Pic Courtesy o' Yank

Materials:
All parts were accounted for, me bucko, except for a Yank Enterprises decal, which was advertised but nay included. Ya scallywag! As this was a scale rocket, I had no intention of usin' it anyway, so this was no loss. Begad! Ya scallywag! T' kit consisted o' 2 lengths o' 3" flexible phenolic body tube (34" & 31" long), one o' them slotted for t' aft fins. Avast, me proud beauty! T' forward BT be supposed t' be marked for t' forward fins per t' included instructions, me hearties, matey, but was nay (no big deal, as it's nay that difficult t' make a fin guide with any graphics program). Arrr! Also included were 1 30" ripstop nylon parachute, arrr, 20 feet o' 9/16" tubular nylon, 2 quick-links, 2 eyebolts w/ washers, matey, tube coupler, one birch ply bulkhead, 2 baltic birch ply centerin' rings, a 38mm motor mount, ogive nose cone, me bucko, shiver me timbers, and 8 1/8" 5-ply baltic birch fins. A couple o' t' aft fins were slightly warped, but I attribute this t' t' kit probably sittin' in t' hobby store basement for a considerable amount o' time, as t' maskin' tape also left marks that no amount o' sandin' would remove. All parts were very high quality and fit well together, although with an assembled weight o' 60 oz, matey, I thought 3/16" or 1/4" ply would have been more appropriate for t' aft fins, as they sweep back past t' aft end o' t' rocket.

Materials score: 4 out o' 5
Pros: Very sturdy BTs and nice hardware
Cons: Aft fins are a little thin and t' parachute might be a size small (the website says they now ship 36" chutes) for t' weight o' t' rocket. Ya scallywag!

Construction:
Instructions were thorough if small, with one exception. Aye aye! They did nay specify at t' appropriate step exactly how far forward from t' BT junction t' put the forward fins. Well, blow me down! I guessed at 1" and after lookin' at t' scale finishing directions, matey, arrr, I believe this t' be correct. Ahoy! I decided t' go with an anti-zipper design as detailed in InfoCentral on Rocketry Online, me bucko, which changed my construction considerably from t' directions.

I drilled eight 5/16" holes in t' bulkhead, me bucko, which was pre-drilled for the eyebolt assembly. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! I attached t' eyebolt assembly (washers were included) and epoxied it into t' coupler tube with a heavy fillet around t' outside. Blimey!

T' forward BT needed t' be slotted, and took a bit o' time, me hearties, as thar are a lot o' layers t' cut and peel. Avast, me proud beauty! Since I would be cementin' t' coupler t' the lower BT instead o' t' upper, ya bilge rat, I cut t' slots a touch short and pushed the fins through t' back in order t' get a very tight fit before runnin' fillets along t' outside joints with 30 min epoxy.

On t' t' motor mount. Aye aye! Arrr! After cementin' t' forward centerin' rin' 1/4" from t' front o' t' MMT as directed and cementin' it t' t' BT, I realized that I should have gotten a 3rd centerin' rin' t' add right in front o' the fins. Begad! T' instructions said t' cement t' aft centerin' rin' immediately and to simply run a bead o' epoxy t' t' fin root in order t' affix t' fins t' the MMT. Arrr! Arrr! I chose t' run fillets instead and held off on cementin' t' aft centering rin' until that was done. Avast, me proud beauty! Since I didn't have a CR at t' front o' t' fins to serve as a dam for t' forward end o' t' fillets, arrr, I used 5 min epoxy for the internal fillets. Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! I then used 1.5 oz glass t' reinforce t' fins and ran some very heavy outside fillets usin' 30 min. Avast! Begad! epoxy.

After puttin' blind T-nuts in for retention, I saw that I didn't have a whole lot o' room t' fillet t' aft centerin' rin' t' both t' MMT and the outer BT, so I decided t' just go with an epoxy well. Aye aye! Well, blow me down! T' protect t' T-nut opening, arrr, instead o' usin' tape and redrillin' through t' epoxy, I cut some plastic drinkin' straws down t' size, fitted them over t' mountin' screws and screwed them down until t' straws were snug against t' threads. Well, blow me down! Once the epoxy set, matey, it was easy t' simply pull t' straws out, leavin' a hole for the mountin' screws. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad!

