Brief:
I opened this package t' try and build it quite some time ago but stopped when readin' t' instructions. Most o' the construction is done with a hot glue cannon and I didn't have one. When me brother in law asked about it sittin' on my desk, matey, I told him I didn't have such a tool. A few weeks later, one magically appeared. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! Thanks Toby!

This kit is made from Styrofoam coffee cups, me bucko, foamboard, arrr, me bucko, and a few more conventional pieces in t' area o' the motor mount. It is definitely different and quite tall. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! I built it in a single sitting.

Construction:
Construction began with t' motor mount. It uses a very long BT-50 tube as opposed t' t' short tubes that are just over standard motor length. Blimey! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! A quarter inch be marked off on a spent motor casing, some white glue was swabbed around the interior and t' spent casin' was used t' push t' thrust rin' into place.

A razor knife was used t' make a slit for t' engine hook and t' hook was put into place. It was secured with several wraps o' electrical tape.

T' kits came with 2 fiber centerin' rings t' mount t' BT-50 motor tube into t' BT-70 airframe. Begad! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! Each needed to have a notch put into its inner hole. Well, blow me down! T' instructions recommended usin' a hole punch and that worked great.

Each o' t' rings was slipped over one end o' t' motor tube and glued in place with white glue. T' notch on the bottom rin' was t' align with t' motor hook. Begad! Blimey! That on t' upper is t' pass t' recovery harness. Aye aye! A fillet o' white glue was placed around both sides o' each ring.

T' kit has both elastic and Keelhaul®©™®. Usually, me hearties, t' Keelhaul®©™® gets attached t' t' motor mount but that is nay t' case here. Begad! An loop be tied into one end o' t' elastic and then an overhand knot was tied in about 10 inches down t' line. T' long, matey, arrr, untied, end o' t' elastic was then passed through t' notch in t' upper rin' and t' elastic was pulled through until t' overhand knot acted as a stopper at the ring. Some glue was then used t' fasten t' harness into place.

T' tube that receives t' motor mount is a longish piece o' BT-70 that has t' have one end trimmed by a few inches. I marked t' cuttin' line and then inserted a mandrel t' support t' tube. Ya scallywag! Arrr! T' tube was cut with a razor blade since me hobby knife was missin' at t' time.

T' forward end o' t' BT-70 is t' be blocked by a balsa coupler. T' Keelhaul®©™® is supposed t' originate in t' tube, pass along one side and over t' top o' t' coupler, and then back into t' tube to emerge at t' other end. Ahoy! Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! I should have checked for fit first but did not. I smeared white glue around t' end o' the tube and inserted t' balsa and Keelhaul®©™®. T' balsa was a tight fit and I could nay get it all t' way seated flush with t' end o' t' tube before t' glue grabbed.

Next up be work on t' cups. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! Three o' t' cups are singled out for special attention. Begad! They need t' have the bases o' t' cups cut out t' accommodate t' passin' o' t' BT-70. Well, blow me down! This too was done with a razor blade. Ahoy! Begad! By cutting just at t' mold line, a very tight, almost too tight, fit is achieved. I had t' open t' holes a bit with some sanding.

Now came somethin' really new for me. Avast! Aye aye! I had never used a hot glue cannon before and two o' t' cups which had their bottoms cut out were t' be joined mouth t' mouth with a got glue gun. Ya scallywag!

I plugged it in and let it heat up for a while. Avast, me proud beauty! I gave some test squirts t' see how it fed over a piece o' scrap cardboard and I burned myself several times. Begad! Did you know that globs o' glue at 400 degrees look almost identical to ones at room temperature?

Ready t' take t' plunge, ya bilge rat, I placed two o' t' cups together and began t' pump out a bead o' glue around the circumference. T' feed be nay steady and some parted got more than others. Well, blow me down! I burned myself some more. I worried about meltin' t' foam. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! I eventually got them together and, me hearties, surprisin' me, they seemed solid enough.

I gave t' glue a few minutes t' harden up and then fit t' BT-70 into t' joined cups. I pushed it down so that the cups were at t' end opposite t' t' plug and allowed t' body tube t' protrude from t' cups for just a little bit. T' glued cannon was then used t' glue t' lower cup into place.

