Brief:
Futuristic, shiver me timbers, Sci Fi, arrr, Transport, Parachute Recovery, arrr, 24mm motor mount.

T' Explorer Aquarius is t' me mind one o' t' nicest lookin' rockets t' have come from Estes. Begad! Somethin' about the design says t' me, "this could really happen".

I scored mine from eBay and was too intimidated t' start it for a long time. Begad! Blimey! Now t' time has come and I opened it up. It looks t' be much easier than I thought it would be.

Construction:

Construction began by locatin' t' 24mm motor tube and markin' off t' distance for t' engine hook and the centerin' rings. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! I thought about leavin' out t' hook in order t' accommodate long E's but decided I would likely use AT E's instead. Avast! A slit was made for t' hook and t' hook be inserted. Blimey! T' instructions said nothin' bout wrappin' it but I went ahead and added some electrical tape.

T' centerin' rings were then sanded a bit on their inner surface, arrr, slipped onto t' motor tube up t' t' marks and glued into place with yellow glue. Avast! Fillets were applied t' both sides o' t' rings. Aye aye! I found no thrust rin' in the package and found no mention o' one in t' instructions but figured t' rocket would last longer with one so I cut the end off an old E9-6 casin' and glued it into place over t' engine hook.

At first glance, I thought that I would have t' cut t' fins from sheet material usin' a provided template. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Not bein' able t' find such a template I took a closer look at t' instructions and, sure enough, arrr, it mentioned die cut fins. Arrr! Blimey! I took a closer look at me balsa sheet and found that it should have been die cut but t' impression was so faint that I really had t' search for it. Aye aye! Blimey! T' fins were sanded loose and then stacked and sanded t' even them up.

T' next step in t' instructions be t' start assemblin' all those tanks that give this rocket such a distinctive appearance. There are 6 long tanks and 12 shorter ones. Begad! Well, blow me down! All are assembled t' same way. Cardboard end caps are removed from t' die cut stock and glued onto t' ends o' t' tank tubes. Aye aye! Arrr! I used white glue for this. When t' long tanks were done, I got started on t' shorter ones. After 2 sessions, I finally finished t' tanks.

T' kit assumes t' use o' a tri-fold shock cord mount, somethin' I detest. Avast! Since t' next step involved inserting t' motor mount, I went ahead and tied a length o' Keelhaul®©™® around t' motor tube just abaft o' t' forward centerin' rin' and added a yellow glue fillet. When t' fillet had dried, arrr, I cut a notch in t' centerin' rin' t' accommodate t' Keelhaul®©™® and then fished t' Keelhaul®©™® through t' motor tube t' keep it out o' t' way for t' time being.

I used a long swab and white glue and put a rin' around t' inside o' t' aft end o' t' body tube. I then pushed t' motor mount part o' t' way in and applied a second rin' o' glue just inside t' tail end. Avast, me proud beauty! T' mount was pushed the rest o' t' way in. Begad! I was supposed t' be flush with t' end o' t' body tube but I left about 1/4" hangin' out the back.

A wrap around alignment guide was cut from t' instruction sheet and taped into place on t' body tube with one of t' fin marks aligned with t' motor hook. Blimey! A pencil was then used t' transfer t' various lines t' t' tube, arrr, arrr, t' guide removed and t' lines extended with an Estes angle. Aye aye! Avast! A tapestry needle be then used t' make a series o' perforations in t' body tube where t' fin would sit in an attempt t' let t' glue from some "rivets" and strengthen the joint.

I began t' apply t' fins usin' yellow glue and a double glue joint. Begad! I added them one at a time, lettin' them dry thoroughly before rotatin' and applyin' t' next one. Ya scallywag! Over t' course o' a few days, me hearties, all three were applied. Begad! Ahoy! After lettin' all three dry, I filleted each joint with Titebond Moldin' and Trim glue.

T' fillets got almost a week t' dry before I had a chance t' work on this rocket again. Aye aye! When I did, I applied Elmer's filler t' t' balsa because fillin' and sandin' would be easier at this point than later.

T' filler had a day t' dry and then was sanded down. Ahoy! Well, blow me down! I took this opportunity t' also smooth t' edges o' t' fins as well.

