Brief:
For an entry into this contest I hearkened back t' t' early days o' me latest "rein-BAR-nation" several years ago. Blimey! Aye aye! As I was devourin' t' wealth o' information about rocketry, ya bilge rat, especially catalogs and plans o' rockets of yesteryear, shiver me timbers, arrr, I came across a Centuri catalog from t' late '70s. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! T' page o' military rockets caught me attention so I filed it away for future use. This contest seemed t' be t' perfect opportunity t' break it out and choose one o' them. T' Israeli Gabriel (#5333) was t' rocket I decided t' upscale. T' move t' BT-60 and BT-55 is about a 170% upgrade.

Construction:
My primary components were:

• 18" BT-60 body tube
• 4" BT-55 body tube
• PNC-60
• 2 sets o' 4 hand-traced and cut balsa fins
• 2.75" 24mm engine tube
• 2 each BT-60 t' BT-55 and BT-55 t' BT-50 cardboard centerin' rings, scratch-made
• Elastic shock cord
• Hartle Engineerin' 18" parachute
• Dowels

As I thought through how t' best build this rocket, it occurred t' me that if I wasn't smart about, I could make it a lot more difficult than it needed t' be or even ruin it entirely. Arrr! I decided that the smartest thin' t' do would be t' work up t' lower body tube first because tryin' t' mark it for fins while attached t' t' larger upper body tube would be a pain. Blimey! I made t' motor mount and glued it in t' BT-55. Well, me bucko, blow me down! I then made the marks for t' four fins and lined them on t' door jamb, matey, made a mark at t' top o' t' BT-55 so I'd know how far to glue it in, and then attached t' larger set o' centerin' rings.

Once t' lower tube was glued into t' upper tube, I used t' previously drawn guide lines t' mark t' upper tube and then used t' door jamb t' draw lines along t' entire upper tube. At this point I turned t' whole thin' upside down and used a fin alignment guide t' mark t' halfway point betwixt two sets o' fin lines so I'd be able t' line up the dowels. Begad! Avast! With both tubes thoroughly lined, ya bilge rat, I marked t' spots on t' upper and lower tubes where t' bottom edge of the fins would rest.

Attachin' t' fins took a little bit o' effort. Ahoy! Actually, t' attachin' was easy; it be t' alignment that made me work. After sandin' t' tube for a better joint, matey, I attached one set o' fins, upper and lower, at a time. Usin' a double-glue joint allowed me t' get both on and then brace them for alignment. Arrr! Begad! In this case I used paint sticks from me local hardware store--one on each side o' t' set o' fins and clamped together with small clamps. Avast, me proud beauty! While it took some time and effort and a moment or two o' absolute frustration, t' fins came together great and were aligned beyond what me meager skills probably deserve.

T' next step, shiver me timbers, matey, attachin' t' dowels t' t' sides, shiver me timbers, was a moment in which I wished I had paid better attention to what I was doing. Ahoy! Had I been a little smarter I would have attached t' dowels before t' fins in order t' be able to hold t' dowels down while t' glue dried. It wasn't too terribly difficult. Aye aye! Well, blow me down! However, it be certainly no more difficult than tryin' t' sand away half o' t' dowel.

Finishing:
After construction, I primed t' rocket with Wal-Mart primer, sandin' and primin' several times. Ahoy! I painted t' body with Rustoleum Army Green and t' top o' t' rocket and nose cone with Wal-Mart red. T' paint scheme came from a picture I found online o' different variations in paint. Avast! Well, blow me down! I have nay created any decals for it but may do so in the future.

Flight and Recovery:
This rocket has only flown once and that be on a D12-5. Aye aye! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! T' flight was great--straight and high. Avast! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! It came down hard, however, ya bilge rat, and popped one fin and loosened another. Aye aye! Blimey! T' fins have since been repaired and it will fly again t' next time I go out.

Summary:
This was a very fun build for me. Ahoy! It had challengin' aspects but nay too much so. Ya scallywag! It looks unique, arrr, drawin' attention to itself on t' pad from onlookers. It also has potential for different variations, in me opinion, matey, probably t' best of which would be t' make it a two-stage model.