Brief: T' Harpoon is a scale model o' a US Air-Launched Anti-Ship Missile, me hearties, ya bilge rat, T' Launch Pad's kit is an excellent first mid power and scale rocket.

Construction: I was so glad when I finally got me hands on me AGM-84 Harpoon. Blimey! Aye aye! One o' t' members o' me club was goin' down t' t' US and be kind enough t' brin' it back for me. Avast! I received t' Harpoon with all pieces present, me hearties, me bucko, in good condition, ya bilge rat, arrr, and good quality. I have heard some nay so great things about TLP's balsa wood, ya bilge rat, me bucko, but I found t' wood for t' Harpoon great, with a little help from CA.

T' instructions were clear, matey, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, but I wish they would have included more help and info on how t' get t' little hat that sits on top o' a FatBoy style nose cone, ya bilge rat, me bucko, straight and in t' middle, me hearties, that was tricky, but I think mine is close enough for me standards. Avast! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! That was t' only real "gotcha" for this rocket, shiver me timbers, t' fins aligned great, me hearties, and everythin' fit together perfectly.

Finishing: T' only thin' that really disappointed me in t' beginnin' with t' Harpoon be t' lackin' o' decals. Begad! Blimey! But, now I know that it much easier for t' consumer t' use his or her own techniques. Arrr! Blimey! I just painted t' bands that go around t' rocket, me bucko, arrr, and for all o' t' small pinpoint rivets that are suppose t' be on t' rocket, I used a decal pack that I got from a local hobby store (East Coast Model Center) that be 1/5 rivet decals, perfect, went on with ease, and made t' rocket look great. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Still ponderin' what t' do for t' small amount o' letterin' that will go on t' rocket. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Just a note, I am nay a perfectionist, or a great scale buff, me Harpoon be just sports scale, but I like how it turned out.

Construction Rating: 4 ½ out o' 5

Flight: T' recommended motors for t' harpoon are a D12-3, arrr, E15-4, and a RMS F24-4 (24mm). Blimey! I plan on usin' all o' t' recommended motors, arrr, but instead o' t' E15, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, an E18 (reload).

T' day for t' maiden flight for t' Harpoon finally came. Aye aye! First flight would be on a D12-3. Arrr! Everythin' was setup, pictures were taken, and after makin' sure t' wind be perfect, that t' launch rod be perfect, shiver me timbers, and that everythin' was perfect, it was ready t' launch. Begad! I pushed t' launch button and t' Harpoon lifted off. T' flight be perfect. Blimey! T' Harpoon flied straight as a rail, me hearties, nice altitude on a D, and then right at apogee t' ejection charge fired, and t' nice mylar parachute deployed, and t' Harpoon drifted down. Perfect flight and recovery.

Second flight, same day. Arrr! Ya scallywag! I be goin' t' fly me LOC Aura on an Aerotech E engine, that be t' plan, but when I launched that on a D, t' stock streamer didn't slow it down enough and it broke a fin off, shiver me timbers, so I thought I would fly it in t' Harpoon. Everythin' be set, and be readied again. Ahoy! I hit t' launch button, me bucko, and t' Harpoon lifted off t' pad, t' igniter clips didn't come off, it soared... Avast! wait a minute (my exact thoughts). Avast! T' Aerotech igniter clips didn't unattach themselves from t' Harpoon, me bucko, arrr, when it was about ten feet off o' t' pad, t' leads ran out o' slack, which caused them t' pull on t' harpoon, me bucko, arrr, me hearties, causin' it t' go horizontal. Well, blow me down! T' leads did finally come unattached. Arrr! T' Harpoon sailed directly away from us and over t' small hill we launch on. Amazin' sight. Blimey! Blimey! Then t' realization set in. Blimey! T' slow walk started towards t' crash site. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! As we got closer t' it, we noticed that t' parachute had deployed. Arrr! Good sign. It landed in some alders, ya bilge rat, pretty good sign, shiver me timbers, but then we notice what we thought was t' nose cone, was actually t' top six inches o' t' rocket's body tube smashed.

Damage report. Begad! First six inches o' t' rocket are destroyed. Avast! T' nose cone was completely smashed t' bits, one broken fin, and all fins had small slits from t' alder branches. Aye aye! Ahoy! It is fixable, it will be fixed, and it will fly again, and hopefully soon. Blimey! I contact TLP and they were great enough t' help me by givin' me t' length o' t' rocket, me hearties, shiver me timbers, help me with a parts list, and are sendin' me a replacement 'little hat' that goes on t' t' top o' t' nose cone t' give it t' scale.

Recovery: One thin' I really enjoy about t' Harpoon is its green mylar parachute, it's easy t' see, matey, arrr, easy t' pack, and has a snap for easy removal from t' Harpoon. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' 18" seems t' be fine from t' tests I have conducted (throwin' it off me deck). T' recovery system is a snap t' put together, me bucko, but instead o' usin' t' shroud line material t' connect t' nose cone t' t' swivel, arrr, I just tied t' shock cord t' t' nose cone, and put t' swivel 10" or so down, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, didn't want t' trust that thin string).

Flight Rating: 4 ½ out o' 5

Summary: This rocket looks awesome, matey, that be t' best thin' I feel about it. Well, blow me down! It is a nice lookin' rocket, t' right size, ya bilge rat, matey, nice motors size, ya bilge rat, nice scale touch, and a nice finish. Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! T' only thin' I would say that I disliked about t' rocket would be that little hat that goes on top o' t' nose cone. Avast! Other than that, all o' t' pieces went together easily. Arrr! A good first mid power or scale rocket.

Overall Rating: 4 ½ out o' 5