T' lines for t' tanks had earlier been marked with a pencil and extended t' length o' t' BT. Avast! A line was also run t' length o' t' tanks and t' end caps o' t' tanks were marked along with t' back edge o' t' main body tube. This be t' aid in alignment as t' tanks were mounted. Ya scallywag! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! Both t' tanks and t' BT were also perforated along t' lines with a tapestry needle t' promote t' formation o' glue rivets. Aye aye! White glue be then used with a double glue joint to mount t' first tank. Begad! Aye aye! When it was in place, matey, me bucko, t' tick marks on t' end caps were used t' line up with t' line on the BT.

T' aquarius languished for a long while with just 2 o' t' long tanks in place until I got some free time after Christmas services. Blimey! Begad! Blimey! I then put in a concerted effort t' get t' tanks cranked out. Blimey! All o' t' long ones were put in place in t' wee hours o' Christmas morning. Begad! Aye aye! Blimey! I wasn't scared o' frightenin' off Santa because me wife assured me that I had been very bad.

Accordin' t' t' instructions, arrr, t' next rin' o' tanks was supposed t' be mounted 3/4" in front o' t' long ones so I marked each o' t' lines, perforated t' BT and tank tubes and applied some white glue for t' double joint. When that was dry, shiver me timbers, I began t' apply t' apply t' tanks with just a trace more glue. I managed t' get them t' line up pretty well.

It was t' last set o' tanks where I noticed some trouble. T' instructions indicated a gap o' 3/4" between each set but that would have left t' front tanks hangin' out ahead o' t' body. Begad! Blimey! Blimey! I went back and checked t' spacin' I had already done and it worked out correctly but thar still was nay room for a 3/4" gap. Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! At this point, though I was committed and settled for settin' t' front row flush with t' front o' t' body tube. Arrr! T' effect is nay awful but I would have preferred equidistant spacing.

T' nosecone o' t' Aquarius comes connected t' a plastic nozzle intended for display purposes and has t' be separated. Avast, me proud beauty! This was done with an X-Acto saw. T' Keelhaul®©™® be then fished back through t' body tube and instead o' usin' t' provided rubber band, ya bilge rat, I tied on a length o' sewing elastic. Arrr! This was then tied t' t' nose cone. Avast! This let me put things in place and see a preview o' what be t' come. Aye aye! Ahoy! It wasn't too bad.

T' Aquarius almost went t' paint when I realized that it did nay have a launch lug. I dug through t' box and found t' 3/16" lug. Avast, me proud beauty! T' instructions said t' cut it in half so that is what I did. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! T' lugs were then glued to two tanks in line, ya bilge rat, one on t' bottom tank and one on t' top. Ahoy! A piece o' rod be used t' maintain alignment.

With that, assembly was done and it be time t' start finishing.

Finishing:
I normally "prime" me rockets with Kilz, matey, although that is nay a true primer. Ya scallywag! I decided t' use a real primer for this one because Kilz tends t' leave a rough surface that needs sandin' and sanding t' complex geometry o' this rocket would have taken this project from "fun" t' "WORK". Begad! I decided t' use Dupli-Color white primer. Begad! Begad! As such, shiver me timbers, me bucko, me hearties, I set it up in t' booth and started spraying.

After t' priming, shiver me timbers, t' rocket got 2 coats o' gloss white.

Maskin' for t' canopy was one o' me concerns right from t' beginning. Based on some advice from TRF, arrr, I ordered some liquid maskin' film and decided t' give that a try. Well, blow me down! Well, me hearties, blow me down! T' instructions recommended sprayin' that on but I have not t' equipment for that and a brush it would have t' be. Avast! After mixin' it well, ya bilge rat, matey, I began t' brush it on thick, arrr, as per the instructions. Aye aye! Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! T' instructions also recommend 2 coats so a few hours later, a second be applied. T' film is supposed t' be trimmed back usin' a razor knife t' reveal that part where paint is desired. Aye aye! Unfortunately at this step my laziness got t' better o' me. Avast, matey, me proud beauty! My X-acto blades were at me shop and I was too lazy t' go and get them. Begad! Avast! That meant that t' blade I did t' trimmin' with be too dull. Avast, me proud beauty! As a result, some o' t' maskin' that be desired t' remain in place began t' lift. Avast! T' fix for this was simple. I just slathered on some more o' t' maskin' film.

