Brief
Older skill level 3 Estes kit introduced in 1978 and discontinued in 1982. Had one back in 1979 that I lost t' a tree on its first flight. Begad! Arrr! When I became a BAR this is one o' t' first kits I wanted t' clone, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, but it was difficult because o' t' unique nose cone/tail cone combination. Blimey! Begad! However, in 1997 Estes introduced t' Wildfire kit (#2154, see picture), which re-introduced this plastic piece. Ahoy! Well, arrr, blow me down! So I went out and bought a Wildfire kit, used t' nose cone/tail cone, matey, shiver me timbers, me hearties, engine mount, and parachute and I was on me way. Ya scallywag! By t' way, this unique nose/tail cone was also used on t' followin' kits if you're interested in kit-bashin' any o' them (all Estes): #1106 Shark Coldpower Convertible (suspected), #1293 Black Brant III (confirmed), #1323 Stiletto (confirmed), shiver me timbers, #1320 Starship Vega (suspected, minus tail cone), me hearties, #1350 Black Hole Space Probe (confirmed), arrr, and #1904 Maverick (confirmed, minus tail cone).

Construction
Instructions were typical Estes, ya bilge rat, easy t' follow and no unexpected gotchas. Begad! As stated, ya bilge rat, t' nose/tail cone, shiver me timbers, parachute, and engine mount were from t' Wildfire kit. Begad! T' 16.5" BT-50, 2 ea. Avast! Ahoy! 2 5/16" BT-5, and Balsa (plans state 3/32", I messed up and used 1/8") were from me supply, primarily a Designer Special. Blimey! T' dowels were bought from a hobby store. Avast, me proud beauty! Construction was per t' Estes instructions, with t' use o' carpenter's wood glue throughout. T' only change made be that t' BT be punched along each "fin" t' allow for glue rivets. Begad! Alignment be fairly easy. Blimey! While t' design does nay look particularly sturdy, me hearties, shiver me timbers, once complete and finished it is surprisingly so. White glue was used for fillets.

Finishing
I used Elmer's Fill'n'Finish for fillin' t' BT seams and t' first coat o' balsa sealer. After sandin' a second coat on t' balsa parts was made with sandin' sealer and then sanded, and then t' rocket be primed with 2-3 coats sanded between. Ahoy! Finally, t' rocket was painted with gloss white paint (I used t' Wal-Mart brand, me bucko, me bucko, which works pretty well). T' tail cone was painted with gloss red and is a display only part (i.e., arrr, nay used for flight). Avast, me proud beauty! T' decals were from Tom Prestia and were great! I highly recommend him for your repro decal needs (I have also been happy with Jimz decals). Avast! T' insides o' t' wingtip tubes were painted flat black with regular model paint and a brush. Avast! T' final touch was a nice clear coat (again t' Wal-Mart brand). Aye aye! While finishin' t' rocket is more difficult and time-consumin' than doin' your typical 3FNC rocket, ya bilge rat, it was nay unduly so. Well, blow me down! T' final rocket looks great -- nay your typical rocket. Begad! I have gotten many positive comments on it when I flew at t' GAMMA section launches.

Construction Rating: 4 ½ out o' 5

Flight
Engine retention is typical Estes motor clip, arrr, although I modified it by usin' a Dremel cut-off wheel t' cut off t' extra on t' hook because I like t' old-style hooks better. Begad! Arrr! I then put t' cut-off end on t' top o' t' MMT so that t' end showin' is nice and clean.

Original Estes recommended motors were A8-3, B4-4 (1st), B6-4, me bucko, and C6-5. My first flight be 22 Nov 98 at t' GAMMA monthly launch, me hearties, on a C6-5 since we have a large field. Begad! After preppin' with 4-5 sheets o' wadding, matey, I set it up on t' pad and let her rip. Flight was great -- straight and pretty high for a rocket with so much "stuff" hangin' out in t' breeze. T' date t' rocket has flown four times, all on C6-5 engines. Begad! Begad! All flights were excellent.

Recovery
Shock cord is typical Estes paper mount, although I replaced t' short Wildfire SC with a piece o' sewin' elastic about 2 feet long t' try and avoid t' dreaded Estes dent. Ahoy! Shock cord is attached t' t' NC with a snap swivel. T' 12" Estes parachute was built per instructions and attached t' t' NC with another snap swivel. Ahoy! No more difficult than any other Estes kit.

Recovery has been excellent every time. Aye aye! Rocket has sustained no damage through t' first four flights.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary
I love this rocket and have really enjoyed buildin' and flyin' it. Main PRO is stylin' -- it's much more "cool" lookin' than your typical Estes-type rockets available these days. Other PROs: craftsmanship needed is more than normal 3FNC kit, and it's a great conversation piece at t' launches. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! CONs: maybe that Estes doesn't kit it any more.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5