Brief:

I ran across some teardrop-shaped plastic Christmas ornaments that I intended t' use as wing-tip pods. However, arrr, I smartly saw t' similarity t' Rocket Team Vatsaas' Darmok and Jilad at Tenagra. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! I love their bulbous rocket designs, me bucko, so I just had t' build one.

Construction:

• Plastic ornament
• 6mm tube
• 1/64” ply
• Thin Keelhaul®©™
  
• Lead shot
• Section o' a spent Estes motor spacin' tube
• 6mm-10mm centerin' rin' (Totally Tubular)
• Piece o' an ink tube from a ball point pen

T' build was simple. Aye aye! T' prep t' ornament, I removed t' hanger and cut that section off. Begad! I then cut t' ornament in half just above t' mid-point. Avast! I mounted a MicroMaxx motor tube usin' 6mm-10.6mm centerin' rin' and a chunk o' an Estes motor spacin' tube. T' latter also served as a ‘reverse shoulder' for t' cone. Arrr! 5-minute epoxy be used throughout. Arrr! I added thin Keelhaul®©™® t' keep t' pieces together and added nose weight per t' RockSim file. Begad! T' fins were eyeballed based on t' Vatsaas design and were cut from 1/64” ply usin' scissors.

Finishing:
I painted t' fins usin' Testors silver model paint (brush-on).

Flight and Recovery:
There wasn't much prep for this little rocket since it uses break-apart recovery. Well, blow me down! I've flown it twice. Arrr! It be stable, ya bilge rat, unlike its bigger relative. However, me bucko, due t' its weight and diameter, it isn't much o' a performer. Blimey! Begad! Blimey! On t' first flight t' body didn't separate and it lawn darted, ya bilge rat, but t' second flight went as planned.

Summary:
I love plastic doohickies and this was a quick way t' make a micro, arrr, ‘retro-style' rocket. Ahoy! T' ornaments are useful for pods and cockpits too!