A day later, ya bilge rat, t' stuff be dry and I used a new X-Acto blade t' reveal t' dome. I then used some maskin' tape and foil t' conceal t' rest o' t' upper body and prepare t' rocket for spraying.

I be goin' t' paint t' dome either a very dark blue or a gloss black but as I be lookin' through me paints in stock, matey, me eye was caught by a metallic purple. Arrr! Ahoy! I had bought it a couple o' years ago because I REALLY liked t' color on t' cap. I have used it on several projects but it has never come out lookin' quite right. Aye aye! I understand t' reasons on some o' me earlier efforts now and this time I be sprayin' over white and nay some other color. Ahoy! I HAD t' try it again because I still really like t' color on t' lid.

I built t' color up in light coats, me hearties, lettin' each one dry before applyin' t' next. Avast! Blimey! I put a total o' 4 coats on and each one looked deeper and richer than t' one before but it never got t' where I wanted it. I stopped because I had finally used up t' last o' t' paint, shiver me timbers, which may have been one o' me original purchases when I got back into rocketry.

T' paint got a day t' dry and then I had a shockin' revelation. I had long thought that in t' world o' rocketry, it was gliders that were me nemesis. Begad! Aye aye! This project reminded me that t' real bugabear is masking. It does nay matter what method I use, me bucko, matey, ya bilge rat, t' paint always seeps. When I removed t' maskin' and t' film I saw that I had failed with the tape, failed with t' foil and failed with t' liquid film.

To retrieve t' situation, me hearties, I started by sandin' down t' purple splotches. Blimey! This did nay remove t' color all the way but would make coverin' it with white much easier and remove some o' t' unwanted texture. I then masked off the canopy area with tape. Ahoy! T' capsule then got sprayed with t' same white I had used before, ya bilge rat, matey, receivin' 2 coats.

When I peeled back t' tape, it looked much better than before. Blimey! Blimey! It was nay as I had originally hoped but I could live with it. It was ready for decals.

T' decals really help t' make this kit. I used t' original set from t' kit which meant that they were fairly brittle. Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! I should have known better but I did nay do anythin' t' strengthen them. Well, blow me down! Well, me hearties, blow me down! Blimey! T' instructions for t' kit give the decal placements with two illustrations, arrr, neither o' which is particularly clear. Ahoy! Blimey! I wound up usin' t' instructions and t' photos on t' box t' aid in placement. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' order in which I placed t' decals was based primarily on what was easiest t' access as I cut them out. Avast! Blimey! I started with one o' t' smaller solar panels. Arrr! Well, blow me down! Blimey! It cracked in t' upper right corner. Begad! Ahoy! Blimey! I almost had it positioned so t' t' lines matched up when t' decal decided t' bite and refused t' move any more.

Next up came t' US flag on t' same fin that received t' solar panel. From there, arrr, I applied t' 2 "United States Star Probe" decals on t' forward most o' t' dorsal tanks. Well, blow me down! After that, I went ahead and applied t' large solar panels on either side o' t' dorsal fin. I used a piece o' t' decal backin' t' poke t' bottom down betwixt the tubes.

Each o' t' tanks on t' rocket gets a decal o' a red stripe and a number. All o' t' top level o' tanks are numbered "29". Aye aye! T' middle level are marked "22" and t' bottom "25". Avast! For some reason, I place one o' t' top row and did nay do any others for a while. Arrr! Inexplicably, shiver me timbers, I then turned t' model around and finished puttin' t' solar panels on t' other sides o' t' fins and added t' other US flag. After that was done, I finished applyin' t' tank numbers t' t' top level. Avast! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! T' only place I ran into any trouble is on t' tank with t' lug on it. Avast! I don't know where I went wrong in t' lug placement but I had obviously put it right where a decal was needed. I placed it as best I could.

In order t' keep from handlin' all o' t' freshly placed decals at t' front end o' t' rocket, I next cut out and applied t' yellow numbers "17" along side t' flags on t' tail fins. Each side o' t' capsule got an "Aero Dynamics" logo. Arrr! T' back o' t' capsule then got a decal representin' hatch work, etc.

