Brief:
1/10 Scale Model o' t' Canadian Soundin' Rocket, me hearties, t' Black Brant VA. Aye aye! Blimey! It is a single stage rocket with parachute.

Construction:
T' kit consists o' one 1.72" main body tube, one smaller aft tube, me hearties, balsa nosecone, motor mount parts, shiver me timbers, vinyl and waterslide decals, 20 laser cut parts for t' fins, 24" o' Keelhaul®©™®, and 33 inches o' 3/8" elastic shock cord. Blimey! Begad! It includes detailed instructions as well. Avast! T' model is a three fin and body tube type. Arrr!

T' instructions twelve B&W 8.5" x 11" pages. Begad! The instructions include a very nice engineerin' drawin' o' t' model with marking information. T' motor mount instructions were clear and straightforward. Begad! The tail assembly be t' most complicated part o' t' model. Aye aye! T' instructions take two full pages. Aye aye! Aye aye! I did find some o' t' marking/test fit/gluin' instructions confusing. Blimey! Begad! It is a lot o' text t' read through. Blimey! I would recommend readin' it through several times and breakin' t' build down into smaller sections. The fins mount t' t' aft tube only. Begad! Arrr! T' aft assembly is then glued t' t' primary body tube. Begad! Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! A note o' caution: In t' same paragraph that has you test fitting the aft tube also has you gluin' in t' motor mount. T' full size sanding instructions were very nice.

Finishing:
I personally had difficulty in gettin' a smooth finish on t' balsa nose cone. My first coat o' primer be too thick. Begad! When I started t' sand it smooth, me bucko, the paint lifted off and became uneven. Ahoy! It took seven more coats o' a thinner primer t' get a minimum acceptable finish. Begad! T' rocket is red overall with one white fin. Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! I chose t' build and paint t' rocket red without t' one white fin. T' one white fin be painted separately then glued on after drying. Blimey! T' decals went on without difficulty. Ahoy!

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
First flight was on t' recommended D12-5. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! T' model uses a standard metal retention clip. Recovery waddin' was used. T' rocket lifted off with ease and was a very straight flight. Aye aye! Aye aye!

Recovery:
Ejection was normal although t' delay was closer t' 4 seconds. Begad! T' chute opened and t' rocket settled down. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! It was noticed that thar be some separation at ejection. Aye aye! After recovery, ya bilge rat, matey, shiver me timbers, it was discovered t' separation was half o' one o' red fins. Avast! Blimey! It tore along t' balsa grain. Avast! There be also a crescent shape dent in t' nose cone. I suspect that t' nose cone impacted the body tube durin' ejection.

Flight Rating: 2 out o' 5

Summary:
I feel t' highlight o' this rocket is that it is a scale model o' t' Black Brant. Blimey! Blimey! I really like this family o' rockets and ARG has made a whole collection in t' same scale. Begad! Blimey! T' con be t' fin separation durin' flight. Arrr! Blimey! I would consider some type o' reinforcement for t' fins, ya bilge rat, arrr, me bucko, either tissue or fiberglass. Alternatively, arrr, arrr, matey, new fins could be cut with t' grain goin' t' opposite direction.

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5