Brief:
A magnificent-lookin' boost glider, arrr, sleek futuristic design, sure t' draw some attention at t' pad. Ahoy! Flies on 24mm motors. Blimey!

Construction:
I was very impressed openin' this kit, as t' parts were top quality.

Parts included:

• 18-inch BT-55
• 18-inch BT-60
• (2) 4.5-inch BT-55’s
• (2) 4.5-inch BT50’s
• 5 nose cones
• (2) 12-inch ripstop nylon chutes (bright orange)
• plenty o' Keelhaul®©™®
• 1/2-inch elastic shock cord
• basswood and assorted couplers, me hearties, lugs, nose weight, etc.

It also comes with two sheets o' waterslide decals which were very nice looking.

While t' instructions were well illustrated, matey, I found them a bit hard to follow, and would nay recommend this model for anyone without significant boost glider buildin' experience. Ahoy! Tube markin' guides would also have been a HUGE help. Begad! Begad! I used every crafty little tool in me box, arrr, me hearties, and still had trouble with fin locations and alignments (Shrox kits are wonderfully creative, but t' drawback is that you’ll hardly ever see a standard 3-fin/120 degree alignment).

T' plan starts with t' glider construction. T' glider is basically a BT-55 with a couple o' long nose cones, two-piece wings, arrr, matey, elevators, and a rudder. Well, blow me down! All are cut from 1/16-inch basswood usin' templates provided. Blimey! T' wing attachment is where I first started t' find fault with t' directions. Aye aye! The directions call for a 10-degree dihedral, though it would have saved me a bit of trigonometry if t' dihedral height were included. Well, blow me down! Avast! T' wings actually attach slightly below t' centerlines o' t' body, which makes it even trickier t' get the dihedral right. Ya scallywag! T' glider attaches t' t' booster through a small wood dowel inserted into t' glider at a 45-degree angle.

Trimmin' t' glider was fairly easy, though I had t' use considerably more nose weight than t' suggested startin' point o' 1/8-inch x 1-inch (the size of a launch lug?).

T' main body assembly is composed o' 22.5-inches o' BT-55 joined with a tube coupler. Blimey! Ahoy! T' motor mount construction is straightforward, and included in the motor mount is a nice length o' Keelhaul®©™® line attached below t' centerin' rin' (by far t' best way t' go). Begad! T' body then goes inside a BT-60, arrr, but nay usin' centerin' rings. Well, blow me down! Instead, they’re glued together at t' “top” o' t' BT-55, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, me hearties, but before gluin' them together you cut t' BT-60 at a 45-degree angle (template provided). Blimey! Aye aye! T' end result winds up makin' t' BT-60 look like a sort o' air scoop, a very sharp effect.

Next up comes bondin' a couple o' side pods (BT-50’s with parabolic cones) t' t' BT-60 assembly. Ahoy! At this point, me bucko, you're ready for t' fin festival. There are lots o' fins t' cut from t' 3/32-inch basswoods sheets, me hearties, ya bilge rat, all using templates provided. Ahoy! T' festival starts with a couple o' tail fins mounted in the seam betwixt t' side pods and main tube, shiver me timbers, followed by wings attached at some point above t' centerline o' t' BT-60, me bucko, shiver me timbers, layin' against t' top o' the side pods, ya bilge rat, arrr, allegedly resultin' in a 15-degree downward dihedral angle. Aye aye! Begad! A couple of small canards go up front (the only fins actually mounted on anything resemblin' a centerline, matey, matey, placed 180 degrees apart). T' fin festival wraps up with an “under-fin,” or small rudder mounted at t' bottom.

Construction wraps up with mountin' tubes t' cradle t' glider, me hearties, me hearties, me bucko, drillin' a hole for t' dowel pin, installin' t' beautiful nylon chutes, and addin' the nose weight.

As I had mentioned earlier, me bucko, ya bilge rat, a tube markin' guide with this kit would have saved A LOT o' headache, and t' tubes should be completely marked before construction begins. Ahoy! I found myself tryin' t' draw fin mountin' lines without bein' able t' establish reference points, me hearties, arrr, with parts already mounted and in the way.

