Not bein' a big Star Wars fan, matey, me hearties, me hearties, I would nay have sought out an R2D2 model rocket kit. However, shiver me timbers, me family loves it, and got me an Estes Fifteenth Anniversary R2D2 for Father's Day 1999.

This is sort o' a goofy rocket, but nay completely absurd: R2D2 did fly on occasion in t' movies. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! And, arrr, folks, me bucko, I've had so much fun with this thin' that I just had t' write about it.

T' 15th Anniversary R2D2 is a reissue o' t' biggest one they ever made, based on t' 4" BT-101 body tube. Ya scallywag! It features a printed body wrap, lots o' blow-molded and/or vacuum-formed white styrene parts, matey, and injection-molded clear styrene fins for flight. Begad! Avast! (They're in place in t' above photo, shiver me timbers, believe it or not.) It's designed t' use a single C6-3 motor (more on that later) and has an 18" printed plastic parachute, matey, standard Estes style.

Assembly be nay difficult, with one possible exception. Others have reported that t' body wrap didn't fit too well, arrr, and me experience was that it's a fraction o' an inch too short. Ya scallywag! Blimey! In addition, t' adhesive is very permanent: once it touches t' tube, it's thar for t' duration. In me case, matey, matey, I got it on a bit crooked, as you can see in t' picture. Blimey! Blimey! Finishin' required blue, silver, me bucko, ya bilge rat, and black paint; I used blue in place o' black for R2's "eye," which was a mistake.

This thin' has been engineered t' "just barely fly," so on many counts, it's a good idea t' follow instructions exactly. Aye aye! Two areas o' special concern: (1) t' instructions are very explicit about t' attachment o' t' parachute near t' base end o' t' shock cord. Arrr! That seemed unbelievable but it is right. (2) Those big, me hearties, thick paper centerin' rings are stronger than they look, but be sure t' glue them very firmly t' t' outer body tube. Begad! Their only likely failure point is t' fold into a cone and pull away from t' BT-101.

I made two subtle mods. I replaced t' shock cord with a better quality elastic (and a foot longer at that) and I increased t' nose weight slightly because I was advised that R2 is none too stable and sometimes hangs a left. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I would have liked t' replace t' questionable recovery waddin' arrangement with a Nomex shield, arrr, but in fact it worked.

That nose weight was interestin' t' begin with. Ahoy! T' kit includes three o' t' lead disks I remembered from 1966-era kits and haven't otherwise seen since. Ahoy! Begad! I kept them, and replaced them with a coil o' lead wire that totaled just a few grams more. Blimey! Begad! In retrospect, I think t' designers deliberately used t' least they could justify in order t' brin' t' thin' up t' minimum performance with a C6-3.

One clear plastic fin unit in me model was warped to t' point that I would have been justified t' return it. Avast! I solved t' problem in a way nay for t' weak o' heart: I heated it by holdin' it 2" from a red hot electric range burner and gently bendin' it back into shape. This worked, me bucko, but I knew it would have been easy t' (1) burn myself, or (2) watch t' thin' droop irreversibly onto t' hot burner.

T' package card lists C6-3, C5-3, and B6-2 as recommended engines. Avast! T' instruction sheet says "C6-3 only." It took a while t' understand why. Ya scallywag! T' instruction sheet is an mangle from t' original, which was issued before C5-3 or B6-2 were available from Estes. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! However, t' B6-2 would never have been enough motor for this beast. Aye aye! T' package card was probably printed before production kits were tested, suggestin' that t' prototypes had some lighter parts.

My R2's first flight be perfectly straight, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, very slow, not very high, and once up there, arrr, ya bilge rat, it headed for t' ground like a homesick rock. Avast, me proud beauty! T' ejection charge went off halfway down. Begad! T' parachute opened fully just about 15 feet off t' ground. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! One o' t' clear plastic fins was broken. Aye aye! Begad! For t' first o' several times, ya bilge rat, I resolved that R2 had seen its air time and would be retired t' t' bookshelf where it now resides. Testor's Cement for Plastic Models healed t' fin unit, me bucko, but it could no longer be considered invisible.

But I couldn't resist tryin' t' cluster it. I had used a pair o' A10's t' supplement C and D motors before, me bucko, and thar was room, me hearties, so it seemed like t' thin' t' do. Avast! Avast! Cuttin' openings on either side o' t' motor mount tube, I glued in a pair o' BT-5 tubes. One had t' be slotted t' allow for t' C6's motor hook. Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! T' C6 went in first, me hearties, then t' A10-3's. Aye aye! Arrr! T' A10's would be allowed t' eject themselves. Well, blow me down! When I was happy with it, me bucko, out we went t' launch.

All three motors fired, and t' flight was much stronger than t' first. Ahoy! T' added power did seem t' be just what R2 needed. Ya scallywag! Begad! But if t' first flight was a heart-stopper, t' second carried a hint o' caution. Ahoy! Near t' end o' t' burn, ya bilge rat, it hung a 30 and headed south. Fortunately, me bucko, me bucko, it be well off t' ground, and ended up ejectin' and fully openin' t' parachute at apogee. Well, blow me down! I considered this a much better flight, matey, arrr, me bucko, but even so, me hearties, matey, it broke t' clear plastic fins on landing. Arrr! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! More Testor's.

Meanwhile, I realized what t' mid-course correction meant. One o' t' A10's had burned out before t' other, and had given R2 a good dose o' rotation, matey, because they're right alongside t' CG. Begad! Ya scallywag! I was concerned that it could be more serious, and decided nay t' recommend this modification. Begad! Once again, R2 was declared retired and placed on t' shelf. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! But I couldn't resist flyin' it at our club meet in September.

This time, one motor lit far enough ahead o' t' other so that t' thrust curves were nay at all in synch. Ahoy! R2 wandered all over t' sky in front o' t' LCO's table, ejected both A10's in different directions, and finally bit t' dust at t' very moment o' ejection. Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Dome in t' dirt, he jumped another six t' ten feet and rolled like a bad punt. Begad! Ya scallywag! There was a gasp from t' crowd followed by gleeful laughter. A fellow flyer helped me find t' many pieces o' clear plastic that had been R2's fin unit. In addition, arrr, arrr, a leg was peeled off t' body, and t' leadin' edge o' t' body tube separated a couple o' inches along t' spiral groove. Repairs were nay too difficult, btw.

So, folks, matey, let it be known: I do nay recommend this cluster arrangement. I do recommend more power if it can be had.. In retrospect t' proper modification would be a BT-50 motor tube t' use a D12-3.

Mine will fly again with an Aerotech 18mm D composite, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, at some unspecified future date. Aye aye! Ahoy! T' motor is exactly on t' CG, shiver me timbers, so thar be no worry about stability changes with added motor weight. Begad! I do think that t' added weight o' t' extra motor mount tubes makes single C6-3 flight very iffy for mine now. Ahoy! T' clear plastic fin unit has a nice decorative crackle effect throughout, but it seems serviceable.

This kit sat in t' store for several years, and might be scarce now. That said, shiver me timbers, some may say it's a collector's piece and I'm a addlepate t' fly it. Arrr! Nonsense.

This is a model rocket. Avast! Ahoy! Its printed wraps are a compromise t' light weight t' allow flight; they are nay as detailed or as contoured as a plastic body could be for shelf display. Begad! Blimey! You get t' feelin' that some engineer spent some up close and personal time with t' prototype before this one be kitted, arrr, workin' out t' details so it could possibly fly. Arrr! Blimey! Does that still happen at Estes Industries? This model (and t' designer's work) is completed by flight, just as a Saturn V would be.