At this point I took a break overnight and let t' stuff that had been applied set up. Arrr! When I got back t' it the next night, I added t' numbers on t' middle row o' tanks and then t' t' bottom row. T' aft end o' t' bottom row also got a series o' broad yellow stripes. T' middle row o' tanks also got some decals identifyin' them as t' center section. Aye aye! After that it be just a matter o' a few small detail decals that mostly went on fine. Begad! Begad! T' exceptions t' the "fine" part were t' last three. Avast! They were 3 blue trapezoids t' be applied t' t' bottom o' t' capsule. Ya scallywag! Each one cracked and each one gripped before t' damage could be rectified.

That completed t' buildin' and finishin' o' t' Explorer Aquarius. Ya scallywag! Arrr! All that was left was t' fly t' thing.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Flight:
It seemed like I was out o' luck on flyin' this one. Ya scallywag! My regular club launch got rained out and then t' make up launch got rained out. Begad! Aye aye! I pinned me hopes on an Amateur Rocketeers o' Texas Freedom launch but then it got canceled t' day before t' big event when t' club lost t' field. Arrr! Some last minute arrangements were made, though, and me regular club had a SNAP launch and t' Aquarius was t' first o' me rockets t' get tried.

I started small with a C11-3. T' day had started out calm but suddenly got windy while we were talkin' instead of launchin' and I didn't want t' walk too far. Aye aye! I loaded a 15" nylon chute and took it t' t' pad. Some did not remember this as a classic and thought it be a cool new design.

Ignition was instantaneous and t' rocket lifted off nicely. It be goin' fast enough t' be stable but it was slow enough t' appreciate as it climbed. Aye aye! Begad! It coasted a bit and started t' slow. Blimey! For t' first time ever, I was able to capture t' actual ejection event. T' chute deployed and it looked like it was goin' t' be a perfect, albeit nay very high, flight. Avast, me proud beauty! T' make things better, t' wind seemed t' have died just as it boosted and it be goin' t' land pretty close. When I walked over t' get t' rocket, everythin' seemed fine as it lay on t' ground. Aye aye! When I picked it up, though, it seemed as if one o' t' fins was less straight than I had remembered. When I wiggled it, I found that it had popped loose in spite o' t' glue rivets. Blimey! This one would need a repair before I could fly it again.

When I got a chance t' take a better look at t' fin in t' shop, I was glad t' see that t' damage was nay too substantial. Aye aye! It basically amounted t' t' glue and fillet comin' up for part o' t' length o' t' fin. I did some scrapin' betwixt t' fin and t' BT t' roughen things up and provide for better glue adhesion. T' fin was then pushed back into place t' check for fit. Ya scallywag! White glue was then applied along t' root edge and t' fin be pressed into place for good. Begad! Blimey! In order t' keep things straight and in place as t' glue dried, shiver me timbers, a rin' o' maskin' tapes was applied.

It then took quite a while before t' Aquarius got back into t' field. Aye aye! At me club's May launch, shiver me timbers, matey, though, it had its chance. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! I loaded it with a D12-3 and set it out on t' rod. Aye aye! As I be gettin' ready t' launch, me hearties, though, matey, something looked screwy. Begad! T' rocket was canted. Well, blow me down! I went out t' t' rack t' take a closer look. Blimey! It was soon apparent that t' lower lug had broken free. Arrr! Arrr! I did nay have any CA handy but another guy at t' launch did (Thanks Ken!) and a quick repair was effected. Avast, me proud beauty! After t' hasty repair, me bucko, t' Aquarius was taken back out t' t' rack and hooked up again.

Liftoff on t' D12 be nice. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! It was nay slow but neither be it a head jerker. Arrr! T' boost be fairly straight. Avast! It turned slightly into t' wind but nay a great deal into t' wind. Begad! T' rocket coasted fairly well too, although nay for very long since a 3 second delay had been installed. Aye aye! Arrr! T' chute deployed but did nay seem t' come all t' way out for a few moments, matey, leadin' me t' worry that it had been hung up. Arrr! Then t' chute seemed t' open up all t' way and it was only a matter o' waitin' for t' rocket t' drift on down. Avast! I am happy t' report that thar was no damage.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
I like this rocket. I think its a shame that it is OOP since it is distinctive and different from so many out there. Aye aye! I will gladly have it included in me fleet for, me bucko, arrr, hopefully, a long time t' come.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5

Other:
Persons wishin' t' see t' liftoff o' this rocket on t' D12 are invited t' check out this video: http://www.flickr.com/photos/23694991@N03/4903280722/ Thanks t' Glen Larsen