans t' kit is rated skill level 5. Ahoy! I agree with this, although it maybe is nay as detailed as a Saturn V, but it's probably nay recommended for t' impatient type builder.

Construction:
T' components are top quality. Blimey! Ya scallywag! All o' t' tubes are thick wall 3" with a 3 x 12 LOC nose cone. T' canopy is a Sig WW-2 style 7". Avast! T' kit includes a 29mm x 17" motor mount tube, arrr, me hearties, 2 chutes, ya bilge rat, lots o' nose weight, shiver me timbers, bulkheads, and centerin' rings. Arrr! Arrr! Those last 2 items are made o' 5 ply aircraft grade plywood. Arrr! There are lots o' other parts and details as noted. Arrr! Most wood parts are pre-cut but, me hearties, t' wings, rudder, tailplane, finette, ya bilge rat, etc., ya bilge rat, have t' be edged with 1/4" hardwood, rounded, and all trailin' surfaces have t' be heavily beveled. Avast, me proud beauty! T' rudder alone requires 1/4" balsa, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, hard wood, shiver me timbers, and ply t' complete--that's me kind o' kit! I used yellow wood glue througout t' construction except for t' canopy attachment and nose weight. Avast! I used epoxy in those cases. Ya scallywag! Begad! I am very impressed with t' quality and fit of components and t' inclusion o' 2 ripstop chutes (they appear t' be standard Top Flight brand.) Cuttin' t' shapes from the heavy wall tubes for t' intakes with a X-Acto be nay fun, but I couldn't think o' an easier way, however, after several passes they were done.

On t' busines end, shiver me timbers, I lined t' interior with aluminum tape from t' hardware store. Aye aye! Arrr! This helps t' aft end from gettin' charred. Well, matey, blow me down! T' tape was applied with a very thin coat o' epoxy. Aye aye! T' adhesive on t' tape was strong but started t' unpeel after a few days, me bucko, so I knew it wouldn't hold up t' heat well, me hearties, hence the epoxy. Blimey! Aye aye! Problem solved. Begad! Lastly, arrr, I used a T-nut and mirror clip for motor retention.

T' model has an integrated 1/4" launch lug. Aye aye! I would have preferred rail buttons but I stuck t' t' stock kit instructions and it has worked very well.

Finishing:
Phred o' Excelsior decals did an amazin' job o' creatin' a decal sheet for me from some vector files I combined together. Arrr! He is typically very busy and I appreciate him takin' t' time out t' get it done. Begad! He runs a top notch service!

I opted for a military scheme. Avast! For t' canopy glass I masked off t' frame structures, cleared t' tape t' reduce leaking, me hearties, then I sprayed a Duplicolor chrome. Blimey! Begad! Once that dried a bit, me bucko, I sprayed iridescent blue with t' airbrush. Aye aye! It's hard t' tell from t' pic, me hearties, but it has a sort o' glass-like sheen from a distance. Aye aye! Begad! (That's t' idea anyway.) The Excelsior decal worked very well by followin' t' included tips. They have a "painted on" quality. Arrr! Begad! I put my NAR# on t' tail.

Flight and Recovery:

I flew it first on t' G64-7W and t' delay was way too long. It barely inflated t' chutes in time and t' shock cord broke both aft wings from t' abrupt seperation.

I repaired it and flew again on t' G64 drilled t' a 5 second delay and it be beautiful. Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! It be a perfect flight. Avast! Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Blimey! T' body chute was a little slow comin' out so I will pack it on top o' t' nose cone chute next time. Well, blow me down! However, it recovored just fine this time around as it even went into a short horizontal glide before ejection...

Summary:
This is an excellent and very cool kit. Arrr! I would really like t' see Fat Cat return t' t' rocketry world with their very interestin' line up o' kits!