Brief:
QuickKit, 4FNC, 18mm motors, me bucko, Parachute Recovery

While bein' bummed out about havin' various projects under construction or repair and still bein' unable t' work on anythin' in me available time due t' dryin' glue, shiver me timbers, paint, etc, I decided that one more wouldn't hurt and looked for an easy one near t' top o' t' stack. T' Quest Super Eagle was t' "winner".

T' Super Eagle is a Quick Kit that goes together smartly and easily. Avast! Arrr! It is a 4FNC design with an 18mm motor mount and intended for separation and recovery in two parts, me bucko, shiver me timbers, both under parachute.

Construction:
T' first step given in t' instructions is t' tie t' end o' t' Keelhaul®©™ thread t' t' end o' t' elastic cord with an overhand knot. Arrr! Begad! T' opposite end o' t' Keelhaul®©™ was then supposed t' be slipped through t' loop on t' plastic fin can and secured with a pair o' overhand knots used as stoppers. Instead o' doin' that, me bucko, shiver me timbers, I tied t' Keelhaul®©™ t' t' loop.

T' instructions then called for insertin' t' preslotted motor tube into half o' t' plastic fin can and then slidin' t' other half o' t' fin can in place and cementin' t' two halves together. Avast, me proud beauty! Although me kit seemed t' be sealed when I opened it, me hearties, t' motor tube was already in place and t' two halves o' t' fin can were together and bein' held in place with t' provided end ring. Begad! It be nay cemented. I pried apart t' two halves and applied Plastruct t' cement them together.

T' instructions next called for me t' use tube type cement t' glue t' lowest o' t' body tubes t' t' fin can. Well, blow me down! Instead, arrr, matey, I used a few drops o' epoxy and also used t' epoxy t' further fasten t' end o' t' shock cord.

T' fins were o' plastic and were slotted t' be received by t' slots in t' plastic fin can. Ahoy! I had some trouble with 3 out o' t' four and needed t' do some trimmin' with a razor t' get them t' fit. Arrr! When I did, arrr, they slid into place and I secured them with Plastruct instead o' t' recommended tube cement.

T' kit comes with two plastic couplers t' join t' body tubes which are identical in every respect. It also comes with a single read plate designed t' be glued into one o' t' couplers. I used Plastruct again and then fitted t' coupler into what would be t' foremost o' t' body tubes. As with t' aft tube, me hearties, I used a drop o' epoxy t' make t' connection.

T' instruction say nay t' glue t' nose cone into t' body tube. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Presumably this is so that t' forward section can serve as a payload bay. Since I don't do payload flying, I almost went ahead and glued it but I decided it would hurt nothin' t' leave it free. Ahoy! Blimey! I did test fit t' nose cone into t' forward tube and found that it was extremely loose. Arrr! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! I fitted a piece o' maskin' tape onto t' shoulder o' t' cone and it then fit nicely. Ahoy! Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! That completed t' payload bay

It took a while t' get back t' t' Super Eagle after gettin' t' this point because life got busy and because I needed a long piece o' 1/8" rod t' align t' launch lugs before gluin' t' coupler into place. Arrr! I had 12" pieces lyin' around t' shop but I needed a long piece for this long rocket. Well, blow me down! When I got a standard rod, it was a simple matter t' mix a few drops o' epoxy and smear them onto t' inside o' the body tube. Ahoy! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' upper section o' t' tube was then pushed into place and t' rod be used t' align t' lugs before t' epoxy set.

With that, shiver me timbers, construction be done but I had a slight modification t' make.

T' kit is designed t' recover in 2 sections. Begad! I prefer t' brin' it all back down together. With that in mind, I tied an extra 20" o' elastic t' t' elastic already provided and then tied that t' t' nose cone.
Finishing:
T' rocket be mostly pre-finished. Aye aye! Blimey! T' fin can, arrr, couplers and nose cone were all molded from red plastic. Well, blow me down! Blimey! T' body tubes were already red. All that be needed in t' way o' finishin' be t' application o' some stickers.

I am nay a fan o' crack and peel stickers but they are appropriate for a kit o' this level. Aye aye! Well, blow me down! That said, t' ones I received were o' good quality and nicely complemented t' existin' colors. Four blue rings o' white stars were applied around t' BT at locations indicated by t' face card.

Four US flags were provided. I placed one on each fin.

T' last stickers were a pair o' name logos. Ahoy! Arrr! One was applied t' each side o' t' lowest section o' body tube.

With that, matey, me Super Eagle had only t' wait for t' next launch window.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
T' day o' t' maiden flight arrived and it be cold and still. Avast! Ahoy! I installed a 15" nylon chute and loaded an Estes B6-4 motor. It was then taken t' t' pad and set up. Lift off looked good with t' rocket goin' straight up. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! It was a nice, fairly slow takeoff. T' coast phase looked pretty good as well. It did nay go very high and started t' arc over. Begad! Ejection occurred when t' rocket was horizontal and t' chute deployed perfectly. Arrr! Begad! It drifted down and landed a few yards from t' pad.

For t' second flight, matey, I wanted some more power and I had a new bag o' Quest C6-3s sittin' handy so I reloaded with one o' those. Arrr! Begad! I set up next t' t' beautiful Dr. Avast! Ya scallywag! Zooch Soyuz that Stu Young had gotten for Christmas and I was glad t' wait a bit so I could see it fly. Ahoy! My turn came after waitin' a bit more so we could all help t' find t' pieces o' t' Soyuz that had its Keelhaul®©™ burn through. Blimey! Then it was time. Arrr! Well, blow me down! T' motor ignited and t' rocket lifted even slower than before. Begad! Well, blow me down! T' rocket started out fairly straight. Begad! Arrr! It soon started t' lean into t' direction o' travel, ya bilge rat, though. Begad! It be like t' motor was strugglin' t' keep it goin' fast enough. Begad! It was easily horizontal or ever a bit down pointin' as t' coast phase began. It was definitely point down when ejection occurred. Well, blow me down! Begad! It came down safely but it was a bit o' a near thing.

For t' third flight I wanted t' use an Estes C6-3 t' compare it t' t' Quest version. Begad! Thus one was installed and it was taken t' t' pad for its third flight o' t' day. Aye aye! Ignition occurred right when t' button be pushed and it took off well, shiver me timbers, nay much faster than it had with t' Quest motor. Arrr! It boosted straight and did nay arc over. Ya scallywag! It soon passed t' altitude t' which t' Quest motor had taken it. Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! It then coasted a good deal farther. Begad! Ejection occurred while it be still movin' up but t' chute was good and it came home safely.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
Overall, this be a nice simple kit that looks reasonably good with its precolored parts. Arrr! T' performance be nay stellar but it had close t' a perfect profile on t' B6. Aye aye! T' Quest C6 was disappointment but t' Estes C6 worked perfectly. My supposition is that this bird was designed and t' motors specified when t' Quest ones still came from Germany.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5

Other:
Persons wishin' t' keep track o' this rocket can do so here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/23694991@N03/collections/72157622765370685/