Then, I cemented t' coupler t' t' aft BT with t' bulkhead facin' forward. Since I was usin' t' nosecone for t' forward end o' t' shock cord, shiver me timbers, arrr, I covered the other eyebolt with epoxy and inserted it into t' hole in t' bottom o' the NC. Well, blow me down! Begad! I then cut a hole in t' shoulder o' t' NC and used a syringe t' insert an epoxy well, which I hoped would ensure that t' eyebolt stayed in place. Blimey!

Now, me hearties, this kit has a very interestin' method for attachin' your shock cord to the eyebolt. Blimey! T' instructions recommend loopin' t' cord through t' eyebolt and back onto itself (I did this on t' nosecone end). Then, me bucko, approximately 4" o' overlap is completely saturated with 30 min epoxy and wrapped with tape. I chose electrical tape for this process and it comes out very strong. Another loop at t' other end is completed and will be hooked onto a quicklink at t' other end. Begad! Since I wasn't goin' t' be modifyin' this kit any further, I sanded t' nosecone shoulder and epoxied it t' t' top o' t' rocket. Ya scallywag! A quicklink on t' bulkhead eyebolt and on t' parachute complete t' recovery harness. Rail buttons were substituted for t' enclosed launch lugs, matey, matey, as I was told it's easier t' get a rail than t' right size rod at a launch. Avast!

Construction score: 4 out o' 5
Pros: Everythin' fits well together.
Cons: Slottin' flexible phenolic with a hobby knife isn't me idea o' fun. Begad!

Finishing:
I had filled t' spirals with cheap spackle prior t' construction, so all that was needed at this point was several layers o' gray Krylon primer t' fill in what t' spackle missed and a coat o' white Krylon primer on top t' guard against colors darkening. Begad! Due t' t' thickness o' t' flexible phenolic BT, there was a little additional fillin' t' be done from t' top o' t' BT t' the nose cone prior t' priming. All o' this was easily accomplished, and t' primer took readily t' all sanded surfaces. Ya scallywag! Krylon paint be then used throughout for a scale paint job that drew several compliments at t' launch site. Blimey! Gotta love Krylon! You really have t' work at it t' make that stuff run. Well, blow me down! Avast!

Finishin' score: 5 out o' 5
Pros: T' scale paint scheme is really neat and is a crowd-pleaser.
Cons: Slight fillin' needed betwixt t' nosecone and t' body tube. Avast! Blimey!

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Pic Courtesy o' Yank

Flight:
T' model weighed in at t' launch almost exactly at 60 oz. Well, blow me down! dry, ya bilge rat, even with the 45" chute that I substituted for t' 30" enclosed chute and a Transolve TransBeep as well. Well, matey, this was me Level 1 certification flight on an H242T, shiver me timbers, as well as me first "real" project beyond Aerotech, shiver me timbers, so needless t' say I had plenty o' nerves here. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! There was a slight wind (maybe 5 mph) which seemed t' be slightly affectin' most o' t' flights that morning. Since t' anti-zipper design caused about 4 margins o' stability with t' motor loaded, matey, I decided t' launch vertically t' minimize weathercockin' instead of savin' myself a walk. Avast, me proud beauty! When t' button was pressed, ya bilge rat, t' rocket went perfectly vertical, matey, with zero weathercocking. Blimey! Begad! Deployment be perfectly at apogee on a 10 second delay. Ahoy! Avast! RockSim said this would be at about 1700 feet at this weight and with t' modifications, but it honestly looked higher than that. Ya scallywag! Since I be a little paranoid about t' drag separation and deployment, me hearties, me bucko, shiver me timbers, I placed t' chute about 6 feet from t' aft part o' t' rocket, ya bilge rat, which I think may have been a mistake. Begad! Well, blow me down! I suffered some minor fin damage, which, I now believe may have been due t' t' front end o' t' rocket hittin' t' fin durin' deployment. Aye aye! Avast! All told, it was a fantastic flight, and was good for me level 1.

Pros: Straight as an arrow in t' slight wind
Cons: Can't really think o' any. Begad! Ahoy!

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
This thin' builds like a tank, despite bein' as long as it is. Arrr! Flies beautifully on t' 242 and I can't wait t' up it a touch t' t' I357. Ya scallywag! This is a great certification kit, me hearties, me hearties, arrr, despite its length, as it's tough as nails with a little fin reinforcement. Arrr! Well, blow me down! Had I nay cemented t' nose cone in, matey, I would wager that it could be modified for dual deployment and easily stand up t' a level 2 flight as well. Well, blow me down!

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5