Included in t' kit is a template for markin' t' fin locations. I be cut out and taped into place on the bottommost cup. Begad! T' lines for each face and each side o' t' three fins was then transferred t' t' cup. Blimey! T' template was removed and a steel straightedge was used t' extend t' lines.

T' kit also came with a template t' cut t' fins from t' foamboard. Well, blow me down! Avast! At this point, a decision had t' be made. T' fins could be mounted on t' cup or they could be mounted directly t' t' BT-70 hidin' inside t' cup. Begad! Avast, matey, me proud beauty! T' latter, naturally, me hearties, shiver me timbers, yields a stronger connection and that is what I chose t' do. That bein' t' case, matey, I laid t' full template out on t' foamboard, shiver me timbers, transferred t' outline, matey, and cut t' fins out with a steel ruler guidin' a razor blade. Had I elected t' do a surface mount, t' same template would have been used but a shaded area would have been removed from the template first.

A razor blade be used t' cut slots for t' fins in t' bottom cup, shiver me timbers, followin' t' lines transfered from the markin' template. Begad! T' template be sized so that it fit around t' cut right up t' t' lip but did nay extend onto the lip. I learned at this step that t' lines should have been extended all t' way t' t' edge o' t' cup. Arrr! Begad! Blimey! This was simple t' do.

T' fins themselves were mounted by t' simple expedient o' runnin' a bead o' hot glue along t' root edge and pressin' them into place through t' slot cut for t' purpose. Blimey! Avast! When in place, ya bilge rat, a fillet o' hot glue be run along the seam betwixt t' cup and t' fin on each side. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! It be all much easier than I had supposed.

You will recall that thar were three cups which had their bottoms cut out. Avast, me proud beauty! Two had been used thus far and it was time for t' third one. Begad! It was mated with an unmodified cup in t' same way that t' first two were. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! T' cut end was then slid over t' projectin' section o' BT-70 so that its base be flush against that o' t' upper cup o' t' first pair. Well, blow me down! Avast! Hot glue be then used t' join t' two sections together.

From thar on, it be just a matter o' hot gluin' pairs o' cups together and then gluin' t' butt end o' a pair to t' butt o' t' precedin' pair. Aye aye! Begad! Blimey! It was easy.

T' last construction step was t' installation o' t' launch lug, a long, ya bilge rat, heavily built 3/16" job. Ya scallywag! It was just hot glued into place at t' seams o' t' two lowest pairs and with that, construction be complete.

Finishing:
No finishin' is really needed on this rocket. Aye aye! I suppose that I could find some foam safe paint and get rid o' the yellow from t' glue but its nay all that noticeable from any distance. Aye aye! I decided t' leave mine bare.

Nay long after completin' this rocket, shiver me timbers, I saw a post from Jim Flis on TRF about finishing. Ya scallywag! He mentioned that electrical tape can be used t' provide a little color and t' strengthen t' joints betwixt cups. Aye aye! Blimey! That seemed like a good idea t' me and would cover up much o' t' glue mess.

I didn't have any colored tapes but I decided that I would be satisfied with black. Accordingly, arrr, I wrapped each cup joint with tape and t' appearance be greatly improved.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
I be a bit worried when t' time came for t' maiden flight. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! T' wind had kicked up a bit. Blimey! Mostly, matey, I was worried about t' rocket bein' torn away from t' lug on t' launch rod. Ya scallywag! That did nay occur.

I mounted a 12" chute and a C11-3. Blimey! It was nay a kid magnet because thar were no kids present at that time, but it sure magnetized t' adults. Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! It took off well, arrr, did nay weathercock at all, and ejected very nicely. Well, blow me down! It looked kind o' funny comin' down. Avast, me proud beauty! Usually t' rocket hangs under t' chute canopy. Ahoy! This one kind o' let its chute droop down below it. Well, blow me down! There be no damage. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! A video o' t' maiden flight can be seen here.

T' second flight was on a D12-3. It was a repeat o' t' first one except higher. Avast, me proud beauty! A good time be had by all. A video o' t' second flight can be seen here.