Brief:
T' FlisKits ACME Spitfire was a long awaited item from their line o' models and was recently introduced at NARAM 45 in Evansville, Indiana. Well, blow me down! Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! Well, I just had t' be first in line t' get a couple o' these kits, ya bilge rat, one t' save and one t' build. Begad! I had seen this model debut at NSL 2003 earlier this year as a prototype and it’s a real head-turner. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! T' kit resembles somethin' you would see in a Farside comic or Warner Bros Roadrunner/Coyote cartoon.. As bent up as it is, this 24mm beauty, if you can call it that, arrr, is a real stable flier and I see a large followin' for this model down t' road.

Construction:
T' kit comes in t' standard, colorful FlisKits package and includes a BT70 outer body tube and an inner 24mm body tube, shiver me timbers, which also is used as t' motor mount and nosecone mount. Begad! Begad! In addition, it comes with a large assortment o' templates (four o' which are used for cuttin' t' body tubes) along with nosecone, matey, launch spacer, me bucko, and tail skirt templates. Clay for nose weight and a guide pin are also included, along with t' infamous FlisKits very high quality laser-cut black fiber Centerin' rings — seven rings in all! This is listed as a Level 3 kit, and with t' quantity o' parts and templates, it is listed appropriately. Arrr! High quality balsa and heavy duty 3/8-inch shock cord is also included and a website is given that contains down-loadable colored “Skins” for t' model. Blimey! Well, blow me down! Finally, matey, a very detailed and comprehensive set o' instructions, complete with illustrations, compliments t' kit.

Construction, although complex, is actually very simple and goes very fast! A motor block is used for 24mm motors, however, matey, I would nay recommend usin' t' E9 in this kit nor is it listed by t' manufacturer—the model is way too heavy and wind resistant. For you higher power guys, ya bilge rat, I am willin' t' bet it would fly great on D15 or E18 RMS and will test it. Arrr! Ahoy! Back t' building; once t' motor stop and hook are in place, me hearties, you start by addin' Centerin' Rings and body tube sections.

A separate cuttin' template wrap is supplied for each o' t' body tube sections and FlisKits method o' keepin' t' tubes in alignment is both simple and effective. Ya scallywag! A centerin' rin' is used at each body tube joint, givin' additional support t' t' model. Note that if you wish t' use t' “Skins” provided on t' website, you print t' colored lower tail template wrap and nosecone on card stock usin' t' PDF file from their website. Otherwise, t' kit contains a plain white nosecone and tail-cone wrap. Begad! Blimey! What I decided t' do be t' use t' provided wrap, me hearties, then print t' tail and nose on label paper as a Skin and use them as such t' cover t' two templates with color on both ends. Blimey! I also printed each o' t' stock Skins found on t' site on Avery label paper. T' kits, ya bilge rat, for cost reasons, me hearties, do nay include colored Skins and that is fine by me. Arrr! I see many people gettin' innovative with their own ideas and I even have a few o' me own for another Spitfire down t' road.

Most o' t' time durin' construction was spent buildin' t' body tube. Avast! Ya scallywag! You need t' cut them out usin' templates, shiver me timbers, easy enough, ya bilge rat, and then they need t' be assembled one at a time, usin' alignment marks you drew earlier. Avast! This method works great and t' main body tube be done in no time. Well, blow me down! Cuttin' t' templates, then cuttin' t' tubes took more time than building. Well, blow me down! Once completed, arrr, you can build t' nosecone and add weight t' t' model. Avast, me proud beauty! Clay is provided for nose weight, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, arrr, but is added t' t' body tube top instead o' t' nosecone—this keeps t' nosecone light and prevents that separation a heavy nosecone can suffer from after a few launches. Avast, me proud beauty! T' design keeps t' stress low and components light.

If you decide t' use t' Skins, arrr, me hearties, you apply them t' t' fins and tail before gluin' on t' fins. Ahoy! Begad! I used Epoxy t' insure t' fins were attached well t' t' tail. Ya scallywag! Avast! Also, ya bilge rat, matey, I opted t' use Epoxy when coatin' t' inside o' t' nosecone, which adds strength. Follow t' directions and assembly is a breeze. One thin' t' note, I did fit t' nosecone guide pin, shiver me timbers, me hearties, then cut it a bit longer, 5/8-inches, shiver me timbers, t' make sure it would engage in t' slot on t' nosecone. Blimey! Also, take note t' cut and install your upper launch lug in t' correct direction on t' lug spacer. Ya scallywag! Well, blow me down! They tell you twice t' do it with t' grain on t' leadin' edge and they even provide drawings and notes on t' template. Begad! Well, blow me down! Still, matey, I got it wrong and had t' cut another spacer from t' plentiful supply o' balsa.

Finishing:
Finishin' for me be a breeze—I printed t' “Skins” from t' website and applied them like labels. Blimey! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! T' model was clear coated t' waterproof it, shiver me timbers, then some final touches were made. I edged each fin, me bucko, then built t' standard 16-inch parachute supplied with t' kit. Avast, me proud beauty! I also wound up usin' t' stock 3-fold paper mount for t' shock cord as it had worked well and is still holdin' up fine in me Deuces Wild!. One thin' t' note—you get a 3/8-inch wide, very stout shock cord for this model—plenty strong and wide enough t' prevent zippers. Ya scallywag! T' other end was tied t' t' “eye” hook on t' nosecone and t' “Spitfire” was ready for t' field.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
Launch time was here and I decided t' use a C11-3 for t' first flight. Avast! Arrr! T' model be prepped and tissue added t' t' bay. Aye aye! Begad! Once all packed, ya bilge rat, I headed for t' field, at a local school and set up me pad for a launch. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! After everythin' was ready, matey, I thought, it was a shame no one be around t' see this as I had seen t' Spitfire demo launched many times by t' manufacturer and t' looks he always got from t' crowd were amazing. Arrr! Begad! Well, T' good thin' was this one was mine, all mine and I got t' push t' button. Avast! Avast! T' Acme Spitfire left t' rod in a hurry, shiver me timbers, straight up with no wiggles—what a ride!

Recovery:
T' model slowed vertically t' a hover, arrr, then t' parachute deployed right at apogee. Ahoy! It never nosed over, shiver me timbers, just up…stop…pop…and down for a landing, very cool! I cannot wait t' try it at our club launch this weekend and am glad I finally had t' chance t' own one. I packed up t' car and headed home t' prep for t' weekend and will update me flight logs then.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
T' FlisKits ACME Spitfire is an amazingly stable, arrr, absolutely cool model that is a MUST-HAVE for everyone’s silo. T' looks on peoples’ face when you approach t' launch line will be priceless and now that it’s a real “FlisKits” model, t' LCO will say, me hearties, shiver me timbers, “oh, I see they’ve been at it again—yea, you can launch it.” And FlisKits has been at it again, burnin' t' midnight oil t' brin' you probably t' most unique model rocket kit ever t' be mass produced—T' FlisKits “ACME Spitfire!”

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5