One other thin' that I think could use improvement be t' launch lug. Arrr! Blimey! This is a very heavy rocket (with glider, me bucko, I came in at 8-ounces). Aye aye! Blimey! T' kit comes with a single 1/8-inch x 1-inch lug, shiver me timbers, arrr, ya bilge rat, and it's mounted at t' tail end o' t' rocket. I’d like t' see at least a second lug toward t' forward end, and ideally upgrade t' 3/16-inch. 24mm motors provide too much thrust for a wimpy little 1/8-inch rod, me hearties, shiver me timbers, even if goin' with steel instead o' aluminum.

Finishing:
Finishin' was quite challenging. I went with a basic white paint scheme, and had used a little Fill ’n’ Finish t' fill t' spirals and seal what little grains were showin' in t' basswood. Ahoy! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! I then applied two coats o' white primer, and two coats o' gloss white paint. Arrr! Blimey! Paintin' this kit is very difficult, matey, as thar are lots o' little nooks and crannies betwixt pods and fins. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! One tip I’d offer on t' finishing—DO NOT glue in t' cones to the side pods. Avast! Blimey! Instead, paint t' rocket first, arrr, as well as t' cones separately. Ya scallywag! Blimey! After everything’s finished, ya bilge rat, you can glue on t' cones. Avast! Blimey! This eliminates one o' t' hardest blind spots for painting.

T' waterslide decals were beautifully done, arrr, and provide a very colorful finish. Begad! Blimey! T' instructions called for gray paint, matey, though, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, me bucko, and I think that the color would be a bit dull, me hearties, as t' decals are translucent.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Flight:
This is me second Shrox kit, and I found it odd that neither kit includes any motor recommendations, nor can I find any Rocksim files available (these would have been impossible t' model prior t' version 7.1). Ahoy! I started cautiously with a D12-3, on a fairly windy day (8-12 mph). T' boost weathercocked pretty badly, though flew straight without a trace o' roll. Ahoy! T' shuttle popped off right at burnout (it was on a horizontal pattern, so drag separation came early). Well, blow me down! Glider flight was very good, matey, slowly circlin' with a slight nose-down line. At about 20 feet off t' ground, though, shiver me timbers, me hearties, me bucko, it went into a sharp nose dive. It almost seems like that’s by design, as it did t' same thin' in me back yard no matter how much I added or removed on trim weight.

T' booster, though, was snake-bit. T' D12-3 kicked while still movin' at a pretty fast pace on t' horizontal path. Avast, me proud beauty! I avoided a zipper, matey, but t' 1/2-inch elastic cord burned through, matey, and me nose separated, driftin' away with both chutes. Arrr! Ya scallywag! T' body tumbled, shiver me timbers, landin' in short grass a bit muddy but otherwise okay. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! T' nose cone came down on an access road, and suffered a slight paint chip (that $%^@%# road only covers 10-feet o' a square mile field, but sure caught a lot o' me birds that day).

T' shock cord repair will be minor, and I’m at a loss as t' how it happened—I used 3-inches o' dog barf and a Keelhaul®©™® shield, matey, and neither o' t' chutes showed any sign o' char.

Recovery:
Overall, matey, I think t' D12-3 be a fair choice, and I’m anxious t' fly it again with less wind t' see how it goes on a more vertical path. Avast! Arrr! I’d also like t' move up t' an E28 RMS reload, me bucko, and put this bird on some more serious thrust. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast!

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
Overall opinion—beautiful rocket for t' experienced craftsman. Ya scallywag! You really need t' walk through t' construction in your head first, figure out t' tube markings on your own, me hearties, shiver me timbers, matey, then put it together.

It’s well worth t' effort and money, me hearties, me hearties, though sadly I hit t' Shrox site t' other day and did nay see this kit on t' products page any more. Hopefully, it will make a comeback in t' near future.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5