Brief:
Cool rocket inspired by Russian amateur and 1950s Sci-Fi movies.

Construction:
One short body tube, shiver me timbers, nose cone (Estes long BT- 80) and tail cone (cut from Estes long BT-80). Three big balsa fins and hardwood landin' pods. Arrr! One plywood centerin' ring. Nose weight in t' form o' BBs. Recovery system connects through steel cable that you have t' loop and crimp. Also included is some elastic shock cord and a 24" parachute that appears completely adequate. Also included is some stick-on vinyl t' fancy up t' rocket.

T' instructions are quite good. Avast! I have a lot o' experience, and had no problems followin' along. My fiancée has less experience, me bucko, and she had no problems either. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! T' only part that wasn't well described was t' insulator that protected t' plastic tail cone from ejection gasses. Begad! Everythin' else flowed logically. Parts fit be very good. Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! T' fin slots in t' tail cone were perfect and t' bottom o' t' tail cone was just right. T' only parts that didn't fit well were t' hardwood landin' pods on t' ends o' t' fins. Begad! They required extensive sandin' o' t' fins t' make t' pods fit. Well, blow me down! Begad! All parts are strong enough for this size rocket. Ahoy! I put most everythin' together usin' 5 minute epoxy. Begad! Be careful in alignin' t' launch lugs. Ahoy! Mountin' them on t' fin is a great idea, me hearties, but you can inadvertently end up aimin' t' rod into t' body if you're nay careful. Aye aye! Well, blow me down! Also, finishin' your fins is more difficult with the lugs in t' way. Begad! Begad! T' only thin' I changed was t' cut t' bottom o' t' nose cone off and replace t' elastic shock cord with 9 feet o' woven polyprolene cord. Avast! Aye aye! When I added t' nose weight, I put t' shock cord into t' nose first, and poured t' BB/Epoxy mixture over it. This is a good sturdy mount. Begad! Begad! Flame protection is done usin' a flame proof shield rather than disposable wadding. Arrr! Well, blow me down! I also left about 1/4" o' t' motor mount extendin' below t' tail cone for motor retention purposes.

Finishing:
I filled all t' balsa with two applications o' Balsa Lite, sandin' after each application. Well, blow me down! Well, matey, blow me down! T' joint betwixt t' landin' pods and t' fins were filleted with a two part epoxy putty. Blimey! Ya scallywag! Then everythin' got a thin coat o' fiberglass epoxy. This gives t' fins a very hard, me bucko, very smooth finish. Arrr! Begad! I didn't bother with the spiral groove in t' body tube, ya bilge rat, it's BT-80 and very subtle. Begad! A couple coats of primer took care o' this. You could fill t' seam betwixt t' tail cone and body tube with some good putty, shiver me timbers, this would further improve t' appearance. Avast, me proud beauty! I finished it with 4 coats o' Krylon White Sandable Primer and three coats of Krylon True Blue. Warning: t' contrast betwixt t' brown body tube and white nose and tail is hard t' cover. Well, blow me down! Even after four coats o' primer, I could still tell t' color difference. If you use a light, shiver me timbers, slightly transparent color, me bucko, you will get subtle color differences that are readily apparent t' t' human eye. Avast, me proud beauty!

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
T' recommended motors should give you a good flight. Avast! I've made three flights with t' Aerotech E18-7 and each flight has been perfect. First, me hearties, me hearties, I prep the motor. After puttin' t' motor in t' motor mount, me bucko, I run a couple wraps of maskin' tape round t' motor end and t' exposed motor mount tube. This is a good retention system and has held just fine in all me similar rockets. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! Blimey! Then put t' flame shield in t' body tube and pack t' chute and shock cord in the nose. When I put everythin' together, matey, t' chute and cord fall into t' body tube, matey, but it's easier t' get t' nose cone on if everythin' is in t' nose. Arrr! Blimey! If you don't cut t' bottom off t' nose cone, ya bilge rat, matey, shiver me timbers, this could be a tight fit. Ya scallywag! Blimey! The rocket flies very, very straight despite its unorthodox appearance. Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! I think one of t' main reasons is that t' fin slots in t' tail cone are perfectly aligned.

Recovery:
T' E18-7 ejects right at apogee, so I suspect t' E15-7 will do just as well. This rocket flies plenty high on an E, me hearties, but if you want t' try an F, I'd do an F24-7, or an F32-10. Ya scallywag! You better have a really big field. T' provided parachute is t' perfect size. Well, blow me down! This is nice t' see in this day and age o' undersized chutes. Ahoy!

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
This is an excellent kit. Ahoy! Ya scallywag! Top quality components all around. Avast! Frankly, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, this is the least modified kit I have. Ya scallywag! Begad! I felt confident that each and every component was just right for t' rocket and flight testin' has proven me right. It's an attention getter, arrr, on t' pad, matey, matey, me bucko, and then when it flies perfectly straight and true, me hearties, it really gets attention. I like unusual kits, and this is a good one. T' price is reasonable for what you get because you don't have t' buy anything extra t' make a durable, shiver me timbers, flyable model.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5