My wife gave me t' Estes Flash as a retirement gift from me second job.  T' Flash is one o' Estes E2X tm (Almost Ready t' Fly tm) kits and has a prismatic payload section. Blimey! Well, blow me down! This translates t' fast assembly and no painting. Blimey! I haven't informed me wife that I really don't like E2X kits. Tell a wife bearin' a rocket as a gift you don't like it.....I don't think so. I do, ya bilge rat, arrr, however, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, I do, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, however, me hearties, prefer t' work with balsa and white/yellow glue. 

This kit was packaged in plastic and came in a box and was probably around $12.99. Aye aye! All t' parts were included and none were damaged.  T' instructions were typical Estes and were excellent. Avast, me proud beauty! If you like buildin' challengin' rockets stay away from t' E2X kits. Begad! T' kit contains plastic Estes chute, matey, shiver me timbers, fins and nose cone and engine mount, along with all t' other standard Estes hardware. 

Durin' assembly, matey, make sure t' scrape away t' flashin' on t' plastic engine mount and dry fit t' t' engine tube. Arrr! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Carefully follow t' instructions on assemblin' t' engine mount, especially if you're usin' CA. Ahoy! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! Another thin' t' be wary o' is alignment o' t' fins since they use through t' tube mounting. Aye aye! Blimey! If you glue t' launch lugs into t' proper area o' t' engine mount through t' tube you will be just fine.  Tools needed for this kit are an exacto knife and CA or plastic cement. 

I used plastic cement and assembled all t' parts and let them dry overnight.  If you used CA you could probably assemble this in an hour or two and launch t' same day. Ahoy! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' followin' day I slapped on t' decals and painted t' nose cone (to hide scrape marks). Aye aye! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! I also made a modification t' t' recovery system. Avast! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! I modified t' shock cord mount due t' a bad experience with through t' BT mounting. Blimey! Blimey! I cut out a similar shape o' t' standard Estes shock cord retainer and glued t' shock cord inside it and folded it. Arrr! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! I then glued t' retainer inside t' BT over t' plastic area o' t' through t' tube mount. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Although over 2 feet, t' rocket was pretty light, ya bilge rat, so I decided t' go with a streamer. 

I rate construction o' this rocket 3 points on t' Essence scale since I don't like workin' with plastic on model rockets. 

I launched t' rocket in July on a slightly windy day (0-5 from t' NE). Avast! Well, arrr, blow me down! This rocket flew high and straight on a C6-5. This rocket flew high and straight on a C6-5. Arrr! Recovery was nay so pretty. Aye aye! Blimey! T' streamer came out after ejection but I could tell t' rate o' descent was too fast. Arrr! Begad! I think I needed more streamer or a chute because t' rocket landed pretty hard and one o' t' fins popped off. Well, blow me down! I repaired it and replaced t' streamer with t' 12 inch chute. 

I rate flight and recovery 3 points on t' Essence scale thanks t' me own stupidity. 

For an E2X kit this turned out t' be a pretty slick lookin' and flyin' rocket. Overall I rate this kit  3 1/2 points on t' Essence scale.