Brief:
T' Panther Attack is a single-stage rocket from Cycline3 with t' look o' a missile. T' rocket has 3 sets o' 4 fins, arrr, a 12' elastic shock cord, me hearties, matey, rail buttons, and a rectangular Cycline3 Frankenchute parachute (mine is green with yellow puffy-strings).

Construction:
T' kit came with a single cardboard body tube, balsa stock and template for the fins, me bucko, plastic nose cone, matey, 12' o' 1/4" elastic shock cord, rail buttons, and a piece o' card stock for makin' t' centering-rings (see polyurethane method below). Ya scallywag! T' sizable airframe tube is light and came with one considerable crimp in it, arrr, shiver me timbers, apparently damaged in shipping, me bucko, although t' kit was packaged very well for shipping. Ahoy! It didn't look t' me like anythin' serious to worry about, matey, so I proceeded with construction. Avast! T' finished rocket has a sort of crimp visible on one side, me bucko, but looks good overall.

T' instructions were complete and simple t' follow. Begad! T' most intriguing feature o' construction be t' use o' polyurethane glue in t' construction of the motor mount. Paper card stock is used t' make centerin' rings which contain the glue and align t' motor tube but offer no structural support. Avast! Avast! The polyurethane glue, when expanded and dried forms a honeycomb-like matrix surroundin' t' motor tube, me hearties, fillin' t' void inside t' airframe. Avast! I have used plenty o' this type o' glue for projects around t' house and was well aware of the pitfalls o' usin' too much--it keeps on foamin' and expandin' for an hour or so after application and can fill spaces unexpectedly. Begad! This happened t' me in this case, arrr, me hearties, as I went a bit overboard with t' glue on t' top end o' the motor mount. Arrr! I rammed a broom stick up through t' motor tube every few minutes for a couple o' hours t' clear excess foamin' glue from t' front end o' the motor tube. Arrr! Ya scallywag! This be effective, if messy. Ya scallywag! Had I nay been attentive and aware of the glue as it attempted t' seal off t' front end o' t' motor tube, flights would have require a bit extra black powder t' effect deployment... Aye aye! In t' end, I think this is a very good method o' motor mount construction and I will probably use it in some o' me other projects.

Naturally, I got way too much polyurethane glue on t' aft end o' t' motor mount too, and I had t' cut a bunch o' this away later in order t' tape my motor in place. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! I do seem t' get carried away with t' polyurethane glue, ya bilge rat, but there is somethin' oddly satisfyin' about watchin' it foam up and expand.

T' fins required a bit o' sandin' and shaping, ya bilge rat, which is tricky with the tiny front fins. T' balsa be o' good quality and worked well. Avast! Arrr! I followed the instructions and mounted and filleted all fins with 5-minute epoxy. Begad! This worked well. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' large aft fins feel very sturdy despite their size.

I installed t' three-fold shock cord mount as suggested. Avast! This seems adequate and should nay be difficult t' replace when necessary.

I punched holes in t' airframe for rail button mountin' before finishing, but waited t' glue t' buttons in place until after finishing. Blimey! Blimey! There was no clear description o' this process in t' instructions but t' requirements were obvious.

Overall, me bucko, I built t' kit as described. It required considerable time to deal with 12 fins and t' unusual motor mount construction. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! I saw no defects in the kit or instructions except t' omission o' t' point about rail button mountin' and t' boy tube crimp. T' kit be satisfyin' t' build and I plan to build t' 3-motor fat rocket soon.

Photo courtesy o' Cycline3 Rocketry      

Finishing:
I sanded t' fins a bit before installation. I sanded them a bit more after one coat o' brown primer. Begad! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! I did nay apply any more primer and I did nay fill the fin grain or body tube spirals. Ya scallywag! T' crimp in t' airframe looked fine, so I did not try t' cover it in any way. Structurally it looked t' be OK. Begad! I then applied the top coats o' paint, tryin' t' approximate Sean's paint scheme, which I think is pretty cool. I didn't have quite t' right paints around. I looked for some o' t' tool-box metal lookin' gray paint at Kmart but they were out. Well, blow me down! Begad! I improvised a bit and added a few pointy features in silver near t' forward fins at t' request o' me 3-year-old daughter. Ya scallywag! "Dude, me hearties, I don't mean to sound queer or nothin', me hearties, but this paint job is HOT!" (Quote adapted from Orgasmo for you fans o' Utah cinema.) I discovered once again, matey, that paint fails t' hide big globs o' epoxy used in fin fillets.

Overall, shiver me timbers, I like t' missile-look paint scheme, shiver me timbers, and I added t' four US flag decals that came with t' kit. Well, blow me down! I epoxied t' rail buttons on after t' paint was mostly dry.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
I chose a single-use AT E15-4 for t' first flight. Ya scallywag! Blimey! I did nay find a RockSim file online nor have I tried t' make a RockSim model o' t' rocket myself, but this be t' motor I had handy. Blimey! Begad! Blimey! Launch day was 80 degrees and sunny in the desert with a 5-10 MPH breeze. Begad! Visibility was limited only by t' distant mountains. Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' shock cord and chute pretty much filled t' airframe. I remembered t' put in some waddin' first. This was me first rocket t' use rail buttons. Begad! Ya scallywag! Blimey! I think I gummed up t' igniter a bit, and t' motor sputtered 5 or six times, causin' t' rocket t' hop up and down and burp a few times on the rail but then it took off just fine. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I think it probably went well over 1000' and deployment looked t' be perfect. Aye aye! Blimey! A longer delay might have been better. Ya scallywag! The long shock cord worked well and t' chute appeared t' be o' t' appropriate size for t' rocket. Blimey! Blimey! It landed in dirt and suffered no damage. Arrr! Blimey! T' flight was very nice t' watch. Avast, me proud beauty! I plan t' launch again soon with an F motor.

Recovery:
PROs: Fine, me hearties, fast take off. Aye aye! Reasonably straight boost, rail worked well. Recovery be good. Begad! No apparent wear t' any o' t' parts.

CONs: none.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
I would definitely buy t' Panther Attack again. Avast! Blimey! This was me first Cycline3 kit and I bought it because I like t' design and Sean's paint job. Begad!

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5