Brief:
This is a scale model o' t' new US anti-missile missile, arrr, essentially it's an update o' t' older Patriot missile used in desert storm in t' 1990s. Aye aye! T' new missile has 108 small rocket motors t' push it into an incomin' missile when it is close--COOL! This kit is a single-stage kit that uses one long BT-60 body tube and flies on 24mm D and E size motors. Avast! It uses an 18" mylar parachute and a metal motor hook for retention. Begad! It also includes a spacer for usin' the shorter D motors in t' motor mount. Avast! Blimey! This is me fourth Rocket Pad kit and I got it on eBay. Avast, me proud beauty! It comes packed in t' standard plastic bag like most kits these days along with a big color picture o' t' completed kit on t' kit bag card.

Construction:
T' kit uses one 34" long main body tube. T' spirals are almost not there, makin' for an easy finish! Blimey! T' motor tube is an 11" long piece of BT-50. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! There is a metal motor hook for retention, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, a lower centerin' rin' of laser-cut fiber, and an upper rin' o' plywood. Aye aye! Blimey! There are 8 pre-cut basswood fins (4 large and 4 small) that require just a little sandin' before use. Well, blow me down! Blimey! For recovery, it uses a Keelhaul®©™® cord mounted t' t' top centerin' rin' and a 1/4" white shock cord tied to the Keelhaul®©™® cord and t' black plastic nose cone, ya bilge rat, along with an 18" mylar parachute from ASP. Aye aye! T' kit also includes waterslide decals. Ya scallywag!

T' instructions on this kit were fine, however, I had seen on other reviews that t' instructions had some problems, which was t' case with t' first 2 RP kits I built, ya bilge rat, and that they were in t' process o' fixin' them up. Arrr! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! This appears to be one o' t' post-revision kits! Blimey! T' instructions included big pictures to help in assembly. Begad! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! This is a skill level 3 kit, me bucko, me bucko, so you should have built a few kits before but it was nay all that hard. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I used Elmer's wood glue for the entire construction. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Assembly was like most kits, matey, you work on t' motor mount first, me bucko, startin' with t' Keelhaul®©™® cord bein' tied t' two holes in t' upper plywood centerin' rin' and you put some glue on both sides o' t' rin' where t' cord is. Avast, me proud beauty! Then mark t' body tube with t' enclosed fin markin' guide, me bucko, glue in t' motor mount in t' tube, match sand t' fins so they are all t' same, arrr, attach them, mount t' 3/16" launch lug, me bucko, me hearties, put some glue fillets on t' joints, arrr, assembly t' parachute, and connect up t' shock cord t' t' nose cone. Begad! Arrr! T' body tube on a lot o' large LPR kits have you couplin' smaller tubes together t' make a large one, but the single 34" tube in t' PAC-3 eliminates that! Also, t' nice basswood and body tube made t' kit really stand out from others I've built. Avast, me proud beauty! T' soft clay used for t' nose weight be pushed in per t' instructions and has held up for 5 flights with no problems.

Finishing:
I used Aero-Gloss brand sandin' sealer t' seal up t' basswood fins with a couple o' coats. Aye aye! Blimey! T' spirals on t' body tube were so slight, I did nay bother with fillin' them and t' paint took care o' them! I painted t' rocket with white spray paint, shiver me timbers, except for t' nose cone, which I painted black. T' decals were a nice weight material, me bucko, nay that thin decals you some time see that rip! They took about 60 seconds t' start t' slide off & went on fine. There were no problems in t' finishing, shiver me timbers, all straight forward.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
T' first flight was with a C11-5 on a windy day. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Blimey! I did nay want t' use a larger motor till I knew what it would do, matey, shiver me timbers, but t' flight was dead straight, like it was on a strin' t' guide it! Blimey! I used some dog barf for waddin' by the way. T' wind came up bilge-suckin' so I waited for a better day for t' next flight. Once t' weather was more cooperative, shiver me timbers, me hearties, I used a D12-5 for another great flight! My brother thought that it would nay be stable since t' fins are only 1" wide, but it flies unbelievably straight! Blimey! T' last flight was with an E9-8 and it went impressively high! Blimey! I like t' sound o' Es and this is one stable rocket!

Recovery:
T' recovery be great. Blimey! Ya scallywag! T' 18" chute brought it down at a nice rate without damage. Begad! Our field is hard with very short grass but t' rocket was fine. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! Some people like t' Keelhaul®©™® past t' top o' t' tube and others prefer it inside t' tube, but here it's past t' top o' t' tube and I've had no problem with it. Arrr! T' recovery system works as it should. Blimey! Begad! T' end o' t' motor is just past t' end o' t' body tube so thar be no burnin' o' fins or tube. Well, blow me down!

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
This kit from Rocket Pad is a vast improvement over t' me first two that I got back in January 2004. Begad! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! This one be great and I look forward t' buildin' and flyin' more o' their kits in t' future. Ahoy! They are offerin' some unique kits with some very original designs that you don't see with most vendors.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5