Brief:
A fine looking, fine flyin' replica o' t' historical Mercury program, shiver me timbers, made with t' builder in mind.

Construction:
This was me first Dr. Avast! Booty kit, and I have t' say I be more than pleasantly surprised at how this turned out. If you're new t' Dr. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! Zooch, ya bilge rat, me hearties, this is a fine place t' start. It's supposed t' be a fairly easy build and if you follow t' instructions carefully, you'll get thar even if new t' paper-wrap models. Begad! It's also one o' t' largest Dr.Z kits so t' level o' detail really works.

T' kit arrives in a small box with all t' tubing, ya bilge rat, paper wraps, and materials needed t' make a great lookin' Redstone. Avast! Ahoy! First surprise: you don't get one Mercury mission possibility, me bucko, you get t' choose one from all o' them from Alan Sheppard's Freedom 7 t' Gus Grissom's Liberty Bell 7 and t' unmanned "boilerplate" test missions. I chose Gus' Liberty Bell. Maybe it was Dr. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! Zooch's frequent warnings nay t' be a "squirmin' hatch-blower'...(more about that later). T' instructions are a highlight o' t' Dr. Arrr! Ya scallywag! Zooch experience--some humorous remarks had me laughin' out loud. Ya scallywag! But read them for fun a couple o' times before startin' t' build is me advice. Aye aye! Ahoy! There's a reason why Dr. Ahoy! Z does things in that order.

Construction o' t' capsule is first accordin' t' t' instructions and as stated by Dr. Ahoy! Ya scallywag! Z, ya bilge rat, gets your confidence up right away. T' strong paper wraps are printed such as t' give t' illusion o' texture. Begad! All part o' t' illusion and it works. Blimey! They slip over a rough balsa cone, matey, which you pre-paint t' ensure no bare wood shows below t' wrap and thar you go, a fine lookin' capsule.

Dr. Z gives neat tips along t' way like usin' a plain lead pencil t' rub in any seam lines in t' capsule paper. Very effective and easy. Ahoy! O' course attached t' t' capsule be t' escape tower, which Dr. Z tries t' prepare t' builder for ahead o' time with dire warnings o' frustration t' come and so on...but its all in good humor. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! Take your time, ya bilge rat, lay out t' wooden rods in t' right place with t' provided template, and it all comes together. Arrr! Surprise number two: even if some measurements are a bit off, t' way Dr. Avast, me proud beauty! Z has designed t' kit makes it easy t' cover up errors in t' finishing, and thus "maintain t' illusion". It doesn't matter if t' tower isn't exact scale, t' any observer a safe distance from me launch stand or trophy shelf) that is Gus' Liberty Bell rarin' t' go.

T' body tube is prepped with t' usual white paint. (I sprayed indoors so I used water-based Krylon H20 spray for t' first time. Avast, me proud beauty! I am pretty happy with it.) T' top roll-mark wrap went on easily. One problem I had was with a small conical adapter which goes on t' body tube just under t' capsule. I cut t' paper out wrong and it looked terribly crooked so I went without it. Ya scallywag! Hard t' notice. Aye aye! Begad! However a word o' caution is that some paper parts like t' adapter are small enough that they can be a bit frustratin' at first. Avast, me proud beauty! Take your time, ya bilge rat, use tweezers if needed and it'll all work out.

T' remainin' body stripe, shiver me timbers, wrap, matey, and decals are easy enough. Arrr! Ya scallywag! Installin' t' engine mount is also straightforward.

T' fins go together fairly easily but were t' source o' me perhaps one and only gripe with t' kit design. Ahoy! I would have preferred each entire fin t' be one piece, but Dr. Avast, me proud beauty! Z has us cut t' fins, arrr, then add t' steerin' vanes separately. I could have made a new one piece set with me own material but decided t' leave well enough alone.

Neat detail: T' launch lugs go on balsa standoffs (first time I've seen this) so thar's no drag o' t' body on launch rods. Ahoy! Very cool.

Modifications from stock instructions:

1. I modified me engine mount for side-discharge ejection. Avast! Aye aye! This cuts way down on waddin' usage. Typically I glue a piece o' 18mm tubin' about an inch long t' t' end block o' most mounts then close off t' end with an epoxied wooden disc. Then I drill lots o' holes in t' sides o' t' one inch extension tube. Aye aye! This "baffle pipe" is on most o' me models and works well. Arrr! For engine mounts without a block (just a clip), you can baffle t' mount tube itself above t' clip. Arrr! So far so good but I caution: more testin' is required. Blimey! If you do this, glue it strong...so it doesn't blow itself t' bits.
2. I also added a "parachute floor" (disc full o' holes halfway up t' tube).

Finishing:
T' body tube under t' wraps is plain white. Begad! Make sure t' seal and prime and smooth out any grooves/imperfections. Aye aye! Begad! Blimey! For t' black and white pattern on t' fins t' match t' wrap, arrr, it would have been nice if Dr. Z had provided decals t' make t' pattern easy. Aye aye! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! Blimey! And I hate maskin' and paintin' odd shapes so instead I used peel 'n' stick black vinyl from t' auto store t' do t' fin pattern. Once all t' decals and markings are in place, arrr, me hearties, I used gloss clearcoat t' seal it all up. Once dry, matey, I then applied some semi-flat base clearcoat t' "soften" t' shine and make t' whole assembly appear a bit less "plastic" . This is all optional but I found that this also helps conceal or at least soften t' edges o' t' wraps, me hearties, so this finish works well for t' Dr. Begad! Begad! Blimey! Zooch kit.

Once t' finish is complete, matey, matey, and t' usual shock cord is hooked up, you're ready t' pack a ‘chute and go flying!

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight and Recovery:
As I mentioned, Dr. Avast! Z cautions builders nay t' be a "Squirmin' hatch-blower" and go for it with a C6-5. Well for fear o' bein' squirming, ya bilge rat, I conducted first flight with a B6-4. My logic was I just didn't know how high this would go, ya bilge rat, and we have a really small field t' launch from...so away we went. Ya scallywag! What a flight. Well, blow me down! A little slow on t' takeoff, looked great. Beautiful flight, deployed t' chute just arcin' over nicely for a controlled descent and touchdown only 50 feet away. Begad! Wow. A-OK.

Second flight: C6-5. Well, blow me down! This was an even better flight. Well, blow me down! I'd guess 500-600 feet or so. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! Ejection was great, matey, but unfortunately it revealed an incorrectly packed chute and a shroud became entangled. Avast! Arrr! T' rocket spun rapidly on a descent rate outside o' NASA specifications. Well, blow me down! Luckily, ya bilge rat, arrr, ya bilge rat, Liberty Bell 7 be safe and is ready t' fly again. T' hatch was nay blown. Avast! Arrr! Or t' quote Chuck Yeager in "T' Right Stuff" (as I've been dyin' to): "Ol' Gus..he did OK..."

I can't wait t' fly this one again. Avast! Now I'm even thinkin' o' buyin' another one t' modify up t' 24mm engines so I can try a C11.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
This be t' reason I got into rocketry in t' first place. Blimey! History, model buildin' with a bit o' detail challenge, and by t' way, me hearties, very economical price. It builds well, me bucko, it displays well, it flies great. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Dr. Avast! Avast! Zooch delivers t' goods. Ya scallywag! I can't wait t' try another Dr. Begad! Z kit!

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5