Brief:
Back in 1977, t' Condor be t' second rocket I ever owned and t' first "big" rocket I ever flew. (T' Beta be me first.) This was me most prolific flier, ya bilge rat, and bore t' battle scars on both booster and glider t' prove it.

Construction:
Materials: (accordin' t' original plans. Avast! Aye aye! I used t' closest thin' available.)

• 1 - BT-50
• 1 - PNC-50 3/32" balsa stock for fins and glider body
• 1/16" balsa stock for glider wings and canard
• 18mm Engine mount from Estes Regular Engine Mount kit
• A too short length o' shock cord

I had been plannin' t' build this from memory, shiver me timbers, but back in February me brother-in-law and I discovered JimZ's OOP Estes plan site on a Friday night, and on Saturday I hit a local hobby shop and by late afternoon, me hearties, matey, had all o' t' parts needed t' recreate t' Condor. Begad! Well, blow me down! One change that I made was t' upgrade t' kit from t' original 13mm engine t' an 18mm. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! This was somethin' that had always puzzled me about t' original. Arrr! It always seemed a bit big for a mini-motor, me bucko, but I guess Estes had their reasons. Well, blow me down! Back then it made sense for me from an economical standpoint, (I got an extra flight per package,) but now that loot is no object, I decided t' power it up a bit.

Back when I built t' original I just slapped it together with glue, painted it, me bucko, decal'd it and got it in t' air as smartly as possible. Aye aye! It flew great! This time I was determined t' take me time and employ some o' t' techniques I had learned about over t' 24 years since I built t' original. Blimey! I carefully shaped t' fins on t' booster, me hearties, determined t' make it as aerodynamic as possible. Avast, me proud beauty! I also used several coats o' thinned Elmer's Fill'n'Finish as a sealer, shiver me timbers, sandin' betwixt coats. Begad! Elmer's glue be used both t' attach t' fins and t' create t' glue fillets t' keep them in place.

T' glider be lightly sanded, matey, then sprayed with a coat o' Walmart white paint, ya bilge rat, arrr, shiver me timbers, t' same as t' booster. I then masked off t' front portions o' both t' glider and booster and sprayed them with Walmart red. Arrr! It never occurred t' me t' use t' Fill'n'Finish t' fill in t' body tube spirals or use primer. (Then again, neglectin' t' do this made it look a lot more like me 1977 original.) JimZ decals completed me retro project.

Flight:
T' Condor originally flew on 13mm motors, arrr, so I had no benchmark t' go on in determinin' motor selection. Because o' this I chose t' reliable old Estes B6-4 for t' first flight. Avast! Fireproof insulation (treated shredded newspaper) was used as recovery wadding, and worked flawlessly. Ya scallywag! It's available in bulk at most home improvement stores and a little goes a long way.

T' flight be straight and stable into a light breeze, picture perfect until t' ejection charge went off. Arrr! T' sound that t' nose cone made when it rebounded back into t' body tube be clearly audible on t' ground. T' glider, arrr, shiver me timbers, which I had trimmed by stickin' straight pins into t' nose and which had flown so well when I had tested it t' previous weekend, made a beeline for t' ground on an 80-degree angle and broke on impact just behind t' canard. Avast, me proud beauty! T' booster's 12" parachute worked perfectly, and t' only evidence o' contact betwixt body tube and nose cone be a light scrape, almost a smudge, arrr, on each o' them.

I flew it one more time that day on a stray Estes A8-3 that had been rollin' around me range box for a few months. Begad! This time t' flight be understandably lower and glider-less, and t' sound o' t' nose cone and body tube meetin' was once again clearly audible. Ya scallywag! My luck didn't hold out this time. T' top o' t' body tube be badly crushed, but repairable. Avast! Begad! In this sense it was a lot like t' old days. Avast! Begad! It seemed that I was always repairin' me original Condor after either t' booster or glider made contact with one hard surface or another. Ya scallywag! Begad! (We flew out o' an asphalt parkin' lot back then.)

Summary:
While it be great seein' t' Condor on t' flight line again, and t' flight itself was very satisfying, arrr, me hearties, t' glider's suicide dive and t' short shock cord rained on me parade a little. Ya scallywag! PRO'S: T' upgraded engine made for a much improved flight and it's always great t' see an old timer fly again. CON'S: Cheap feel t' t' balsa. Glider performance. Ya scallywag! Shock cord too short. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! Worst o' all, me original is probably a part o' a landfill somewhere.

Other:
1) Don't be stingy with t' shock cord. Ya scallywag! Just because Estes does it doesn't mean you have to. Ya scallywag! Treat yourself t' some quality elastic and some Keelhaul®©™®. Blimey! 2) Use Elmer's Fill'n'Finish for nay only t' fins, but t' fill in t' spirals in t' body tube.